6.9 | / 10 |
Users | 4.0 | |
Reviewer | 4.0 | |
Overall | 4.0 |
To prolong her youth, medieval countess Elisabeth Bathory sends out her lover to find likely young female donors of blood for her to bathe in.
Starring: Ingrid Pitt, Nigel Green, Lesley-Anne Down, Peter Jeffrey, Patience CollierHorror | 100% |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 1.66:1
Original aspect ratio: 1.66:1
English: DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 (48kHz, 24-bit)
English
50GB Blu-ray Disc
Two-disc set (1 BD, 1 DVD)
DVD copy
Region A (locked)
Movie | 3.5 | |
Video | 4.0 | |
Audio | 4.0 | |
Extras | 4.0 | |
Overall | 4.0 |
“Countess Dracula” is a confusing title for this 1971 feature, as traditional images of fangs, bloodsucking, and undead majesty aren’t included in the story. A Hammer Film production, the picture eschews gothic severity to portray a unique panic tied to the aging process, with the titular character not interested in drinking blood, only out to bathe in the stuff. Details, people. While “Countess Dracula” runs out of drama after the hour mark, this is an engaging effort from director Peter Sasdy (“Hands of the Ripper”), who wisely plays up the exploitation aspects of the production to avoid answering questions, keeping the film more invested in a dark hunt for virgin flesh as it teases strange fairy tale elements, though, overall, it’s executed with enough exposed flesh and growling jealousies to keep it engaging in a B-movie manner.
The AVC encoded image (1.66:1 aspect ratio) presentation brings a healthy amount of detail to this gauzily-shot movie. Make-up effects on Pitt alone are worth a view, offering a full appreciation of the aging particulars, with HD bringing out the gruesome textures of the senior nightmare. Set interiors are also defined, along with costumes, which retain their fibrous appeal. The film's nudity and violence is handled with care as well, allowing for an appreciation of gore and other exploitative elements. Colors are strong and balanced, carrying strength with dresses and exterior greenery, while red blood pops accordingly. Print displays some damage, including mild flicker, scratches, and speckling, but there's little to disturb the viewing experience, while grain is managed with care, only exploding in intensity during one forest excursion. Blacks are largely communicative, but crush is visible on occasion. Overall, it's a handsome presentation that makes "Countess Dracula" look fresh again.
The 2.0 DTS-HD MA sound mix carries some minor inconsistencies, with brief fluctuations in volume tripping up the flow of the track, though it's hardly cause for concern. Dialogue exchanges are quite solid, with a crisp read of accents and dramatic intensity, allowing the genre's preference for hysterics room to breathe as lows and highs are contained. Scoring offers only a limited reach, but the definition of instrumentation and balance of the music with thespian activity is quite good, preserving the morbid mood. Hiss is detected, but never distracting, and atmospherics carry satisfactory weight, preserving castle creeps and the agitation of village condemnation, with adequate group separation.
The trouble with "Countess Dracula" is that there's barely enough incident to fill 93 minutes of screentime. The film tuckers out after an hour, failing to charge up for a grand finale, waiting for the last possible moment to goose the audience with some type of resolution (and an explanation of the title). The feature isn't consistently macabre, losing pace the longer it has to tend to the particulars of the crime. However, the basics are covered well by Sasdy, who delivers an interesting take on this devil's pact plot, wisely emphasizing Pitt's allure, his cinematic weapon that gives "Countess Dracula" the bite it deserves.
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