Rating summary

Movie		2.5
Video		5.0
Audio		4.5
Extras		2.5
Overall		3.0

Mark of the Vampire Blu-ray Movie Review

Style biting.

Reviewed by Randy Miller III October 3, 2022

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer's Mark of the Vampire, starring Lionel Barrymore but really "starring" Bela Lugosi, arrived some four years after the tidal wave of Universal's Classic Monster films began with Dracula. Legosi is unofficialy playing the same character here... or at least a lookalike named Count Mora who, along with his daughter Luna (Carroll Borland), is accused of killing Sir Karell Borotyn (Holmes Herbert) in his home. This obvious bit of recycled character work is meant to draw viewers into an otherwise lukewarm murder mystery that somehow feels like every bit of its 60-minute running time. It's not a standout on anyone's filmography but is worth at least a once-over for genre enthusiasts.

At this story's core is a long-winded argument over the murderer: attending doctor Doskil (Donald Meek) and the late Sir Karell's friend Baron Otto von Zinden (Jean Hersholt) insist those pesky vampires are to blame and bring in occult expert Professor Zelen (Barrymore); this might actually save the life of Karell's daughter Irena (Elizabeth Allan), who is likely the murderer's next target. On the other side of the fence sits Prague Police Inspector Neumann (Lionel Atwill), who rightfully believes an actual living person is responsible. Yet while the delayed reveal of its culprit could have made for a tight little thriller, it's anything but: Mark of the Vampire is a needlessly talky show whose story piles on flimsy red herrings and odd detours, overstuffing its aforementioned running time to the breaking point while skimping out on genuine scares. They do show up eventually, both in the form of a few terrifying reveals and an unnerving amount of creep-out critters including spiders, rats, and bats, etc., some obviously more real than others.

Then there's Mark of the Vampire's twist ending, a turn that feels fun in the moment but doesn't hold up to hindsight; it's preceded by a culprit reveal that's closer to B-grade Scooby-Doo than a genuine "A-ha!" moment.

Stray highlights, which are almost completely due to the magnetic presence of both Lugosi and Borland's characters, include its set design and spooky explorations of the castle grounds, which really do look terrific on Blu-ray thanks to Warner Archive's consistently solid restoration efforts. Yet most of Mark of the Vampire feels like a wasted opportunity, one that was perhaps exacerbated by behind-the-scenes tension and, though not unusual for films of this era, roughly 15-20 minutes of material that was hastily cut due to studio executives buckling to then-new Hayes Code restrictions. (Reports vary on exactly what the trimmed footage entailed, with perhaps the wildest theories being Count Mora's pre-vampire suicide via gunshot and an incestual relationship between Mora and Luna.) Incidentally, this film is a remake of director Tod Browning's own London After Midnight, but we can't compare it to the original: the last remaining copy of that 1927 silent film, along with countless others, was tragically lost in a 1965 MGM vault fire.

On all counts, Mark of the Vampire is a film whose production history and premise are both more intriguing than the film itself, though die-hard fans of Lugosi will certainly value his limited screen time here. Warner Archive's new Blu-ray edition marks the film's first stand-alone release on digital home video and, as usual, looks and sounds fantastic -- this boutique label absolutely doesn't play favorites and even gives lesser catalog titles the royal treatment.

Mark of the Vampire Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

There's not much to say about Mark of the Vampire's sterling 1080p presentation that these robust screenshots don't convey; simply put, they exhibit all the immediate strengths found in similar era-specific titles handled by the reliable boutique label. A trusted source has informed me that the raw material used for this restoration was a 4K scan from the original nitrate negative, which has unsurprisingly yielded strong results in all the expected areas including fine detail, contrast, texture, density, and of course film grain. It's a great-looking show, with perhaps an even more impressive proportional appearance than Universal's recent "Classic Monsters" 4K releases (including, of course, Dracula), with a very stable and extremely clean look that, like most Blu-rays handled by Warner Archive, absolutely pushes format limits with a carefully-managed balance between polish and authenticity. Everything also been smoothly encoded onto a single-layer disc, which is more than enough real estate for the total amount of content here.

Mark of the Vampire Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The same trusted source has informed me that Mark of the Vampire's DTS-HD 2.0 Master Audio mix stems from a 1960s-era safety track positive created from the same original nitrate negative. This split mono presentation sounds remarkably clean and full-bodied for a film quickly approaching its 90th birthday; dialogue is uniformly crisp and clean with minimal hiss and distortion and, though depth and dynamic range are both slightly limited, there's a perceptible contrast between conversations, sound effects, and the score. (There is no credited composer although, according to IMDb, Domenico Savino authored the stock music used in the film.) Either way it's a high-quality effort that exceeds expectations for a show from this era, so I'd imagine long-time fans will appreciate the improvements here.

Optional English (SDH) subtitles are included during the main feature only.

Mark of the Vampire Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

This one-disc release ships in a standard keepcase with poster-themed cover artwork and no inserts. Bonus features are carried over from Warner Bros.' long out-of-print Hollywood Legends of Horror Collection (which was reprinted by Warner Archive in 2016 with no changes to disc content), although two extras are new* to this release.

• Audio Commentary - This vintage feature-length track pairs off UK author/critic Kim Newman and writer/editor Stephen Jones, who fill the hour-long session with plenty of facts and insights about the production; both freely acknowledge its faults but nonetheless frame this as more of a historical appreciation. It's very accessible and should please fans and newcomers alike with an interest in the genre and actors involved.

• A Thrill for Thelma* (18:00) - This 1935 MGM short is new-to-disc (at least paired with the main feature) and offers a bit of pre-show entertainment to set the proper period-specific mood. Remember, kids: crime does not pay, even if you're an attractive woman who just marries the wrong guy, and once you're caught you'll wind up in jail forever. It's technically encoded in HD and looks to be in rough but watchable shape.

• The Calico Dragon* (7:57) - Likewise, this 1935 MGM Happy Harmonies short, though unrelated to the main feature, also helps set the proper tone by aping the style of another studio with mixed results.

• Theatrical Trailer (1:57) - This classic promotional piece prominently features Bela Lugosi, who speaks directly to the audience in character as Dracula Count Mora, and probably sold a lot of tickets back in the day.

Mark of the Vampire Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Mark of the Vampire clearly isn't the Tod Browning film we wanted this Halloween (maybe next year?), as this thin, lukewarm murder mystery skimps on the scares and features limited screen time for its most magnetic cast member, Bela Lugosi. But it's still worth a look for genre enthusiasts and Warner Archive's Blu-ray, as usual, is polished to a shine with robust A/V merits and a few appreciated extras, some of which are pulled from an earlier DVD edition. Despite these strengths, Mark of the Vampire is still a "try before you buy" disc for most audiences.