DRACULA from the Universal Legacy Collection (5 films includ
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Movies : Horror : DVD Rip : English
No puns about something to sink your teeth into...just the facts on this collection. (Note: I hard-subtitled the Spanish version with English subs. This version is WELL worth a view.)
From IMDB:
"DRACULA (1931) - After a harrowing ride through the Carpathian mountains in eastern Europe, Renfield enters castle Dracula to finalize the transferral of Carfax Abbey in London to Count Dracula, who is in actuality a vampire. Renfield is drugged by the eerily hypnotic count, and turned into one of his thralls, protecting him during his sea voyage to London. After sucking the blood and turning the young Lucy Weston into a vampire, Dracula turns his attention to her friend Mina Seward, daughter of Dr. Seward who then calls in a specialist, Dr. Van Helsing, to diagnose the sudden deterioration of Mina's health. Van Helsing, realizing that Dracula is indeed a vampire, tries to prepare Mina's fiance, John Harker, and Dr. Seward for what is to come and the measures that will have to be taken to prevent Mina from becoming one of the undead."
"DRACULA'S DAUGHTER (1936) - Professor Von Helsing has done the world a favor by driving a stake through the heart of Count Dracula and thus destroying him. For his trouble, Scotland Yard charges him with murder. Dr. Jeffrey Garth, a psychiatrist, may be able to act as an attorney and defend him in court. But Garth finds he has his own troubles when the Countess Marya Zaleska seeks his help. She wants to be released from her desire to drink the blood of the living. She steals the corpse of her father, Count Dracula, and burns it ritually; but she still wants blood. She'll do anything to free herself of this curse, including kidnapping the baron's daughter who is Dr. Garth's assistant, and thwarting the hopes of her sinister manservant, Sandor."
"SON OF DRACULA (1943) - Count Alucard finds his way from Budapest to the swamps of the Deep South after meeting Katherine Caldwell, of the moneyed Caldwell clan that runs a plantation called Dark Oaks. She's obsessed with occult matters. Who better to guide her through this supernatural world than Count Alucard, whose name no one bothers to spell backwards? No one, that is, except the wily Dr. Brewster, an old family friend. He'll join Professor Lazlo, a specialist in the occult, in fighting this "Alucard" and the woman he's influenced. Or has Katherine influenced him? Meanwhile, Katherine's fiancé, Frank Stanley, will find his courage and his sanity sorely tested when he accidentally shoots Katherine to death, yet finds that she goes on living."
"HOUSE OF DRACULA (1945) - Baron Latos appears to Dr. Edelman in the middle of the night and reveals that he's really Count Dracula. He seeks a cure for his vampirism. A trip to the basement shows that Dracula has already taken the liberty of moving in - there's his coffin, filled with the dirt from his own grave. Dr. Edelman takes this brazenness in stride while refusing to believe in the supernatural. Later, Lawrence Talbot shows up, asking for a cure for his lycanthropy. He can't bear to change into a werewolf one more time. Edelman must save Talbot from a suicide attempt when Talbot throws himself into the ocean and gets swept into a cave. While in the cave, Edelman and Talbot find Frankenstein's monster. Edelman decides to revive him, but Talbot and Edelman's hunchbacked female assistant talk him out of it. Meanwhile, Edelman's other assistant finds herself seduced by Count Dracula; while Edelman finds the evil count has an even more powerful influence over his own life."
From Wikipedia:
"DRACULA (Spanish Version) (1931) - Spanish-language version of the more famous Tod Browning-directed Dracula starring Bela Lugosi.
In the early days of sound, it was common for Hollywood studios to produce Hollywood foreign-language versions of their films (usually in French, Spanish and German) using the same sets, costumes and etc. Unfortunately, most of these foreign language versions no longer exist. The Spanish version of Dracula is an exception. The Spanish language version of Dracula was made by director George Melford who simultaneously filmed the movie using the same sets at night. Of the cast, only Carlos Villarías was permitted to see 'dailies' of the English-language film and was encouraged to be as "Lugosi-like" as possible.
In recent years this version has become more highly praised by some than the English language version. The Spanish crew had the advantage of watching the dailies from the English crew's version when they came in for the evening and they would figure out better camera angles and more effective use of lighting in an attempt to "top" it. As a result, this version's supporters consider it to be much more artistically effective.
The Spanish semiologist Roman Gubern considers that the longer duration allows better development of the plot in spite of the shortened shooting time and smaller budget."
