A Lethal Bath
Based on the legend of Countess Elizabeth Bathory, 1971’s Countess Dracula might lack teeth but it definitely has a nasty bite. There are no vampires to be found in the film, but that doesn’t mean that this movie doesn’t deserve a look. It’s one of the better Hammer films that I’ve watched.
In the film, aging Countess Nadasdy, also known as Countess Bathory, discovers that when she is touched by the blood of a young woman, that part of her body becomes youthful. She decides to bathe in the blood of young women in order to retain her young looks and eventually tricks a lieutenant named Imre Toth into marrying her despite the protests of her secret lover, Captain Dobi. She assumes the identity of her daughter, Countess Ilona, whom she has captured and hidden away in the countryside. Eventually Dobi determines that the countess should be his and his alone and he sets out to destroy the engagement of Bathory and Toth. The body count rises, secrets are exposed, and Toth ultimately becomes trapped in a life-or-death battle with the countess and Dobi in order to save Ilona and all of the other young virgins in the area. Watch Countess Dracula in order to find out what happens!
I really enjoyed this film. Not only were the costumes and sets amazing, the acting was very solid as well. Of special note are the performances by Ingrid Pitt as Countess Bathory, Nigel Green as Dobi, Sandor Eles as Toth, and Patience Collier as the countess’ nurse, Julie. The rest of the cast did great jobs as well. Some of the best supporting characters were portrayed by Maurice Denham, Andria Lawrence, Nike Arrighi, and Peter Jeffrey.
As noted with other PG films such as Vampire Circus, Countess Dracula would most likely receive an R-rating these days. Hammer Films dialed up the sexual content and nudity in their early 70’s films in order to bring in a younger crowd and this film was no exception. Multiple women in the film appeared topless and Ingrid Pitt left little to the imagination when she is discovered bathing in blood during one particular scene. Again, like I mentioned in other reviews in this series, I’m no prude when it comes to nudity. I’m just giving my readers this information in case they plan on having a family horror night and Countess Dracula comes up as one of the picks for the evening.
At the risk of sounding like a dirty old man, I must admit that Ingrid Pitt, Andria Lawrence, and Nike Arrighi are easy on the eyes in this film. Lawrence in particular is simply breathtaking and Pitt looks amazing in her blue form-fitting gown.
The gore level is surprisingly low in this film. You’d think that a film featuring a character that literally bathes in blood would be rather flush with the red stuff, but there are only a couple of sequences where the bloodletting might be considered excessive. In all honesty, aside from the nudity this film would easily get a light PG-13 rating these days in my opinion.
I definitely recommend this film. It’s one of the best Hammer pictures that I’ve seen so far. The story is engaging, suspenseful, and has just enough blood to keep most horror fans fixated on the movie. Thanks for checking out this post. I’ll see you all again real soon!
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