The Return of the Vampire

Rating:
Summary: Lugosi's Best Vampire Film
Review: "Return of the Vampire" (1943) is an underrated, atmospheric chiller that surpasses the missed opportunities of "Dracula" and "Mark of the Vampire." Unlike Tod Browning, director Lew Landers gives Bela Lugosi a terrific showcase as vampire Armand Tesla. The World War II setting works quite well and the script is surprisingly intelligent. There are moments in "Return of the Vampire" that evoke a Val Lewton quality in terms of mood and character development. Lugosi, in particular, effectively underplays his role -- complemented by a fine cast. Columbia Pictures made relatively few horror films during the 1930s and '40s, yet "Return of the Vampire" remains the studio's finest contribution to the genre.

Rating:
Summary: A Must for Lugosi Collectors
Review: "Return of the Vampire" is an undeservedly obscure gem from the mid-1940s. In the film, a vampire named Tesla menaces two generations of a London family. Bela Lugosi portrays the Dracula-like vampire Tesla with such obvious glee that it's easy for a fan to overlook this movie's flaws. Like the Universal horror films lensed at around the same time, "Return of the Vampire" was probably targeted to a younger matinee crowd than the original "Frankenstein" and "Dracula" films. At heart, and in budget, this is a B-movie complete with occassional lapses in logic and continuity. These have been mentioned by other reviewers, and will be weighed more heavily by nonfans of the genre.

This film easily holds its own with contemporary Universal films, mainly because of Bela Lugosi's excellent performance. At no time in this film does Lugosi behave as a campy, hammy actor. Rather, he seems to seize on this role as a chance to revisit his famed Dracula performance and improve upon it. Partly due to the screenplay and partly due to his own interest, Lugosi invested a tremendous amount of care into portraying the vampire Tesla. It shows in every closeup, and in every line of dialogue Lugosi delivers.

Forget about the shoestring films Lugosi ended his career with. If you want to appreciate his legacy, films like "Return of the Vampire" and "The Black Cat" provide a far more respectful tribute to one of the best pre-WWII horror icons.

Rating:
Summary: Lugosi's Best Vampire Film
Review: "Return of the Vampire" (1943) is an underrated, atmospheric chiller that surpasses the missed opportunities of "Dracula" and "Mark of the Vampire." Unlike Tod Browning, director Lew Landers gives Bela Lugosi a terrific showcase as vampire Armand Tesla. The World War II setting works quite well and the script is surprisingly intelligent for a film of this caliber. There are moments in "Return of the Vampire" that evoke a Val Lewton quality in terms of mood and character development. Lugosi, in particular, effectively underplays his role -- complemented by a fine cast. In retrospect, "Return of the Vampire" was the finest horror film produced by Columbia Pictures during the Golden Age of Terror.

Rating:
Summary: Hampered by lack of cash...
Review: A little bit too much dry ice lurking around the soundstage but as atmospheric as you could get on a shoestring. Full of terrific imagery not least the hammer and sickle as the two cockney gravediggers walk through the graveyard. A key scene, I think. Watch for the shovel getting caught by a shrub's branch and marvel at the anti communist symbolism. I believe the film is clearly saying at this point that there's more to fear from the living...ie communists....than the dead. Maybe they're the same thing. A riot.

Rating:
Summary: BEWARE THE NIGHT FOR THE VAMPIRE STALKS
Review: Any true monster movie fan would have this film on their movie shelf. One of the best Dracula movies ever made in the 1940's.
In this movie there is never a dull moment. Like the eerie cemetery in the beggening to the dark allies of London wher Dracula and his companion,the wolfman, dispose of their victims.
And in the end there is a message to the viewers,I won't give it away. But this film is worth it. Starring Bela Lugosi, Freida Inescort, Nina Foch, Miles Mander and Matt Willis as the werewolf.

Rating:
Summary: My Name Is Drac... Er, Tesla!
Review: Bela Lugosi is Armand Tesla, an amazingly Dracula-like vampire, in this fangy fable. Assisted by his werewolf helper Andreas Obry (Matt Willis), Tesla goes on a reign of terror, only to be stopped by a spike through the heart. Years later, during WWII, we find Andreas reformed of his lycanthropic ways, and working for Lady Jane, the very woman who had helped put an end to Tesla. Well, the nazi's bomb England, unearthing Tesla. Two civil defense guys find his body and one of them pulls the spike out of Tesla's chest! Soon, The bloodsucking begins! Tesla regains his hold on Andreas and hatches his plot for revenge. Tesla now has a vendetta against Lady Jane. He has decided to destroy her by taking control of those she loves. Can Lady Jane stop him before it's too late? You can tell that Bela enjoyed playing this role. He IS Dracula in this movie, no matter what his name is. The acting is pretty good all around, including the wolfman, even if his make-up job is a tad goofy. Worth owning...

Rating:
Summary: SO IT AIN'T VAL LEWTON....
Review: I can't carp about this little 40's spooker with LUGOSI playing Dracula again (finally) even if it IS low-budget and has a funny-looking werewolf/assistant. It's still a curio and features a wartime setting as well as the lovely Nina Foch (in an early role) as a potential victim. It's goofy and weird and not all that bad, really. At least it was a major studio that released it and not one of those hideous poverty row junkfests that were churned out by the truckload around the same time. The class shows through with the acting,camera-work and story coherence. It could have been much worse but it's not and it sits proudly with my other DVDS as an old fashioned reminder of what going to the movies used to be about and how thankful I am that some of these old chestnuts are still around to be appreciated.

Rating:
Summary: Horroriffic!!!!!!!!
Review: I saw this movie only once .... once again being on AMC'S Monster Fest 2000 ... its a good hokey Wartime horror film classic i think Universal shouldve made it though!!!!! bjut its still very atmospheric and a bit of a twist .. bela returns for his 3rd vampiric film after 8 years of absence after the twisted film The Mark of the Vampire where he wasnt a vampire at all ... lol but still a good chiller .... ok back to the Return of the Vampire.... like i said only 69 minutes of playing time but still a good movie ITS WORTH EARNING!!!

Rating:
Summary: "It ain't even safe to be dead, anymore!"
Review: The definitive movie vampire, Bela Lugosi, stars in this entertaining Columbia production. Although mired in a downward career spiral of poverty row clunkers, Bela, ahem, rises to the occasion. Among the familiar vampire cliches, we find a unique character in Andreas (Matt Willis), the wolf man familiar that serves the vampire. This guy looks like Lon Chaney, Jr. in full makeup, but he does not go around howling at the full moon. Instead, he shows great restraint and is quite articulate as he speaks rather than growls. His fiendish appearance tells of the soul's evil and the vampire's spell. After a prologue, that shows the vampire's 1918 horror and dispatch, Andreas escapes the dark side with help from a kindly lady scientist (Frieda Inescort). He falls back into dreadful habits after a WWII bombing raid unearths Bela. The scenes in the London cemetery inflicted with bomb damage are surreal images of foggy darkness and the children of the night. The script suffers from some B picture limitations, but not enough to matter. Lugosi's character, Armand Tesla, is merely Dracula, winking at legal copyright infringements. He catches Nina Foch in his alluring web of unholy desire. The climax in the bombed-out church is done well, and covers a multitude of unlikely plot developments. Character actor and former Mack Sennett star, Billy Bevan, plays Horace, the comic civil defense worker who utters the above immortal dialogue. Some viewers may recognize Bevan as the hapless Whitby policeman, Albert, in Universal's "Dracula's Daughter." Atmospheric sets and a veteran cast add to the enjoyment. Great fun for genre fans and collectors. ;-)

Rating:
Summary: "It ain't even safe to be dead, anymore!"
Review: The definitive movie vampire, Bela Lugosi, stars in this entertaining Columbia production. Although mired in a downward career spiral of poverty row clunkers, Bela, ahem, rises to the occasion. Among the familiar vampire cliches, we find a unique character in Andreas (Matt Willis), the wolf man familiar that serves the vampire. This guy looks like Lon Chaney, Jr. in full makeup, but he does not go around howling at the full moon. Instead, he shows great restraint and is quite articulate as he speaks rather than growls. His fiendish appearance tells of the soul's evil and the vampire's spell. After a prologue, that shows the vampire's 1918 horror and dispatch, Andreas escapes the dark side with help from a kindly lady scientist (Frieda Inescort). He falls back into dreadful habits after a WWII bombing raid unearths Bela. The scenes in the London cemetery inflicted with bomb damage are surreal images of foggy darkness and the children of the night. The script suffers from some B picture limitations, but not enough to matter. Lugosi's character, Armand Tesla, is merely Dracula, winking at legal copyright infringements. He catches Nina Foch in his alluring web of unholy desire. The climax in the bombed-out church is done well, and covers a multitude of unlikely plot developments. Character actor and former Mack Sennett star, Billy Bevan, plays Horace, the comic civil defense worker who utters the above immortal dialogue. Some viewers may recognize Bevan as the hapless Whitby policeman, Albert, in Universal's "Dracula's Daughter." Atmospheric sets and a veteran cast add to the enjoyment. Great fun for genre fans and collectors. ;-)