Rating: 
Summary: "Pretty Good Hammer Horror."
Review: Dracula has a bit more to do in here than the previous movie,(Dracula:Prince of Darkness). At least he can talk again(though he's given little interest to say.) Neverthless, his role is essentially static, giving Christopher Lee little opportunity to develop the character. This is all the more damaging to the film in view of the general lack of compelling foreground characters. Director Feddie Francis is unapologetic about this structure, once saying, "I was more intrested in the love affair...then with Dracula, he was just a fly in the ointment." Unfortunatley Maria and Paul just aren't that intresting, although Veronica Carlson is astonishingly gorgeous. The monsignor is even more of a cipher, displaying little of the spiritual strength that of Peter Cushing's Van Helsing, or even Andrew Keir's Father Sandor. (from the previous films) Despit these problems, Dracula Has Risen from the Grave is a considerably enjoyable film, with visibly higher production values, and a wonderful musical score. NO classic, it's typically competent Hammer horror: fast moving, beautifully photographed and mostly well-acted.Rating: 3 out of 5 Grade: C+ 83%
Rating:
Summary: Vintage Hammer hokum
Review: Dracula Has Risen from the Grave is an entertaining addition to Hammer's Dracula series. Terence Fisher, who directed the first three in the series, had to pull out at the last minute due to an accident, and it was left to lighting cameraman Freddie Francis to take the reins. The film reveals a shift in the underlying worldview: Fisher's triumphant vision of good conquering evil, God defeating Satan is supplanted by Francis's bleaker universe, where God is apparently no guarantee against the Devil, and whose central religious figure (Monsignor, played by Rupert Davies, no match for Andrew Keir or Peter Cushing) is blustering, naive and impotent in the face of evil. There are some great scenes, as one would expect from a distinguished cinematographer like Francis, although some of the most visually compelling moments (eg. Maria's bedroom scene with the Count, by far the most explicitly sexualized portrayal of vampirism seen up to that time) sit uneasily alongside the bizarrely artless, shakey, badly focused handheld shots. Still, it's vintage Hammer hokum, and certainly miles ahead of later additions to the Dracula series. I bought this for nostalgic reasons -- hadn't seen it since I was a kid -- and I wasn't disappointed. Picture quality on the recent DVD release is clear and sumptuous, apart from a brief snatch towards the end when the picture momentarily reverts to an older, grainier print. Hammer buffs should add this to their collection.
Rating: 
Summary: Dracula Has Risen From The Grave
Review: Dracula Has Risen From The Grave is awesome. I have always been and still remain one of Christopher Lees Biggest Fans. What I can recall about Dracula Has Risen From The Grave, is the scene when Christopher Lees under the ice and a steak is driven through his heart-at that moment his eyes open in suspense,then he delivers another one of his best performance, as he dramatically holds the steak in disbelief that his resurrection of darkness has come upon him once again. The last time I viewed Dracula Has Risen From The Grave, I was a teenager and was truly amazed by Christopher Lees acting. I recently had a desire to look at horror films and my first choice was to buy all of Christopher Lees films for myself as a christmas gift. I only located the following 3 films: The Satanic Rites of Dracula, Dracula A.D. 1972 and The Prince Of Darkness. My favorite is Dracula Has Risen From The Grave. Note: I was glad to see Christopher Lee in Sleepy Hollow- his part was small, but his presence is GRAND! Happy Holidays!
Rating: 
Summary: He's Back
Review: Dracula, played by Christopher Lee, is accidentally resurrected from the dead by the dripping blood of a priest. Finding a cross on the front door of his castle, he chooses the niece of the monsignor as his next victim, because the Monsignor performs the exorcism on his castle. It hard to watch a Dracula movie within out Peter Cushing as Van Helsing The next film in the series is Taste the Blood of Dracula.
Rating:
Summary: Pretty good and atmospheric Hammer horror chiller
Review: Ever since I was a kid, I have been a huge fan of Hammer horror films, as well as other traditional horror films in the Universal Monster Seris mold. This one truly fits the bill. It has everything a hammer fan would want: blood, gore, guts, the evil blood and mind of dracula, gothic touches here and there and other scary things. The main plot concerns a fallen priest(typical hammer horror fare!)who leads dracula to the priest who raised him from the grave and from his rest. In the process, Dracula stalks a young woman, haunts the fallen priest and consumes the lives of a small town. This one has just about everything Hammer horror fans would want. I would highly recommend this one.
Rating:
Summary: FOR THE FANS....
Review: Everyone has their favorite Hammer Dracula film. Opinions vary from different perspectives. I like this installment for several reasons. Christopher Lee has always been my favorite Dracula and "Dracula Has Risen From the Grave" serves him well. He is at his most sinister here and even though Peter Cushing is missing, Lee has the Catholic church to contend with and this seems fitting due to the overall Gothic aura that surrounds the vampire myth. He has overtaken a weak priest and seeks revenge due to a large crucifix that has been placed over the door to his castle during an exorcism by the Monsigneur (Rupert Davies) because the shadow of the castle is falling across the church--- effectively spooking the priest and keeping the parishoners away. Dracula is out to avenge his throne by seeking out the Monsigneur's lovely niece Maria (Veronica Carlson). But he first enslaves the local barmaid Zena (Barbara Ewing). I liked the juxtaposition between "good girl" (Carlson) and "bad girl" (Ewing) as well as the crisis that arises when Maria's boyfriend announces his athiesm but must confront his beliefs when spirituality is called upon to defeat Dracula and rescue Maria. But the best thing of all for this reviewer is the DVD print from Warner Bros. which I found virtually flawless. This is a particularly colorful Hammer/Dracula film with some great location shooting and good Gothic atmosphere---especially the shots of the village rooftops where Maria meets her lover and Dracula comes to seek her out. The casting is good and the acting first rate right down to the small roles. Included is a wonderful theatrical trailer that I remember very well from this film's release in 1969---so well done as to guarantee to bring in the business. So I am recommending this disc to the fans. For the price, you can't go wrong. Enjoy.
Rating:
Summary: FOR THE FANS....
Review: Everyone has their favorite Hammer Dracula film. Opinions vary from different perspectives. I like this installment for several reasons. Christopher Lee has always been my favorite Dracula and "Dracula Has Risen From the Grave" serves him well. He is at his most sinister here and even though Peter Cushing is missing, Lee has the Catholic church to contend with and this seems fitting due to the overall Gothic aura that surrounds the vampire myth. He has overtaken a weak priest and seeks revenge due to a large crucifix that has been placed over the door to his castle during an exorcism by the Monsigneur (Rupert Davies) because the shadow of the castle is falling across the church--- effectively spooking the priest and keeping the parishoners away. Dracula is out to avenge his throne by seeking out the Monsigneur's lovely niece Maria (Veronica Carlson). But he first enslaves the local barmaid Zena (Barbara Ewing). I liked the juxtaposition between "good girl" (Carlson) and "bad girl" (Ewing) as well as the crisis that arises when Maria's boyfriend announces his athiesm but must confront his beliefs when spirituality is called upon to defeat Dracula and rescue Maria. But the best thing of all for this reviewer is the DVD print from Warner Bros. which I found virtually flawless. This is a particularly colorful Hammer/Dracula film with some great location shooting and good Gothic atmosphere---especially the shots of the village rooftops where Maria meets her lover and Dracula comes to seek her out. The casting is good and the acting first rate right down to the small roles. Included is a wonderful theatrical trailer that I remember very well from this film's release in 1969---so well done as to guarantee to bring in the business. So I am recommending this disc to the fans. For the price, you can't go wrong. Enjoy.
Rating:
Summary: Possibly my favorite of the Hammer Dracula Series...
Review: I grew up watching the Hammer Dracula films, but this one stands out...perhaps it was just that it was shown more on late night TV in the 70's than some of the others. From the memorable opening scene of the vampirized and bloody girl falling out of the church bell, through the escapades of Zena the barmaid and her unfortunate demise, to the fabulous ending of Dracula being impaled on the cross...all still hold fascination for me. I find the characters a bit stronger and more likeable than some in the other films in the series. And Christopher Lee is fabulous as always
Rating:
Summary: Hammer Goes 3-For-3 In Its Dracula Series!
Review: I have yet to see another actor portray the famous Transylvanian Count as well as Christopher Lee! He seems to have been born to play the part of Dracula (or a variety thereof). It's hard not to shudder with fright when Mr. Lee's cape-draped image is shown on screen. His presence is quite imposing indeed! And his evil presence looks even better when viewed on DVD.
Lee sharpens his fangs once more for "Dracula Has Risen From The Grave", a late 1960s Hammer Film and the third in its ongoing Dracula cycle (following "Horror Of Dracula" and "Dracula -- Prince Of Darkness").
In my view, it's a bit difficult to pick a clear-cut winner between these first three Hammer vampire entries. Each has its own set of good qualities, with all of them worthy of collecting on DVD. In other words, each movie has quite a lot of "bite" to it. (Er...sorry, I couldn't resist.) *wink*
"Risen From The Grave" has a bit of a more modern flavor to it; but the old-fashioned Gothic touches are still in place here too, with plenty of dark, eerie camera angles, foggy and misty rooftops, and dank cellars occupying space in this motion picture. The movie is also greatly enhanced by a marvelous musical score (by James Bernard). It fits a Dracula movie to a tee!
The scenes that take place in the basement/cellar of the bakery are even tinged with the proverbial sounds of dripping water that are many times associated with this type of horror flick. I love those "dripping" sounds coming from Dracula's temporary cellar hideout. (How Dracula or his assistant were able to get the large coffin down the basement stairs without a soul noticing is yet another matter. But, I suppose that's the kind of trivial thing that we're not supposed to dwell on in too much detail. In fact, the very same thing occurs in "Horror Of Dracula" as well -- with Dracula planting his daytime home in the basement of the house of one of his victims, without anyone even noticing. Oh, well...) :)
The first three Hammer "Dracula" films sport very good continuity, with Dracula's inevitable resurrection being explained in the succeeding films in ways that don't strain credibility to the breaking point (well, at least as far as "Dracula credibility" is concerned at any rate).
The DVD is 1-sided, with excellent front cover art (plus other good pics of Chris Lee on the snap-case packaging and on the Menus). The only extra feature on the disc is the film's Trailer (run time of 2:26), which is shown in anamorphically-enhanced form and is in very good shape (picture quality-wise).
When you load up this Warner Brothers' DVD you're greeted by an anamorphic Main Menu, featuring an image of a ready-to-bite Dracula/C. Lee, and a portion of the film's outstanding music score (which plays once before the main feature begins automatically, per most Warner DVDs).
More DVD Information .......................................
Video -- 1.85:1 Widescreen (Anamorphic).
Audio -- 1.0 Dolby Digital Mono (English and French tracks available).
Subtitles -- In English, French, and Spanish.
Film Length -- 92 minutes.
Chapter List Included? -- Yes (23 total chapter stops).
The DVD's video and audio quality are A-1. Dracula looks mighty clear and detailed on this crisp-looking Digital Disc. His ever-present red eyes shine through redder than ever here.
"Dracula Has Risen From The Grave" is a very satisfying Dracula flick, rich in detail, that should please even the most demanding of vampire movie fans.
Rating:
Summary: Probably Lee's Best Dracula
Review: I remember being scarred out of my wits seeing this movie in the theater as a kid. This is Lee in his most convincing Dracula role. One of the first to have the "red eyes" (I think it was added to the film prints because I don't think they wore colored contact lenses back then). Also, has a lot of "ketchup spurting" like blood especially in the final scenes.
|
