Dracula (1958)

The latest installment in the horror film series was Terence Fisher's 1958 film Dracula, starring legendary British actors Christopher Lee and Peter Cushing. The film follows Johnathan Harker as he travels to the castle of Count Dracula to work as his librarian. He is actually at the castle in order to kill the count but before doing so is discovered by Dracula . Soon, the count finds a new desire and goes after Harker's fiancee whilst he is tracked by Dr Van Helsing, a colleague of Harker.

The film was produced from the famous Hammer Studios and has become one of the classic horror films of all time. The real quality comes from the performances of Cushing and Lee who really stand out. The final scene in which Dracula and Dr. Van Helsing fight is truly incredible and has become legendary in itself. The scenes with these two characters were among the best, but at other times during the narrative it somewhat lagged. The pacing seemed to slow at one point and struggled to build again but this was all redeemed during the final scenes in which the horror, excitement and action all amount to the gripping and intense death scene of Dracula.

One noticeable quality that ran throughout the film was the stunning lighting and set effects. The dark sets and use of shadow really emphasised atmosphere, they also provided a great background for which action and drama to occur on. The opening scene in which blood drips onto the coffin of Dracula is powerful due to this, the bright red contrasts with the grey brown sets and this added a terrifying romance to the blood in the film. This romance of blood is part of the underlying sexual themes of the film. Others seem to explore more taboo ideas,  for example, Dracula bites the necks of young, helpless young women in a seductive manner that adds a whole new dimension to the character. In the documentary series, The History of Horror with Mark Gatiss he notes that some shots in the film were requested to be cut due to the seductive / rape tones they implied. This can be seen clearly throughout the film and adds a very eerie tone to the whole plot. The film is clearly not a b-movie, however, later b-movies would follow a similar pattern and attempt to explore taboo content in an attempt to stand out from the safety provided by Hollywood.

Time Out Magazine noted "Christopher Lee's Dracula is a menacing and complex presence who never lets his fangs and cape dominate." This was something that I felt worked greatly for the character, Lee performs with a subtlety that makes the Dracula more horrifying. He is not overtaken by the long black cape and fangs but instead uses them to heighten the tension and fear. To conclude, the film was hard not to love, despite the areas of slow pace the final scenes make it all worth while and it becomes clear why it has become a horror classic.