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Features: DVD, Dolby, Digital Audio, Mono Audio
Director Paul Morrissey (Heat) upends the horror genre with the grisly, hilarious, and strangely poignant story of Count Dracula (Udo Kier), forced to vacate his home and family to search for the blood of noble Italian virgins. He gets more than he bargained for with the Di Fiore family, whose patriarch (legendary director Vittorio De Sica) schemes to pawn off one of his daughters to the count in order to revive the estate's crumbling fortunes. Meanwhile, the communist gardener (Joe Dallesandro) satisfies his urges with the young daughters, turning the Count's quest into an ordeal of thwarted bloodlust. One of the most popular cult films of all time, this witty collision of high art cinema with outrageous sex and violence is presented in its original, full-length, uncensored version with a brand-new high-definition transfer.
"First-rate horror comedy with an innate sadness at its core." Ken Hanke, Mountain Xpress (Asheville, NC)
Editor's Note
Andy Warhol collaborator Paul Morrissey followed up on the international success of FLESH FOR FRANKENSTEIN with his unique interpretation of another classic movie monster. In this version, Dracula travels to Italy in search of a virgin bride. The great Udo Kier plays the count as a sickly and hypersensitive shut-in who stumbles across the supposedly virginal DiFiore family with the help of his domineering assistant, Anton. Unfortunately, the DiFiore daughters are less than virginal thanks to the determined efforts of servant Mario Balato (Joe Dallesandro). While the sets and cinematography are elegant and evocative, Morrissey brings his shambling, Warholian style to the script (which was written as the film was shot) and the acting (each actor has a different accent and most lines are read in a slow and drawling deadpan). The sex and violence are tinged with ironic humor as Kier goes from one daughter to the next, desperately seeking the virgin blood he needs to save his life. Some not-so-subtle social commentary is interwoven as the DiFiore parents care less for their daughters' future-well being than for the survival of their own wealth and palatial estate. The shocking sex- and gore-filled ending neatly closes Morrissey's newfangled monster diptych and cements his status as one of independent cinema's most original voices.
Plot Summary
Andy Warhol's campy tribute to the Transylvanian legend is distinguished by its overt acknowledgment of the sexual metaphor of vampires. Young Dracula craves the blood of virgins in a house full of the promiscuous daughters of a country nobleman. The humor is mixed with liberal quantities of blood and sex.
| Features | Audio: English Dolby Digital Mono | | Director Commentary | | Interactive Menus | | New Audio Recollections From Paul Morrissey | | Photo Gallery | | Scene Selection | | Widescreen Version Enhanced For 16:9 TVs |
| Technical Info
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Release Information
| | Studio: Image |
| Release Date: 9/4/2007 |
| Running Time: 103 minutes |
| Original Release Date: 1974 | | Catalog ID: 0149PYDVD | | UPC: 00014381014921 | | Number of Discs: 1 |
Audio & Video
| | Original Language: English | | Available Audio Tracks: English | | Video: Color |
Aspect Ratio | | Widescreen 1.78:1 |
| Cast & Crew
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| | Professional Reviews | Sight and Sound
"Trashy fun, with a savvier understanding of genre mores than any SCARY MOVIE." 08/01/2006 p.96 |
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