Pop Culture Movies and More: Dracula: Prince of Darkness (1966)

Four English travellers arrive at a tiny hamlet in the Carpathian Mountains and ignore warnings from the locals not to travel to Carlsbad, the domain of Count Dracula. A dark, driverless carriage arrives to take them to the sinister castle, but they discover too late that they have been lured there to provide the blood which will allow Dracula to rise from the grave once more. Following on from the story of Dracula (1958), Prince of Darkness finally brings back the titular vampire to the big screen. Whilst a sequel to the first film, there was also the release of The Brides of Dracula (1960), which continued the story albeit focusing more on Van Helsing with Peter Cushing's reprisal. It too held the title as sequel to 58's Dracula but was lacking one major component, Dracula himself, or more importantly, Christopher Lee's presence in the role. However, after an 8-year gap both would make their tremendous return with an all-new thrilling horror. This film cements itself as a definitive sequel with its opening of a replay account of the final events of Dracula with Van Helsing's defeat of the Count, which is revealed to have occurred 10 years ago. Despite his demise, locals still fear his power, continuing to perform all their old rituals much to the disapproval of Father Sandor, abbot of Kleinberg Monastery. Sandor tries to convince everyone that Dracula is truly gone but he is not ignorant to the power that may still dwell in his fortress. We then meet our main group, four travellers consisting of brothers Charles and Alan Kent and their wives Diana and Helen who are passing through a local inn. Whilst they may look older and respectable they act more like teenagers, most of all Charles who is seen chugging down beer, carefree, joking and being told off frequently by his sister-in-law. It is further clear they have a lack of superstition too making them very vulnerable in this area and Sandor tries to make them aware of such. However this warning becomes increasingly difficult to follow when their coach breaks down outside the very castle and with night approaching, they choose to shelter there. From here the growing sense of unease and dread sets in as the castle appears prepared for their arrival by the mysterious servant, Klove. As night falls, Klove sets in motion his plan, beginning the ritual to bring back his master. This act would feature one of the most brutal kills and goriest sequences in the series, alongside a truly spectacular effect of the reformation of Dracula's body. With that, Christopher Lee is back once more as Dracula who wastes no time in building up his strength with more victims. One interesting aspect of this portrayal, which becomes increasingly obvious as the film progresses, is the lack of speech. Yes, that's right, Dracula doesn't utter a single word for the entire film. There are many reasons out there, with the main being Lee's distaste for the dialogue presented, he chose not to say them, but some say otherwise. I found this to be an interesting new take on the character and that returning immediately to his beast-like state, it is reasonable to imagine he would not say anything or have a reason to. Our remaining travellers try to flee the clutches of evil fighting back before merely escaping. They stumble upon Father Sandor who keeps them safe but Dracula is hot on their trail seeking his escaped victims. I further loved this movie's use of many themes from the book and folklore. For instance, the scene where Dracula forces Diana to drink the blood from his chest is a memorable inclusion inspired by the novel. Furthermore, this film features quite an unusual ending that shows a lesser-seen method of defeating a vampire, which I was so intrigued by. Whilst it may be one of the weaker defeats out of the films I applaud it for doing something different and rarely seen. Overall, Prince of Darkness is a fantastic sequel to both its predecessors though admittedly not my favourite in the series. Whilst, I was extremely entertained there are simply others I prefer, but I have come to appreciate this one more. It experiments with new and old ideas whilst continuing the style, scares and storytelling that Hammer made so popular. Check out the next movie, Dracula Has Risen from the Grave (1968).