Taste The Blood Of Dracula (1970)

When I was a kid, “Taste the Blood of Dracula” was probably the most aired on television Hammer flick besides “Horror of Dracula”, so I don’t know if it’s because I’ve seen this one so many times or what, but I consider this entry to be one of the weaker Hammer vampire flicks starring Christopher Lee.

A young occultist seeks the help and finances of three thrill seeking local businessmen who have formed a little group dedicated to the finer things in life such as opium and prostitutes, while their families think they are out at night doing charity work. Tiring of their escapades and looking for something new, the men are approached by the occultist to purchase Dracula’s cape, pendant, and blood (now in powder form) which are possessed by a local man who discovered Dracula dying at the end of the last film. Holed up in a local abandoned Church, the men’s goblets are filled with Dracula’s blood and are urged to “chug, chug, chug” the red stuff. Deciding amidst all the mysterious lightning and thunder that suddenly kicked up that maybe this wasn’t such a good idea, they instead urge the young occultist to drink, upon which he immediately collapses to the floor. The men flee the scene and make a pact to never talk about the night’s events, while Dracula soon emerges from the occultist’s body and declares revenge on the men for “killing my servant”. Actually Drac, didn’t you do that when you emerged from the dudes skin? The rest of the movie has Dracula taking revenge on the men, while biting the necks of the local nubile women.

While the sets and such look great as always, there’s just something I don’t care for about this one. The bonuses as I mentioned, is the atmosphere and overall gothic look of the film, especially the abandoned church which Dracula calls home. However, it was the little inconsistencies that turned me off from this one. Christopher Lee is basically wasted in the role of Dracula, as he rarely appears and is only given about 10 lines in the entire film. Certain characters appear and then disappear, certain individuals are repeatedly bit by Drac but never seem to vampirize, and on and on. Plus, Dracula must really be bored in this film, as he just doesn’t really have a good reason to kill those that he does. What does he care about the old dudes, and just how did that occultist guy become a servant of Dracula to begin with? He was never in the previous films, so how the hell does he even know about Dracula? Perhaps I’m being too picky here, I mean it is a Hammer vamp flick with Chris Lee so it can’t really be all that bad…which it really isn’t. If you can ignore the little inconsistencies here and there then you’ll have fun with it, that’s as simple as I can put it.