The Empire of Dracula (Spanish: El imperio de Drácula) is a 1967 Mexican horror mystery thriller film directed by Federico Curiel and starring Lucha Villa, César del Campo and Eric del Castillo.[1][2]
| The Empire of Dracula | |
|---|---|
| Directed by | Federico Curiel |
| Screenplay by | Ramón Obón (as Ramón Obón Jr.) |
| Story by | Luis Enrique Vergara (idea, as L.E. Vergara C.) |
| Based on | Dracula by Bram Stoker (as Abraham Stoker) |
| Produced by | Luis Enrique Vergara (as Luis Enrique Vergara C.) |
| Starring | Lucha Villa César del Campo Eric del Castillo Víctor Alcocer Rebeca Iturbide |
| Cinematography | Alfredo Uribe |
| Edited by | Luis Sobreyra |
| Music by | Gustavo César Carrión |
Production company | Fílmica Vergara |
| Distributed by | Columbia Pictures |
Release date |
|
Running time | 85 minutes |
| Country | Mexico |
| Language | Spanish |
It was influenced by Hammer Horror films.[3] It is one of several vampire movies made in Mexico in the 1960s, alongside Miguel Morayta's duology The Bloody Vampire (1962) and The Invasion of the Vampires (1963).[4]
Plot
editA man searches for the vampire who killed his father to prevent him from coming back to life, but to do so he must fight his army of beautiful female vampires, who lure men to their estate so they can feed on their blood.
Cast
edit- Lucha Villa as Patricia
- César del Campo as Luis Brener
- Eric del Castillo as Baron Draculstein (as Erick del Castillo)
- Ethel Carrillo as Diana
- Guillermo Zetina as Dr. Wilson.
- Robin Joyce as Lily
- Fernando Osés as Igor
- Víctor Alcocer as Mr. Brener, Luis's father
- Mario Orea as Police Inspector
- Rebeca Iturbide as Mrs. Brener, Luis's mother
- Altia Michel as María, maid (as Atilia Michel)
- José Dupeyrón as Chauffeur
Reception
editIn El gran libro del vampiro ("The great book of the vampire"), Alexis Puig said, "There is a lot of eroticism, especially lesbian: female vampires biting female victims;" and highlighted a scene in which the count must fight inside his own coffin with a man carrying a crucifix as a "very dramatic scene."[5]
References
edit- ^ García Riera, Emilio (1992). Historia documental del cine mexicano (in Spanish). Vol. 13. Universidad de Guadalajara. pp. 86–87. ISBN 968-895-590-6.
- ^ Browning, John Edgar; Picart, Caroline Joan (Kay) (2014). Dracula in Visual Media: Film, Television, Comic Book and Electronic Game Appearances, 1921–2010. McFarland. p. 104. ISBN 978-0-7864-6201-8.
- ^ Pérez Gañán, María del Rocio (2014). Arquetipos femeninos perversos en el cine de terror: El mito y la construcción de la mujer vampiro y su (re)producción en la sociedad occidental (in Spanish). Ed. Universidad de Cantabria. pp. 22–23. ISBN 978-84-8102-717-4.
- ^ Melton, J. Gordon (2010). The Vampire Book: The Encyclopedia of the Undead. Visible Ink Press. p. 460. ISBN 978-1-57859-348-4.
- ^ Puig, Alexis (1997). El gran libro del vampiro (in Spanish). Imaginador. p. 66. ISBN 978-9-5076-8182-0.
Hay mucho erotismo, sobre todo lésbico: mujeres vampiras mordiendo víctimas femeninas; y una escena de mucho dramatismo cuando el conde debe pelear en su propio ataúd con un hombre que porta un crucifijo. [There is a lot of eroticism, especially lesbian: female vampires biting female victims; and a very dramatic scene when the count must fight in his own coffin with a man carrying a crucifix.]