Blood of the Vampire
| Blood of the Vampire | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Directed by | Henry Cass |
| Produced by | Robert S. Baker and Monty Berman |
| Written by | Jimmy Sangster |
| Starring |
Donald Wolfit Barbara Shelley Vincent Ball Victor Maddern |
Production company | |
| Distributed by | Universal International |
Release dates | 1958 |
Running time | 87 min. |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Language | English |
Blood of the Vampire is a 1958 British horror film directed by Henry Cass from a screenplay by Jimmy Sangster.[1] Many fans thought the film was a Hammer Film when it came out, due to its similar look and the Sangster writer's credit. The film was released on a double bill with Universal's Monster on the Campus in 1958.
Plot
Transylvania in the 19th century. A young doctor John Pierre (Vincent Ball) and his fiancee Madeleine Duval (Barbara Shelley) are terrorized by Dr. Callistratus (Donald Wolfit) who was executed but has returned to life with a heart transplant. Along with his mute and hunchback assistant Carl (Victor Maddern), who is now fallen in love with Madeleine, the 'anemic' mad scientist, believed to be a vampire, conducts blood deficiency research on the inmates of a prison hospital for the criminally insane to sustain his return to life.
Cast
- Donald Wolfit as Doctor Callistratus
- Barbara Shelley as Madeleine Duval
- Vincent Ball as Dr. John Pierre
- Victor Maddern as Carl
- William Devlin as Kurt Urach
- Andrew Faulds as Chief Guard Wetzler
- John Le Mesurier as Judge
- Bryan Coleman as Monsieur Auron
- Max Brimmell as Warder
- Cameron Hall as Drunken Doctor
- George Murcell as First Guard
- Julian Strange as Second Guard
- Bruce Wightman as Third Guard
- Barbara Burke as Housekeeper
- Bernard Bresslaw as Tall Sneak Thief
- Hal Osmond as Small Sneak Thief
- Henri Vidon as Professor Bernhardt Meinster
- John Stuart as Uncle Phillippe
- Colin Tapley as Commissioner of Prisons
- Denis Shaw as Blacksmith
- Pat Phoenix as Woman (uncredited)
Production
The film was inspired by the success of The Curse of Frankenstein and The Horror of Dracula. The producers hired Jimmy Sangster, writer of both those movies, to do the screenplay. Shooting took four weeks.[2]
References
- ↑ "Blood of the Vampire (1958)". Rotten tomatoes. Retrieved 8 June 2012.
- ↑ John Hamilton, The British Independent Horror Film 1951-70 Hemlock Books 2013 p 52-56