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Classic slice of 1950s British horror. In the late nineteenth century the anaemic Dr Callistratus (Donald Wolfit) is the governor of a brutal penal institution in a remote castle. Dr John Pierre (Vincent Ball) is wrongly convicted of malpractice and given a life sentence but is soon employed by Callistratus to help him with his research. In a laboratory beneath the castle Callistratus and his hunchbacked assistant Carl (Victor Maddern) submit inmates and young women to cruel experiments in blood transfusion. Outside the castle Pierre's fianc+e Madeleine (Barbara Shelley) determines to rescue him but they both end up at Callistratus' mercy. The bloodthirsty doctor will stop at nothing to cure his debilitating condition even if it means others must die so that he may live...
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4 of 4 people found the following review helpful
Format:DVD
Written by Jimmy Sangster and released in 1958,you could be forgiven for
mistaking this for a Hammer flick, it's not, but don't let this put you off. The title is misleading but the film is well worth a look, chiefly for the performance of Donald Wolfit as the thoroughly rotten Dr Callistratus.
The PG rating is odd as there is a fair amount of blood on screen as well
as attempted rape and some 'experiments' that I wouldn't want young children to think about.
mistaking this for a Hammer flick, it's not, but don't let this put you off. The title is misleading but the film is well worth a look, chiefly for the performance of Donald Wolfit as the thoroughly rotten Dr Callistratus.
The PG rating is odd as there is a fair amount of blood on screen as well
as attempted rape and some 'experiments' that I wouldn't want young children to think about.
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
Format:DVD
"Blood Of The Vampire" is a colourful gothic horror film from 1958 which has the look and feel of a Hammer film even though it was not made by Hammer Studios. It does however have Hammer's most prolific leading lady in it - the lovely Barbara Shelley and it was written by Jimmy Sangster who provided the scripts for some of Hammer's greatest horror films and thrillers.
Despìte the title it is not really a vampire film at all but instead the plot pre-dates and shares certain similarities with Hammer's 1973 film "Frankenstein And The Monster From Hell" (another great movie in its own right) and revolves around an obsessed doctor who is carrying out secret experiments on the inmates inside a prison for the criminally insane, aided by another doctor who has been put away for malpractice.
I remember watching this film on television many years ago and I watched it again recently and it turned out to be even better than I remembered it to be. Okay, so all sense of logic goes out of the window at times (doctors can perform heart transplants but they have not yet classified the different blood groups, for instance) but the film does contain a fair amount of gruesomeness and is well acted by a good cast and since when did logic matter in a 1950s' horror film anyway?
Dr. Callistratus (played by the renowned Shakespearean actor Donald Wolfit) is a cruel and thoroughly evil man who makes Count Dracula and Baron Frankenstein look like The Chuckle Brothers. He is certainly someone you would not want to cross as he thinks nothing of setting the prison dogs on someone or shooting someone in the face and these aren't even the worst things he does! Also look out for John le Mesurier (from "Dad's Army") and the Carry On team's Bernard Bresslaw in small roles.
If you enjoy watching old, atmospheric horror movies then you could do worse than check out "Blood Of The Vampire" as it contains plenty of macabre moments even if it is a bit short of vampires.
Despìte the title it is not really a vampire film at all but instead the plot pre-dates and shares certain similarities with Hammer's 1973 film "Frankenstein And The Monster From Hell" (another great movie in its own right) and revolves around an obsessed doctor who is carrying out secret experiments on the inmates inside a prison for the criminally insane, aided by another doctor who has been put away for malpractice.
I remember watching this film on television many years ago and I watched it again recently and it turned out to be even better than I remembered it to be. Okay, so all sense of logic goes out of the window at times (doctors can perform heart transplants but they have not yet classified the different blood groups, for instance) but the film does contain a fair amount of gruesomeness and is well acted by a good cast and since when did logic matter in a 1950s' horror film anyway?
Dr. Callistratus (played by the renowned Shakespearean actor Donald Wolfit) is a cruel and thoroughly evil man who makes Count Dracula and Baron Frankenstein look like The Chuckle Brothers. He is certainly someone you would not want to cross as he thinks nothing of setting the prison dogs on someone or shooting someone in the face and these aren't even the worst things he does! Also look out for John le Mesurier (from "Dad's Army") and the Carry On team's Bernard Bresslaw in small roles.
If you enjoy watching old, atmospheric horror movies then you could do worse than check out "Blood Of The Vampire" as it contains plenty of macabre moments even if it is a bit short of vampires.
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
Format:DVD|Amazon Verified Purchase
When Enoch Powell called Harold Macmillan "The last of the old actor-managers" he overlooked Sir Donald Wolfit who deserved the appellation far more than any politician.
Wolfit had appeared in a number of films in the 1930s, but his film career was sporadic and it was not until the 1950s that he began to appear on screen again. For an actor who liked to be centre stage in the theatre it is surprising that he accepted so many supporting and cameo roles in movies. However there are extant a few films in which he stars, the present offering being such a one.
Wolfit plays Callistratus, the governor of a prison who uses the hapless inmates for experiments in blood transfusion which he carries out, not to benefit mankind at large, but because he has a great need for blood to keep himself alive due to a disorder brought about by those who had thoughtlessly executed him believing him to be a vampire!
Wolfit brings a great deal of menacing presence to the part of Callistratus and Victor Maddern also gives a sympathetic performance as his mute and horribly disfigured assistant, Carl.
The script is by Jimmy Sangster who worked on many films produced by Hammer Studios.
I find myself disagreeing with another reviewer of this issue who believes that this could be mistaken for another "Hammer Horror" as I feel there is a different sense of style to this production although, superficially, it is true, there are a number of similarities with certain Hammer productions. Where I concur wholeheartedly with the other reviewer, however, is in recommending this re-issue of a title which has been rather overlooked in favour of some of the potboilers which Hammer brought out in the 1960s and with which it compares very favourably indeed.
Wolfit had appeared in a number of films in the 1930s, but his film career was sporadic and it was not until the 1950s that he began to appear on screen again. For an actor who liked to be centre stage in the theatre it is surprising that he accepted so many supporting and cameo roles in movies. However there are extant a few films in which he stars, the present offering being such a one.
Wolfit plays Callistratus, the governor of a prison who uses the hapless inmates for experiments in blood transfusion which he carries out, not to benefit mankind at large, but because he has a great need for blood to keep himself alive due to a disorder brought about by those who had thoughtlessly executed him believing him to be a vampire!
Wolfit brings a great deal of menacing presence to the part of Callistratus and Victor Maddern also gives a sympathetic performance as his mute and horribly disfigured assistant, Carl.
The script is by Jimmy Sangster who worked on many films produced by Hammer Studios.
I find myself disagreeing with another reviewer of this issue who believes that this could be mistaken for another "Hammer Horror" as I feel there is a different sense of style to this production although, superficially, it is true, there are a number of similarities with certain Hammer productions. Where I concur wholeheartedly with the other reviewer, however, is in recommending this re-issue of a title which has been rather overlooked in favour of some of the potboilers which Hammer brought out in the 1960s and with which it compares very favourably indeed.
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