Director: Jess Franco
Year: 1971
Country: West Germany/Spain
Alternative Titles: Lesbian Vampires: The Heiress of Dracula; The Heiress of Dracula; The Heritage of Dracula; The Sign of the Vampire; The Strange Adventure of Jonathan Harker; The Vampire Women; City of Vampires
Genre: Vampire
Plot:
After witnessing a striptease act in a local nightclub, a woman becomes infatuated with a strange Countess, and they begin to spend time together, but after learning that the Countess is a vampire and plans to include her among her followers, a medical doctor races to save her from the cult.
Review:
This is a fine example of the erotic European Horror films of the time. Among the more endearing qualities of this one is the sheer lack of inhibition displayed by what’s going on. The women are all quite breathtaking, making their frequent disrobing a pleasant sight to see as nearly every woman in the cast joins in at least once and making it really hard to pick out who comes out best. The best part is that none really seems out of place at all, and instead of being inserted for the purpose of getting as much nudity as was humanly possible, these never seemed heavy-handed at all. That means that it’s heavy on eroticism, including the numerous striptease acts in the club which are actually genuinely erotic without it being thrown in your face, romantic lesbian couplings, or just general sunbathing nude, and it becomes all the more sensuous because of it. Given the frequency of these scenes and how skillfully shot these scenes are, where it goes for the high-end arthouse approach rather than generally dirty sleaze, it adds a lot to the film as a whole.
It’s also got a lot to like with the plot and how it is set up, offering some interesting aspects. The idea of the two coming together with the obsession upon seeing her perform in the nightclub leading to the hook-ups on the island before the attack and subsequent memory loss requiring hospitalization afterward sets this one up nicely. There’s a lot to like with the scenes of them together on the island as well as once she leaves and the stalking-like obsession they have towards each other, coupled with the genuinely erotic and hypnotizing sequences of them together, making this all quite fun in addition to the vampire hunter trying to come after her and track her down to stop the rampage. It was nice to see that they didn't just throw them in randomly, and it's a rarity that a film can achieve this setup without being cheesy or corny. Since there's always a weird image thrown in for no reason to make a couple of really nice arthouse set-pieces, these things mean that the film constantly keeps moving and always has something going on, so it never seems boring for an overall likable enough effort.
There isn’t much wrong here, but it does have some issues. Besides the normal problems associated with a Franco film, this one's main problem was the main vampire theme itself. Not only did it seem like an afterthought to the film, but it hardly even plays like a traditional vampire film, which admittedly could be that way on purpose, as it would explain why the film has so many rules broken. The majority of the first half takes place in broad daylight, which is a clear violation of the rules. There are also a couple of scenes where a vampire's reflection is shown, yet another example. The fact that it's announced so late in the film about the vampiric status of characters only serves to enhance the notion that it was thrown in without a real reason. It was doing fine on its own as an erotic thriller, and then the vampire angle is brought out, and it doesn't really click. However, these minor issues aside, along with the traditional Franco problems of constant zooming for no reason, scenes thrown in that have nothing to do with anything, and nonsensical plotting, which are the norms for his films, this wasn't all that bad.
Overview: ****/5
If looked at as a piece of erotic European Horror, then this is a pretty good film and one of the best in the genre, but those looking for a more traditional vampire film will be disappointed, as it plays pretty fast and loose with the rules found elsewhere. Take it from where you stand on the two genres whether or not this will be worthwhile, as it’s pretty apparent how it all plays out.
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