Dracula Has Risen from the Grave

1968 British film by Freddie Francis

Dracula Has Risen from the Grave

US theatrical release poster

Directed by| Freddie Francis
Screenplay by| John Elder
Based on| Count Dracula
by Bram Stoker
Produced by| Aida Young
Starring|

* Christopher Lee
* Rupert Davies

Cinematography| Arthur Grant
Edited by| Spencer Reeve
Music by| James Bernard

Production
company

Hammer Films

Distributed by| Warner-Pathé Distributors (United Kingdom)
Warner Bros.-Seven Arts (United States)

Release date

* 7 November 1968 (1968-11-07)

Running time

| 92 minutes
Country| United Kingdom
Language| English

Dracula Has Risen from the Grave is a 1968 British supernatural horror film directed by Freddie Francis and produced by Hammer Film Productions. It is the fourth entry in Hammer's Dracula series, and the third to feature Christopher Lee as Count Dracula, the titular vampire. The film stars Rupert Davies as a clergyman who exorcises Dracula's castle, and in doing so, unwittingly resurrects the Count back from the dead.

Dracula Has Risen from the Grave also stars Veronica Carlson, Barry Andrews, Barbara Ewing, Ewan Hooper, and Michael Ripper.[1] It was followed by Taste the Blood of Dracula in 1970.

## Plot

[edit]

In an East European village, a young altar boy discovers the corpse of a young woman crammed inside a church bell, another victim of Count Dracula. One year later, following the events of the previous film, Dracula has been destroyed. Monsignor Ernst Mueller comes to the village on a routine visit only to find the altar boy is now a frightened mute and the priest has lost his faith. The villagers refuse to attend Mass at the church because the shadow of Dracula's castle touches it. To bring to an end the villagers' fears, Mueller climbs to the castle to exorcise it.

The terrified priest follows only partway up the mountain, and Mueller continues alone. As he exorcises the castle, attaching a large metal cross to its gate, a thunderstorm occurs. The fleeing priest stumbles and is knocked unconscious when his head strikes a rock. The blood from the head wound trickles into a frozen stream through a crack in the ice and onto the lips of Dracula, reviving him. Mueller returns to the village, reassures the villagers, and returns to his home city of Keinenberg, where he lives with his widowed sister-in-law, Anna.

Unknown to Mueller, Dracula takes control of the priest. Furious that his castle is now barred to him, Dracula forces the enslaved priest to reveal the name of the exorcist. The priest desecrates a coffin to provide a sleeping place for Dracula and leads him to Keinenberg, where the Count determines to take his revenge on Mueller's beautiful niece, Maria. Dracula enslaves a tavern girl named Zena. Zena almost succeeds in bringing Maria under Dracula's power, but Maria's boyfriend Paul, who lives and works in the bakery beneath the tavern, rescues her. Dracula kills Zena and orders the priest to destroy her corpse before she turns into a vampire, so the priest burns her body in the bakery ovens. The priest then helps Dracula locate Maria. Dracula climbs over the rooftops of nearby buildings, enters Maria's room, and bites her.

Mueller enters Maria's room just before Dracula has bitten the girl again and pursues a fleeing figure across the rooftops. He is knocked down by the priest. Mueller makes his way back home, where his sister-in-law cares for him. He summons Paul, knowing that he will help protect Maria because of his love for her. Mueller passes on a book, which contains the rites of protection against vampires and ways to defeat them, before he succumbs to his wounds. Paul enlists the priest, not knowing he is under Dracula's spell. Unable to break free from Dracula's influence, the priest attacks Paul as they watch over Maria, who is falling under Dracula's spell. Paul defeats the priest and forces him to lead the way to Dracula's lair. They try to stake Dracula through the heart, but the faithless priest and the atheist Paul are not able to say the required prayer, so Dracula rises and removes the stake himself. He kidnaps Maria and flees to the castle, pursued by Paul and the priest.

At the castle, Dracula orders Maria to remove the cross from the door. She throws it over the parapet into the ravine below, where it lands upright, wedged between the rocks. Paul fights Dracula on the parapet and throws him over the side, and he is impaled on the cross. The priest, freed from the vampire's influence, recites the Lord's Prayer in Latin before collapsing and Dracula perishes, dissolving into dust. Reunited with Maria and having apparently regained his Christian faith, Paul crosses himself while viewing Dracula's remains.

## Cast

[edit]

* Christopher Lee as Count Dracula
* Veronica Carlson as Maria Mueller
* Barry Andrews as Paul
* Rupert Davies as Monsignor Ernst Mueller
* Ewan Hooper as Priest
* Barbara Ewing as Zena
* Marion Mathie as Anna Mueller
* Michael Ripper as Max
* John D. Collins as Student
* George A. Cooper as Landlord
* Chris Cunningham as Farmer
* Norman Bacon as Altar boy

## Production

[edit]

This Hammer Dracula production was shot at Pinewood Studios situated in Iver Heath, Buckinghamshire. Missing are the approach road, coach path and moat seen in front of Castle Dracula in Dracula (1958) and Dracula: Prince of Darkness (1966). Those films were made at Bray Studios.

The film was photographed by Arthur Grant using colored filters belonging to director Freddie Francis, also a cameraman, who used them when photographing The Innocents (1961). Whenever Dracula (or his castle) is in a scene, the frame edges are tinged crimson, amber and yellow. Initially Terence Fisher was to direct the film, but dropped out after breaking his leg in an automobile accident; Freddie Francis stepped in.

## Release

[edit]

In Australia, the film was the first Hammer Dracula to be passed by the censors; the previous films Dracula and Dracula: Prince of Darkness were banned. The film was slightly censored and ran for a three-week season at Sydney's Capitol theater in January 1970.[citation needed]

## Reception

[edit]

### Critical

[edit]

The Monthly Film Bulletin wrote: "The good news of the risen Count and the sight of the familiar hearse speeding by night through the Transylvanian woods will once more rally the faithful perhaps, but they may find this new adventure rather short on shock sequences. There is, though, a nice gory opening (Dracula impaled like a butterfly on a large gilt cross) and a suitably horrific finale (a bleeding corpse hanging upside-down from a church bell), and Freddie Francis has managed a few pleasing colour compositions. Connoisseurs will notice that the film is considerably more explicit than usual in revealing the sexual basis of the vampire legend. For the rest, Christopher Lee is his customary suave self as Dracula, but the acting honours really go to Barbara Ewing as the jealous Zena, who dies with an expression of triumphant and satisfied lust frozen on her face."[2]

The film being shown in Chicago in 1970

Howard Thompson of The New York Times wrote: "Dracula Has Risen From The Grave. Yes, again. And judging by this junky British film in color – asplatter with catchup or paint or whatever, to simulate the Count's favorite color – he can descend again."[3]

Variety called the film "a tired episode," adding, "The story's slight, the horror and the bloodcurdling essential to these pix is minimal and even Dracula himself appears bored at being resurrected yet again."[4]

The Hammer Story: The Authorised History of Hammer Films called the film "a minor triumph of style over content", writing that the film "succeeds by virtue of Francis' adventurous direction".[5]

On Rotten Tomatoes the film has an approval rating of 80% based on reviews from 15 critics.[6]

### Box office

[edit]

It became Hammer's highest-grossing film.[citation needed]

## Home media

[edit]

On 6 November 2007, the film was released as part of a DVD four-pack along with Dracula, Taste the Blood of Dracula, and Dracula A.D. 1972.[7]

On 6 October 2015, the film was released on Blu-ray as part of a Hammer collection pack with The Mummy, Frankenstein Must Be Destroyed, and Taste the Blood of Dracula. It was also released on Blu-ray separately.

## See also

[edit]

* Vampire film
* Dracula (Hammer film series)
* Hammer filmography

## References

[edit]

1. ^ "Dracula Has Risen from the Grave". British Film Institute Collections Search. Retrieved 13 August 2024.
2. ^ "Dracula Has Risen from the Grave". The Monthly Film Bulletin. 35 (408): 200. 1 January 1968 - via ProQuest.
3. ^ Thompson, Howard (27 March 1969). "'Dracula' Returns". The New York Times: 54.
4. ^ "Dracula Has Risen From The Grave". Variety: 34. 20 November 1968.
5. ^ Hearn & Barnes 2007, p. 123.
6. ^ Dracula Has Risen from the Grave at Rotten Tomatoes
7. ^ Christopher Lee (Actor), Peter Cushing (Actor) (2007). 4 Film Favorites: Draculas (Dracula A.D. 1972, Dracula Has Risen from the Grave, Horror of Dracula, Taste the Blood of Dracula) [4 Film Favorites: Draculas] (Motion Picture DVD). Burbank, California: Warner Home Video. ASIN B000U1ZV7G. ISBN 9781419859076. OCLC 801718535.

## Sources

[edit]

* Hearn, Marcus; Barnes, Alan (September 2007). The Hammer Story: The Authorised History of Hammer Films (limited ed.). Titan Books. ISBN 978-1-84576-185-1.

## External links

[edit]

Wikiquote has quotations related to Dracula Has Risen from the Grave.

* Dracula Has Risen from the Grave at IMDb
* Dracula Has Risen from the Grave at AllMovie
* Dracula Has Risen from the Grave at the TCM Movie Database
* Online Review with gallery

* v
* t
* e

Bram Stoker's Dracula

Universe

| Characters|

* Count Dracula
* Abraham Van Helsing
* Jonathan Harker
* Mina Harker
* Lucy Westenra
* Arthur Holmwood
* Dr. John Seward
* Quincey Morris
* Renfield
* Brides of Dracula

|

Publications|

* Dracula (1897)
* Powers of Darkness (1899)
* Icelandic
* "Dracula's Guest" (1914)
* Dracula's Guest and Other Weird Stories (1914)

| Dacre Stoker|

* Dracula the Un-dead (2009)
* Dracul (2018)

|

Possible inspirations|

* Vlad II Dracul
* Vlad Călugărul
* Vlad the Impaler

Castles|

* Castle Dracula
* Bran Castle
* Poenari Castle
* Corvin Castle

Films

| Universal
series|

* Dracula (1931 English-language)
* Dracula (1931 Spanish-language)
* Dracula's Daughter (1936)
* Son of Dracula (1943)
* House of Frankenstein (1944)
* House of Dracula (1945)
* Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein (1948)

|

Hammer Horror|

* Dracula (1958)
* The Brides of Dracula (1960)
* Dracula: Prince of Darkness (1966)
* Dracula Has Risen from the Grave (1968)
* Taste the Blood of Dracula (1970)
* Scars of Dracula (1970)
* Dracula A.D. 1972 (1972)
* The Satanic Rites of Dracula (1973)
* The Legend of the 7 Golden Vampires (1974)

Dracula 2000|

* Dracula 2000 (2000)
* Dracula II: Ascension (2003)
* Dracula III: Legacy (2005)

Nosferatu films|

* Nosferatu (1922)
* Nosferatu the Vampyre (1979)
* Nosferatu in Venice (1988)
* Shadow of the Vampire (2000)
* Nosferatu (2024)

Hotel
Transylvania |

* Hotel Transylvania (2012)
* Hotel Transylvania 2 (2015)
* Hotel Transylvania 3: Summer Vacation (2018)
* Hotel Transylvania: Transformania (2022)

Parodies|

* Transylvania 6-5000 (1963)
* Mad Monster Party? (1967)
* Batman Fights Dracula (1967)
* Mad Mad Mad Monsters (1972)
* Blood for Dracula (1974)
* Vampira (1974)
* Son of Dracula (1974)
* Dracula in the Provinces (1975)
* Dracula and Son (1976)
* Dracula Sucks (1979)
* Love at First Bite (1979)
* The Halloween That Almost Wasn't (1979)
* Fracchia contro Dracula (1985)
* Transylvania 6-5000 (1985)
* The Monster Squad (1987)
* Scooby-Doo! and the Reluctant Werewolf (1988)
* Dracula: Dead and Loving It (1995)
* Monster Mash (1995)
* Monster Mash (2000)
* Zora the Vampire (2000)
* Monster Family (2017)

Other|

* Drakula halála (1923)
* The Return of the Vampire (1943)
* Drakula İstanbul'da (1953)
* Blood of Dracula (1957)
* The Return of Dracula (1958)
* Batman Dracula (1964)
* Billy the Kid Versus Dracula (1966)
* Blood of Dracula's Castle (1969)
* Santo en el tesoro de Drácula (1969)
* Count Dracula (1970)
* Los Monstruos del Terror (1970)
* Cuadecuc, vampir (1971)
* Vampyros Lesbos (1971)
* Hrabe Drakula (1971)
* Dracula vs. Frankenstein (1971)
* Blacula (1972)
* Scream Blacula Scream (1973)
* Bram Stoker's Dracula (1974)
* Count Dracula's Great Love (1974)
* Deafula (1975)
* Dracula's Dog (1977)
* Count Dracula (1977)
* Doctor Dracula (1978)
* Dracula (1979)
* Nocturna: Granddaughter of Dracula (1979)
* Dracula: Sovereign of the Damned (1980)
* Dracula's Widow (1988)
* To Die For (1989)
* Sundown: The Vampire in Retreat (1989)
* Bram Stoker's Dracula (1992)
* Nadja (1994)
* Dark Prince: The True Story of Dracula (2000)
* Bara no Konrei ~Mayonaka ni Kawashita Yakusoku~ (2001)
* Dracula: Pages from a Virgin's Diary (2002)
* Dracula (2002)
* Van Helsing (2004)
* Van Helsing: The London Assignment (2004)
* The Vulture's Eye (2004)
* Dracula 3000 (2004)
* Blade: Trinity (2004)
* The Batman vs. Dracula (2005)
* Bram Stoker's Dracula's Curse (2006)
* Dracula (2006)
* Bram Stoker's Dracula's Guest (2008)
* The Librarian: Curse of the Judas Chalice (2008)
* House of the Wolf Man (2009)
* Young Dracula (2011)
* Dracula Reborn (2012)
* Dracula 3D (2012)
* Saint Dracula 3D (2012)
* Dracula 2012 (2013)
* Dracula: The Dark Prince (2013)
* Dracula Untold (2014)
* Renfield (2023)
* The Last Voyage of the Demeter (2023)
* Abigail (2024)
* Dracula: A Love Tale (TBA)

Television

| Series|

* Monster Squad (1976)
* Draculas ring (1978)
* Cliffhangers (1979)
* Drak Pack (1980)
* Count Duckula (1988–1993)
* Dracula: The Series (1990–1991)
* Little Dracula (1991–1999)
* Monster Force (1994)
* Ace Kilroy (2011–2012)
* Young Dracula (2006–2014)
* characters
* Dracula (2013–2014)
* Penny Dreadful (2014–2016)
* Decker (2014–2017)
* Van Helsing (2016–21)
* Hotel Transylvania: The Series (2017–2020)
* Castlevania (2017–21)
* Dracula (2020)

|

Episodes|

* "Dracula" (Mystery and Imagination) (1968)
* "Buffy vs. Dracula" (2000)
* Young Dracula episodes (2006–2014)
* Penny Dreadful episodes (2014–2016)
* Hotel Transylvania: The Series episodes (2017–2020)

| The Simpsons Treehouse of Horror|

* "Treehouse of Horror IV" (1993)
* "Treehouse of Horror XXI" (2010)

|

Other media

| Novels|

* The Dracula Tape and sequels (1975–2002)
* Anno Dracula series (1992–present)
* Anno Dracula
* The Bloody Red Baron
* Dracula Cha Cha Cha
* The Revenge of Dracula (1978)
* Little Dracula (1986)
* Dracula the Undead (1997)
* The Historian (2005)
* The Book of Renfield (2005)
* Bloodline (2005)
* Young Dracula and Young Monsters (2006)
* Fangland (2007)
* Out of the Dark (2010)

|

Radio|

* Dracula (1938)

Plays|

* Dracula (1924)
* Dracula (1995)
* Dracula (1996)

Musicals|

* Dracula (Czech musical) (1995)
* Dracula: A Chamber Musical (1997)
* Dracula, the Musical (2004)
* Dracula – Entre l'amour et la mort (2006)
* Dracula – L'amour plus fort que la mort (2011)

Comics|

* Crossover
* Dracula (Marvel Comics)
* The Tomb of Dracula
* X-Men: Apocalypse vs. Dracula
* Captain Britain and MI13: Vampire State
* Mrs. Deadpool and the Howling Commandos
* Dracula (Dell Comics)
* Don Dracula
* Dracula Lives!
* Hellsing
* Sword of Dracula
* Batman & Dracula trilogy
* Victorian Undead
* Wolves at the Gate
* Purgatori

Video games|

* The Count (1979)
* Dracula (1983)
* Ghost Manor (1983)
* Castlevania series
* 1986–present
* Dracula
* Dracula (1986)
* Dracula the Undead (1991)
* Drac's Night Out (unreleased)
* Bram Stoker's Dracula (1993)
* Bram Stoker's Dracula (handheld) (1993)
* Dracula Unleashed (1993)
* Dracula: Resurrection (2000)
* Dracula 2: The Last Sanctuary (2000)
* Dracula: Crazy Vampire (2001)
* Van Helsing (2004)
* Dracula 3: The Path of the Dragon (2008)
* Dracula: Origin (2008)
* Vampire Season Monster Defense (2012)
* Dracula 4: The Shadow of the Dragon (2013)
* Dracula 5: The Blood Legacy (2013)
* The Incredible Adventures of Van Helsing (2013)
* Renfield: Bring Your Own Blood (2023)

Pinball|

* Dracula (1979)
* Taxi (1988)
* Bram Stoker's Dracula (1993)
* Monster Bash (1998)

Tabletop games|

* The Fury of Dracula

Albums|

* Dracula
* Dracula 2000
* Iubilaeum Anno Dracula 2001
* Perfect Selection: Dracula Battle
* Transylvania
* Van Helsing

Songs|

* "Love Song for a Vampire"

Audio dramas|

* Son of the Dragon

Original characters

| Alternative versions
of Dracula|

* Alucard (Hellsing)
* Count Alucard
* Dracula (Castlevania)
* Dracula (Marvel Comics)
* Count Orlok
* Soma Cruz

|

Relatives of Dracula|

* Alucard (Castlevania)
* Vampire Hunter D
* Eva
* Janus Dracula
* Lilith Dracula
* Shiklah Dracula

Other|

* Blade
* Count von Count
* Simon Belmont

Related

* Lugosi v. Universal Pictures
* Dracula's Guest and Other Weird Stories
* Count Dracula in popular culture
* Transylvanian Society of Dracula
* Dracula Daily
* Dracula Society
* Dracula tourism
* Bibliography of works on Dracula

* Category (Dracula)
* Category (derivatives)

* v
* t
* e

Hammer Horror

Films|

| Quatermass|

* The Quatermass Xperiment (1955)
* Quatermass 2 (1957)
* Quatermass and the Pit (1967)

|

Frankenstein|

* The Curse of Frankenstein (1957)
* The Revenge of Frankenstein (1958)
* The Evil of Frankenstein (1964)
* Frankenstein Created Woman (1967)
* Frankenstein Must Be Destroyed (1969)
* The Horror of Frankenstein (1970)
* Frankenstein and the Monster from Hell (1974)

Dracula|

* Dracula (1958)
* The Brides of Dracula (1960)
* Dracula: Prince of Darkness (1966)
* Dracula Has Risen from the Grave (1968)
* Taste the Blood of Dracula (1970)
* Scars of Dracula (1970)
* Dracula A.D. 1972 (1972)
* The Satanic Rites of Dracula (1973)
* The Legend of the 7 Golden Vampires (1974)

The Mummy|

* The Mummy (1959)
* The Curse of the Mummy's Tomb (1964)
* The Mummy's Shroud (1967)
* Blood from the Mummy's Tomb (1971)

Jekyll & Hyde|

* The Ugly Duckling (1959)
* The Two Faces of Dr. Jekyll (1960)
* Dr. Jekyll and Sister Hyde (1971)
* Doctor Jekyll (2023)

The Karnstein Trilogy|

* The Vampire Lovers (1970)
* Lust for a Vampire (1971)
* Twins of Evil (1971)

The Woman in Black|

* The Woman in Black (2012)
* Angel of Death (2014)

Other films|

* X the Unknown (1956)
* The Abominable Snowman (1957)
* The Hound of the Baskervilles (1959)
* The Man Who Could Cheat Death (1959)
* The Stranglers of Bombay (1959)
* The Curse of the Werewolf (1961)
* The Shadow of the Cat (1961)
* The Phantom of the Opera (1962)
* The Damned (1962)
* Kiss of the Vampire (1963)
* The Old Dark House (1963)
* The Gorgon (1964)
* Nightmare (1964)
* Fanatic (1965)
* The Nanny (1965)
* The Plague of the Zombies (1966)
* Rasputin the Mad Monk (1966)
* The Reptile (1966)
* The Witches (1966)
* The Devil Rides Out (1968)
* Crescendo (1970)
* Countess Dracula (1971)
* Hands of the Ripper (1971)
* Vampire Circus (1972)
* Fear in the Night (1972)
* Demons of the Mind (1972)
* Captain Kronos – Vampire Hunter (1974)
* To the Devil a Daughter (1976)
* Beyond the Rave (2008)
* Wake Wood (2009)
* Let Me In (2010)
* The Resident (2011)
* The Quiet Ones (2014)
* The Lodge (2019)

Television|

* Journey to the Unknown
* Hammer House of Horror
* Hammer House of Mystery and Suspense
* Let the Right One In

Category

* v
* t
* e

Films directed by Freddie Francis

* Two and Two Make Six (1962)
* The Brain (1962)
* Paranoiac (1963)
* Nightmare (1964)
* The Evil of Frankenstein (1964)
* Traitor's Gate (1964)
* Dr. Terror's House of Horrors (1965)
* Hysteria (1965)
* The Skull (1965)
* The Psychopath (1966)
* The Deadly Bees (1967)
* They Came from Beyond Space (1967)
* Torture Garden (1967)
* Dracula Has Risen from the Grave (1968)
* Mumsy, Nanny, Sonny and Girly (1970)
* Trog (1970)
* The Vampire Happening (1971)
* Tales from the Crypt (1972)
* The Creeping Flesh (1973)
* Tales That Witness Madness (1973)
* Son of Dracula (1974)
* Craze (1974)
* Legend of the Werewolf (1975)
* The Ghoul (1975)
* The Doctor and the Devils (1985)
* Dark Tower (1987)

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