a review of 德拉库拉之夜

2021 Cult Movie Challenge Week 4: Jesus Franco Week Movie #1 I think based on Franco's reputation I was expecting something a little bit less straitlaced, but this is about as easygoing an adaptation of Dracula as one could hope for. In certain ways the well-lit '70s docudrama feel makes it seem like a dry run for Werner Herzog's "Nosferatu" nine years later; I'm all but certain that Klaus Kinski's magnetic portrayal of Renfield here must have put a light bulb over Herzog's head for later on. Except for one particular monologue towards the beginning there's not really a reason to have Christopher Lee in this one, because there's not a whole lot of Dracula in this Dracula movie. Knowing that this was the only non-Hammer produced Dracula with Lee, it makes sense that his role is practically a glorified cameo here, but it feels underwhelming given how much time is devoted to literally every other character.