Blacula/Scream Blacula Scream

Blacula (1972)

Runtime: 93 minutes

Directed by: William Crain

Starring: William Marshall, Vonetta McGee, Denise Nicholas, Thalmus Rasulala, Gordon Pinsent

From: AIP

Scream Blacula Scream (1973)

Runtime: 96 minutes

Directed by: Bob Kelljan

Starring: William Marshall, Don Mitchell, Pam Grier, Michael Conrad, Richard Lawson

From: AIP

I saw both of these movies late last night on Turner Classic Movies. The Letterboxd reviews are below. I'll be back Tuesday night.

Via TCM Underground late last night I watched both this film and its sequel; it had been years since I had seen the original, so I am thankful to TCM for the double shot.

While I admit the film is ridiculous, it's still quite entertaining. It's a B-move blaxploitation horror from AIP where an African prince goes and visits Dracula to try and stop the slave trade, and Dracula is actually a racist and bites the guy he proclaims “Blacula” and locks him in a wooden coffin, only to be awoken 200 years later when a pair of flaming homosexual stereotypes that are said to be interior decorators purchase the coffin and pry it open... then Blacula spots a woman that looks just like his wife and falls for her... like I said, ridiculous and yet it's fun to watch the typical vampire stereotypes (wooden stakes, crosses, not being visible in mirrors, being seductive to the opposite sex) play out in funky 70's Los Angeles, with the groovy soundtrack and wacky clothing.

Except for the unfortunate homosexual stereotypes and usage of a certain term that starts with a letter F, the movie's a gas to watch, but the biggest asset is William Marshall as the title character; he adds an air of gravitas and respectability to the role and he does a swell job of being a distinguishable gentleman. Thankfully the film's more than just a clever title.

Now, my review for the sequel:

In the wee hours of the morning I watched this film via TCM and it was actually the virgin viewing of it; now, I regret not seeing it sooner as I think it's a little bit better than the original.

It certainly gets wackier, with a voodoo cult power struggle causes the heel that wants to run the group to bring Blacula back to life via “voodoo magic”, only to immediately get bitten and ironically he becomes the slave to the good count (there is added humor in this sequel, which I did think was beneficial), and Blacula tries to convince Pam Grier to use her voodoo powers to try and cure his vampirism, but it doesn't mean he stops biting people and causing there to be several disciples at the fancy new digs he has. Of course another cop has to try and convince others that the murders are actually the work of a creature of the night.

Like I said there's more humor here than in the original and it's actually humor that works more often than not. There's no gross homosexual stereotypes, so that's another leg up on the first. William Marshall does another swell job as the lead, and the presence of the great Pam Grier also helps and she does a nice job with the role. There's added drama of Blacula trying to be rid of the curse that was put on him and that was a big part of a very memorable finale where a lot happens. The film is nicely done overall and the score is funky & cool but in a different way from the first. If you enjoyed the original you definitely need to see this.

Plus, in one scene you get to briefly see a guy that looks like a doppelganger for Kevin James, which was one of the biggest scares the movie has!