ZOLTAN… HOUND OF DRACULA

Some Romanian soldiers bring to light with an explosion the chapel of the Dracula. A soldier goes down out of curiosity and inadvertently wakes up Veidt Smit, the personal servant of Count Dracula, and Zoltan, his vampire dog. First of all, Veidt and Zoltan need a master to serve, and so they set out to find the last descendant of Dracula, Michael Drake, who lives in the United States with his family. Once in America, Veidt and the vampire dog try to approach Drake, who is camping with his wife, his two children, and their dogs. Known in Italy with the misleading title "Dracula vs. Zombies", but re-released in the 1980s with the more relevant and literal title "Zoltan - Dracula's Dog", this crazy film directed by Albert Band (father of the well-known Charles Band of Full Moon) is one of those must-see cult films that are unjustly overlooked. Certainly, the plot is implausible and makes one think of one of those laughable trash films... in short, the vampire dog, with its oversized canines and light bulb eyes, is none other than Count Dracula's Doberman... things like that leave little doubt to the imagination. Yet, the film is not bad at all; in fact, I would dare to say that it is a good film. First of all, despite the subject's strangeness, Band crafts a serious film that is halfway between a vampire film and a beast movie with killer dogs. Of course, some inevitable falls into the ridiculous are present (Veidt mentally controlling Zoltan, the surprise ending), but they are acceptable and treated with dignity, especially in relation to the expectations one might have about the film's main theme. Reggie Nalder, whom we remember for "The Man Who Knew Too Much" by Hitchcock and "The Bird with the Crystal Plumage" by Argento, has the classic "cinema face" that manages to convey a lot even without moving a muscle, and indeed, his Veidt Smit, servant of Dracula, does not open his mouth for the entire film. Nalder, with an intense and magnetic gaze, controls the actions of the vampire dog and limits himself to driving the hearse in which Zoltan's coffin is kept. The same fearsome Doberman is a rather successful figure, as unsettling as needed and aggressive, capable of bringing to life excellent scenes worthy of the best beast movies with killer dogs as protagonists. In the end, the film is all about the dog's attempts to attack the vacationing family, who, stationed in a camper in the middle of the countryside, strongly resemble the basic situation of the contemporary "The Hills Have Eyes" by Wes Craven. Band, who was by no means a novice, has an excellent sense of rhythm and manages to create situations that convey a certain tension, such as the long final siege. "Dracula vs. Zombies" also does not skimp on gory scenes, and there is at least one image that cannot fail to remain well imprinted in the viewer's mind, namely when the German Shepherd puppy attacked by Zoltan re-emerges vampirized from the ground where it had been buried, just like one of the many undead of tradition. The rest of the cast is also good, including Michael Pataki ("Rocky IV", "Halloween 4"), more convincing as Drake than as Dracula, and Oscar winner José Ferrer ("Cyrano de Bergerac") in the role of Inspector Branco. Recently distributed on DVD by Jubal Classic Video, my advice is to get it without thinking too much: original, fun, and rich in 70s atmosphere.