House of Dracula)

Starring:Bela Lugosi, Sheila Manners
Studio: Universal Studios
Product Type: DVD

Description

Feature titles include: Dracula (1931), Dracula (1931) - Spanish Version, Dracula's Daughter, House of Dracula, Son of Dracula

Customer Reviews:

GREAT.......2007-03-25

GREAT MOVIES
IT SEEMS THE HORROR ACTORS BACK THEN PUT THEIR ALL INTO THEIR CHARACTERS

Great Horror Classic.......2007-03-15

This Legacy collection of "Dracula" isn't really as bad as most folks would think. Even though, the restored version of "Dracula" is better (cause all they did was "brighten" it up thats it), and they won the Rondo Award for it, and it is better than this version of the movie.However, dont over look it because of that alone. Its a wonderful set with other movies that make up for it, try finding the movies on your own and be successful!..trust me!, it would be very hard to do so today on DVD..so, buy the set on that alone..highly recommended!!

The blood is the life.......2007-02-28

Bram Stoker's vampire novel has been remade dozens of times, but perhaps the best adaptation is the classic Bela Lugosi version. And "Dracula - The Legacy Collection" collects not only Lugosi's movie and the Spanish version, but three inferior sequels that are still moderately entertaining -- basically a vampire-lover's delight.

A solicitor, Renfield (Dwight Frye), is travelling to Count Dracula's castle for a real estate deal, despite the locals freaking out and crossing themselves whenever Dracula's mentioned. He soon finds out why -- the Count (Lugosi) is a vampire, who enslaves a mad Renfield to his will. Soon after, a ship with a dead crew (and Renfield and Dracula in the hold) arrives in England.

Soon Dracula has moved into his new home, Carfax Abbey, and is insinuating himself with the Seward family -- and especially with pretty Lucy Westenra, who dies of blood loss and is reborn as a vampire. Only the intervention of the mysterious Dr. Van Helsing (Edward Van Sloan) can stop Dracula's attacks in London.

Then there's the Spanish-language one, which is virtually identical and was filmed on the exact same sets, during the hours when the English-language one was not being shot. It's incredibly good, and although it lacks that iconic intensity that Lugosi brought the English-language film, it's full of atmosphere and amazing acting.

And there's an immediate sequel, "Daughter of Dracula," about a beautiful Transylvanian vampire -- created by Dracula -- who comes to England seeking a way out of her eternal torment, now that her "father" has been permanently killed. But her sinister servant wants to keep her enslaved to her bloodlust.

Then there are two inferior sequels: "Son of Dracula," which is basically a whittled-down plot set in the early twentieth century, with an exceptionally wooden "Count Alucard" played by Lon Chaney Jr. He moves in next to an heiress's house, kills her father, and marries her, so it's up to her ex-boyfriend to save the day.

And finally there's "House of Dracula," in which the very popular Dr. Edelmen (Onslow Stevens) gets two requests for supernatural cures from some kind of miraculous mold: Count Dracula (John Carradine), and the wolfman Lawrence Talbot (Lon Cheney Jr). Talbot is suicidal over his transformations, and Dracula is secretly pursuing Edelman's vacuous nurse and driving the good doc insane. And they stumble across Frankenstein's monster too.

It's a mixed bag, vampirewise. The first two are among the best classic horror ever made, but the sequels deteriorate as they proceed -- "Daughter" is a very solid movie on its own, and "Son" is cliche and wooden. By "House," they've decided to just be silly and campy, and throw in as many fictional monsters as they can fit in.

The direction in the first three movies is quite solid, eerie and gothic, with plenty of memorably haunting moments ("I never drink... wine," Dracula says smilingly). Lots of cobwebbed castles, foggy London streets, bats and women drifting around in white dresses. The last two are strictly B-movie fare in terms of directorial skill, and some moments like the flaming mine are simply awful.

Lugosi is simply brilliant as Dracula. While not the stately, imposing figure that Stoker described, he has a blazing intensity that works just as well, as well as great charm. Carlos Villarías is not quite as good, but does an excellent and faithful job in the Spanish version. Carradine doesn't seem to be trying too hard, and Cheney just doesn't work as a vampire (though he's glorious as Talbot).

These actors are backed by casts that range from the sublime (creepy, bug-eating, cackling Frye) to the ridiculous (the dreamy-eyed, hammy nurses in "House"). Gloria Holden deserves special kudos for her tormented, bisexual vampiress torn between good and evil, and Edward Van Sloan as Dracula's nemesis, Van Helsing.

"Dracula - The Legacy Collection" has a dud and a campy monsterfest, but the first three movies are divinely dark horror/suspense movies. Definitely worth getting and enjoying.

LEGACY COLLECTION IS THE BEST BET FOR NOW.......2007-02-22

I bid you Velcome. I have both the Legacy collection and the 75th ann. Buy the Legacy set and wait for HD DVD. The biggest reason is you get more for your money. If you are not familar with this film, your too young to understand just how great it is!
Bela is Dracula!....nuff said!

A Most Have Collection.......2007-02-07

This is a true gem. Of course all the Universal Horror Legacy Collections are but Dracula and the Creature from the Black Lagoon are by far my favorite. They come in cool and spooky looking cases that have a view window to see the spooky picture on the DVD case. The only real complaint I have is that the DVD menu that usually appears on the inside covers of DVD cases, that lists what each DVD has on it, is just laying loose inside the case and there's no real place to put it. I tried putting it in the actual case but then the case won't close right and then won't fit back in the box right. But the selections found on this DVD collection are hard to find movies unless you tape them off TCM during October-LOL ;) So I have no qualms about saying that this collection is worth the price you pay for it and I've watched all the movies over and over again. If you are a Horror, vampire, or Universal movie fan then this collection is a must have for you.

The Monster Legacy Collection (Frankenstein / Dracula / The Wolf Man)

Average customer rating:

Superb Collection
Monstrously good
GREAT COLLECTION
Hooray for Monsters!
Damn You, Universal!!!

The Monster Legacy Collection (Frankenstein / Dracula / The Wolf Man)
Starring: Claude Rains , and Bela Lugosi
Manufacturer: Universal Studios
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Horror | Genres | DVD | Video

General | Science Fiction & Fantasy | Genres | DVD | Video

( M ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video

Sci-Fi & Fantasy | Boxed Sets | Stores | DVD | Video

Horror | Boxed Sets | Stores | DVD | Video

The Mummy - The Legacy Collection (The Mummy/Mummy's Hand/Mummy's Tomb/Mummy's Ghost/Mummy's Curse)
Invisible Man - The Legacy Collection (The Invisible Man/Invisible Man Returns/Invisible Agent/Invisible Woman/Invisible Man's Revenge)
Creature from the Black Lagoon - The Legacy Collection (Creature from the Black Lagoon / Revenge of the Creature / The Creature Walks Among Us)
The Boris Karloff Collection (Tower of London / The Black Castle / The Climax / The Strange Door / Night Key)
The Wolf Man - The Legacy Collection (The Wolf Man / Werewolf of London / Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man / She-Wolf of London)

ASIN: B0001CNRNO
Release Date: 2004-04-27

Customer Reviews:

Superb Collection.......2007-06-07

This is a great set to get which contains most of Universal studios greatest horror films. The best of which are: Frankenstein and Bride of Frankenstein. The DVDs are very well packaged and the films are split into four areas:

DRACULA
Dracula (1931)
Dracula (1931 - Spanish Language version)
Dracula's Daughter (1936)
Son of Dracula (1943)
House of Dracula (1945)

FRANKENSTEIN
Frankenstein (1931)
Bride of Frankenstein (1935)
Son of Frankenstein (1939)
Ghost of Frankenstein (1939)
House of Frankenstein (1945)

THE WOLF MAN
The Wolf Man (1941)
Frankenstein meets the Wolf Man (1943)
She Wolf of London ((1946)
Werewolf of London (1935)

CLASSIC MONSTERS COLLECTION
Creature from the Black Lagoon (1954)
The Invisible Man (1933)
The Phantom of the Opera (1943)
The Mummy (1932)

There are a few of these films that are really terrible.
Noteably She Wolf of London and Werewolf of London. These two are exceptionally bad! However the vast majority are very entertaining and in quite a few cases they are essential classics for any film collection. The quality of the films was fine in my set, but my review is for the British version of the set which also has the extra films mentioned by a previous reviewer.

There are many many extras including documentaries and audio commentaries that make this set worth getting. The busts of Dracula, Frankenstein and The Wolf Man are very well made and the whole set looks excellent on the mantlepiece.

I have watched every film in the set now and can't recommend this strongly enough.

Monstrously good.......2005-12-18

I am a big fan of the classic monsters and monster movies. Interestingly, I am so without having seen any of them, practically! I mainly know them from later movies, from comic books, and from books. (I read Mary Shelley's Frankenstein, for instance.)

So I jumped at the chance when I found out of a great opportunity to get a whole bunch of the most classic monster movies at once on DVD, and even at a excellent price. It has three or four Frankenstein movies, and the same for Dracula and Wolf Man. It also has small busts of those three gentlemen, in surprisingly fine quality. This is the MONSTER LEGACY COLLECTION.

If you can get it, I recommend the UK edition, which has four extra films, The Mummy, Creature from the Black Lagoon, Phantom of the Opera, and The Invisible Man. It is not quite as easy to find, but I found it at Blah DVD.

I don't know why I, like many people, have such an affinity for monsters. They just be weally weally cool.

What is a monster? Is it an evil creature or person? Is it a deformed creature/person? Is it something inhuman? I am not sure what the basic of it is. But at least this collection is a good start to any research. :)

GREAT COLLECTION.......2005-08-26

I bought this collection when it came out and found no problem with the discs. It was shipped by Amazon and came rapped and boxed in perfect condition. None of the DVDs were loose. For the quality of the transfer, I find it very good. All in all I find it a great collection (I wish Universal could have done the same thing with The Creature, Mummy and Invisible Man collections).

Hooray for Monsters! .......2005-05-14

If you grew up any time between the 50s and 70s, chances are you've seen each and every one of these movies on TV. If you were lucky, one of your local TV stations even had a weekly horror movie show - complete with a wacky host to introduce the films.

Well, those days are gone. Monsters have been replaced by hatchet-wielding maniacs in hockey masks, and your wacky horror movie host has been replaced by cable, infomercials and whatever else has prompted TV stations to give up on creating any sort of interesting local programming. It's a shame that you rarely see the classic Universal horror movies on TV any more...but it's also what makes The Monster Legacy Collection such a Godsend.

This set is, very simply, a must for anyone who grew up loving old black & white horror flicks. Over the course of six discs, The Monster Legacy Collection gives you very nearly all the films featuring Universal's 'Big Three' Monsters: Dracula, Frankenstein and the Wolf Man. (The one omission being "Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein," but this set is about the monsters - not A&C - so no quibbles from me.)

Of course, in this set you get all the original films in which the monsters appeared. With the likely exception of "Bride of Frankenstein" - a rare case of a sequel besting an original - critics would consider these the highwater marks of the lot. For my money, though, including all the films in the series is what makes The Monster Legacy Collection so worthwhile. So what if "Dracula" is actually a better film than, say, "House of Frankenstein?" Film historians may turn up their noses a bit at the latter, but it's actually more fun to watch because, well, it has more monsters! Through the six discs included in this collection, we see how Universal turned its monsters - the main characters in its great, classic films of the 30s - into fodder for kiddie matinees in the 40s. More importantly, we see just how well the later films have held up. They may lack the subtlety and art of the earlier films, but damn if they aren't great popcorn entertainment! As big studio exploitation flicks, they stand as classics in their own right. Hats off to Universal for including every one of them in this set.

And, just in case all the films for the three Top Monsters wasn't enough, this collection also includes a couple of flicks that are related by studio and theme even if they weren't part of these series. Both "Werewolf of London" and "She Wolf of London" are included in the 'Wolf Man' set. Add various documentaries, previews, commentaries and other extras, and you have a box set that's sure to please the Classic Horror fan or introduce the unfamiliar to these films in grand style. Buy this thing now while it's still in print!

Damn You, Universal!!!.......2004-11-07

I ordered this dvd on Oct. 22nd and it came on Nov. 1st. All of the dvds work with the exception of the Dracula disc two, it only plays on 1 of the 3 dvd players that I have. I hope Universal doesn't want to get into a lawsuit. I might return it here i might just go to target. I think the dvd was loose is because it was packaged in newspapers, not packing beans. I wish the Laemmles hadn't sold the studio in 1936, things would have been much different.

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