The Return of the Vampire 1943) *

In 1940s London, a vampire and his werewolf slave threaten the lives of an adversary's son and future daughter-in-law  as the Nazis pass by to drop bombs on the city. 
***½

 

I think one of the great disappointments for us Dracula/Lugosi fans is the fact that Dracula could not be used for a “sort-of” sequel to the ’31 Universal picture. How cool wouldn’t it have been (I speak to my fellow Lugosi buffs and fans of the Universal film) to see Dracula acknowledged in war-battered London during WWII, forcing a servant through werewolvery (interesting take on lycanthropy; hypnotism, through the power of Dracula, causes a young man named Andréas (Matt Willis) to become a werewolf slave) forced to do his bidding.

I have to admit that the film itself really kind of trots out the old clichés from the Dracula/vampire films of the past (the fear of the crucifix, causing the death of a female victim he’d been draining without being in the same room; the power of good triumphing over evil, the foggy cemetery, the disbelieving chief law enforcer who is unshaken/unwavering in his skepticism despite the evidence to the contrary; the vampire’s eyeing a female victim for his new bride that would conflict his own situation and perhaps cause him detrimental harm), and there are plenty of moments in the script (a stake hammered into Drac…er…Armand Tesla’s chest, the vampire’s body found in an open casket by two gravediggers, and they conveniently pluck it from him thinking it was war-caused, burying him in fertile ground, him later rising from his new grave; Tesla’s history regarding the study and later “conversion” to vampirism is muddy at best) that are a bit questionable from a logical standpoint, but applying realism to B-movie vampire films that are built to capitalize on the past successes of another studio can be a bit trivial.

Still, the joy of seeing Lugosi donning the cape, fog seemingly a part of his wardrobe as even when in a room about to bite Nina Foch (looking mighty lovely; she would also star in Columbia’s Cry of the Werewolf (1944); Foch has been candidly honest in interview form that she isn’t fond of horror from the period of which she starred in these kinds of films, considering them campy and silly)…as he opens said cape said fog seems to fill said room. Seeing Willis as a werewolf in suits and such has brought some scorn and mockery towards The Return of the Vampire, as well.

Fog follows Armand Tesla everywhere he goes.

You see the bombs dropped by the Nazis on London, the damage that results from these attacks. This backdrop does add a different element to vampires and werewolves in London. It’s refreshing, really. We see how leveled the cemetery is (this location is one of the most focused in the film, with a lot of action set around Dracula’s temporary resting place).

Tesla is attacking a young woman in 1918, soon killing her by removing her life force, then aiming to take new blood from a female child. That child will grow up to be Nina Foch as a young woman about to marry the son of one of Tesla’s two adversaries, Lady Jane Ainsley (Frieda Inescourt). Foch was the daughter of Tesla’s other adversary, Professor Walter Saunders (Gilbert Emery), both studying the baffling condition caused by vampirism. Responsible for finding his casket, located in a mausoleum in the nearby cemetery, and hammering the stake in the vampire’s heart, Saunders keeps a written record of these events for future reference, later perishing in a plane crash (Tesla claims his curse was responsible! I don’t understand this, but that is what the 200 year old vampire says). Foch is the Saunders girl and perfect prey to get revenge on those who led to Tesla’s momentary coma. With help from a resistant Andréas, Tesla will try to tear Lady Ainsley’s world apart. Lady Ainsley will try to convince Scotland Yard’s Sir Frederick Fleet that Tesla (under the guise of Hugo Bruckner, who had successfully escaped a Nazi Concentration camp, and was to work with Ainsley; Hugo’s horrifying fate, thanks to Andréas in werewolf form, under Tesla’s orders, is rather tragic considering all he had been through to get to Britain) is alive and well in London, with Foch’s Nikki his primary target.

Armand Tesla, The Vampire

That’s pretty much it. It isn’t exactly rocket science, this plot. It allows Lugosi to work that ole Dracula magic. That cape—and wicked grin—seems to evoke a glimmer in his eye and bravado in his performance that is definitely of consequence to his fans, I imagine. He seems endowed with a sense of empowerment in this role. When he has a conversation with Ainsley late in the film, telling her what he plans to do, that devilish ardor is so palpable. Sadly, I read somewhere that Lugosi was paid poorly for his services. Considering his status in the horror genre, today he’d be paid far more handsomely. But, alas, this is a different era, and Lugosi’s pay didn’t reflect what he personally brought to the film. His name was often important for poverty row studio films, and, like The Return of the Vampire, Lugosi wasn’t exactly rewarded handsomely. I have always enjoyed the connection—if however slight—to another werewolf film, The Werewolf (1956), thanks to make-up artist (who worked in the industry for ages), Clay Campbell. Campbell performed the werewolf make up for both films. The similarities are striking, and, besides a few minor variations, it is the same basic make up for both Willis and Steve Ritchie (of the aforementioned The Werewolf (1956)).

Andréas, The Werewolf

It is fascinating how the bombs dropped by the Germans actually both benefit and threaten the heroes. Often the dropped bombs disrupt Tesla’s strategy, even harm him. One final attack actually topples mausoleum wreckage upon him, giving Andréas an advantage to seize upon him. In the sunlight, Tesla has nowhere to run, with Andréas using the crucifix to gain an upper hand. This all plays out as you would see in a Universal Studios product, with the evil vampire’s fate sealed because of his weaknesses. He has used his powers to hurt those loved by his adversaries, forced an innocent man into a beast at his beck and call, and bled women dry of blood. Although his vampirism gives his certain supernatural abilities, this condition also is eventually his downfall. You get Tesla frying under the sun, Andréas, although shot, able to put an end to him once and for all before succumbing to his wound, and all is well even after the Nazis have attacked the city once again.

The Cemetery

The Return of the Vampire isn’t exactly heralded; Columbia Studios wasn’t exactly a horror films studio but ventured every once in a while in that direction. Securing the services cheap of Lugosi was a feather in their cap, but I haven’t read a great deal of praise heaped on this film. It barely breaks the sweat of an hour, follows the Universal Monster Movies model closely, and aims for that particular audience. I think it does well enough, and with Lugosi’s presence, and including a werewolf for good measure—plus Lew Landers takes what Columbia gives him and produces some heavy atmosphere, especially with the foggy cemetery and a wartime Britain flavor—The Return of the Vampire is worthy of a nighttime viewing in October if you are looking for something Universal not made by them.