31 Days of Horror Reviews 2018: Dracula's Daughter

Dracula’s Daughter is an alright film that it’s only flaw is the huge shadow cast by its preceding film. 

REVIEW

Most horror sequels commonly have the monster return in some way due to its popularity. Nightmare on Elm Street, Friday the 13th and Halloween, every horror franchise did it, but Dracula’s Daughter is a rarity in the genre. Dracula sort of takes the role of Jason in the first Friday the 13th movie, he’s more like an omnipresent phantom than an actual character while the real focus is on his daughter, Countess Marya Zaleska (Gloria Holden).

The film immediately picks up where the original left off. After Van Helsing (Edward Van Sloan) is taken to Scotland Yard for the murder(?) of Count Dracula, Countess Marya takes his body and burns it hoping that it would free her from the curse. Her hope doesn’t last long as she succumbs to her thirst for blood. In desperation, she meets with a psychiatrist Dr. Garth (Otto Kruger) who tells her that if her will is stronger than the influence, then she will overcome her cravings. At first, she does make the effort to resist it, but Dracula’s Curse seems to be stronger than her will. The whole idea of someone wanting to be free from Dracula’s influence is actually a very interesting concept to me and I wish would be explored more often. It sort of brings to mind the idea of nature vs nurture and the fact that it’s the daughter of Dracula brings up the subject of abusive relationships.

While not having as big a presence as Lugosi, Holden does manage to match his intensity. The scene where she mesmerizes a young woman she initially wanted to use as a painting model is very well done with it’s use of lighting, music and camera work. The wide eyed gaze of the Countess as the light reflects off her ring to mesmerize her victim is one of my favorite moments in the film.

There’s not as much atmosphere in this film as there was in the first. It does use dramatic lighting, cleverly uses rack focusing and the sets look amazing. It may not be eerie all throughout, but when a scene calls for it, it doesn’t hold back.

Dracula’s Daughter may not have been as financially successful as its predecessor, but it is a worthy entry in the Dracula franchise.