Dracula’s Fiancée – aka La fiancée de Dracula – is a 1999 French horror feature film written and directed by Jean Rollin. (Grapes of Death; The Iron Rose; Requiem for a Vampire; The Nude Vampire; et al). The movie stars Jacques Orth, Thomas Smith and Sandrine Thoquet. Brigitte Lahaie has a cameo role.
While searching for the earthly remains of Count Dracula, a professor an his young assistant are thrown into a surreal parallel universe of darkness and decay when they encounter supernatural creatures- a jester and his vampire lover, a she-wolf, sorcerers and a sensuous baby-eating ogress! Ultimately, the professor’s quest leads him to confrontation with the beautiful but evil Isabelle who has the power to decide his fate…
Buy Blu-ray: Amazon.co.uk
Reviews:
“What’s most likeable about it, though, is the inimitable seventies vibe: it’s not just a budgetary thing, but the atmosphere Rollin conjures up with effective use of costume design, cinematography, editing and cheap, hyper-crimson blood – in spite of the film’s obvious failings – is commendable.” Digital Retribution
“Rollin fans may find it all just a bit too busy at times; so much is crammed in that the film doesn’t have that same sense of languid drowsiness as older works, and it’s always moving hurriedly from one bizarre set-piece to the next. Nevertheless, this is much better than one would have expected from the now rather elderly statesman of the fantastique.” Horrorview
” …while the story produces an occasional romantic frisson, this isn’t meant to be a particularly terrifying film. The low budget shooting is more of an inconvenience than usual in Rollin’s films; the glossy sheen present in even his earliest, unpolished efforts has been dulled somewhat by flat, 1990s-style cinematography. However, his eye for unusual and psychologically piercing visuals remains intact…” Nathaniel Thompson, Mondo Digital
“Dracula’s Fiancée feels like the work of a director who’s very much aware of his reputation. Rolling doesn’t shy away from expectations but rather embraces them to an absurd degree: not only does the film proceed with dream logic, it does so at a rapid clip that’s constantly introducing characters that could have popped up at any point in Rollin’s filmography.” Brett Gallman, Oh, the Horror!
Running time and aspect ratio:
91 minutes | 1.85: 1
Latest release:
Having previously been available on DVD via Redemption and Shriek Show, Dracula’s Fiancée is released on Blu-ray in the UK by Black House on October 15, 2018.
Image credits: Minuit Sang
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