Thursday, April 29, 2004
The 'Legacy' DVDs feature one Dracula film making its disc debut.
By TERRY LAWSON
KNIGHT RIDDER NEWSPAPERS
Universal has tied the release of its "Legacy" editions of the unholy trinity of "Dracula," "Frankenstein" and "The Wolf Man" to the upcoming "Van Helsing," in which Dracula's nemesis is the central character, reuniting the famous monsters of film land.
But any excuse will do for these two-disc collections, which expand the previously released, remastered editions of these movies and their primary sequels with, well, more films and other features, and for a reduced price. Each slip-cased set is list-priced at $26.98, although you get them all together as "The Monster Legacy Collection" packaged with busts of Boris Karloff, Bela Lugosi and Lon Chaney Jr., in character of course, for $79.98.
Universal horror fanatics will grab the 1931 original "Dracula" (3 stars) first. It's atmospheric, all right, to the point of tedium, but it is spiced up a bit by the Philip Glass score, performed by the Kronos Quartet, heard on an alternative audio track. Also included is the Spanish version shot from the same script on the same sets, with Carlos Villarias replacing Lugosi and Enrique Tovar Avalos sitting in Tod Browning's director's chair.
First-time release
The real attraction here is the first DVD release of 1945's "House of Dracula" (2 stars), a sequel to "House of Frankenstein" (see below) that brought all three characters together for the second time. It's not nearly as entertaining as the later "Abbot and Costello Meet Frankenstein" (the first time Lugosi officially reprised the role). But the story, in which a scientist attempts to cure the count (played by John Carradine) and the others of their "afflictions" is pretty interesting.
Rounding out the program is 1936's "Dracula's Daughter" (3 stars) with Gloria Holden almost exclusively attracted to female victims, and 1943's "Son of Dracula" (3 stars), set in the American South and probably the best of the original series.
Film for film, "Frankenstein" is the best buy, not only for James Whale's 1931 original (4 stars) take on Mary Shelley's gothic masterpiece, but for his delirious, even better sequel in 1935 with Elsa Lanchester as the manufactured mate ("Bride of Frankenstein"). Karloff returned to the role for 1939's efficient "Son of Frankenstein" (2 stars), with Lugosi playing Ygor, and what is basically the first part of a story continued in 1942's "The Ghost of Frankenstein" (2 stars).
With the next installment showing up on the "Wolf Man" set, the final entry here is 1944's "House of Frankenstein," the first all-star get-together, with Karloff now promoted to playing the doctor and Glenn Strange making his first appearance as the nut with bolts.
'Wolf Man' set
From 1941, the brisk (only 70 minutes), beautiful and beastly "The Wolf Man" (4 stars) is considered by many Universal buffs the best of all the franchise starters, with Lon Chaney Jr. giving a truly fine performance as the accursed Larry Talbot. It was followed by 1943's "Frankenstein Meets the Wolfman" (3 stars) in which Talbot, seeking to be put of out of his misery, goes looking for Dr. Frankenstein, but hooks up with the monster instead.
These films were actually preceded by 1935's well-made "Werewolf of London" (3 stars) with Henry Hull playing the scientist who brings the curse of lycanthropy on himself, while 1946's completely unrelated "She-Wolf of London" (2 stars) stars June Lockhart as a young woman who begins to think she could be responsible for a string of gruesome murders, although PETA should be happy to know she never sprouts fur.
All the sets feature at least one commentary, brief retrospective documentaries, trailers, newly mixed audio and a plug for "Van Helsing" by director Stephen Sommers, which no one will make you watch.