Welcome to the "House of Dracula"

John Carradine & Martha O'Driscoll

Fans always enjoy seeing fictional characters interact, whether it’s in graphic novels like Alan Moore’s The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, blockbuster films like the recent Marvel and DC superhero franchises, or TV series like John Logan’s Victorian era horror saga Penny Dreadful. In 1943, Universal Pictures began combining their successful horror characters in Frankenstein Meets The Wolf Man, with Bela Lugosi as the Frankenstein Monster, and Lon Chaney, Jr. in his signature role as The Wolf Man. Even though the two “titans of terror” seemingly perished at the end of the movie, they returned in 1944’s monster mash-up House of Frankenstein. That film also featured a mad scientist, played by none other than Boris Karloff and Dracula, portrayed by John Carradine. Once again, in the story’s finale, it looked like most of these characters had met their end. But you can’t really keep a good monster down, can you?

House of Dracula (1945) brings together Dracula, The Wolf Man and Frankenstein’s Monster, as they all end up at the castle of Dr. Franz Edelmann, who’s researching a plant called clavaria formosa, which he hopes can be used to cure a variety of medical issues and illnesses. He has two assistants, Miliza (Martha O’Driscoll, in a role tailor made for Evelyn Ankers) and the hunchbacked Nina. Edelmann hopes to treat Nina’s condition following the completion of his research. But two visitors to the castle will change all that; a distinguished looking man named Baron Latos, who claims to be a vampire, and Lawrence Talbot, a troubled soul who insists that, during each full moon, he turns into a werewolf and kills people. Latos is of course, Count Dracula and Talbot is The Wolf Man. Both men want Dr. Edelmann’s help in ridding them of their conditions; for Latos/Dracula it’s his vampirism, and for Talbot, it’s the curse of the werewolf. Edelmann examines and diagnoses them, and concludes that they can be scientifically treated, and possibly even cured!

Onslow Stevens, Glenn Strange & Lon Chaney, Jr.

But the best-laid plans of men (even well-intentioned ones) often go awry. After rescuing a distraught Talbot from a suicide attempt, the two men discover the still living Frankenstein Monster beneath the castle, and Edelmann has the creature brought to his lab. He’s tempted to fully revive the monster, but is warned not to by Talbot. Edelmann applies his cure to Talbot, who anxiously awaits the results. Meanwhile, Dracula has set his sights on the lovely Miliza, and his darker impulses cloud his desire for a cure. When Dracula reverses the flow of a blood transfusion from Edelmann, the doctor becomes infected with the vampire’s blood, and temporarily transforms into a creepy Mr. Hyde like fiend, who then murders one of the castle’s workers. He also revives Frankenstein’s creation. The template is set for death and destruction, as angry villagers seeking revenge for the murder storm the castle, and the local police inspector heads there to find the killer. Of course, it all ends in a fiery finale, in true Universal fashion.

House of Dracula has several elements that make it worth watching. The film is fast-paced and briskly directed by Erle C. Kenton, which helps viewers overlook some of the inconsistencies with earlier entries in the series. Carradine is an effective Dracula, combining charm and a subtle sense of menace. He makes the most of his screen time here, after having what amounted to an extended cameo in House of Frankenstein. The rest of the cast is also strong; aside from Carradine and Chaney (who’s very good in the film) there’s Onslow Stevens as Edelmann, Jane Adams as Nina and the one and only Lionel Atwill as Inspector Holtz. What’s also interesting about House of Dracula is the concept that the monsters (specifically Dracula and The Wolf Man) have afflictions that can be medically diagnosed, treated and cured. The story mingles the classic origins of these characters with science (even psychology), and suggests there is another way to look at the cause of their “curses.” It was (and is) an intriguing idea. In fact, while Larry Talbot seemed to be cured by the end of the story, he’d be back to his lycanthropic ways in 1948’s classic comedy/horror hybrid, Abbott & Costello Meet Frankenstein, which is the last time the classic monster line-up appeared together.

While no one will likely place House of Dracula among the best of the Universal series, it’s a fun film that will reward Universal horror fans with a great deal of enjoyment. How can you go wrong with a movie that features Lon Chaney, Jr., John Carradine, Lionel Atwill and Glenn Strange as Frankenstein’s Monster? The old adage “they don’t make them like this anymore” certainly applies here. The film is available on DVD and Blu-ray in several configurations and collections, so check out your online retailers for details. Here’s a link to the trailer for House of Dracula: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6KLf-PjcxQg.