Few horror movie icons seem quite asimmortal asDracula, both literally and figuratively. The world’s most famous vampire has had a haunting presence in cinema for over a century at this point, so long as you include 1922’sNosferatu: A Symphony of Horror, which was an unauthorized adaptation ofBram Stoker’snovelDracula, first published in 1897. As far as movies, where the filmmakers were allowed to use the entire novel, are concerned, the original would be in 1931, which is when the first officialDraculamovie came out (there’s also a 1921 film calledDracula’s Death,but it’s been lost to time, and apparently didn’t follow the events of the novel).
As far as classic (and official)Draculamovies go, the series made by Hammer Productions — with filmsoften featuringChristopher Leein the title role— might be one of the most iconic, or at least the most consistent regarding quality. But the Universal series was the first long-running one to have some consistency, telling a loose kind of story revolving around Count Dracula and various other characters, beginning with the first officialDraculamovie in 1931. That 1931 film had four sequels that fall within the original Universal series, with all five movies in said series being ranked below from worst to best.
5’House of Dracula' (1945)
There areplenty of greatDraculamovies out there, but unfortunately, few would count 1945’sHouse of Draculaas one of them. This was the fourth movie to feature Dracula in the Universal series, and some would say the last serious one, given his only appearance in those Universal Monster movies beyond this was in a far more comedic affair (more on that later). Here, the plot revolves around a scientist making risky discoveries in his quest to cure rare afflictions, only to get involved in a tangled plot that sees him clashing with Dracula, the Wolf Man, and even Frankenstein’s monster.
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It might sound like it’s all a little too ambitious for its 67-minute runtime, and it is because even though some scenes might contain bursts of fun in isolation, the movie ends up disappointing. Team-up/crossover movies have proven incredibly successful in recent years — with thenew trend around multiverse moviesmaking this even more apparent — so if one felt charitable, some credit could be given toHouse of Draculadoing it decades before it was cool. Still, it’s just not as exciting or continually compelling as it should be, and it is probably the weakest of the original UniversalDraculamovie.
4’Son of Dracula' (1943)
Sometimes, a movie is popular enough to get a sequel, but there’s one problem: the character that audiences loved and want to see again dies at the end of the first movie. This is particularly likely to happen if the title character is also the film’s villain. So one popular way to “bring” the character back is to tag a “Son of” onto the original’s title and give a story (usually revolving around a monster) a second wind. Exactly 10 years beforeSon of Dracula, it happened with theKing Kongseries, for example,with what could generously be called mixed results.
For a classic monster movie,Son of Dracula’spretty ordinary stuff, in all honesty. It revolves around Dracula wreaking havoc on a young woman in the American South and upending the lives of various people she’s associated with. At a point, there’s more than one undead figure for the non-undead people to contend with, which ironically does help give this movie a pulse, even if it still feels like it’s running on fumes to some extent. You could do a lot worse, as far as old-school horror movies go, but the best that can be said aboutSon of Dracula, in the end, is that it’s sort of merely watchable.
3’Dracula’s Daughter' (1936)
The originalDraculaseries may havehad some sequels of shaky quality, but at least 1936’sDracula’s Daughterwas one of the better ones. It’s certainly a step above (albeit a small one) the two aforementioned sequels from the 1940s, and those who liked what the 1931 original had to offer might also find this sequel solid overall. It does at least make things interesting by having the central villain be a countess, rather than a count, as it’s Countess Marya Zaleska who causes chaos in London this time around, instead of the usual Dracula, with Professor Von Helsing (name changed from the usual “Van”) needing to step in to save the day.
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It manages to continue the story from the original, in a way, even if there aren’t a ton of characters that cross over. And even ifBela Lugosiwill ultimately remain the best-known actor to portray a vampire within these Universal monster movies (despite only playing Dracula twice),Gloria Holdenis still compelling in her role as this film’s undead countess.Dracula’s Daughteris pretty decent overall, and as it was the original’s first sequel, it’s probably worth a watch for anyone who liked that 1931 film.
2’Bud Abbott and Lou Costello Meet Frankenstein' (1948)
Anyone expecting a serious finalDraculamovie within the Universal series may be surprised (and hopefully not disappointed) to find that the fifth and final film,Bud Abbott and Lou Costello Meet Frankenstein, is a horror/comedymovie that emphasizes comedy over horror. Despite Dracula not getting his name in the title, he does certainly get a part to play here, even if Frankenstein’s monster gets to have the titular role (other iconic monsters who appear without being mentioned in the title include the Wolf Man and the Invisible Man).
The movie mostly serves as an excuse to have comedy duoAbbot and Costellogoof around for just over 80 minutes, engaging in their usual comedic routines while giving everything a slight supernatural spin, seeing as they keep running into iconic Universal monsters. It’s a novel approach to making either a comedy or a horror movie, but it paid off well, as this is a highlight within the numerous Universal monster movies of the 1930s and 1940s. It’s fun to see Dracula clash with other monsters in a comedic context, and when judged as an Abbott and Costello movie, it’s also one of their better efforts, too.
1’Dracula' (1931)
When it comes to the UniversalDraculaseries, the original from 1931 is still the best. It’s the one that takes the most inspiration from Bram Stoker’s original novel, though it should be noted thatit’s far from a direct adaptation. Beyond starting this particularDraculafilm series, it’s also notable for being shot alongside a Spanish-language version of the same script, with both being filmed at the same time and released in the same year. That Spanish-language version deserves an honorable mention, as it goes further than most movies, which simply dub the dialogue for releases in different countries. Additionally, some would say the Spanish-language version iseven better than the English-language version.
The well-known premise sees Count Dracula hunting young women in London and the attempts made by a group of men led by Dr. Abraham Van Helsing to stop his murderous ways. It certainly feels like a movie of its time, but its status as a horror movie classic can’t be denied at this point. It was also one of only two times that Bela Lugosi played the titular character (the other time was inBud Abbott and Lou Costello Meet Frankenstein), and with this single performance, he changed the way Dracula was imagined in pop culture and influenced countless other actors who played Dracula (or vampires in general) in his wake.
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