This surprisingly good tale has Bela Lugosi donning a Dracula-like cape, this time playing a Romanian vampire named Armand Tesla. Tesla was a scientist seeking eternal life who eventually became a vampire. Tesla lives in a cemetary mauseleum protected by his talking werewolf servant Andreas. Throughout the film Andreas seems to always be carrying a package that looks like his laundry.

The story begins during WW I where Tessla is visiting a rich scientist’s mansion, first praying on a woman then his young daughter (I wonder how that one got past the censors back then). The scientist and his wife seek out the vampire during the day and locate his hiding place at the cemetary (they follow barefoot footprints in the cemetary to the mauseleum. They are about to spike him when Andreas returns. He tells them to basically go ahead and after the dead is performed, Andreas is transformed into a man.

Tesla’s body is buried in a secret grave and Andreas goes to work for the scientists. Things stay quiet until the beginning of WW II. The Germans (they are called Jerrys in the film) start bombing raids and for some reason they decide to bomb the cemetary (they want to make sure those dead people stay dead). The force of one of the explosions exposes the hidden grave of Tesla. Some comical grave diggers come by and see Tesla and figure that the spike should be removed before they rebury him (you wonder why his body isn’t destroyed because he is in sunlight when they find him). Off course Tesla comes to life again after sundown and seeks out Andreas again.

Tesla assumes the identity of a visiting doctor that Andreas has disposed of. He arrives at the mansion and of course is the charming visiting guest (looks like a scene from any Dracula movie). Of course Tesla is after the little girl who is now grown into a beautiful woman. The female scientist starts to realize what is happening and must figure a way to defeat Tesla again before everyone ends up a victim.

The movie is fun and a good period piece. Though it was made by Columbia, it has the look and feel of any of the classic Universal monster films. The DVD extras include a hysterical trailer for Hammer’s Revenge of Frankenstein as well as the trailer for Brahm Stoker’s Dracula.
Rating: 4 / 5

During the 1930s and 1940s, Universal Studios had a string of hits with horror films. Most of these films went on to become classics, mainly because of the presence of three actors: Béla Lugosi, Boris Karloff, and Lon Chaney, Jr.. Universal was then imitated by many other studios that tried to capitalize on the success of these iconic horror films, but typically the results were disastrous. There were, however, a few noteworthy exceptions. In the Columbia Pictures film, The Return of the Vampire, Béla Lugosi once again played a bloodsucker, though this time in World War II England. His role as Armand Tesla is almost identical to the role he played in Dracula, which was the classic film from Universal that spawned the horror movie craze. Along with Béla Lugosi playing the archetypal vampire, there is also a reluctant werewolf, and a chase seen through a fog-enshrouded cemetery; all of these things, which could be attributed to the Universal Monster cycle of films. Unlike most attempts at recreating the atmosphere of the Universal films, The Return of the Vampire succeeds on most levels. The acting is of the same style and quality of the Universal films and look of the sets and costumes is very close to those films. The film so closely resembles the horror films of Universal that I’m surprised that the Universal Studios didn’t sue for plagiarism. Luckily they did not.

During the air raids in London a vampire named Armand Tesla is accidentally resurrected after a bomb blast disturbs his coffin. He sets out to destroy those responsible for his temporary demise twenty-three years earlier. Tesla targets the offspring of his assailants, Lady Jane and Professor Saunders. He once again calls upon his slave, the reluctant werewolf Andréas to help him carry out his insidious plans. But little does Tesla realize that in his absence, Lady Jane has been teaching Andréas to resist his master’s hypnotic powers. As Tesla takes his revenge, Lady Jane is forced to consider the possibility that only through sacrificing her son, John and Professor Saunders’ granddaughter, Nikki will they be able to stop Tesla from spreading his plague of death and vampirism. But can Armand Tesla be thwarted?

While Béla Lugosi’s performance is by no stretch of the imagination groundbreaking, viewers will delight in seeing him once again playing a Count Dracula-like vampire. The cast also includes Nina Foch, who later would famously declare that she hated horror films.

While the plot is not that dissimilar from other horror films of the time, it is interesting to see a B-movie address the war, even if they merely exploit it as a plot device. Most films intentionally avoided the subject for fear of depressing audiences further.

It’s also fascinating to take note that Lugosi’s costume is almost exactly the same as the one he wore in Dracula, and some film historians have even suggested that the costume he wore was that from the 1927 stage play of Dracula.

Despite it’s predictable plot and hammy acting, The Return of the Vampire is a must-have for horror fans, if not for its story then for its star, Béla Lugosi. Another reason for adding this often-overlooked film to your collection is its novel ending. After seeing the disintegrated corpse of the vampire, a skeptical police investigator turns toward the camera and actually asks viewers if they believe in the existence of vampires. Priceless!

Also recommended:

Dracula: The Legacy Collection

Frankenstein: The Legacy Collection

The Wolf Man: The Legacy Collection

Hollywood’s Legends of Horror Collection

The Val Lewton Horror Collection
Rating: 4 / 5