Dracula and Son


Dracula and Son is a 1976 French comedy horror film directed and written by Édouard Molinaro. The film is about a vampire father and son. Christopher Lee reprises his role as Count Dracula from the Hammer Films Dracula film series.
In the film, Count Dracula and his son are driven into exile by angry Transylvanian villagers. The father settles in London, and the son settles in Paris. They are reunited when both father and son feel an attraction to the same girl.

Plot

With angry villagers driving them away from their castle in Transylvania, Count Dracula and his son Ferdinand head abroad. The Prince of Darkness ends up in London, England where he becomes a horror movie star exploiting his vampire status.
His son, meanwhile, is ashamed of his roots and ends up a night watchman in Paris, France where he falls for Nicole, a French girl. Naturally, tensions arise when father and son are reunited and both take a liking to the same girl.

Cast

Production

Bernard Menez had appeared two years earlier in 1974's Tender Dracula opposite Peter Cushing, who had played Christopher Lee's nemesis in the Hammer Films Dracula film series.

Release

Dracula and Son was released in France on 15 September 1976. It was released in 1979 in the United States. The American distributor of the film cut many jokes in the film and replaced them with different gags.

Reception

Allmovie gave the film a rating of two stars out of five, but noted that "this was a very witty film prior to its decimation by an uncaring American distributor. A review in TV Guide gave a positive review of three stars out of four, noting that the film "actually works because it treats its subject with respect and doesn't degrade it for cheap, campy laughs." while noting that the film has a "poor dubbing job" that made the character Ferdinand Poitevin sound like a cross between Woody Allen and Austin Pendleton.