FIRST TRAILER released today from the BBC supporting their eagerly
anticipated new version of the classic Bram Stoker horror 'Dracula'.
This series has been developed by #MarkGatiss and #StevenMoffat, the team behind the BBC series #Sherlock.
Much of the filming for this three part series took place at Orava
Castle in Slovakia and ... the iconic Bray Studios in England, home to #Hammerfilms and the location of many of #PeterCushing's and #ChristopherLee's classic Dracula and#Frankenstein films in the 50's and 60's.
PRODUCER#MarkGattiss has recently said, : “It’s seriously delightful that our new Dracula is being shot at #BrayStudios
– the former home of Hammer Films! This wonderfully atmospheric and
legendary studio gave birth to so many famous monsters and stars – most
memorably Peter Cushing and Christopher Lee. As we watch #Transylvania
once again rise on the sound stages of Bray, it’s amazing to be able to
say that Count Dracula has finally come home.” The cast includes Claes
Bang as #Dracula . . John Heffernan, Dolly Wells, Mark Gatiss...and #DoctorWho, #Space1999 and Bond girl, #CatherineSchell.
The series will be shown on the BBC first in the UK and on Netflix
outside of the UK. It’s not yet been revealed when it will be screened
on #BBC1 – however the festive period looks a fair bet. It's an interesting trailer.. what do you think?
THIS
YEAR 019, we are going to mark our Halloween on Thursday Oct 31st, with
a celebration of Peter Cushing's portrayal of THE fearless vampire
hunter VAN HELSING! Some great pics, some very rare and never seen
before archive photographs from the files of Hammer films, set designer
Bernard Robinson, from Hammer's Dracula, Brides of Dracula, chat, facts
and banners . . and if the support is there... TWO PCAS Competitions! 24
hours of a grand nod to one of Peter Cushing's most popular characters,
who appeared in FIVE Hammer classic Horror movies! It will be fun. Come
on IN or Miss Out! 😉 - Marcus
HMV ARE RELEASING DRACULA AD '72 and THE SATANIC RITES OF DRACULA as part of their Premium Collection on Blu-Ray 🙂 The deal includes a slip jacket for each Blu ray, 4 color postcards and a poster! The blu ray will be released from HMV on 14th October 2019. £14.99 each Blu ray OR 2 for £25.00. A bargain 🙂 Thanks to Rob McKenna for the heads up! ORDER HERE AND HERE
READ PCASUK REVIEW OF WARNER BROTHERS REMASTERED BLU RAY OF DRACULA AD 1972 STARRING #PETER CUSHING AND #CHRISTOPHERLEE WITH GALLERY AND GIFS :HERE!
READ THE PCASUK REVIEW OF WARNER BROTHERS BLU RAY OF THE SATANIC RITES OF DRACULA STARRING #PETERCUSHING AND #CHRISTOPHERLEE WITH SCREEN CAPS, GIFS AND GALLERY : HERE!
REQUESTED:HERE'S A PHOTOGRAPH I posted a little while ago on here and at the Facebook PCASUK Fan Page, requested now for a
repost by Mandy K, Cheryl T and others . .who missed it! This has to be
the most tactile and affectionate photograph, I have ever seen of Lee
with an actress . . off studio camera and on set!
AS I HAVE always said
on the subject of Lee feelings on appearing on both 'Satanic Rites of
Dracula' and 'Dracula AD 1972'. Lee may not have professionally liked the
idea of the films and their plots, but I don't think he sulked or pouted
around the set . . as some would have you believe. And I think, this
pic is a fair indication, that what director Alan Gibson said on making
both films, that everyone got on, it was relaxed and they had fun! Let's
face it, it's not everyone who can say they got a hug from Christopher
Lee...!
LIKE MANY HAMMER FILM and Peter Cushing fans, for the last few years, I've both a mental and physical 'wish list' of movies, |I have hoped would some day, get the remastering blu ray treatment. I am very happy to now look at my shelves and see most of those titles have not only received a re-release and remaster, but also 98% of them have been blessed with a remastering, quite beyond my expectation! It's wonderful to see many Cushing features, that for years looked destined to never be seen again, the way I had once watched them in the cinema. It took quite a while, with the arrival of DVD's to weed out the duds, and not fall foul of a 'bootlegged home made burned copy of a years old TV recorded copy of a VHS recording' to a legit marketed commercial DVD copy to arrive. For quite sometime, we were very happy with DVD quality, and then the sometimes sparkling definition of a BLU RAY! Could it ever get any better. we asked? 'Oh, Yes . . .', said the distributors, 'Take a look a this!' The REMASTERED 1080p high definition Blu Ray.... can be at times, quite thing of beauty. Sometimes if the copy house gets it wrong though, it can also become a never ending chorus of lethal barbs, personal opinions and wrath, at forums and internet groups.
THANKFULLY, that has not happened too often with Cushing films. There will always be the wish and bucket list, of people who have high expectations and yet low funds and shallow pockets. The remastering process is an expensive business and in the current lolly-no-lolly climate, things tough. Though there will always be, the customer who also expects, a perk! Some of the better remasterings, have arrived without any extras. No new documentaries, no galleries of images and rare stills.. but the quality of what it offers on the label, is very, very high. The FILM is a knockout! And with that, I am happy to share that, SCREAM FACTORY has delivered a VERY nice release, that meets the standard we have come to expect and a much needed and very entertaining package of extras too, for a film that has been on THAT 'Wish List', for quite sometime . . .
I AM NOT GOING TO BORE YOU with the story, plot details and 'CHOP' of Hammer films and Shaw Brothers, THE LEGEND OF THE SEVEN GOLDEN VAMPIRES. If you are a Cushing, Hammer or Horror film fan, you WILL know the plot like the contents of Famous Monsters Of Filmland, Issue ONE or page six of Alan Franks excellent, 1976 edition of The Movie Treasury of 'Monsters and Vampires!' If seeing Cushing play Van Helsing in a more traditional sense, rather than in 70's swinging London, as in the outstanding remasters from Warner Brothers of both 'Dracula AD 1972' and 'The Satanic Rites of Dracula' However, if you NEED the plot, you may find a PCAS feature, with that and a whole skip full of stills, RIGHT HERE and HERE!.
THE TEC SPEC! AND SO TO THE LINE, that is the divider or decider in such releases as this. A title now arrives on blu ray, that most parties or individuals will probably already own and may have in several formats, purchased and added to those creeking shelves, over the years. The question: Is THIS release an improvement and worth parting with your hard earned lolly? The ANSWER is certainly! I have found over the years, it is the past reputations of such companies as Shout / Scream Factory, that will define if fans are going to cry, 'Once Bitten, Twice Shy' having been stung with past purchases, where the excitement and anticipation of a blu ray release worth having, following lots of promotion and word of mouth, sinks faster, after the opening credits than a trout with belly full lead! Scream Factory has an excellent record and this release again puts the seal of approval on they give what they promise. This release is 2.35:1 anamorphic and SCREAM FACTORY'S transfer presents visually a real bonus, to anyone who has seen the film before, and experienced not too sharp an image, to put it bluntly! The 50GB disc is an AVC encoded 1080p high definition transfer. Having said that, some would consider the transfer to not quite be of reference quality.AT LAST we can now see, what is happening CLEARLY, CRISPLY! Nothing that I could see in my TWO viewings of this release, dropped from an excellent clarity, a viewing of this film, I had never seen before. Blurring, sudden softness of what two seconds ago was a sharp image, with solid contrast of a shot, filmed in shadow, can be a real distraction, if seen too often while enjoying your recent purchase.
WATCHING THIS RELEASE was full of visual surprises. Details in costumes, actors expressions and of course, the fight scenes, was a real treat! The transfer brings out so much detail compared to previous releases. The audio is DTS-HD MA Mono. The levels are clear and for some might hint at being TOO clear! All dialogue in Seven Golden Vampires, was created during ADR. It was very common practice in the industry in Hong Kong at this time, that little if anything that was recorded during production was used in the final theatrical release, everything was dubbed in post. So it's very fair to say, the levels are well balanced is
free of any obvious or noticeable hiss problems or distortion. James Bernard's excellent score has never sounded better! Optional subtitles are provided in English
only.
THE EXTRAS: REGULARS TO HERE AT THE PCAS website and the PCASUK FACEBOOK FAN PAGE will not be strangers to the work of BRUCE G HALLENBECK. As well, as writing and publishing several very good books on Hammer and Amicus films, Peter Cushing, Christopher Lee and many many others, Bruce has also contributed several exclusive features and series about Cushing, Hammer / Amicus and many of Cushing's supporting casts and characters for this website. You find links to many on the right column of this site! Bruce contributes and narrates a very entertaining feature on this SCREAM FACTORY release. Lots of new factoids and details about Hammer films, the history of why Hammer made a 'Vampire / Kung Fu' features at a time when Hammer had long left his Dracula role and how it almost didn't get made, as Warner Bros threatened to pull their money, unless Dracula was included in the film. Well done, Bruce!
A FEATURE WITH AUTHOR RICK BAKER, is also here if you have an interest in Kung Fu Cinema. 'KUNG FEAR' does a nice job of sharing the background of Hammer's partners in making 'Legend of the Seven Golden Vampires' The Shaw Brothers. Baker who is author of several books on Hong Kong cinema shares his knowledge while 'Golden Vampires' co star David Chiang gives a neat little interview, with memories on working on the film and Peter Cushing! Also included is the 75 min 'alternative' edit of the film, re-titled 'The 7 Brothers Meet Dracula'. It's minus much of Cushing's Van Helsing footage and anything that didn't have the minimum at least five chops or three foot sockings! Interesting! OVERALL Scream Factory's REMASTERED Blu Ray release of Hammer Films 'The Legend of the Seven Golden Vampires' is a very nice and long awaited addition to my little collection. It's fabulous to watch Cushing in his last outing as Van Helsing, Julie Ege, Chiang and Robin Stewart are a great support also. John Forbes- Robertson is very entertaining to watch in a 'Hong Kong' swing of Dracula. Complete with THEIR nod to his make up and style, it answers the question of, what would a Dracula not played by Christopher Lee, in a Hammer film, look like! THIS release gets a BIG thumbs up and thank you from us all at PCAS!. .
SCREAM FACTORY REMASTER of LEGEND OF THE SEVEN GOLDEN VAMPIRES BLU RAY was REALASED TODAY APRIL 9th 2019 and is REGION A.
RECENTLY 'THE PROPS GALLERY' has started sharing a scan of Peter Cushing's contact for Hammer films, 'THE SATANIC RITES OF DRACULA back in 1973. Cushing's was playing one of his most iconic roles as vampire hunter, Van Helsing for the third time for Hammer films, starring alongside Christopher Lee as Count Dracula. After the sad passing of his wife, Helen Cushing in 1971, a period of his long and acute grief with a intense course of work. Cushing signed up and appeared in almost a dozen films in just over a twelve month period. Not all were staring or man roles, but each required commitment and provided work to keep the griving Peter Cushing occupied. Companies like Amicus films, whoose practice of applying as many star names as possible to the film's bill and cast role, were able to offer Cushing quite a few opportunites. Even though Amicus were known for their tight budgets, it was according their producer, Milton Subotsky, never a problem to negotiate a contact and deal with John Redway Cushing's agent for many years.
FROM THE BEGINNING of the 1970's Cushing daily rate was between £250 to £350 a day. Sometimes this would be adjusted, depending on what Cushing was expected to actually do on the day. During one of our Subotsky interviews in the 1980's, Milton with a smile told us that, 'It was never an issue with Peter. You could always find a way. He never out priced himself.' Today a total sum of £6,000 for a second billing actor for five weeks of work, may seem a little slim! But at this time, this was indeed a respectable sum. In 1971, £100 UK pounds by today's value was worth roughly £1,386. 76p!! So not a sum to snif at 😉
WITH THE ARRIVAL of THE LEGEND OF THE SEVEN GOLDEN VAMPIRES from SCREAM FACTORY in APRIL on BLU RAY, it signals the long awaited fact that, all of Christopher Lee and Peter Cushing Hammer Dracula films, are now available on BLU RAY . . in some region and in most cases, REMASTERED. We will forever sadly, be hearing many clashing and some questionable opinions for from collectors, experts and fans, to the overall quality of some if not all of these releases. But personal tastes aside, it is great that all of these films have risen from the VHS quality of yesteryear, to a format that embellishes some of Peter Cushing and Christopher Lee's best work. Over at the FACEBOOK PCAS FAN PAGEHow many of these titles do own on blu ray, how many on DVD and which stands out as your favorite release and why?
HOW MANY OF THE THESE GIFS from Christopher Lee and Peter Cushing DRACULA tittled Hammer Films can you identify?
NEWS:
Scream Factory have announced they are putting out Hammer Films and Shaw Brothers THE LEGEND OF THE SEVEN GOLDEN VAMPIRES On Blu-ray starring Peter Cushing as Van
Helsing, with Julie Ede and Robin Stewart . . SCREAM RELEASED a press note today stating : Starting 2019 on a high note: THE LEGEND OF THE 7 GOLDEN VAMPIRES - a
highly-requested title from the Hammer Films catalog - kicks its way
onto Blu-ray April 9th! Extras are in progress and will be announced on a later date. The big
news to confirm today though is that we will be presenting two cuts of
the films -- Hammer's original uncut version and its edited US version
called The 7 Brothers Meet Dracula!'
MANY ARE ALREADYhoping for maybe a full version of the 'LEGEND OF THE SEVEN GOLDEN VAMPIRES' music soundtrack. An album was released by Hammer films of this, along with the story narrated by #PETERCUSHING back in 197. Also a cleaned up print of the MILK MARKETING BOARD short feature, that was shot on location with the cast and crew in Hong Kong, would be a winner too. Fingers Crossed! You can share your thoughts on this release at the FACEBOOK PCASUK FAN PAGE where the CHAT and opinions have already started on the thread and newsfeed!
#MOMENTSOFTERROR #MONDAY! Back in the day, 1959 to be exact, Peter Cushing as #SherlockHolmes
looms down from giant sized billboards in central London, promoting his
first performance as Sherlock in Hammer films, only Holmes movie, 'The
Hound of the Baskervilles'. Billboards were certainly impressive
displays back in those days, as were the cinema posters!
TODAY MARKS WHAT would have been the birthday of actor GEOFFREY BAYLDON. He would have been 95 years old! Geoffrey passed in 2017 and PCAS posted quite an extensive obituary at the time.
The PCASUK GEOFFREY BAYLDON OBITUARY FEATURE CLICK HERE!
HE WAS VERY MUCH ADMIRED, loved and respected actor and extremely popular with the army of fans and admirers of his work. Many films
and tv credits go way back to Hammer films first Dracula with Peter
Cushing, some of Amicus films finest like 'Asylum', 'Tales
from the Crypt', 'The House that Dripped Blood', Hammer's 'Frankenstein
Must Be Destroyed', 'The Risk' / 'Suspect with Cushing in 1969, his tv
series 'Catweazle'.
GEOFFREY appeared with Jon Pertwee in 'Worzel Gummidge as
The Crowman from 1979 until 1981, the BBC's Dr Who in 79 and 'The
Avengers tv series in the 60's. Geoffrey is still very much missed. A gentleman and such a Gentle Man 😉
