DRACULA’S DOG (ZOLTAN … HOUND OF DRACULA) (director: Albert Band; screenwriter: Frank Ray Perilli; cinematographer: Bruce Logan; editor: Harry Keramidas; music: Andrew Belling; cast: Michael Pataki (Michael Drake), Jose Ferrer (Inspector Branco), Reggie Nelder (Veidt Smit), Jan Shultan (Marla Drake), Simmy Bow (Fisherman), Jo Jo D’Amore (Fisherman), Roger Pancake (Sheriff), Cleo Harrington (Pat Parks), Arleen Martell (Major Hessle), Libbie Chase (Linda Drake), John Levin (Steve Drake), Roger Schumacher (Hiker); Runtime: 85; MPAA Rating: R; producer: Frank Ray Perilli; Vic Production; 1978)
“Dracula goes to the dogs.”
Reviewed by Dennis Schwartz
Dracula goes to the dogs in an entertaining Albert Band (“Joey Takes A Cab”/”Robot Wars”) helmed horror tale, that’s written by Frank Ray Perilli. The Soviet Army is in Romania conducting an underground field excavation and uncover in their blasting the coffin of Dracula’s vampire dog Zoltan and the coffin of Dracula’s innkeeper servant Veidt Smit(Reggie Nelder). Smit is the half-vampire and half-human, who can only function serving a Count Dracula figure. The dog is revived by a soldier unwisely removing the stake from his heart and he then drains the soldier’s blood in a savage attack and revives Smit. Zoltan and Smit head to LA, where Smit schemes to get Zoltan to take a bite on the only living Dracula relative still around. Smit won’t be able to survive long without some Dracula blood and without him having back his vampire master to give him orders. We learn that Michael Drake (Michael Pataki), unknown to him, is Dracula’s only living descendant, who came to LA from Romania during a village riot when he was seven. The now middle-aged adult is currently living in LA with his wife (Jan Shultan) and two kids (Libbie Chase & John Levin). The family and their four German shepherds, two being puppies, go on vacation in their Winnebago to a national park. On the camp grounds Smit sics Zoltan on them and turns their two adult dogs into vampire dogs. When the family is scared off and returns home, Inspector Blanco (Jose Ferrer), a local cop from the Romanian village where the tombs were unearthed, arrives at the California campground and convinces Michael to team up with him to get Smit and the vampire dogs staked and cremated before things will get horror film ugly. The ludicrous film was well-crafted and its clever execution of the story had some bite to both its nasty horror tale and its giggle-inspired spoof of the genre.
REVIEWED ON 9/26/2016 GRADE: B-
Dennis Schwartz: “Ozus’ World Movie Reviews”
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