DAN CURTIS' DRACULA (1974)

Jack Palance

DRACULA (aka Dan Curtis' Dracula/1974 telefilm). Produced and directed by Dan Curtis.

Jonathan Harker (Murray Brown) travels to Transylvania in Hungary to meet with Count Dracula (Jack Palance of Sudden Fear) at his castle. Dracula needs property in London to carry out his plans, which include meeting up with the reincarnation or lookalike of his lost love, who in this century is named Lucy (Fiona Lewis). Dracula's plans go awry thanks to the interference of Professor Van Helsing (Nigel Davenport), and the hunt is on for the vampire before he can destroy Lucy's friend Mina (Penelope Horner). Well-produced for a TV movie, this version of Dracula still smacks more of sunny California than Transylvania, but its main problem is a slow pace and a general lack of suspense and excitement. Palance has his moments as the evil count, but he is borderline hammy and not as effective as one might have imagined. Lewis is solid, but Simon Ward [The Chosen] generally doesn't bother to work up much emotion in his portrayal of the doomed Lucy's fiance, Arthur. Davenport [Mary Queen of Scots] is okay as Van Helsing, but frankly neither he nor Palance can wipe away the memory of Christopher Lee and Peter Cushing in the same roles. Murray Brown is quite good as Harker, however. This version of the story eliminates the crazy Renfield, there are no scenes of Dracula socializing with his victims as in the Lugosi version, and the supposedly romantic sub-plot (which is not in Bram Stoker\s novel) is entirely out of place. Sarah Douglas plays one of the vampire women who prey upon Jonathan Harker. A more interesting if much less faithful TV version appeared on Masterpiece Theatre in 2006. Dan Curtis was the man behind Dark Shadows, which also had a vampire obsessed with a lost love.

Verdict: Barely acceptable version of the famous story. **.

NO BLADE OF GRASS

Mediocre duo: Nigel Davenport and Jean Wallace

NO BLADE OF GRASS (1970). Produced and directed by Cornel Wilde.

Extreme pollution and a grain-destroying virus have combined to cause hunger and even cannibalism in parts of the world, and citizens of the UK are afraid it isn't long before the same thing happens to them. John Custance (Nigel Davenport), his wife, Ann (Jean Wallace), their children, and friend Roger (John Hamill) take off for a farm in the countryside but have a hell of a time getting there. Along the way they hook up with Pirrie (Anthony May), a casual murderer, but they descend into savagery just as much as everyone else. Eventually Custance is pitted against his own brother ... No Blade of Grass is well-directed by Cornel Wilde [The Naked Prey] -- who does not appear in the film but offers some narration -- but can't overcome its weak script and the miscasting of its two mediocre leads, Davenport [A Man for All Seasons] and Wallace [Jigsaw], although there are good performances from members of the supporting cast. There are some arresting sequences, such as the harrowing business when the family tries to get out of a mob-ruled city by car, and a tense stand-off between Custance and Pirrie over the daughter, Mary (Lynne Frederick). George Coulouris [Citizen Kane] has a small role as a gun shop owner. Despite all of the very grim goings-on, No Blade of Grass manages to become quite tedious after awhile. There is hardly a sympathetic character in sight.

Verdict: Unremittingly depressing, and not good enough to compensate for it. **.

A MAN FOR ALL SEASONS

A MAN FOR ALL SEASONS (1966) Director: Fred Zinnemann.

King Henry VIII (Robert Shaw) wants the Pope to allow him to divorce wife Catharine so that he can marry Anne Boleyn (Vanessa Redgrave). If you disagree with the King you're considered a traitor, but one man -- the Chancellor, Sir Thomas More (Paul Scofield) -- thinks that the Pope's, God's law, overrules the King's, and refuses to take an oath of loyalty on the matter. This study of a man of principle, who adheres to private conscience over public duty, is absorbing, well-acted, literately scripted (by Richard Bolt from his play), and expertly photographed by Ted Moore, with a nice musical background by Georges Delerue. Orson Welles offers one of the best performances as Cardinal Wolsey, but Leo McKern as Cromwell, Shaw as King Henry, Nigel Davenport as Norfolk, and John Hurt as Richard Rich are all quite excellent as well. Vanessa Redgrave's brother, Corin Redgrave, also makes an impression as More's son-in-law William Roper, as does Susannah York as his daughter. Wendy Hiller seems to play her role as More's wife, Lady Alice, in only one note throughout, and Scofield, although he won the Best Actor Oscar, is overly cool and theatrical, as if he had toned down his stage performance a bit too much. At times he seems perfunctory instead of impassioned, busy speaking lines instead of feeling the emotions. And the question remains: was More a principled man of courage or a self-destructive religious fool (or fanatic) who cared more for the Church than for his wife and family? The film also won Oscars for Best Picture, Best Director, Best Cinematography, Best Costumes, and Best Screenplay.

Verdict: Even if you grow impatient with the the central character, the film is well-made and compelling.***.

MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS (1972)

MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS (1972). Director: Charles Jarrott.

Handsomely produced version of the story of the 16th century rivalry between Queen Elizabeth of England (Glenda Jackson) and Mary Queen of Scots (Vanessa Redgrave). John Hale's screenplay employs some dramatic license in the two scenes when the two women, who actually never met, confront each other, as well as in the relationship between Mary's friend, Italian musician David Rizzio (Ian Holm) and her husband Lord Darnley (Timothy Dalton), who are both made bisexual. [Trying to be "modern," this aspect actually has a dated quality to it.] Christopher Challis' photography is excellent, and there are many fine performances. Timothy Dalton practically steals the picture with his alternately ferocious and mewling portrait of Darnley. Nigel Davenport and Patrick MaGoohan are also solid as, respectively, the Earl of Bothwell and Mary's brother James. As good as Redgrave and Jackson are as the Queens, they don't quite work up the dramatic fireworks that certain actresses of the golden age (say Davis and Hopkins) would have.

Verdict: Flawed but fascinating. ***.