Hammer Vampires

KISS OF THE VAMPIRE-1963-This Hammer production begins with a guy interrupting a funeral and using a shovel to smash open a coffin. A scream emulates from within and blood appears. Then newlyweds Gerald (Edward DeSouza) and Marianne (Jennifer Daniel) have car trouble and Jerry goes off for some petrol. All the while they are being spied on by a mysterious figure in a nearby castle. All alone and spooked by the rising wind Maria ventures out of the car and meets the guy with the shovel who warns her to go back to her car. After getting a tow the couple get a room at an inn and are invited to dine with Dr. Ravna (Noel Willman), the guy who was watching them earlier. The eerily suave doctor has two kids, Sabena (Jacquie Wallis) and Karl (Barry Warren). At dinner Marianne seems mesmerized by Karl's piano playing. At a masked ball Marianne learns the truth. Ravna is head of a vampire cult. They imprison Marianne then tell Gerald there is no such person as his wife. Everyone agrees so Gerald goes to Prof. Zimmer (Clifford Evans) for help and we learn that his own daughter had been vampire-ized by Ravna (he killed her in the pre-credit funeral sequence). 

Although the story is fairly standard and boring, the finale where Zim and Jerry rescue Marianne is exciting and violent with the professor using a spell that sends vampire bats to kill the vampires! Director Don Sharp went on to direct Christopher Lee in THE DEVIL-SHIP PIRATES, RASPUTIN and several Fu Manchu entries.