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Too much of everything

Excellent but underrated film

The film never slows down or bores, plunging from one harrowing sequence to the next.

The film's masterful storytelling did its job. The message was clear. No need to overdo.

The death of Bela Lugosi in 1956 didn't instantly create a legend. That took time. But shortly after his death, an independent film honored him (sort of) by naming a character in this "Dracula" film "Bellac", obviously influenced by the forgotten old man of horror who had died in obscurity. Certainly, he had unreleased films ("Plan Nine From Outer Space"), but Bela Lugosi had slipped so far into obscurity that the only films he could get were so down the line of poverty row that they made his Monogram films look as if they had come from MGM. "Dracula" here is Francis Lederer, a grand old villain of the silver screen, once a romantic lead, but later cast in a variety of sinister roles, and now cast as the infamous Hungarian count. Somehow brought back from the dead after being killed in various ways under the acting chops of Lugosi, Lon Chaney Jr., and John Carradine, Dracula made a major comeback in the late 1950's. Not only was there Lederer in this enjoyable but predictable programmer, but Christopher Lee, who would create another legend in a series of Hammer films where he took over the role of the count, playing him more times on screen than any other actor.Lederer's dashing older count has immigrated from Hungary to the United States, pretending to be "Bellac", a cousin of the Mayberry family (no relation to Andy Taylor's Mayberry). Strange occurrences begin to happen, including the sudden death of their cousin (Virginia Vincent), and when pretty Norma Eberhardt meets Lederer, she becomes disturbingly fascinated with him, even though she's involved with Ray Stricklyn. It's apparent that something involving Vincent's death is tied in with Lederer, and it is ironically on Halloween (during a stereotypical local party) that Eberhardt's obsession comes to its full power, following Lederer to an abandoned mine while a local priest and a European vampire hunter decide to check in on Vincent's casket.Some amusing character performances includes a Margaret Hamilton like aunt who dresses as a witch, Eberhardt's younger brother (Jimmy Baird) who gets some really good lines (especially while in costume when asked where is costume is!), and John Wengraf as the visiting vampire hunter. This is a fine mixture of light comedy and gothic horror, with Lederer good in his one appearance as Mr. Toothy. Unfortunately, he is never seen exposing his fangs, so that does take away some of the horror element. I can see why this one has fallen into obscurity when compared to the Hammer series which took off right at the same time.

Mediocre low-budget vampire movie, interesting only because of its originality compared to its predecessors. While Dracula movies so far were placed in past centuries, this story takes place in "present", in small American town in fifties of the 20th century, and main characters are teenage couple, local priest/doctor and some town aunts. Pretty much unusual for Dracula movie. Still, story and characters are undeveloped, plot is simple, and everything happens fast and easy, like in short cartoons. Movie is two-dimensional and fails to involve us enough, so there's no dramatic tension. Teenage romance won't fill you with emotions, nor will horror elements scare you. Overall, interesting idea, technically well done for its time and budget, but undeveloped, so movie fails to build atmosphere that could leave strong impression. You won't get bored, but you'll forget all about it soon enough.5,5/10

Count Dracula murders a man and poses as him: Bellac Gordal. Bellac/Dracula moves in with his American cousins and begins to wreak havoc in his new home. -- A simple but effective story.This film was released in 1958 not long before Christopher Lee's portrayal of Dracula in 'Horror of Dracula (1958)'. Lee's movie over shadowed this film with it's vivid color and a towering, menacing Dracula (Lee). BUT that is not to say that 'The Return of Dracula (1958)' is a bad film - it's actually a good vampire movie.If you like vampire movies then I do recommend 'Return of Dracula ('58)'. It's not like the Universal Dracula ('31) nor is it like the Dracula Hammer Horror film series - it's a Dracula film all on it's own.7/10

"The Return of Dracula" is a good film that updates the story from the late 1890s to present day(for the release of the film)1958. Dracula poses as an artist who comes to America to be free from Communism(a real blow to freedom for Eastern Europe after WW2). He seems distant and reclusive toward his American relatives. He starts by killing a blind girl and then sets his sights on his younger cousin. She slowly falls under his influence but at the end he is destroyed by falling into a pit filled with jagged wood pieces. He has been hiding in a cave where he can be safe. The acting, music score and direction are very good for this type of low budget movie. A nice variation on the vampire films from the 1930s and 40s. If you're a fan of vampire movies, check out this little gem.