Evelyne Kraft first amazed me in Mighty Peking Man. Later, I saw her in Deadly Angels and was further transfixed. After those, I was eager to see her as a female Dracula. Unfortunately, the film is a mess.
I have no idea what Lady Dracula is trying to do. Although there are a few attack scenes, the film is certainly not scary, nor does it appear to be trying to be scary. The only (light) gothic ambiance is in the opening scene set in 1876. There is no mystery or surprise. The film, at times, attempts - and fails - at humor, but the film isn't a farce like Love at First Bite. The best I can figure is that the producers were trying for a Count Yorga style old vampire in a the modern world story, but lighter and with a sexy lady in the role.
So, what does a 19th Century vampire bride of Dracula do as a single lady in 1976? First, she gets a job at a mortuary to be able to steal blood. This is the film's one clever idea, unfortunately, it also leads to the majority of the film's leaden gags, as two idiot mortuary workers keep losing bodies. After a job, the sexy vampire needs a man, so how about the police inspector investigating her crimes? So, we have the supernatural, humor, and a love story, yet somehow Lady Dracula manages to bungle all three of these.
Some examples of the film's laziness. How does the vampire break into a blood bank? Christopher Lee's Dracula would have ripped the lock from the door. Here, the vampire picks the lock with a device from her purse. Not exciting at all. How about the scene where the vampire riding in a taxi attacks her driver. The viewer expects the taxi driver to look into the rearview mirror and see that his passenger has no reflection. Nope, the vampire attacks before the driver knows something is wrong.
Evelyne Kraft looks lovely, but she makes for a weak and unexciting vampire. Eddi Arent, the comic relief of the 1960's German Edgar Wallace adaptations, is the comic relief here and provides the one joke I found funny (about his cane). However, I am sorry to report that one laugh and lovely Evelyne Kraft are not enough. This is a film to skip.
