Horror of Dracula (1958): Terence Fisher’s Hammer Production, Starring Peter Cushing

The follow-up to Hammer Film Productions’ 1957 “The Curse of Frankenstein,” is the second (and for some the best) pairing of director Terence Fisher and screenwriter Jimmy Sangster.

The movie takes liberties with the original text, eliminating some of the Count’s most outlandish powers, but stressing his sexual desire.

The indefatigable Peter Cushing is the driven, practical Dr. Van Helsing, a venerable vampire hunter.

Jack Asher’s cinematography is lush and colorful, matching the film’s lurid horror.

But it’s Christopher Lee’s Dracula, an elegant, hideous beast–with fangs flaring, and engorged eyes bulging out–who drives the story, though he hardly utters a word after the first reel.