The Legend of the 7 Golden Vampires
Encyclopedia
The Legend of the 7 Golden Vampires is a 1974 horror film
produced by Hammer Studios
and Shaw Brothers Studio
. It was released in North America in an edited version as The Seven Brothers Meet Dracula, and alternatively known as The Seven Brothers And Their One Sister Meet Dracula.
) gives a lecture in 1904 at a Chongqing
(Chungking) university on Chinese
vampire
legend. He speaks of an unknown rural village that has been terrorized by vampires for many years. After the lecture, a student (David Chiang
) informs him that the legend is true and that he knows the location of the village. He then asks Professor Van Helsing if he would be willing to travel to the village and destroy the vampire menace. Van Helsing agrees and embarks with his son, the student and his seven kung-fu trained siblings on a dangerous journey funded by a wealthy widow (Julie Ege
). Van Helsing and his party realize, however, that the Seven Golden Vampires, who are the ones wreaking havoc on the village, are actually acting under the guidance of Count Dracula
himself, masquerading as a mad Taoist
monk.
, a British
director who had helmed several previous Hammer films, and Chang Cheh
, a veteran Hong Kong action director, worked on the movie, though only Baker is credited.
The Legend of the 7 Golden Vampires was a co-production with Hong Kong
's Shaw Studio, made in the hope of garnering some of the kung fu movie market share.
The movie was released with various titles in different locations, including The Seven Brothers Meet Dracula and Dracula and the Seven Golden Vampires. During some scenes involving roving gangs of undead, several vampires can be seen hopping up and down, as vampires tend to do in Chinese vampire films.
The North American release version trims twenty minutes of the film's footage and soundtrack and loops several remaining scenes to fill the running time.
' s A.V. Club
called the film "flawed" but "enjoyable", adding: "It's pretty much as ridiculous as it sounds, but there's something inherently entertaining about make-up-splattered vampires, distinguished British actors, and martial artists squaring off in periodic eruptions of kung-fu fighting." Popcorn Pictures wrote, "The Legend of the 7 Golden Vampires is a really enjoyable mixture of genres and just about everything comes off well. The last true film of Hammer's Dracula series, this one rounds everything off pretty well."
Eccentric Cinema criticized the "dreadful" script and "laughable makeup", but said that "all is not lost. Played completely straight, the sheer absurdity of the movie actually saves it", adding that the film is "directed in workmanlike fashion" and that "Cushing, always a pro, keeps things together with his typically commanding performance." Phil Chandler of DVD Cult wrote, "Is it the best Hammer horror film ever made? Hell no. Is it the best Hammer film of the seventies? Hell yeah."
The Science Fiction, Horror and Fantasy Film Review wrote that "the plot never settles into being much more than its collection of influences", but added that "John Forbes-Robertson ... is an effective Dracula", "[director] Roy Ward Baker conducts the action quite enjoyably", and "the martial arts displays are all highly entertaining". Graeme Clark of The Spinning Image said, "Cushing, in his last Hammer Dracula film, is as commanding as ever, but he and his Western companions are pretty disposable to the plot until the end, where the professor is left alone with the Count, who is hardly needed. Nevertheless, this last Hammer vampire outing has a real energy, in spite of being a mish-mash, and is different enough to get by on sheer novelty alone."
features both the Seven Brothers Meet Dracula version as well as the original uncut Legend of the 7 Golden Vampires version. The DVD also features a recording of Peter Cushing telling the story of the film with music and sound effects, which was released as an LP record
at the time of the film's release.
Horror film
Horror films seek to elicit a negative emotional reaction from viewers by playing on the audience's most primal fears. They often feature scenes that startle the viewer through the means of macabre and the supernatural, thus frequently overlapping with the fantasy and science fiction genres...
produced by Hammer Studios
Hammer Film Productions
Hammer Film Productions is a film production company based in the United Kingdom. Founded in 1934, the company is best known for a series of Gothic "Hammer Horror" films made from the mid-1950s until the 1970s. Hammer also produced science fiction, thrillers, film noir and comedies and in later...
and Shaw Brothers Studio
Shaw Brothers Studio
The Shaw Brothers Studio , owned by Shaw Brothers Ltd., was the foremost and the largest movie production company of Hong Kong movies.From their distribution base in Singapore where they founded parent company Shaw Organization in 1924, and as a strategic development of their movie distribution...
. It was released in North America in an edited version as The Seven Brothers Meet Dracula, and alternatively known as The Seven Brothers And Their One Sister Meet Dracula.
Plot
Professor Lawrence Van Helsing (Peter CushingPeter Cushing
Peter Wilton Cushing, OBE was an English actor, known for his many appearances in Hammer Films, in which he played the handsome but sinister scientist Baron Frankenstein and the vampire hunter Dr. Van Helsing, amongst many other roles, often appearing opposite Christopher Lee, and occasionally...
) gives a lecture in 1904 at a Chongqing
Chongqing
Chongqing is a major city in Southwest China and one of the five national central cities of China. Administratively, it is one of the PRC's four direct-controlled municipalities , and the only such municipality in inland China.The municipality was created on 14 March 1997, succeeding the...
(Chungking) university on Chinese
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
vampire
Vampire
Vampires are mythological or folkloric beings who subsist by feeding on the life essence of living creatures, regardless of whether they are undead or a living person...
legend. He speaks of an unknown rural village that has been terrorized by vampires for many years. After the lecture, a student (David Chiang
David Chiang
John Chiang is a Hong Kong actor. His Chinese name is Chiang Da-wei . He is sometimes credited as David Chiang.-Biography:...
) informs him that the legend is true and that he knows the location of the village. He then asks Professor Van Helsing if he would be willing to travel to the village and destroy the vampire menace. Van Helsing agrees and embarks with his son, the student and his seven kung-fu trained siblings on a dangerous journey funded by a wealthy widow (Julie Ege
Julie Ege
Julie Ege was a Norwegian actress and model.Ege was born in Høyland, Sandnes; she was a Miss Norway and Miss Universe contestant and a Penthouse Pet. In 1967, she moved to England as an au pair to improve her English and also studied at a language school....
). Van Helsing and his party realize, however, that the Seven Golden Vampires, who are the ones wreaking havoc on the village, are actually acting under the guidance of Count Dracula
Count Dracula
Count Dracula is a fictional character, the titular antagonist of Bram Stoker's 1897 Gothic horror novel Dracula and archetypal vampire. Some aspects of his character have been inspired by the 15th century Romanian general and Wallachian Prince Vlad III the Impaler...
himself, masquerading as a mad Taoist
Taoism
Taoism refers to a philosophical or religious tradition in which the basic concept is to establish harmony with the Tao , which is the mechanism of everything that exists...
monk.
Production
Both Roy Ward BakerRoy Ward Baker
Roy Ward Baker , born Roy Horace Baker, was an English film director, credited as Roy Baker for much of his career. His best known film is A Night to Remember which won a Golden Globe for Best English-Language Foreign Film in 1959...
, a British
British people
The British are citizens of the United Kingdom, of the Isle of Man, any of the Channel Islands, or of any of the British overseas territories, and their descendants...
director who had helmed several previous Hammer films, and Chang Cheh
Chang Cheh
Chang Cheh was Shaw Brothers Studio's best known and most prolific film director, with such films as the Five Venoms, the Brave Archer , the The One-Armed Swordsman, and other classics of wuxia and kung fu film.-Career:Referred to as "The Godfather of Hong Kong cinema", Chang Cheh directed over 100...
, a veteran Hong Kong action director, worked on the movie, though only Baker is credited.
The Legend of the 7 Golden Vampires was a co-production with Hong Kong
Hong Kong
Hong Kong is one of two Special Administrative Regions of the People's Republic of China , the other being Macau. A city-state situated on China's south coast and enclosed by the Pearl River Delta and South China Sea, it is renowned for its expansive skyline and deep natural harbour...
's Shaw Studio, made in the hope of garnering some of the kung fu movie market share.
The movie was released with various titles in different locations, including The Seven Brothers Meet Dracula and Dracula and the Seven Golden Vampires. During some scenes involving roving gangs of undead, several vampires can be seen hopping up and down, as vampires tend to do in Chinese vampire films.
The North American release version trims twenty minutes of the film's footage and soundtrack and loops several remaining scenes to fill the running time.
Cast
- Peter CushingPeter CushingPeter Wilton Cushing, OBE was an English actor, known for his many appearances in Hammer Films, in which he played the handsome but sinister scientist Baron Frankenstein and the vampire hunter Dr. Van Helsing, amongst many other roles, often appearing opposite Christopher Lee, and occasionally...
--Professor Lawrence Van Helsing - Robin StewartRobin StewartRobin Stewart is an English actor who is best known for playing Mike Abbott in the 1970s sitcom Bless This House.He acted on television and in feature films in both the UK and Australia...
-- Leyland Van Helsing - Julie EgeJulie EgeJulie Ege was a Norwegian actress and model.Ege was born in Høyland, Sandnes; she was a Miss Norway and Miss Universe contestant and a Penthouse Pet. In 1967, she moved to England as an au pair to improve her English and also studied at a language school....
--Vanessa Buren - David ChiangDavid ChiangJohn Chiang is a Hong Kong actor. His Chinese name is Chiang Da-wei . He is sometimes credited as David Chiang.-Biography:...
--Hsi Ching - John Forbes-RobertsonJohn Forbes-Robertson (actor)John Forbes-Robertson was a British actor best-known for being the only actor other than Christopher Lee to play the title role in the Hammer horror series of Dracula films....
--Count Dracula - Shih SzuShih SzuShih Szu is an actress from the Republic of China . She was born Lei Qui Si to parents from Hunan Province. A ballet student from the age of six, at the age of sixteen she joined Shaw Brothers Studio and began appearing in films such as The Crimson Charm and The Rescue...
--Mai Kwei
Reception
Critical reaction to the film has been mixed. Keith Phipps of The OnionThe Onion
The Onion is an American news satire organization. It is an entertainment newspaper and a website featuring satirical articles reporting on international, national, and local news, in addition to a non-satirical entertainment section known as The A.V. Club...
The A.V. Club
The A.V. Club is an entertainment newspaper and website published by The Onion. Its features include reviews of new films, music, television, books, games and DVDs, as well as interviews and other regular offerings examining both new and classic media and other elements of pop culture. Unlike its...
called the film "flawed" but "enjoyable", adding: "It's pretty much as ridiculous as it sounds, but there's something inherently entertaining about make-up-splattered vampires, distinguished British actors, and martial artists squaring off in periodic eruptions of kung-fu fighting." Popcorn Pictures wrote, "The Legend of the 7 Golden Vampires is a really enjoyable mixture of genres and just about everything comes off well. The last true film of Hammer's Dracula series, this one rounds everything off pretty well."
Eccentric Cinema criticized the "dreadful" script and "laughable makeup", but said that "all is not lost. Played completely straight, the sheer absurdity of the movie actually saves it", adding that the film is "directed in workmanlike fashion" and that "Cushing, always a pro, keeps things together with his typically commanding performance." Phil Chandler of DVD Cult wrote, "Is it the best Hammer horror film ever made? Hell no. Is it the best Hammer film of the seventies? Hell yeah."
The Science Fiction, Horror and Fantasy Film Review wrote that "the plot never settles into being much more than its collection of influences", but added that "John Forbes-Robertson ... is an effective Dracula", "[director] Roy Ward Baker conducts the action quite enjoyably", and "the martial arts displays are all highly entertaining". Graeme Clark of The Spinning Image said, "Cushing, in his last Hammer Dracula film, is as commanding as ever, but he and his Western companions are pretty disposable to the plot until the end, where the professor is left alone with the Count, who is hardly needed. Nevertheless, this last Hammer vampire outing has a real energy, in spite of being a mish-mash, and is different enough to get by on sheer novelty alone."
DVD release
The DVD from Anchor BayAnchor Bay Entertainment
Anchor Bay Entertainment is a U.S. based home entertainment and production company and is a division of Starz Media, which is a unit of Starz, LLC. It was previously owned by IDT Entertainment until 2006 when IDT was purchased by Starz Media. Anchor Bay markets and sells feature films, series,...
features both the Seven Brothers Meet Dracula version as well as the original uncut Legend of the 7 Golden Vampires version. The DVD also features a recording of Peter Cushing telling the story of the film with music and sound effects, which was released as an LP record
LP record
The LP, or long-playing microgroove record, is a format for phonograph records, an analog sound storage medium. Introduced by Columbia Records in 1948, it was soon adopted as a new standard by the entire record industry...
at the time of the film's release.