(1970)
Dir - Roy Ward Baker
Overall: GOOD
Directed by Roy Ward Baker and based on the J Sheridan Le Fanu novella Carmilla, (though given the more "get the people to the multiplex" title The Vampire Lovers), the first entry in Hammer Film Production's Karnstein Trilogy is typical Gothic era British horror. Besides them fairing perfectly fine in the daylight, this pretty much offers up the same vampire tropes you get each and every time from such movies. The peasant villagers are the only ones who know what is going on and take their undead very seriously, (mostly) women disappear and occasionally get found with bite marks in their necks, crypts, castles, and cleavage are all present, there are stakes through the hearts, beheadings, garlic, crosses, etc. Everything in its right place in other words. The plot is the most coherent out of the trilogy and the ending the most satisfying as well. Plus, one of the era's premier scream queens Ingrid Pitt makes her career defining appearance here along with that in the following year's Countess Dracula.
(1971)
Dir - Jimmy Sangster
Overall: MEH
Most universally regarded as the weakest in the Karnstein Trilogy, Lust for a Vampire, (Love of a Vampire, To Love a Vampire), is more promising than successful. Interestingly, Peter Cushing was set to appear as the neurotic, would-be-pervert creeper Giles Barton, though he bowed out at the last minute due to ill health. This makes this the only entry in the trilogy he does not appear in. Also, the studio's most prestigious director Terrance Fisher was set to be behind the lens, but he also got replaced at the 11th hour by Jimmy Sangster who had done the previous year's The Horror of Frankenstein. Sangster's work is adequate as is that of Ralph Bates' who took over the planned Cushing role, but even for a hastily made lesbian vampire sequel, the film is a bit silly and contains the lamest and most haphazardly assembled excuse for an angry villager mob you are likely to see. This also has by far the largest number of bountiful maidens in probably any Hammer film. Though the lesbianism was intentionally toned down from the previous year's Vampire Lovers due to censorship issues, there are still many sensual moments to be found, to the point of bordering on softcore porn. Some gruesome deaths, fun "O hear me Lord Satan" speeches, and plenty of blood-soaked women are present, but there is just too much daftness in the script department.
(1971)
Dir - John Hough
Overall: GOOD
Witches burning at the stake, vampires, Satanism, torture, and boobies, Twins of Evil, (Twins of Dracula), certainly has all that one would expect. The tone is set quite assuredly from the get go and blood-sucking evil takes center stage once Damien "looks exactly like Jimmy Fallon" Thomas's Count Karnstein shows up. The most ambitious of these three films, it has also held up probably the best. Over the top pretty much by design, it almost exclusively borders on campy fun, but the script is surprisingly well layered. The duel personality theme of the title characters, (real life Playmate twins Mary and Madoline Collinson), mirrors the conflicting nature of Peter Cushing's Brotherhood-leading Gustav Weil who ultimately attempts to redeem himself of all those innocent peasant girls he burned by trying to rid his village of evil. The angry mob finale here is solid in motivation at least, as opposed to the "we need this in the script so make it happen" one in the previous entry Lust for a Vampire, but it does get a little goofy in the last few moments. It is hard not to laugh when a vampire is cackling and boasting as he is surrounded by hundreds of well-armed villagers hell bent and capable of doing him in. Out of the three films depicting the Karnstein Family's never-ceasing wickedness, Twins of Evil is the most rowdy and fun. The fact that it also manages to have some depth is damn near a miracle.
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