"The better name for this picture might've been ""The Return Of Dracula,"" except that Universal controlled the rights to that character name at the time, and so Columbia Pictures had to name its vampire Armand Tesla -- though, as played by Bela Lugosi in one of his last starring roles for a major studio, he is Dracula in all but name. This title, with its ""off-brand"" vampire and B-team werewolf, has been kicking around movie lists for decades after being widely shown on television in the 1960's, while on laserdisc, it bounced in and out of print so fast that copies have been trading for serious amounts of money since the early 1990's. The story, which stretches across two decades from the First to the Second World War, is one of the more interesting cinematic variations on the vampire legend, in terms of both content -- mixing quasi-modern science (including psychiatry) with the trappings of the traditional vampire tale -- and structure. The DVD gives Return of the Vampire first-cabin treatment, including 28 chapter markers for the 70 minute feature, and a sparkling transfer of the film itself, so sharp that the fog in the grave yard seems almost palpable; the contrasts are rich and deep, with a velvety texture that's downright seductive. The disc also offers the best sound that the movie has displayed in decades, so that even the score by Mario Castelnuovo-Tedesco comes to life in all of its moodiness and atmosphere. In terms of the care with which it was produced, this disc can be recommended to anyone who has enjoyed Universal's classic horror releases. The menu opens up automatically on start-up, with the ""Play"" option in the default position. The chapters are easy to access and a pair of trailers -- but not the trailer from this film -- have been included. In recognition of its short running time, the producers have held the list price down to a very desirable $20."
