“Don’t you sense a strangeness — an unwanted curiosity?”
|
Synopsis:
When Count Yorga (Robert Quarry) falls in love with a beautiful redhead (Mariette Hartley) working at an orphanage, he arranges a mass attack on her family — including her sister (Karen Erickson) — then hypnotizes her so she’ll forget what happened and come live with him. Meanwhile, a deaf caretaker (Yvonne Wilder) at the orphanage tries to convince a young boy (Philip Frame) to admit to what he saw happening, and a detective (Rudy De Luca) enlists help from his co-worker (Craig Nelson) in investigating the case. Will either Erickson’s fiance (David Lampson) or Hartley’s fiance (Roger Perry) be able to rescue their loved ones from a vampiric fate?
|
|
Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors:
Review:
This sequel to the cult vampire flick Count Yorga (1971) offers more of the same: a handsome nobleman (Quarry) attempts to lure yet more beautiful women to his harem, this time falling authentically in love with a luminous woman (Hartley) who he hopes to turn into his lifetime mate. The framing device of a young orphan (Frame) chasing a ball through a cemetery and being influenced by dead women rising from their graves is effectively spooky but never really explained. (It’s strongly implied that he’s been brainwashed in order to help Yorga, but to what extent? Is he now a vampire, too?) Meanwhile, the incorporation of a deaf woman (Wilder) who can’t get anyone to believe her is a tired trope, and later scenes involving detectives De Luca and Nelson turn weirdly comedic. You can feel free to skip this one unless you’re curious or a fan of the original.
Redeeming Qualities and Moments:
- Some effectively creepy moments
Must See?
No; this one isn’t must-see.
Links:
|
4 thoughts on “Return of Count Yorga, The (1971)”
⭐️⭐️⭐️ out of ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Decent sequel, fun vampire yarn. Not must see though.
First viewing. Mostly lackluster, too-often-boring / mundane (and also dumb) sequel. Meh; skip it.
Amusing touch: When Yorga is ‘unwinding’, he sometimes watches vampire movies (in Spanish).
Yes – what the heck is up with the Spanish dubbing on the film he’s watching (The Vampire Lovers, 1970)? I don’t get it… I actually developed a rationale in my own head as I was watching this scene: Yorga has lived so long and traveled so extensively that he’s intentionally trying to improve his multilingual skills at this point.
Makes sense. 😉