Nothing beats a good vampire story. Nothing beats a good Western. Combine the two and we have a can't miss horror/oater. Sure, this film is nothing new when it comes to vampire or Dracula stories. That's okay because we have some hunk cowboys, an even hunkier preacher, a mysterious dark and swarthy vampire, and a sultry damsel who will be put in much distress...and gunfights! Today we look at 1959's "Curse of the Undead," directed by Edward Dein.
In a small ranch town in the old west, nubile babes are dying mysteriously. Yep, all sport two fang marks in death. Preacher Dan (Eric Fleming) has watched many of them die as he romances the only nubile babe left in the town, Dolores (Kathleen Crowley). Uh oh...Dolores' dad is the town doctor and he dies after the vampire bites him. He was getting too close to the truth. Dolores will have other problems, the town heavy, Buffer (Bruce Gordon). Buffer wants Dolores' land as she is now the ranch boss over her family's land. The vampire enters the plot...Drake (Michael Pate). He is a mysterious cowboy who has entered the town and is hungry. He'll bite more townsfolk and get into shootouts with cowboys.
Drake draws immediate suspicion. He is clearly shot first during the draws, but he never dies. He sees Dolores and is in love. He'll go to her at night and...well, you've seen "Dracula." Now Preacher Dan gets suspicious. His gal, Dolores, seems cold (literally) and distant. When Dolores hires Drake as a ranch hand, Dan realizes what is going on. Now Dan becomes detective as he opens coffins and gets ready for a final confrontation with the undead. As Drake gets more empowered, and Dolores falls deeper under the vampire's spell, Dan starts thinking wooden stakes.
Does Preacher Dan, a man of peace, have what it takes to win Dolores away from Drake? Already under Drake's spell, will Dolores prove a bigger threat to Dan than Drake is? Will Buffer's attempts to steal Dolores' ranch prove fatal for him as Drake falls in love with the nubile damsel? For a good old fashioned western with a toothy menace, see "Curse of the Undead."
Vampire western, it's America's way of saying, 'They are ours!'
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