Twins of Evil
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Twins of Evil (aka Daughters of Dracula) |
|
|---|---|
 French Poster of Twins of Evil |
|
| Directed by | John Hough |
| Produced by | Michael Style, Harry Fine |
| Written by | Sheridan Le Fanu (story Carmilla), Tudor Gates |
| Starring | Peter Cushing, Dennis Price, Mary Collinson, Madeleine Collinson Damien Thomas |
| Music by | Harry Robertson |
| Distributed by | American International Pictures (USA, theatrical), MGM |
| Release date(s) | 1972 |
| Running time | 87 min |
| Country |  UK &  USA |
| Language | English |
| Preceded by | Lust for a Vampire |
| IMDb profile | |
Twins of Evil is a 1972 horror film by Hammer Film Productions.
It is the third film of The Karnstein Trilogy, based on the vampire tale Carmilla by Sheridan Le Fanu. It stars Peter Cushing, Mary Collinson, Madeleine Collinson and Damien Thomas. Much of the interest of the film revolves around the contrasting evil and good natures of two beautiful sisters, Frieda and Maria Gellhorn (played by twin Playmates Mary and Madeleine Collinson). It is sometimes seen as a prequel to The Vampire Lovers, the first film in the Karnstein Trilogy, as the set design and costumes give the film an 18th Century look and feel.
Unlike the previous two entries in the series, this film had no lesbian plotline or story. One female vampire bites another woman on the breast. It probably would not be considered an example of the vampire lesbian genre. This movie has the least resemblance to Sheridan Le Fanu's Carmilla of the Karnstein Trilogy and adds a witchfinding theme to the vampire story.
Contents |
[edit] Synopsis
In Central Europe, identical twin teenage girls, Maria and Frieda, come to live with their uncle Gustav Weil. Weil is a puritan who leads the Brotherhood: a group of religious fanatics trying to stamp out vampirism. The Brotherhood torture and kill several innocents in their pursuit of evil, especially vampires.
The local Count Karnstein, who remains unmolested by the Brotherhood, is in fact deeply interested in Satanism and Black Magic. He keeps trying to experiment with rituals, to no avail. Finally, one night he calls upon the forces of darkness and murders a girl in an act of human sacrifice. That night, Countess Mircalla Karnstein rises from her grave and joins him in bed. She bites his throat, draining him of blood, turning him into one of the Undead.
He soon notices the lovely young twins of Gustav Veil. One of the twins likes the Count very much, accepting his offer to visit him in the castle. The other is more interested in the handsome young teacher, Anton. In the castle, the Count shows his lack of reflection before biting the "bad" twin, transforming her into a vampire (thus proving, he says, she is truly evil).
For the rest of the story, Anton tries to gather evidence against the Brotherhood while the "good" twin covers for the absences of her sister. The latter won't stay at home each night because, she hints, she might bite her sister. When caught by Weil feeding upon a stranger in the forest, the vampiric twin is tossed in a cell before they burn her (even though Anton has pointed out fire cannot kill real vampires). The Count and his servants kidnap the good twin. They switch their places in the cell, so that when Anton goes to see the twin he thinks is the good one he is actually walking into the arms of a vampire! She tries to seduce him, very nearly succeeding. But when she attacks, it turns out he has a cross, which sears her hand. Anton rushes to stop the execution, insisting the girl chained to the stake be given a cross--which she then kisses. Weill is horrified to realize he almost killed an innocent girl.
Weill now listens to Anton's advice as they lead an angry mob up to Karnstein Castle. He takes some comfort with Anton's insistence that if a vampire has a shred of goodness in their soul, their death does not condemn but releases them. The vampire twin is beheaded when she tries to sneak out through a secret way (beheading, in this film, does kill vampires). Within the soon-burning castle, Gustav and the Count fight it out, eventually killing each other. Anton and the good twin are united.
[edit] Cast
- Peter Cushing Gustav Weil
- Dennis Price Dietrich
- Mary Collinson Maria Gellhorn
- Madeleine Collinson Frieda Gellhorn
- Isobel Black Ingrid Hoffer
- Kathleen Byron Katy Weil
- Damien Thomas Count Karnstein
- David Warbeck Anton Hoffer
- Harvey Hall Franz
- Katya Wyeth Countess Mircalla
- Alex Scott Hermann
- Judy Matheson Woodman's Daughter
- Luan Peters Gerta
- Shelagh Wilcocks Lady in Coach (as Sheelah Wilcox)
- Inigo Jackson Woodman
[edit] Trivia
- Both Collinson twins' voices were dubbed.
- Ingrid Pitt was offered the part of Countess Mircalla.
- The same sets were used for Vampire Circus
- The Collinsons were the first twin sisters to adorn the pages of Playboy magazine.
[edit] External links
The Vampire Lovers (1970) • Lust for a Vampire (1971) • Twins of Evil (1972)
