Dracula's Widow (1988)
Director:
Christopher Coppola
Writers:
Kathryn Ann Thomas, Christopher Coppola
Stars:
Sylvia Kristel, Josef Sommer, Lenny von Dohlen
Emmanuelle's Sylvia Kristel vamps it up as Vanessa, the widow of the legendary Count Dracula, whose coffin is transported from its resting place in modern-day Romania to a Hollywood "House of Horrors" wax museum. After her arrival, she awakens to seek both the remains of her husband and the descendant of Jonathan Harker -- who has gone to great lengths to ensure that the count will never rise again. Notable mainly as the debut effort of Francis Coppola's nephew Christopher, this film benefits from a flamboyant style and great use of film noir ambience (gritty, neon-lit street scenes; Josef Sommer's Chandleresque voice-overs) but the tired script is in dire need of a punch-up. This basic premise was handled with far greater panache in Michael Almereyda's Nadja.