Scream Blacula Scream

As awesome as Blacula was it was missing a couple of things... Voodoo and Pam Grier.
Thankfully, Samuel Z. Arkoff saw how well Blacula did and figuered the best way to fix that problem was to do a sequel- and cleverly addressing the Return problem.

Prince Mamuwalde was dispatched at the end of Blacula in a classic manner, but his bones are used in a Voodoo ritual at the beginning of Scream Blacula Scream by Willis, a practicioner, to take revenge on the cult that rejected his leadership.

Since leadership in the cult had to go to someone, it goes to Lisa, played by Pam Grier, who, despite that fact that Mamuwalde's reincarnated love died at the end of the last movie, is the reincarnation of his bride.

Lucky for her she's involved with Justin, a police officer with an interest in ancient African artifacts.

Again, William Marshall bring so much to the role- the tormented gentleman, revolted by what he was to do to survive. There weren't enough seventies Blaxploitation horror films, but the Blacula films are at the top of the list- even making more contemporary films like Vampire in Brooklyn pale in comparison.

The Return of the Vampire

Bela Lugosi playing a vampire. What's not to like?

In Edwardian England, two scientists, Lady Jane Ainsley and Doctor Saunders, investigate an attack and realize it's the work of a vampire, Armand Tesla. They stake the vampire, allow his wolfman slave to return to normal.

Twenty-three years later, Doctor Saunders is killed in a plane crash and his notes on the incident come to the attention of Scotland Yard. Lady Jane has to explain their actions to Sir Frederick, including producing the impaled body of the vampire.

Unfortunately, this is during the Blitz, and the graveyard where they left the body has been bombed- and the graveyard's caretakers remove what they think is a piece of shrapnel, allowing Tesla to come back to life.

Tesla returns to take his revenge on Lady Jane's son, the fiancee of Doctor Saunders' granddaughter.

The Return of the Vampire is Lugosi doing prime menace, but matched by Lady Jane's resourcefulness and determination.

The effects are pretty good for the era, especially the wolfman transformation.

Lady Jane is a pretty good match for Tesla as a female counterpart to Van Helsing.

It's not often I think there should be a sequel to something, but I would have loved to have seen Lady Jane match wits with Tesla again.