Dracula III: Legacy

Plot

Five years after the events of Dracula II: Ascension, Father Uffizi and Luke (Jason London) discover that Dracula (Rutger Hauer) has returned with Elizabeth (Diane Neal) to his castle in the Carpathian Mountains. However, fearing that Uffizi has been tainted by Dracula, Cardinal Siqueros (Roy Scheider) refuses to give Uffizi his blessing for the mission. Uffizi defrocks himself and sets out with Luke to Bucharest.

Romania has been devastated by a civil war, and NATO peacekeepers line the streets. In an abandoned village, Uffizi and Luke find a crashed helicopter containing a news reporter, Julia (Alexandra Wescourt), and her cameraman. The cameraman is turned by the vampire clowns terrorising the village, but all are destroyed by Uffizi and Luke. They leave Julia but are soon lured into a rebel trap. They find Julia with the rebels, refusing to return to England with nothing but a story on vampires.

The undead attack the rebel base during the night, but Uffizi, Luke and Julia survive, proceeding to Dracula's castle. There they find Elizabeth, almost totally turned to Dracula's way of life. Dracula mortally wounds Julia and tells Uffizi that only through God's forgiveness can he truly die, but Uffizi engages the ancient vampire in a duel and ultimately destroys him by first biting him and draining him of his blood, then beheading him, announcing that he should consider himself forgiven. Meanwhile, Luke, on her request, beheads Elizabeth. Luke leaves the castle, while Uffizi sits on Dracula's throne, with Julia revived as a vampire. The film ends with the implication that Uffizi, who has missed the morning purge of his vampiric curse, has become the new vampire lord.

Cast

Reception

Critical reaction to Dracula III: Legacy has been mixed, though more positive in general than that of Dracula II: Ascension. John Puccio of DVD Town said, "This one is no world beater and hardly scary, but at least it's got mood and tone and atmosphere to spare, something the first two movies in the ongoing series lacked entirely. ... Dracula III: Legacy contains some decent acting and some solid atmospherics." Kevin Carr of 7M Pictures said, "At least in the cinematic morass that is modern movies, Dracula III is better than the wimpy vampire lore pioneered by Anne Rice. ... Dracula III falls somewhere below Hellraiser but above the Crow sequels. It's not a grand placement, but there's always a market for vampire movies."

Walter Chaw of Film Freak Central said, "The strength of Dracula III is in its use of locations, with Lussier finally figuring out how to work with a DP to create a foreboding atmosphere. ... If reports are true and this is Lussier's last dip in the Carpathian pool, at least he's ending somewhere just north of mediocre." Dread Central's review stated, "Lussier and company aren't out to reinvent the wheel, but they do one hell of a good job of keeping it turning. ... Each shot is brimming with authentic feeling vampire flavor, at times achieving an almost Hammer Film type ambiance. Truly inspired stuff."