Horror of Dracula Uncensored

Talk about your rare opportunities! On February 17 (1:00pm), the Cinematheque in Toronto will be showing a brand new print of Hammer’s Horror of Dracula (a.k.a. Dracula), which has has previously censored scenes restored. Here’s the skinny from the Cinematheque website:

RESTORED PRINT FROM BRITAIN!
Featured at both the Cannes and Bologna festivals last year, what many consider the best Hammer horror film of all was laboriously restored by the BFI National Archive after an international trawl, from the US to Japan, for scenes that had been censored upon its original release. Almost entirely restored from its original negative with only the titles and the censored scenes taken from other materials, the film comes up fresh - if that word can be used for the undead! - and creepy as ever. The story about the blood thirsty count is too familiar to recount, but suffice it to say that the classic team of Cushing and Lee transform it into one of the most memorable and satisfying versions with their crisp Brit manners and delectable line deliveries. It doesn’t hurt that the film was shot in stunning Technicolor, and that director Terence Fisher knows how to deliver precisely timed jolts. Great fun. Compare and contrast with Dreyer’s VAMPYR, screening on March 2.

I’m definitely jealous we didn’t catch wind of this for CineMacabre nights. Plus, shortly thereafter, Dreyer’s Vampyr, one of the coolest, trippiest vampire films ever made. That is the icing on the muthafuggin’ coffin.