Dracula in a Women’s Prison – review

Director: Jeff Leroy

Release date: 2019

Contains spoilers

The first reaction to a film with the title Dracula in a Women’s Prison is that it is likely to be poor... on the other hand if the filmmakers are confident enough to post a screener from the States over to the UK then they must have a level of conviction, of belief in their product. The second reaction is, of course, with the title Dracula in a Women’s Prison you kind of know what type of filmic entertainment you have in store.

Robert Rhine as Dracula

The “women in prison” (wip) form of film is a particular sub-genre of exploitation film and, whilst this is not great cinema, it is abundantly clear that the filmmakers intimately know their sub-genre and, despite being made in the 21st Century, this summoned up all the camp and exploitation of the late 60s/early 70s wip-oeuvre. The filmmakers really like their horror too. This is a standalone sequel to Werewolf in a Women’s Prison (2006) and promises a third film Frankenstein in a Women’s Prison.

the prison

The film starts with bats (what else) and cgi impaled bodies, eventually focusing onto Dracula (Robert Rhine) who rants about foolish mortals. I will return to the cgi later. Cutting to the women’s prison in the Latin country of Campuna. A dominatrix guard (Puma Swede) walks the halls forcing inmates to kiss each other for her entertainment. However, an enterprising prisoner has made a stake and the guard gets the sharp end and the ensuing riot allows two inmates to escape.

stake in the mouth

One of them is American journalist Rachel (Victoria De Mare), and she and her cellmate do actually escape. During the riot we see that staking in the mouth is apparently as effective as in the heart and, when they die, the vampires turn into giant cgi bats as they explode. Meanwhile a hearse chases the escapees down and the cellmate loses her head as she is run over. Dracula (or Drago as he is going by) intercepts Rachel.

ropy looking decapitation

So, let’s talk cgi – there are some moments of practical effects but mostly this uses cgi effects and they kind-of work. They don’t look brilliant, as the decapitation attests to, and often are used when practical effects would be better (and more 70s) but they are the right sort of camp for this movie, fitting into the knowing B movie pastiche. That exploitation thread maintains throughout the film with enough sexploitative nudity and lesbianism to satisfy its place in a sub-genre but not so much that it drifts beyond exploitation.

Liz is going to get into trouble

Back to the film and, over in America, Rachel’s twin sister Liz (also Victoria De Mare) wakes knowing her sister is dead and seeing the wraith of her sibling calling for help through the TV. Liz is a cancer survivor (I’m guessing this was thrown in to explain the various wigs she wears, but the filmmakers missed a trick as the chemo might have been used as a plot point with regards her blood) and needs to go to Campuna but her boyfriend, Dan (Ryan Izay, Brotherhood of Blood), wants her to wait. A couple of scenes later, she sees Dan turns into her sister whilst they have sex she decides she has to go straight away, slipping away as he sleeps and leaving him a note.

Rosie and Liz

Meanwhile, in a café in Campuna, an American tourist reads a book. A (fly eating) local cop talks to her and then arrests her on trumped up charges. Waitress Rosie (Rachel Riley) tries to intervene but the girl is taken to the prison – we then see her with a spigot in her neck. Of course, Liz ends up in the café and she and Rosie begin a torrid affair (it is an exploitation film after all). We discover that Rosie’s husband was turned, her child lost to the vampires (the film even manages to put a narrative explanation over a sex scene) and now wants revenge. The cop is actually her brother.

on tap

I won’t spoil any more but you might wonder, is it any good? As I said before it is not great cinema but it does know the sub-genre it is emulating and does that with panache. It is helped by the cast; Victoria De Mare has a substantial background in B-movies and she and Rachel Riley are clearly enjoying themselves as the vampire hunters, Robert Rhine skilfully navigates the border of camp to offer a performance that carries just the right level of absurdity balanced against gravitas and finally his vampire lieutenant, as played by Elissa Dowling (the Last revenants & Dracula’s Curse), is pitched just right. Remember, that is right for a film immersed in 70s sexploitation and, notably, the wip sub-genre. As such I think a solid 5 out of 10 balances the fact that this is doing what it should in order that it might be what it wants to be, and doesn’t pretend to be anything else.

The imdb page is here.

On Demand @ Amazon US

On Demand @ Amazon UK

You can also buy the DVD direct here.

As a bonus, I was sent some publicity photos that I'm posting below: