Shot at the same time and using the same sets as the more famous Bela Lugosi film, this is the superior film because the direction is more cinematic and more atmospheric than Tod Browning’s version. George Melford didn’t speak Spanish and had a background in Silent cinema, so dialogue is minimal. (People were familiar enough with the story they could easily follow the action.) Since both films were produced by the same company, this version could save money by reusing footage and borrowing camera effects that worked in the Lugosi film. The biggest drawback is that Carlos Villarias is no Bela Lugosi, who has the presence of someone who is not quite human. Villarias is playing dress-up, with no ideas of his own for how to play Count Dracula. It doesn’t help that he also looks like Nicolas Cage being goofy.
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