Evil of Dracula is the third and last entry in the Bloodthirsty Trilogy centered around American-styled horror movies in a Japanese context. Released a whopping three years after the previous output Lake of Dracula and four years after The Vampire Doll, this story is centered around a psychology teacher who assumes a job at an isolated private school. Upon arrival, he learns that the principal's wife died in a tragic car accident two days earlier. When the teacher respectfully asks if he could visit her grave, he is told by the principal that her body hasn't been buried or cremated yet and is instead kept in a coffin in the basement for a whole week according to an ancient local tradition. The surprises don't stop there for the young teacher when he is told that the principal would like him to be his successor. At night, the young teacher has a haunting nightmare of the principal's wife and an unknown girl attacking him. He is stunned when he learns that the girl in his nightmare is in fact a student who mysteriously disappeared and that several students indeed run away from the old school every single year. The teacher realizes that something is afoul and starts investigating.
Horror movies that are set in high schools don't seem to be original anymore but Evil of Dracula was released two years before Carrie, three years before Suspiria and even decades before the Whispering Corridors series. Setting a gothic horror movie at an old private school for girls was a clever idea back then and the movie's familiar yet unsettling settings still work perfectly four and a half decades later. The isolated railway station, the bumpy country road with the carwreck, the elegant principal's mansion, the gloomy forest and lake next to the school, the big classrooms and the modest dorms make for diversified locations.
The movie also convinces with a gloomy atmosphere. Right from the start, viewers might sense that something is wrong. The teacher arrives at a completely isolated railroad station. The staff is very rude. The person who was supposed to pick him up arrives late. The first thing he sees on his way to the school is the horribly burned carwreck. The tension intensifies from there on and will keep viewers on the edge of their seats.
Even though Evil of Dracula is a good horror movie that has aged surprisingly well, it isn't as great as The Vampire Doll with its outstanding acting performances and Lake of Dracula with its mysterious and surreal vibes. The acting performances in Evil of Dracula are solid but not outstanding. The principal's characteristics are a little bit too similar to those of the main villain in Lake of Dracula. Lead actor Kurosawa Toshio looks stylish but his acting performance lacks depth and emotions. The characters of the three students who decide to stay at the school during summer break are promising but not fully developed. If the movie had been a little bit more detailed, it could have been much more intense.
The final showdown is also less convincing than in the two predecessors. There are a lot of things going on but the action looks unintentionally humorous at times and feels completely exaggerated by the end. This rather recalls The Rocky Horror Picture Show than an actual horror movie, even though said was also released one year after Evil of Dracula.
In the end, Evil of Dracula is an atmospheric and intense horror movie that gets even closer to American-styled horror cinema than the two predecessors. However, the acting performances are only slightly above average and the film is at times lacking depth. If you have watched the first two entries, you will also like this film. If that isn't your case, watch the Bloodthirsty Trilogy chronologically.
