Captain Kronos: Vampire Hunter [Blu-ray]

This review is for the Blu-Ray edition of 'Captain Kronos: Vampire Hunter' released by Shout Factory! in 2019.*****NOTE***** I'm giving this release 5 stars based on the extra's and picture. I'd give the movie itself a 6 or 7 out of 10 or 3 1/2 stars.*****NOTE 2*****For those new to this movie, it was made in the early 1970's."IS THIS MOVIE RELATED TO THE KARNSTEIN TRILOGY?": Probably not. It takes place in a different part of Europe. Confusion comes into play because of the name of one of the vampires. Lady Durward says that her name is "Karnstein" by birth. The name sounds like "Karnstein" or "Karstein". The subtitles show it spelled as "Colstine" (however, I have seen subtitles misspell names many time). I've heard that the original script has it written as "Karnstein". So it's not certain if that was the original intent or not. The movie itself has not other parts that would suggest it is related to the trilogy.BLU-RAY: The picture looks about as good as it can look. The print is very clean and the colors look good. This movie was barely shown back during it's original run and the original elements were probably in excellent shape. This is often the case with movies that didn't receive much fanfare. The result is this nice clean picture. Many of these Hammer Horror films didn't have the sharpest pictures to begin with due to how they were shot. This one looks fairly sharp but a bit soft in spots. I would suspect that anyone looking to purchase this release would be happy with it. The movie is shown in a 1.85:1 aspect ratio. The runtime is 98 minutes.EXTRA'S:-Audio Commentary with film historian Bruce G. Hallenbeck - I listened to most of this as well as the other commentary. I almost always prefer the commentary involving the people involved. The newer commentary tries to come up with some new material that has come to light in the subsequent years. I tend to find the solo commentaries by historians to be dry. They are informative but I don't like listening to biographies of every person involved. I would recommend listening to the alternate commentary provided in this release.-Audio Commentary with writer/director/producer Brian Clemens, Actress Caroline Munro and film historianJonathan Sothcott - Brian Clemens dominates this commentary. Munro chips in here and there and the historian Jonathan Sothcott, pretty much lets the other two do their thing. Clemens, repeatedly compliments Caroline Munro and good-naturedly 'hits' on her constantly, can't say I blame him. (though obviously today, unfortunately, there are many in this world who would call this harassment and call for his cancelation. This commentary was made around 20 years ago).-Documentary: Anything Goes: Hammer Film in the 70's - This is a 33 minute modern documentary with Stephen Jones and Kim Newman. This is a Hammer lovefest by two 60ish guys who saw Hammer films in the theater when they were young. The reminisce about going to the theater and discuss their experiences sneaking into the theater and the influence the movies had on them. They discuss many of the Hammer films and all horror movies in general from the time period. They give a little extra time to 'Captain Kronos'. Photo's of the movies they discuss flash on the screen as they discuss them.-Theatrical Trailer - Trailer is shown in standard definition and size and is 2mn47sec.-Radio Spots -There are several radio spots and they total 3mn2sec.-SubtitlesAHEAD OF IT'S TIME? This movie was made toward the end of Hammer Horror's run. The vampire formula had become 'tired' and repetitive. They were looking for something different for a vampire movie. Therefore, Hammer decided to go with a vampire movie in which the focus was on a Vampire Hunter. This formula was well ahead of it's time and would be used in later years. Most notably, the hit series, 'Buffy, The Vampire Slayer' would use this idea.WHY THE ODD TITLE?: The director and writer, Brian Clemens, came up with the idea to call the main character 'Kronos' after the Greek word for time. The reason was that he was hoping that this movie would lead to a series of films using the character. By using the name 'Kronos', he felt that the character could be used in any time period. Dracula movies tended to move around to different locations and time periods. Effectively, the Kronos name might imply that he was a time traveler of some sort even if he really wasn't. Clemens, to further his reason for choosing the name 'Kronos' says that "evil is timeless".*****WARNING - LOTS OF SPOILERS BELOW*****PLOT/SUMMARY: A village has had a series of death's involving women who are seemingly drained of their youth. They appear to be old and withered right after they are attacked by an unknown attacker.Dr. Marcus (John Carson) sends a message to Captain Kronos, a vampire hunter, to come to his village and help out with what he believes are vampire attacks. Kronos travels with his friend Grost, a hunchback. They are not sure if the attacks are from vampires due to the nature of the death's. Grost, a professor, says that their are different types of vampires. While travelling to the village, Kronos and Grost come across a young girl who is locked in stocks and is being punished.Marcus pays a visit to the family of his deceased friend, Lord Durward. They do not allow him to speak to Lady Durward. The Durward's have two children, Sara and Paul. While returning home, Marcus comes across a cloaked figure and he discovers blood on his lips. He has been turned into a vampire.In a local tavern, Kronos is attacked by thugs hired by Lady Durward but he defeats them. Marcus begs Kronos to kill him. After several attempts to grant him his wish, they discover that a cross made of steel can kill a vampire. They retrieve a steel cross from a cemetery and turn it into a sword. One evening, Kronos notices the carriage of the Durward's leave the scene of a vampire attack. Kronos, Grost and Carla plot to enter the home and confront the Durward's.Carla, acts as human bait and approaches the house, telling the Durwards that she needs shelter. While there, Lady Durward, now looking youthful after previously being shown to be very old and decrepit, hypnotizes Carla and her two children. Grost and Kronos sneak into the home. They encounter Lady Durward and to their surprise, Lord Durward emerges from a room...PRODUCTION: Even though this movie was filmed in 1972, it did not hit theaters until 1974. It was part of a double bill with 'Frankenstein and the Monster from Hell'. It was distributed by Paramount in the U.S.-James Carreras, head of Hammer Productions at the time, was less than enthusiastic about this film. He did not like making a film that was different than the traditional Hammer Horror film and didn't think the production team took the movie seriously enough. The people involved, including the actors, were disappointed that the movie received so little fanfare and was barely promoted. The rumor was that Carreras wanted a tax write off. I'm not sure I believe that rumor, as Hammer was losing money on all their films at the time.-The director, Brian Clemens, also wrote the script and made over 1000 story boards for the movie. He also designed the stakes and logo for Captain Kronos among other things. He says he was heavily influenced by the great director, John Ford. He sort of wrote a vampire western.-The part of Carla was specifically designed for her personality. The character that writer/director had in mind would have been different but needed a different type of actress. I think that Carla smiles too much in this movie. I thought it was kind of inappropriate considering the seriousness of the plot. Though the movie does have a touch of black humor.-Ian Hendry was given a role in this movie under the condition that he did not drink. Hendry was a bad alcoholic and it was affecting his career. He mostly followed the rules, but not exactly. Clemens elaborates in the commentary.-There is a British comic book series that was written about Captain Kronos and there has been a novelization of this movie (in 2011) as well. WHO WAS THAT GUY WHO PLAYED CAPTAIN KRONOS?: The actor's name was Horst Janson. He is a German actor who is still alive, as of the time of this review in 2020. The vast majority of his acting took place in Germany for German productions. He does appear a few times in English speaking movies. "I DO ALL MY OWN STUNTS": This is an often repeated line spoken by many proud actors. It usually is not true but in the case of this movie, it is. Horst Janson did all of his own stunts in 'Captain Kronos'. He was/is an experienced horse rider and can fence. Since the actor who plays LordDurward, William Hobbs, was a choreographer of fencing battles, the fight scenes looked more authentic than usual since no doubles were needed. WHO WAS THE BEAUTIFUL WOMAN, WHERE HAVE I SEEN HER BEFORE?: That woman is Caroline Munro, who is still alive today, as of 2020 (age 71). I don't think I have ever seen a 'hotter' looking girl in a fantasy film then when I saw her in 'The Golden Voyage of Sinbad'. Just go and google some pictures from that movie.Munro would probably be most recognized by James Bond fans, as she appeared in two Bond movies. She was in 'Casino Royale (1967)' in a minor part and she was Naomi in 'The Spy Who Loved Me (1977)' She also played the role of Dia in 'At the Earth's Core (1976)'. I mention these movies because to me, while growing up, they were her most visible roles. She appeared in quite a few other movies that movie fans would recognize including another movie for Hammer, 'Dracula A.D. 1972 (1972)'. WHY DOES JOHN CARSON SEEM SO FAMILIAR? Well for starters, he was a very prolific actor and appeared in innumerable movies and television shows throughout the 60's and 70's and had a very long career that started in the 50's and went into the 2000's. Another often commented reason he seems so familiar is, that much to his annoyance, he sounds a lot like the famous actor, James Mason. His voice was one of the main reasons he got hired so often. Carson, didn't really like being compared to James Mason. WHERE IS EVERYONE? Hammer Productions was having a lot of difficulty at the time this movie was made. Their American money had dried up and they needed to get financing elsewhere. It appears as one of their cost cutting measures was eliminating extra's. You see almost nobody. The town that this movie centers around looks lifeless. Carla, while being punished, is in the middle of nowhere. What kind of a deterrent is that?COMMENTS/THOUGHTS: IS IT REALLY THAT HARD TO KILL AN IMMORTAL CREATURE?: I've always had an issue with this sort of thing. What would happen if they just cut the vampire's head off... or did a 'Monty Python' on them and cut off all the limbs? How about crushing the vampire or at the very least chaining it up and burying it in a hole or bury it in cement? If in the modern world, you could do a lot worse. How about a hand grenade or explosive or even a chainsaw? To be fair, at the time they didn't have CGI. I suppose they could use special effects to show wounds resealing as you cut through or something like that.BTW... the bit about vampires only 'bleeding during death' was made up for this movie. WAIT... WHAT?... : At the end of the movie, Captain Kronos takes off with Grost, leaving behind Carla in that desolate town, in order to continue on with his adventures. Wait... What!?!... I'd understand if he didn't like women but he proves in the movie that this is not the case. How could he leave a girl like that behind??? It wasn't even as if she was dead weight... She was willing to participate in his adventures and was even willing to be bait, FFSake... I get it, if he was so in love that he didn't want to endanger her. But he could have at least brought her somewhere safe that he could come back to. Or at least tried. He takes off, getting nothing more than a blown kiss...And we are still waiting for his adventures to continue... DO VAMPIRES BRING DEAD FROGS BACK TO LIFE?: This part of the movie appears to be made up specifically for this movie. I have never heard of this sort of thing before. It is possible that the idea may come from old folklore. WHAT I LIKE:-I like that they did something different by focusing on the vampire hunter. At the time, Hammer Horror was dying and money from American studio's had dried up. They were trying different things. They brought Dracula into the modern world ('Dracula A.D. 1972' (1972)). They tried a new Frankenstein, with Ralph Bates ('Horror of Frankenstein (1970)') and added 'black humor'. They made 'Dr. Jekyll & Sister Hyde (1971)', a distinct twist on the old story. These are just a few of the ideas they tried. Unfortunately nothing was working. I kind of liked these new movies.-Most people think the best scene in the movie was when Grost and Kronos try and kill Dr. Marcus. I agree. I just wish they would have extended it and tried a few more things.-Caroline Munro. Back then, she made every movie she was in look better.-I like John Carson as an actor.-The fencing duel is very good, as pointed out above in '"I DO ALL MY OWN STUNTS"'. WHAT I DON'T LIKE:-I think that for many parts of this movie, the music is awful, including the main theme. In the commentary, the director states that he loves it. Maybe I'm in the minority, but I just think that trumpet (or whatever instrument it is) is incredibly annoying. Overall, the score just doesn't seem to fit. For me, it seems lit it would be more appropriate for a war movie in which you have armies charging at one another.-The movie looks devoid of human life, as I note above. You never get the impression that there are people around. This sometimes was the case in Hammer Horror movies. I guess they didn't like to spend money on extra's.-What was Carla doing locked up, outside, in the middle of nowhere. Would they really do that to a girl that looked as good as she did? I doubt it. The scene just looked odd. You would expect them to encounter a person like that in the middle of town where she could be used as an example. Anybody could just free her if she was in the middle of nowhere.-Speaking of Carla, as I elaborate above in the 'WAIT... WHAT?' section, what is Captain Kronos doing, abandoning her forever when he had a partner willing to participate in his heroic deeds...CONCLUSIONS: This movie was filmed near the end of Hammer Horror's original run. They were looking for no ideas, as their movies from the 60's had become repetitive. The idea for a vampire hunter was a bit ahead of it's time but would become mainstream in the years to come. This movie is actually quite entertaining, even though it has never received much notoriety. I don't very much like the title, nor do I like the soundtrack, but I like the movie.The release is a good one. For extra's, you get two audio commentaries and a documentary.RECOMMENDATIONS/RATINGS:Plot: 7/10 or 3 1/2 stars - Not the best reputation, and a bit on the low budget side, but entertaining.Picture: 8/10 or 4 stars - Probably as good as it can look.Extra's:8/10 or 4 stars - Two audio commentaries and a documentary is always worth 4 stars as far as I'm concerned.Overall: 4 stars - A good release for an OK film... I'm bumping it up to 5 stars just because...IF YOU LIKE THIS THEN TRY:-Buffy the Vampire Slayer television series-Van Helsing (2004)-Horror of Dracula (1958)-Brides of Dracula (1960)

Captain Kronos: Vampire Hunter (1974) aka Kronos is one of the better films to come from Hammer Studios in the 70's. It's basically a horror movie with a heaping helping of adventure thrown in and just a whole lot of fun.Written and directed by Brian Clemens, the film stars German actor Horst Janson as Captain Kronos, a master of the sword and ex-solider, a freelance vampire killer, accompanied by the hunchbacked Professor Hieronymos Grost (John Cater), an authority on vampirism and good friend to Kronos. The film also stars the lovely and infinitely easy on the eyes Caroline Munro who appeared in others films like Dracula A.D. 1972 (1972), The Golden Voyage of Sinbad (1974), and The Spy Who Loved Me (1977).The film wastes no time on the horror aspect as we witness a young, comely woman in the woods attacked by a mysterious, cloaked stranger. The once young woman is now old and withered, due to having her youth literally drained from her person. A couple more attacks occur within the small English village, and this prompts Dr. Marcus (John Carson), the local physician, to contact his old friend, Captain Kronos. On the way to the village, Kronos and Grost meet Carla (Monroe), an errant peasant girl, whom they allow to tag along, probably because she's so hot. On arriving in the small village, Grost utilizes a unique vampire detection device to try and track the vile creature terrorizing the village, while Kronos has mad monkey love with Carla and rests for the upcoming battle. Meanwhile, the village loses a couple more young women, decreasing the overall population greatly as I didn't see a whole lot of townsfolk to begin with...The hunt is on as Kronos and Grost search for clues as to the identity and location of the vampire. Dr. Marcus may already have the answer to the mystery, but is not forthcoming due to personal reasons. Also, forces have begun to conspire against Kronos and his group, and our hero seems to be threatened from a number of sides. What drives the man to do what he does? His motivations are spelled out later in the film, and while pretty simple, they satisfy nicely. Will Captain Kronos discover the identity of the evil that plagues the village before he succumbs to it himself? What secret does Dr. Marcus harbor? Do we get to see Caroline Munro in the raw? Watch the movie and find out...I really enjoyed a number of elements within this film. The notion that there are actually different types of vampires, and different methods of dispatch for each was a nice touch. Also, Janson really provided a wonderful performance as the sort of swashbuckling hero, one with no fear, and an eagerness to perform his self define task of ridding the lands of the scourge of vampirism. I also liked that his friend and maybe even mentor, the hunchbacked Professor Grost was actually presented as a highly intelligent individual, capable of assisting his friend in their exploits with the undead. The swordplay within the movie was a whole lot of fun, but I was a bit perplexed with scenes where Kronos would jam his swords into the ground, or use them to dig in the dirt. I know little of swords, but I would have thought a master swordsman would take more care with his weapons, not using them in such fashion for fear of dulling or nicking the blades. Oh well, a minor nuance that struck me as strange. The whole mystery element as to who is the vampire is played for all it's worth, and there are obtuse clues sprinkled throughout the story that may help the viewer uncover this on their own.The print provided by Paramount looks excellent and there is a commentary track available including genre historian Jonathan Sothcott, filmmaker Brian Clemens and actress Caroline Munro. Kronos is swashbuckling action, Hammer style, and well worth looking into whether you're a fan of horror, action, or both.Cookieman108

I first saw this soon after it was released in 1973, and I've been a fan ever since. The opening is unforgettable - a handsome rider on a horse (Kronos, played by Horst Janson) canters across a lush landscape, followed by a rattling wagon loaded with stakes, crosses, and other tools of the vampire-hunting trade, driven by a black-clad hunchback (Professor Grost, John Cater). They've been summoned by the local schoolteacher, an old friend of Kronos, to investigate the death of a young girl who has been drained of her youth.Captain Kronos is a real oddity in the Hammer oeuvre, featuring a vampire-hunting team that uses weird (early 19th century or thereabouts) science to track down and eliminate vampires in a plot which plays out like a cross between a spaghetti western and the stereotypical vampire adventure, and features vampires that break most of the usual rules. Unlike Hammer's usual fare there are none of the usual suspects - no Dracula, Camilla, or Van Helsing - and many of the usual tropes simply don't work. Almost anyone can be a vampire, and no two are exactly alike, in powers or weaknesses. At one point an important character is horrified to discover that he has actually become a vampire unknowingly, and we're then treated to a harrowing series of "experiments" to find out exactly how his type of vampirism works and how he can be killed. As the story progresses the body count rises, with Kronos responsible for as many deaths as the vampires, leading to an eventual bloody resolution. It's all played out with immense style and occasional flashes of humour.Rumour has it that there were originally intended to be several Kronos films, but for some reason it never happened, Hammer chose instead to stick to Dracula and the other old familiar tropes. It's a real shame, because this film had a witty style singularly lacking from Hammer's usual extruded vampire product.

One thing I always liked about Hammer is the immersion you get from watching these old movies. No one besides Hammer and Lucio Fulci could create a world on display that sucks you in right away. Movies that if watched in the right frame of mind. Make you want to be there with the characters in the movie. Such a thing is rare to come by these days. These are the sorts of movies that are a prime example of "escapism" at it's finest.The quality of this Hammer release is pretty decent for a DVD. The sound is good and the picture quality is very good for a DVD and also for a movie made in the early 70s upgraded to DVD. I'm impressed since the movie is older than me (I'm 34). For the price it's at at the moment (just under £6) it's a bargain for a classic like this. It most definitely is. And take my word for it folks. There is nothing wrong with the picture quality or sound quality. I watched it on my PS3 and on a stand alone DVD player. Works fine on both it does.My only complaint about this is there was never any sequels. I read they had plans on making a series of Kronos movies. Pity it never happened. We need more movies with this sort of atmosphere to them. Not this run of the mill sequel existing only to make cash efforts we get nowadays.The version this review was based on is from HAMMER: THE COLLECTION.

I watched this film on my Xbox One S, hoping for it to be enhanced to a reasonable video quality, but alas, it was awful. It looked like a VHS quality film put straight onto DVD, without any improvement.Also, I would advise that this DVD is best watched on a blu-ray player rather than an Xbox One. Early DVDs like this, do not come out in widescreen as they are supposed to. Apparently, Xbox One has problems trying to enhance these early DVDs, and the result is a square picture (3 x 3). This happens on nearly all early DVDs.I've given this DVD 2 stars, because the film itself, the story etc, is okay.

DVD Release Reviewed: DD VideoCaptain Kronos Vampire Hunter travels the land slaying vampires with stakes, crosses and a samurai sword!All the classic Hammer ingredients in this one, but with an extra something that makes it one of the best. It is somehow a notch above other Hammer horrors, but what that 'x factor' is I cannot put my finger on. It's a shame a sequel was never made unfortunately.Great cast despite none of the Hammer regulars like Peter Cushing etc. Horst Janson as Kronos reminded me almost of a character in a western, instead of quick draw with a gun it was with swords. Fantastic. Caroline Munro more beautiful than ever. The hunchback assistant was another great character too as was Ian Hendry's small role. Too many to mention really.This one certainly has it all, cannot recommend it enough.Three cheers for Captain Kronos.

I have recently purchased the DD version which if it helps is what the pictured disc cover looks like - Hammer logo and the film title in garish green with Caroline Munro lurking at the bottom (!) I got confused for a while because the Amazon reviews cross over to all versions. This version has the booklet and you should not be put off by the very grainy picture on Amazon. And what about the film itself which I haven't seen for many years? Not quite as refreshing as it was way back then but still an enjoyable romp. I couldn't help having flashbacks to The Avengers because of the incidental music provided by Laurie Johnson (a la The Avengers). Strange mix of spaghetti western-style swordplay and classic Hammer horror.