Count Yorga came on TV when I was little and it literally scared the bejesus out of me (I'm not quite sure where my parental guidance was during this period - perhaps I had a babysitter). Upon rewatching the film some thirty odd years later, I was actually pleasantly surprised at how enjoyable the movie is. It serves as a great postcard of the very end of the 1960s. So, here's the play-by-play on the 1970 horror classic, Count Yorga, Vampire. (Beware of spoilers!)
The film begins with a pickup truck passing through some 1970 urban sprawl carrying a mysterious coffin shaped cargo. I half expected this old jalopy to arrive at Fred Sanford's junkyard, but (alas, it was not driven by Lamont) instead it veers to a country estate.
Now keep in mind it's 1970, the height of hexploitation - a time when Rosemary's Baby was still the talk of the town and the novel The Exorcist was only a year away. So, if you're a horror movie worth your salt, you need to inject a little occult action. Thus, the film begins with a seance led by Count Yorga. I don't think I have to tell you that things go horribly awry.
Donna starts to become possessed by her deceased mother, but Yorga steps in and saves the day. Donna and friends laugh it off. Ha,ha,ha - isn't the occult hilarious!
Well, nothing kills a party better than possession by the undead, so Erica, Paul and Yorga split in a groovy VW bus. Somehow the idea of an aristocratic vampire riding shotgun in a VW mini bus seems a bit strange.
As the VW makes its way through the countryside, it becomes apparent to the viewer that this is going to be a very dark movie. Not dark as in "ominous and foreboding" but dark as in "poorly lit". I found this quote from Robert Quarry, the guy who plays Yorga, which explains it all:
"But it was hard work. We had just four crew members -- that's it. They were all happy on plum wine and grass! There was one make-up man and a few guys with little arc lights. You say the film was 'dark and mysterious' -- the film was dark and mysterious because we didn't have enough lights!”
After dropping off Yorga, their third wheel, Paul and Erica discover that the VW bus isn't much of an off-road vehicle, and get stuck in the mud.
I guess Paul was feeling a bit threatened by the dashing Yorga, and snaps at Erica -"You might get your fat ass out of the car and see if you can be of some help!"
"It is not a fat ass!" yells Erica.
"It is too. It's huge," he replies... That's the way to win her back, Paul.
Apparently it works, because it isn't long before Paul and Erica are makin' sweet love in the back of the mini bus. I think the primary function of a VW mini bus was to provide lovemaking space and a pleasant environment to smoke weed... being a means of transportation was only secondary.
Shortly after the lovemaking, Yorga storms the bus and goes medieval on Paul's ass and sinks his fangs into the lovely Erica. Days later, Erica can't remember what happened and she's acting a bit strange... well, if you call eating your pet cat for dinner strange.
The cat eating scene is what got this movie in trouble with the MPAA. They wanted to give it an X or R rating, whereas AIP wanted it given a GP rating (that's not a typo - it was called GP). In order to get it, AIP cut the cat eating scene. I could have lived without watching it myself - go ahead and kill people all you want in movies, but for some reason a little kitty covered in ketchup is too much for me to take.
Anyway, good ol' Paul agrees to help give Erica a blood transfusion. Unfortunately, it doesn't do a damn bit of good. Yorga is back to once again sink his teeth into Erica, whose only too happy to let him.
Count Yorga was initially planned as a soft core porn, but Roger Quarry said he wanted no part of that, and so the movie was played straight and legit. I'm glad he did. One result was that it allowed some of the actors to shine, namely Michael Murphy (Paul) who would go on to great acclaim, perhaps most notably in Roger Altman films.
Paul gets whacked by Yorga, and shortly thereafter Donna (remember her from the beginning?) and Erica's physician, Dr. Hayes, pay a visit to the Count. BTW: Dr. Hayes is played by the damn fine actor, Roger Perry, who was married to Laugh-In's Jo Anne Worely from 1975 to 2000.
Anyway, the doctor suspects Yorga is some kind of vampire. So, he stages an exit on the pretense of needing a drink in order to spy on the Count. Not surprisingly, the studly Yorga wastes no time in getting to "know" the lovely Donna better.
That night, Yorga has Donna abducted. In response, her boyfriend Michael and Dr. Hayes arm themselves with crosses, garlic, and wooden stakes to take on the vampire who keeps stealing their women. Dr. Hayes doesn't fare to well - he gets stuck in the basement with all of Yorga's vampire brides. Of course, there's probably worse ways to die...
In the final few scenes, Michael manages to single-handedly rescue Donna and put a stake through the heart of Yorga, who withers to dust. And just when you think the film is over, there's a couple of twists which I'll let you discover when you watch it.
The annoying narrator returns at the very end with a sarcastic "Superstition?" before erupting into a maniacal Dr. Evil laugh. "Mua-ha-ha-ha, mua-ha-ha-ha!"
The film begins with a pickup truck passing through some 1970 urban sprawl carrying a mysterious coffin shaped cargo. I half expected this old jalopy to arrive at Fred Sanford's junkyard, but (alas, it was not driven by Lamont) instead it veers to a country estate.
Now keep in mind it's 1970, the height of hexploitation - a time when Rosemary's Baby was still the talk of the town and the novel The Exorcist was only a year away. So, if you're a horror movie worth your salt, you need to inject a little occult action. Thus, the film begins with a seance led by Count Yorga. I don't think I have to tell you that things go horribly awry.
Donna starts to become possessed by her deceased mother, but Yorga steps in and saves the day. Donna and friends laugh it off. Ha,ha,ha - isn't the occult hilarious!Well, nothing kills a party better than possession by the undead, so Erica, Paul and Yorga split in a groovy VW bus. Somehow the idea of an aristocratic vampire riding shotgun in a VW mini bus seems a bit strange.
As the VW makes its way through the countryside, it becomes apparent to the viewer that this is going to be a very dark movie. Not dark as in "ominous and foreboding" but dark as in "poorly lit". I found this quote from Robert Quarry, the guy who plays Yorga, which explains it all:"But it was hard work. We had just four crew members -- that's it. They were all happy on plum wine and grass! There was one make-up man and a few guys with little arc lights. You say the film was 'dark and mysterious' -- the film was dark and mysterious because we didn't have enough lights!”
After dropping off Yorga, their third wheel, Paul and Erica discover that the VW bus isn't much of an off-road vehicle, and get stuck in the mud.I guess Paul was feeling a bit threatened by the dashing Yorga, and snaps at Erica -"You might get your fat ass out of the car and see if you can be of some help!"
"It is not a fat ass!" yells Erica.
"It is too. It's huge," he replies... That's the way to win her back, Paul.
Apparently it works, because it isn't long before Paul and Erica are makin' sweet love in the back of the mini bus. I think the primary function of a VW mini bus was to provide lovemaking space and a pleasant environment to smoke weed... being a means of transportation was only secondary.
Shortly after the lovemaking, Yorga storms the bus and goes medieval on Paul's ass and sinks his fangs into the lovely Erica. Days later, Erica can't remember what happened and she's acting a bit strange... well, if you call eating your pet cat for dinner strange.
The cat eating scene is what got this movie in trouble with the MPAA. They wanted to give it an X or R rating, whereas AIP wanted it given a GP rating (that's not a typo - it was called GP). In order to get it, AIP cut the cat eating scene. I could have lived without watching it myself - go ahead and kill people all you want in movies, but for some reason a little kitty covered in ketchup is too much for me to take.Anyway, good ol' Paul agrees to help give Erica a blood transfusion. Unfortunately, it doesn't do a damn bit of good. Yorga is back to once again sink his teeth into Erica, whose only too happy to let him.
Count Yorga was initially planned as a soft core porn, but Roger Quarry said he wanted no part of that, and so the movie was played straight and legit. I'm glad he did. One result was that it allowed some of the actors to shine, namely Michael Murphy (Paul) who would go on to great acclaim, perhaps most notably in Roger Altman films.
Paul gets whacked by Yorga, and shortly thereafter Donna (remember her from the beginning?) and Erica's physician, Dr. Hayes, pay a visit to the Count. BTW: Dr. Hayes is played by the damn fine actor, Roger Perry, who was married to Laugh-In's Jo Anne Worely from 1975 to 2000.Anyway, the doctor suspects Yorga is some kind of vampire. So, he stages an exit on the pretense of needing a drink in order to spy on the Count. Not surprisingly, the studly Yorga wastes no time in getting to "know" the lovely Donna better.
That night, Yorga has Donna abducted. In response, her boyfriend Michael and Dr. Hayes arm themselves with crosses, garlic, and wooden stakes to take on the vampire who keeps stealing their women. Dr. Hayes doesn't fare to well - he gets stuck in the basement with all of Yorga's vampire brides. Of course, there's probably worse ways to die...
In the final few scenes, Michael manages to single-handedly rescue Donna and put a stake through the heart of Yorga, who withers to dust. And just when you think the film is over, there's a couple of twists which I'll let you discover when you watch it.
The annoying narrator returns at the very end with a sarcastic "Superstition?" before erupting into a maniacal Dr. Evil laugh. "Mua-ha-ha-ha, mua-ha-ha-ha!"
