The Legend of the 7 Golden Vampires
Transylvania 1804: Kah [Shen Chan], High Priest of a temple in Pang Kwei in the Szechuan province of China, has obviously traveled a long way on foot to ask for Dracula's help. Kah's temple has fallen out of power. He requests that Dracula [John Forbes-Robertson] resurrect seven vampires in order to restore it. Dracula thinks about it, then agrees...and takes over Kah's body to do it.Chung King 1804: Professor Van Helsing [Peter Cushing] is lecturing at Chung King University about legends of ancient China. In particular, he mentions a village that becomes cursed by vampires each year during the 7th moon. He relates the story of Hsi Phen An(sp?), a farmer who attempted to fight against the vampires but was slain in the process. Before he died, however, Phen An placed on a wayside shrine one of golden medallions worn by each of the vampires. When the vampire tried to retrieve it, he was destroyed. After listening to Van Helsing's tales, all the students laugh and walk out...except for one. Hsi Ching [David Chiang] is grandson to Hsi Phen An and proves it by showing Van Helsing the golden medallion. Ching and his family have pledged to rid Pang Kwei of the vampire curse, but they require Van Helsing's help, so Van Helsing and Ching put together a group of vampire hunters composed of themselves, Van Helsing's son Leyland [Robin Stewart], Vanessa Buren [Julie Ege] (a Scandinavian heiress with money to burn), Ching's six brothers (the twins Sung [Fong Kah Ann] and San [Chen Tien Loong], Ta [James Ma], Kwei [Liu Chia Yung], Jin How [Liu Hoy Ling], and Bao Kwei [?]) and his one sister Mai Kwei [Szu Shih], each of them skilled in various martial arts.On the road to Pang Kwei, romance blossoms between Leyland and Mai Kwei, also between Ching and Vanessa. Meanwhile the six remaining vampires attack the village and carry off some of the maidens (true Chinese take-out?). As the group of vampire hunters near the village, it becomes apparent that the vampires know they're coming. One cold night, the troop takes shelter in some caves, although Van Helsing pronounces the caves to be 'malignant.' Sure enough. While the hunters sleep, they are descended upon by bats who turn into vampires, aided by dozens of their zombie renfields. Kwei manages to destroy the sixth vampire with a bow through the heart. One of the twins takes out the fifth vampire with his sword, and Van Helsing sets the fourth vampire on fire, leaving three vampires left.When the vampire hunters reach Pang Kwei, they devise a security system of wooden stakes and trenches filled with oil. That night, when the vampires and their renfields attack, the village is ready. They light the oil and pick up their stakes. The third vampire is consumed by fire. Unfortunately, he also takes one of the brothers with him. A second brother is stabbed to death. The twins die together. Vanessa is bitten by one of the vampires. She, in turn, bites Ching. Ching destroys Vanessa with a stake through her heart and then impales himself on the stake, too. The villagers join in staking the second vampire. Mai Kwei is captured by the last remaining vampire and taken to the temple where Dracula awaits. Leyland follows and tries to rescue her. Just as the vampire seems to be getting the best of Leyland, Van Helsing arrives and runs a stake through his heart.But there is still Dracula to contend with. Van Helsing gets him to leave Kah's body and return in his real form. A short, anticlimatic fight ensues in which Dracula leaps at Van Helsing who holds up a stake just in time for Dracula to fall on it. Thereafter follows a long anticlimatic scene in which Dracula slowly turns to dust. [Original Synopsis by bj_kuehl.]
cult, murder, violence, flashback