1963's "Terror in the Crypt" (La Cripta e L'Incubo), better known today as "Crypt of the Vampire," proved another Italian-Spanish Euro horror for fan favorite Christopher Lee, that rare foreign import where he was thankfully allowed to dub his own voice. Location shooting at Avezzano's Castello di Balsorano assures authentic atmosphere, but the lackluster direction from comedy specialist Camillo Mastrocinque permits the picture to proceed at a snail's pace with very little actually happening. Ernesto Gastaldi, Italy's most prolific purveyor of Gothic terror, here adapts J. Sheridan Le Fanu's 1872 short story "Carmilla," Lee an imposing figure as Count Ludwig Karnstein, fearing that daughter Laura (Adriana Ambesi) may be the reincarnation of a feared ancestor from 200 years earlier, Sira placing a curse upon her executioners that has resulted in the nearby town of Karnstein falling into complete ruin, the ringing of the tower bell a persistently ominous sign (is it just the wind?). The Count calls upon a noted historian to establish Sira's countenance and hopefully prove that Laura is no lookalike destined for the same terrifying fate despite her being plagued by nightmares depicting the deaths of numerous family members. Into this gloomy tableau arrives Ljuba (Pier Ana Quaglia), a temporary guest who swiftly captivates Laura's attention to an increasingly disturbing degree, noted by the all knowing blonde maid Annette (Vera Valmont), with whom the Count is having a passionate affair. Those who have seen Hammer's 1970 "The Vampire Lovers" will easily determine where this is going, but the script's attempts at misdirection do succeed until the revealing climax, no on screen credit for Le Fanu's source material. Lee must have appreciated a more sympathetic role for a change, yet his social status dominates his sexual relationship with the frustrated Annette, dismissing marriage by declaring himself old enough to be her father, to which she implies that he should then adopt her! This grounds his performance in believable fashion, and though he often fades into the background to focus on the intense relationship between Laura and newcomer Ljuba, he takes center stage for the finale, actual vampirism afoot in the cobwebbed catacombs. Potent shock effects include the fate of a prophesying hunchback who knows all, and a mysterious splotch of blood in Laura's bed after a particularly harrowing nightmare. This doesn't hold a black and white candle to Hammer's opulent version starring Peter Cushing, but manages to be an improvement over Roger Vadim's listless "Blood and Roses" from 1960. The current restoration on Blu-Ray only differs from the original AIP-TV cut (never distributed theatrically in the US) by showing the credits at the beginning rather than the end, director Camillo Mastrocinque still billed under the pseudonym 'Thomas Miller' (his only other genre film the 1966 "An Angel for Satan," a vehicle for Barbara Steele).