“Ahh, listen to them! The children of the night. What sweet music they make!”
-Count Dracula
Directed by: Francis Ford Coppola
Starring: Gary Oldman, Winona Ryder, Anthony Hopkins, Keanu Reeves
Trailer/Video: Theatrical Trailer
The premise: Prince Vlad III Draculea returns home from war to find that his wife has committed suicide. Due to this, the priests declare her damned to Hell, which causes Vlad to renounce God and vow to drink the blood of men. Four centuries later, a clerk named Jonathan Harker goes to Transylvania to complete a sell to an eccentric count named Dracula. Seeing a photograph of Harker’s fiancee, the count notices that she looks a LOT like his late bride...
My Familiarity With the Movie: Never seen it before, but I do remember seeing ads for both the movie and the video game as a kid, and the nice contrast of the bloody logo on the white marble stuck with me. (Seriously, how creepy is that logo? I really dig it). I have, however, seen The Simpsons’ parody of it. It was suggested to me by a friend. For some reason, I feel like this was a huge deal back in 1992. Lots of merchandise.
Random thoughts as I watch it:
- Seems like I watch an adaptation of Dracula every year I do one of these. Maybe I should read the novel some day.
- Is Vlad’s armor supposed to bring to mind the human muscular system?
- Dang, the movie doesn’t use the logo from the promotional materials.
- I like Keanu Reeves and all, but right out of the gate, he seems to be having trouble with the accent.
- Well, the brides definitely caught my attention.
- Why are Mina and Lucy kissing in the rain?
- I think this is the first adaptation I’ve seen that has Drac becoming a werewolf, though I think “Nosferatu” implied it.
- Anthony Hopkins as Van Helsing? I’m on board for this.
- From my understanding (and please correct me if I’m wrong), Dracula’s attacks in the novel were written in a way to resemble violent rape. But this movie portrays it much more consensual and seductive. Not sure how I feel about that.
- “Yeah” is pretty much Van Helsing’s catchphrase.
- While I’m sure it’s in the book, Dracula’s ability to become a mist got more play in Marvel’s “Tomb of Dracula” comic than it does in any of the films I’ve seen.
- Is there some kind of symbolism behind Mina feeding off of Dracula? With him giving her eternal life from it, I want to say there’s a breastfeeding symbolism here. But with his reaction, it seems more like it’s a stand-in for, um...oral sex. Then again, maybe it doesn’t symbolize anything. I dunno.
The Good:
- The visuals. All of it. From the fancy costumes, the all-practical special effects, the cinematography, the makeup on Drac himself, the sets...this is a fantastic-looking film. I especially liked the battle at the beginning, with everything shot in silhouette.
- Wojciech Kilar ‘s score. I don’t usually pay attention to background music, but this one really sold the tone of the movie.
- Most of the cast, but I feel like I have to give props in particular to Gary Oldman and Anthony Hopkins as Count Dracula and Abraham Van Helsing, respectively. The former for bringing a more sympathetic side to one of pop culture’s most legendary monsters without losing any of his menace, and his eccentricities being both endearing AND unsettling. Meanwhile, the latter just plain hams it up. Hopkins is clearly having fun with the role, and it shows, with him being one of (if not THE) most entertaining characters in the film.
- The way Dracula’s presence was, uh, presented. He exuded a supernatural aura about himself, and came across as an incredibly evil, powerful being...which was shown through clever visuals, such as his eyes in the sky, the shadow moving independently of him, or the POV shot of him making his way towards Lucy.
The Bad:
- Let’s address the elephant in the room. The romantic subplot between Mina and Dracula...I wasn’t a fan. It was unnecessary and unintentionally creepy. Are we supposed to mourn Dracula’s death at the hands of Mina because he manipulated her into loving him?
- The rest of the cast. Look, I’ve got nothing against Keanu Reeves. I enjoyed “The Matrix and “John Wick” immensely. And “Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure” is one of my favorite movies ever. And I think he’s an underrated actor. Maybe it’s due to inexperience on his part at the time, but he really didn’t sell me as Jonathan Harker. Maybe it’s because he has trouble keeping up the accent, and for a while after the halfway point, he just straight up starts using his Ted voice.
- There’s quite a few moments where the otherwise dark, gothic tone is ruined by things like strange lines or an odd performance by the actors, leading to some unintentional moments of comedy (although I’m sure Van Helsing matter-of-factly describing what he’s gonna do to Lucy’s corpse was an intentional joke. Because it was hilarious)
- There seems to be a bit of a Madonna-Whore Complex going on with the presentation of Mina and Lucy. And that’s all I’m gonna say about that.
Best Scare: Dracula attacking Lucy in the garden.
What Did We Learn Today? You can be pale, wrinkly, ancient...or a wolf/gorilla hybrid...but chicks will still dig you if you’re a vampire (though the hypnotism helps, I guess. Either way, creepy).
Recommended? Sure. Worth a shot, if only to see what the big deal was all about.
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