Dracula

Horrorphile

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Dracula

June 7th 2010 00:11

The first English language adaptation of Bram Stoker’s brilliant novel Dracula, but one that takes significant liberties with the story. Universal’s Dracula was released in 1931, the same year as Frankenstein (which takes huge liberties with Mary Shelley’s novel). It was intended as a big prestige production but after principal photography began the budget was heavily reduced, and thus there are only a handful of big scenes left, such as the Vesta crossing wild heavy seas, and the sets of both Dracula’s castle and the London Abbey.

Bela Legosi as the Count

The movie did huge business and director Tod Browning, who had already made nearly sixty shorts, featurettes and features, was then given the chance to make whatever he liked. He delivered the seminal Freaks (1932) which essentially scuttled his career. Bela Legosi, the Hungarian actor who played Count Dracula, would be immortalised in this role, even though he acted in another sixty or so productions including White Zombie (1932), Island of Lost Souls (1932), The Wolf Man (1941), again as Dracula in Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein (1948), and not forgetting his final appearance in Ed Wood’s legendary Plan 9 From Outer Space (1959). He faded into mythology thanks to Bauhaus’s masterpiece of underground Gothic rock, Bela Legosi’s Dead. But I digress …

Dracula's wives (Geraldine Dvorak, Cornelia Thaw, Dorothy Tree)

Dracula is more of a mildly atmospheric curio than a substantial horror movie. It lacks any real drama or thrills, and as a vampire movie it’s decidedly anemic. The notorious Hays Production Code, the long arm of censorship that came down hard across the film industry, began a couple of years after this movie was released, but watching the movie it seems as if it was already in practice. You never once see the vampire’s fangs, let alone a vampire’s bite. Every time Dracula goes in for the kill he moves off camera or the scene cuts. Legosi’s eyebrows appear to cut a more deadly swipe over his eye than any lengthy incisors he may possess in his mouth. In fact Legosi is almost upstaged by his magnificent bat-wing brows! And of course that piercing glare, illuminated by tiny carefully positioned spotlights. It’s the evil glare that launched a thousand vampire performances.

Dracula David Manners and Edward Van Sloan

Harker (David Manners) and Van Helsing (Edward Van Sloan)

Renfield hungry for flies and juicy spiders

However, it is the wonderfully insane performance of Dwight Frye as Renfield who steals the show. Tom Waits certainly took a page from Frye’s book with his own performance as Renfield in Coppola’s version. In the novel Renfield is already mad as a hatter incarcerated in Seward’s Sanatorium. But in this movie it is Renfield, not Harker (David Manners), who travels through the Borgo Pass up into the Carpathian Mountains into Transylvania to Count Dracula’s castle in order for him to sign the lease on a property back in London. Renfield returns onboard Dracula’s vessel, the Vesta, and is apparently the only shipmate still alive, albeit stark raving mad, when authorities board the ship at the London docks.

The Count has his way with Lucy (Frances Dade)

In fact Harker takes very much a backseat to Renfield in this version of Stoker’s tale. The screenplay by Garrett Fort was worked from the stage adaptation by Hamilton Deane and John L. Balderston. Several other uncredited writers assisted Fort, and it is a very staid production, with only a handful of settings used, chiefly Dracula’s castle, Mina’s residence, the Sanitarium, and the Abbey. The sets for the castle and the Abbey are magnificent though, especially the huge staircase of the Castle and the towering steps in the Abbey.

Dracula Helen Chandler, Bela Legosi, Dwight Frye

As Dracula leads Mina (Helen Chandler) to his Abbey lair Renfield pleads for his undead life

Curiously, but very effectively, there is no music in the movie, no score, to be precise, and this adds a peculiar tone to the movie. It’s a shame the overall movie wasn’t as edgy as that one elemental decision. And what happens to undead Lucy (Frances Dade), who is last seen roaming the London parks at night feeding on small children? Dracula comes to a rather anti-climactic and very abrupt end. The audience isn’t even given the satisfaction of Dracula’s death on-screen, instead we watch Seward guide the traumatized Mina (Helen Chandler) back up the step Abbey steps toward daylight. And suddenly it’s all over.

Having screened as part of the Sydney Film Festival "Immortal Seduction - The Vampire Movie" retrospective, Browning’s Dracula is an important cinematic landmark in regards to presenting audiences with the first well-heeled, seductive, soul-sucking shapeshifter we’ve come to know and love so well, Coppola’s theatrical Dracula (1992) devours the Hollywood original with a under-rated passion and Murnau’s unofficial take on Stoker’s novel, Nosferatu (1922) remains untouchable as the most potently nightmarish and resonant. Hammer’s numerous Christopher Lee variations on the Dracula theme are essentially hokey, schlock grist to the vampire mill. And while the less said about John Badham's 1979 version starring Frank Langello the better, a salute must be made to Klaus Kinski's take on the Count in Herzog's hauntingly beautiful Nosferatu remake also from '79.

Here's the original trailer:

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Posted By: Bryn - Category: movie reviews

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Comments

8 Comments. [ Add A Comment ]

Comment by David O'Connell

June 7th 2010 07:21

20/20 Filmsight
Screen Fanatic

Must be great to see this on the big screen despite how tepid it is by today's standards Bryn.
With the regards to a lack of score: about 10 years ago Philip Glass was actually commissioned to write a new score for this film. It's pretty good too - the CD recording features the Kronos Quartet performing it - though how effectively it works when matched with the visuals I have no idea!

Comment by Bryn

June 7th 2010 07:32

Horrorphile

David, yeah, it was obviously great to see this on the big screen. I was sure I'd seen it, but I remembered almost nothing from it, so perhaps I never had, only clips. I was hoping for something with a bit more bite (pun unintended), especially since other horrors from the same period did actually possess a genine menace.
I love Kronos Quartet, and I'd curious if a modern score would inject some more atmosphere into the picture. The screening of Nosferatu on Saturday night with live music from Darth Vegas (seven piece) was special, although they turned it into more of a comedy by juxtaposing familiar themes against some scenes, still great fun though, and suitably spooky in the right places. Beautifully digitally restored tinted version.

Comment by Mountain Fog

June 7th 2010 15:46

Infognito
Screen Trek
QUOTE ME NO QUOTES!

Nosferatu without a doubt has kept its fear factor for me, and I saw Dracula on B&W TV, as a young teen, I loved it then, but it wasn't punctuated with big scare moments, as you reveal in the review. I agree about the sets, they were fab.

However, one vampire film I saw at the theatre when it came out was Count Yorga Vampire, and that had a few big hits for the audience.

I saw it with two pals, and after a scare, a long boring bit, which was inevitably building towards another scare, so I leaned forward and just at the right moment, dropped my hand on the shoulder of the woman in front, she screamed, then everyone else screamed, then, Yorga fangs around the corner and we all screamed.

Well, I was about 14...

cheers

fog

Comment by Bryn

June 7th 2010 23:46

Horrorphile

Fog, nice.

Comment by JohnDoe

June 8th 2010 20:50

Film & TV on DVD

Hi Bryn, nice honest review of a legendary classic.

I do enjoy the film but wouldn't argue that the faults you sited are indeed present. Nosferatu really did set that fang length bar exceptionally high

Comment by Matt Shea

June 10th 2010 00:55

Great review, Bryn. Like David, I'm jealous that you got to see this on the big screen, even if the scares are indeed pretty much nonexistent.

Nice, Fog: you probably also throw prophylactics into old ladies' shopping carts and line up behind them at the check-out... don't ya?!