Dracula (1931)

[urgeok]

i think one of the things that Nosferatu had going for it is the unforgettable image of the ratlike vampire which is so much more interesting and threatening than the suave european as he is usually portrayed.

[Zero]

Originally posted by hollywoodgothiq


The difference is I at least admit the flaws exist. Unfortunately the defenders of NOSFERATu prefer to turn a blind eye to the molassas-like pacing and the anti-Semitic subtext.

i've read a few criticisms of the 31 dracula that claim its antisemitic as well (the medal the count wears bears a striking resemblance to the Star of David and the scene where Renfield talks about rats and the parting of the red mist is strikingly similar to the parting of the sea and the exodus) - - -now please let me be clear, I'm not saying Dracula is antisemitic, only that i've read some film critics arguing that. . .probably to the extent their is antisemitic imagery its more a product of that period (20-40s) when antisemitism was rampant (and not just in Germany)

[hollywoodgothiq]

This only further underlines my point: it's okay to take aim at DRACULA, but NOSFERATU is off limits.

This is especially egregious in the case of the accusation of anti-semitism, because the charge really doesn't hold up in regards to DRACULA. Most obviously, the Count's medal looks nothing like a star, let alone a Star of David. (It's actually a circle, with lines radiating out from the center. These lines may give the impression of being the points of a star in long shots, but they are not.)

As for NOSFERATU, well, the film is a metaphor for post-World War I Germany, with the lifeblood of the Fatherland being drained away by Orlock, whose makeup and appearance suggest Shakespeare' Shylock more than Bram Stoker's Dracula. Fortunately, the virtuous Rhinemaiden's sacrifice destroys the evil, so that Germany can rise again... and we all know what that led to. (At least Werner Herzog had the good sense to tag a highly ironic ending onto his remake.)

[Zero]

Originally posted by hollywoodgothiq
This only further underlines my point: it's okay to take aim at DRACULA, but NOSFERATU is off limits.

This is especially egregious in the case of the accusation of anti-semitism, because the charge really doesn't hold up in regards to DRACULA. Most obviously, the Count's medal looks nothing like a star, let alone a Star of David. (It's actually a circle, with lines radiating out from the center. These lines may give the impression of being the points of a star in long shots, but they are not.)

As for NOSFERATU, well, the film is a metaphor for post-World War I Germany, with the lifeblood of the Fatherland being drained away by Orlock, whose makeup and appearance suggest Shakespeare' Shylock more than Bram Stoker's Dracula. Fortunately, the virtuous Rhinemaiden's sacrifice destroys the evil, so that Germany can rise again... and we all know what that led to. (At least Werner Herzog had the good sense to tag a highly ironic ending onto his remake.)

hmm. . . well to continue the debate: if a viewer can freeze frame the medallion on Dracula (and on high quality tv screen) it is not a star of david - that said, at quick glance as its shown it is easy to mistake the two.

as for metaphor - let's not forget that the first sweeping anti-immigration laws were passed in the US in 1920, 24 and 29 and mainly targetted eastern europeans (and these laws were deeply driven by antisemitism). So, there was a huge level of antisemitism in the US in the early 30s and many of the stereotypes that are evident in Nosferatu are also evident (though in a less 'caricatured' way in Dracula - with the addition that Dracula is a shrewd business man, another stereotype)

[hollywoodgothiq]

There is no doubt that Dracula represents the fear of the "Other" -- that's what most horror films do. In this case, the "Other" is definitely foreign but hardly Jewish. He's a suave Continental, someone who's supposed to look too smooth to working class Americans, with this distrust of the nobility and the aristocracy -- something to which Jews do not belong (at least in the caricatured sense).

[Zero]

Originally posted by hollywoodgothiq
There is no doubt that Dracula represents the fear of the "Other" -- that's what most horror films do. In this case, the "Other" is definitely foreign but hardly Jewish. He's a suave Continental, someone who's supposed to look too smooth to working class Americans, with this distrust of the nobility and the aristocracy -- something to which Jews do not belong (at least in the caricatured sense).

hmm, but he only appears aristocratic (when he actually lives in a decaying mansion). . . i'm reminded a bit of Gentlemen's Agreement and the fear of the 'Other/Jew' passing in society

suffice to say, both films are steeped in antisemitic imagery (which is almost unavoidable in the early 30s and depictions of monsters ---need we mention Frankenstein?)

[hollywoodgothiq]

Oh please! He "only appears aristocratic" because he lives in a decaying mansion? All the more reason to see him as part of a corrupt, decaying nobility sucking the life out of a youthful, younger society. It definitely plays into an "us verses them" mentality, but it has nothing to do with anti-semitism (except in the vague general sense that Jewish people often get put into the "them" category").

[urgeok]

does that mean when dracula turned 15 he had a Bat Mitzvah ?
i thought that was just for the gals ?

oi vey !

[Zero]

Originally posted by urgeok
does that mean when dracula turned 15 he had a Bat Mitzvah ?
i thought that was just for the gals ?

oi vey !

no - but he has a large collection of dreidels

[von chaney]

i've always thought it strange how the count has almost always been depicted as an aristocrat from lugosi onwards. how did that happen?
in the book we first see dracula as a grey old man who lives in a ruin of a castle and sleeps in coffins full of of earth. even when he travels to england he stays at carfax abbey, again a ruin. Shreck got this pretty close, even lugosi and lee got the coffins and castles more or less spot on, but somewhere along the way lugosi,lee and all decided he should be a tall dark and suave count.
however, not wanting to sound as though i am sitting on the fence here, but i am a great fan of all the counts more famous portrayals.
the only thing that does surprise me is that after nearly 100 of film there has yet to be one that is truly faithful to the book.