Wow.
So it was an interesting experience watching Bram Stoker's Dracula again. As I've mentioned before, it's probably been 20 years since I've seen it and when I was a 'tween, I was really obsessed with this movie as well as with Interview - I really loved it unquestionably - And I think last night I might have figured out why...
One of the things that really struck me about the movie was the portrayal of Dracula, who comes in many forms (literally):
- There's the count at the castle. Up until I had seen this film, my Dracula experience consisted of Bela Legosi and Frank Langella, so seeing the very very old, very wrinkled count with the long fingernails and bizarre hair really struck me as something completely different. I remember finding him infinitely creepy, especially when we see him crawling down the side of the castle.
- Then there's the Count in London - The very handsome, very sexy, very romantic Count that seduces Mina - It's that version of the Count that stuck with me through the years (I have a feeling that my pre-teen self might have felt something -ahem- special about him without really knowing what that meant
)
- Then there are the monsters - The wolf that has sex with Lucy (WOW how did I forget that incredibly disturbing scene??), the disgusting and horrifying bat creature (CRAZY good makeup there btw), and the Monster that we see peaking out of the Dirt...
When I had seen Coppola's Dracula, I just hadn't seen those portrayals of The Count before - I remember the beginning - His Origin - Particularly blowing my mind (Oh, THAT is why he can't do crosses or holy water!)...
Now, watching it 20 years later, here are my thoughts...
What I LIKED about it:
- Still loved The Count. He can take me into his candle room any day!
- Loved the sets, especially the insane asylum.
- LOVED Tom Waits
- Really love all of Drac's makeup. Seriously. The Bat Monster was horrifying.
- I like the color that the Suitors provide, but I recall enjoying them more 20 years ago...
- Lucy. Lucy, Lucy - While the actress may not be the best, I loved Drac seducing her, I love her sickness - I really love the way that they portray her transition from human to undead
- The quote, "I just want to tear out her heart and cut off her head."
- Gary Oldman, Gary Oldman, Gary Oldman. He really made the movie for me. Scenes without him or without Dracula in his various forms really dragged for me (with the exception of the rainy maze scene - Always loved that)
Where I struggled:
- Keanu. Winona Ryder. *sigh* - They were really awful, especially the former. I think the only reason they were cast was because Coppola wanted to make a popular movie and, well, those two were incredibly popular in the 90's. But, really. Keanu was just particularly terrible. Ugh.
- Anthony Hopkins - So he wasn't bad, per se; I just didn't think he was as epically awesome as I remember. Then again, as I mentioned above, I was mostly interested in Drac-related scenes.
- This movie could definitely be cheesy at times - I mean, how many red flags does Drac need to fly before Jon Harker sees something wrong??
- It ran a little long for me this time around; The montage where the suiters, Harker, & co are chasing after Drac lost me a bit
When I first saw this movie, I probably would have given it a
5 MILLION out of 5...
But this time around, maybe a
3.75/5? It's really too bad about the acting front; this could have been a LOT better.
Regardless, it was enjoyable and something I would watch again, probably in a couple of years.