Count Dracula (1977)

Dracul

There are some liberties taken with the story, but no more than any other Dracula movie - in fact, less than most. And most importantly, in this post Anne Rice era, Dracula is EVIL in this one. Sure, he can be romantic and sexy August 10, 2008

It Scarred The **** Out Of Me!

I remember watching this on TV back when I was in jr. high & watching the bloody scenes, including Van Helsing driving a stake in one of Dracula's female turned vampire victims, complete with blood gushing & screaming, and the almost black light type lighting during Dracula's blood feasts. Pretty scary stuff & would say it might affect younger(impressionable) viewers.
Aside from that the acting was pretty good and a pretty good version of the classic story. August 5, 2008

Excellent adaptation of classic novel

This is by far one of the better, more complete, versions of the original novel. It strays from the story far less than other adaptations, and therefore is a good version for a first-timer (far better, in other words, than the Coppola version with Gary Oldman). It is more true to the story than the Hammer versions (though they have their charms, as well), and even the very-good Frank Langella portrayal (with Laurence Olivier and Kate Nelligan). The supporting characters are fine (though none particularly stand-out), but Louis Jourdan is the star, and does an excellent job portraying the Count. Being made for British television, some of the effects are rather simplistic and tacky, but the scene of Dracula scaling the castle wall is memorable, as is the sequence where he brings the three vampire girls a baby to feed on and we see their blood-stained lips afterwards. Also, the staking scene is quite well-done, and more low-key (but still gross) than the Hammer versions. In all, a fine film. May 30, 2008

Most faithful Dracula

This is, without doubt, the most carefully-adapted version of Bram Stoker's classic available on video. Compared to the absurdly titled "Bram Stoker's Dracula", this version hues more closely to Stoker's book and captures that creation's essential Gothic character. While it's true that the screenwriter has taken some liberties--Mina and Lucy are sisters in this version, and the characters of Arthur Holmwood and Quincy Morris have been condensed into the video character "Quincy Holmwood", it can be argued that both changes tighten up the characterization and eliminate the kind of character development that works in a book but is unnecessarily discursive in a film. The Renfield character, on the other hand, is, for once, exactly as presented in the book--an unfortuate zoophagous patient in Seward's asylum who becomes Dracula's dupe.
Frank Finlay is the best Van Helsing on film, outclassing such heavyweights as Sir Laurence Olivier (in Universal's "sexy" film version) and Sir Anthony Hopkins, who had the misfortune to join forces with Francis Ford Coppola. Finlay's characterization incorporates much of the eccentricity of the book's doctor without the over-the-top quality of Hopkins.
Louis Jourdan's Count is surprisingly effective, combining elements of menace and allure that, while deviating from the brutish Dracula of Stoker's invention, is still more valid artistically than either Gary Oldman's bizarrely Oriental version or Frank Langella's suave, hunky vampire.
True, the special effects are occasionally cheap-looking--this program is contemporaneous with late-era Tom Baker Doctor Who, and shares those production values--but the use of color-separation overlay (those tinted negative images) and the avoidance of gore-for-fore's sake is refreshing in this era of comic book CGI monsters and buckets of blood. The musical score is weird and weirdly effective, never intrusive and enhancing the spook-factor.
Skip the recent BBC remake, with its trendy suggestion of a venereal disease origin of Dracula's vampirism, and pick up this faithful version of Dracula. May 28, 2008

Cheesey for today's standards

I saw this when it was first shown on tv as a mini serie. I remembered loving it. But cinematography has come along way since then. And now it just doesn't work. Also, with so many vampire chracters (actors) since then, today Louis Jordan just doesn't cut it as Dracula. Still, it's worth watching if just to see how far we've come in films. May 24, 2008

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