With Halloween season already here, I thought I'd get in the mood by watching Dracula. This movie was recommended by my friend Rita who said Frank Langella in this version was hot. It also starts Sir Laurence Olivier, Donald Pleasence and Kate Nelligan, among others.
Now, Rita, I am not sure when you last saw this movie. Frank was okay, but the hair was a little pouffy, and the collar on the cape a bit much. Sort of Saturday Night Feverish. Come to think of it, the movie was made in 1979, so that might be exactly my issue. Aside from that, his eyes got a little wide (almost overacting--is that possible with Dracula?) when he hypnotized the beautiful Mina and Lucy, prior to slowly bleeding them dry during some pretty erotic scenes.
I never read Bram Stoker's version of Dracula, so I can't say that this was true to the original, but from what little I know, I believe it was, until the ending, which leaves you wondering if he might have gotten away... I don't think the Stoker version had an ambiguous ending.
Sex, love, death all intertwined. Made for a pretty entertaining movie. I didn't keep looking at the timer to see how much longer it was going to be. Did no crosswords during the movie, either. Or play any Diamond Mine.
It also was not very scary. As a rule, I don't watch scary movies or read scary books. They give me too much to think about at 3 A.M. I made an exception because I knew the story well enough to know pretty much how it was going to go. Also my friend assured me it wasn't too scary. Also, did I mention she said Frank Langella was hot. Two out of three ain't bad. (Just kidding. Sort of.)
I am also not a vampire maven. I tried reading Anne Rice when she was very big. My sister was a huge fan. I just couldn't get into it.
I have, however, always been fascinated by the historical character on whom Dracula was based: Vlad the Impaler. Great name. It came from his petchant for being an equal-opportunity impaler.
Vlad was a Transylvanian prince of the 1400's, at a time when the Ottoman Empire ruled. He was constantly at war with them. He tortured and killed many of his Turkish enemies, but did the same for many merchants and boyars of his own country, supposedly killing 30,000 of his own people and arranging them in concentric circles around his castle. The more noble, the higher the pike. Then he invited the remaing nobility (not a huge crowd, after a while) to feast with him in this grisly setting.
His father's name was Vlad Dracul (Vlad the Dragon). Vlad Dracula (or Draculea) means Vlad, Son of the Dragon), hence the name of Bram Stoker's character.
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On a final Halloween note--I don't think I can wait for Netflix to see Tim Burton's "The Corpse Bride". May try a weekday matinee one day when I'm off.
Didn't you notice how Dracula's eyes flickered as he hypnotized Mina? It was like a superfast nystagmus. How did he do that? It was awesome...or when he took her out to the balcony to listen to the wolves howl ("the Children of the Night"), I could have just swooned.
Vampires are very sexy to some of us. Do any of your readers have an insight into the psychology behind attraction to vampires?
BTW the "corpse bride" comes highly recommended by my niece, who hated "The Blair Witch Project ("boooooring").
Posted by: Rita | October 14, 2005 at 07:55 PM
Rita is so stuck-in-the-70's gothic.
I think that Frank Longella's Dracula looks like an anorexic, demented, knock off of John Travolta. (Stayin' Alive, stayin' alive...takes on a whole new meaning, doesn't it?)
As far as the psychology of vampire-worship goes, I have read that it comes from a deep-seated desire to have your blood sucked out in exchange for immortality. Sort of like becoming a dried flower arrangement. Does that make sense?
Posted by: Reets | October 15, 2005 at 06:24 PM