Plot Details: This opinion reveals minor details about the movie's plot.
Dracula (1931) Directed by Todd Browning From the Masterpiece by Bram Stoker.
"Listen to them! Children of the Night. What music they make." Dracula.
If we can see so far, it is because we stand on the shoulders of giants. Much of what we have in the way of good horror today, (not teen slasher flicks) we owe to the works of the Universal Studios and their classic monsters. Though it is dated today, the film is a how to manual for how to make a scary movie.
It worked with what it had; black and white film, the first choice of actor, Lon Cheney, died shortly before shooting began. This gave a desperate Hungarian emigrant the chance to realize his dream of repeating his stage performance for the silver screen. The spider webs are rubber cement shot from a rotary gun. The rats are possums, and there are armadillos in the castles of Transylvania. And yet, as a piece, it works.
Bela Lugosi's thick accent and stilted style served the movie. It gave him a mysterious and alluring air, because, let's face it, he wasn't a sex symbol. But pencil spotlights on his eyes to give them a hypnotic glow, and suddenly he was dark, dangerous, and seductive.
The story is familiar; a Transylvanian noble man comes to England; his solicitor, Renfield (Dwight Frye) the only survivor of a doomed ship, the Vesta. Once on her shores, he takes possession of Carfax Abbey; an old and rotting ruin, and there, establishes his beachhead. His first victims are chosen from the nearby gentry. Lucy Weston (Francis Dade) is the first to fall to his fatal seduction. Soon, her friend Mina Harker (Helen Chandler, who beat out Betty Davis for the role) is showing signs of the same wasting illness. She is surrounded by men who care, her husband, John (David Manners), Dr. Seward (Herbert Bunsten) and most importantly one who cares, and sees, and believes, Professor Abraham Van Helsing (Edward Van Sloan). With the mad Renfield serving both sides, and not too well, they stumble across the dark truth, and act to save Mina before it is too late.
Vampires have long existed as being metaphors for plague. First one member of a family dies, then another, then another wasting away as the unseen forces of disease cut them down from weakest to strongest. But with Dracula, another element entered the Nosferatu legend; seduction. The act of feeding on blood is intimate, it became sexual. Added to their powers was the ability to influence people, to make them do what they would not, in a clear state of mind, do. Lugosi built upon that. He was not sexy, but he was compelling. Compare his character to that milksop Harker; which one is prettier? Now which one could leave you panting and heaving and willing to write bad checks?
The metaphor has come full circle in today's society which combines seduction and plague. The vampire is the perfect metaphor for the AIDS virus; it spreads from one person to another after seduction, and once "bitten" you too become a transmitter.
But Bela Lugosi had to do all his seduction and biting without the aid of fangs (no fangs...not one.) no bite marks, and not being seen to bite any men (because that would seem gay. See, I told you they understood the seductive nature of the Vampire.)
The real genius of the piece is Karl Fruend, the cinematographer. The man used shadow and suggestion to create real tension. Dracula's presence was hinted at in the fog, and by the silly bat on a string, but it was far creepier than having him lurking. With fear, it is the unknown that is scariest.... Fruend understood this intimately, and used it. Lugosi as well; here is a creepy little tidbit to watch for; do you know why Lugosi seems so inhuman? He never blinks. A simple thing, but one that adds up cumulatively. A true masterpiece, flawed but unforgettable.
This review, like Bela, is Lean-N-Mean. It weighs in at a concise and appropriate 666 words.
Although there have been numerous screen versions of bramstoker s classic tale, none is more enduring than this 1931original with a masterful performa...More at Buy.com Marketplaces
Epinions.com periodically updates pricing and product information from third-party sources, so some information may be slightly out-of-date. You should confirm all information before relying on it.
- Add to My Yahoo!: 
- Add to Google Homepage: 
© 1999-2009 Shopping.com, Inc.