DRACULA: of the many movies made about him, which is best? which, worst? have you read the novel?

Question

Of the many movies that have been made about this personification of evil, which do you consider to be the very best(only one), and which do you consider to be the very worst(again, only one).

And could you please list three reasons why for each choice, you chose them.

Has anyone read Bram Stoker's novel? I havent. If you have, would you compare it to the movies, and state your opinion of the adaptation, whether good or bad.

Expectantly,

Wotan

"HONESTHU": do you think that he, Vlad the Impaler, should be entitled the world's worst sadist, rather than the Marque de Sade? I certainly do: in today's world, his cruelty was beyond belief.

"TEACHER": I envy you; can only imagine what witnessing a live performance must have been like.

"JUDY L": Thanks. I whole-heartedly agree.

Thanks for so many really terrific responses. So good in fact, that I'm unable to choose; am therefore going to put it up to the public to decide: forgive me. And many thanks again.

Wotan

Answer 1

The best I ever saw was the documentary on the real Drucula on A&E.
What a war genius and psycho-path!
Can you imagine impaling (placing spears at the base of the rectum while your hands and legs are tied. Eventually your body and legs weaken until the spear forces itself through the rectum and the body before exiting any unknown opening it makes)the bodies of the opposing army only to have their king leave to find them with more of his soldiers, then retreat back to his Kingdom in fear! Wow!!!

Answer 2

I've read the novel, more than once in fact. I remember having seen the Bela Lugosi version many, many years ago. I thought it was OK, but not great. Still, it's probably the best known film.

The novel is much better than the movie, as is usually the case. It makes most of the characters rather sympathetic, especially the young woman who was bitten by Dracula and changed to a vampire herself, but fought against it. And the vampire killer, a man who had studied the ancient legends and became something like an exorcist (even getting the church's cooperation in a rather startling way), was a sympathetic character.

There's only so much of a book that you can put into a movie, and I have not seen the Bela Lugosi movie for a long, long time. It's on my wish list for the DVD club. But I remember when I read the book, I was amazed to find how much more depth there was than the movie.

Answer 3

I've seen a LOT of vampire movies over the years, and I have to say that the best Dracula is Christopher Lee, and the best Dracula movie is "Horror of Dracula" (1958). To me it is the most intense, the most serious. The other major Dracula movies all tend to slide over into camp. And it has a genuinely great actor in Lee playing Dracula.

I've also seen a lot of terrible vampire movies. If I had to single out one, I guess it would be "Billy the Kid vs. Dracula"(1966). The title should be enough to warn you off, and it's just as stupid as you'd expect.

I've never read the Stoker original.

Answer 4

Off topic (but not quite): Try reading "120 Days of Sodom" without puking. If given the opportunity to live out what he put down on paper I'm sure that the Marquis de Sade would have given Vlad a real run for his money!

Answer 5

I Love Dracula 2000, and hate Dracula 3000, and the sequel to Dracula 2000. Also even though this is not a movie, I loved The Buffy Episode, Buffy V.S. Dracula.

Answer 6

as far as novels go, there will not be a movie that will do Bram Strokers justice.
best movie in my opinion is Dracula 2000, because it put a very interesting twist to the origin of vampires.
the worst movie would be buffy the vampire slayer, because it makes too much out of the girl, and puts the vampire in a very ignorant light.

Answer 7

Until I saw Bram Stoker's Dracula, directed by Francis Ford Coppola, I thought Nosferatu, directed by Werner Herzog was the best. Coppola's movie has excellent direction, special effects, and acting, featuring Gary Oldman as Dracula, Anthony Hopkins, Keanu Reaves, and Winona Ryder. (That's at least three reasons.) I haven't read the book. I don't think I've actually seen the worst, but here's one I've read on the internet is the worst, and one we should both avoid: Dracula 3000. Here's a sample of reviews.

"This movie’s one Ice-T or Dean Cain short of being a direct-to-video all-star parade."

-- David Cornelius, HOLLYWOOD BITCHSLAP

"Absolutely terrible"

-- Fredrik Nordstrom, SLASHERPOOL

"Don't even get me started on a movie that allows Tiny Lister to deliver 75% of all spoken dialogue."

That was three, right!? ;-)

Answer 8

Greetings! I have never read any version of Dracula, but I did see the play version of "Bram Stoker's Dracula" and was absolutely riveted by the play - more so than any other film of Dracula I have ever seen.

I can't really help you with other versions, seeing as I don't remember them all, nor was I impressed with any others as I was with the staged version.

Hope this helps. Happy Holidays!

Answer 9

I read the novel and loved it.

The best movie was with Bela Lugosi. He was born for the part. It has the right gothic tone.

I didn't care for the 1992 version.