Bram Stoker's Dracula
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Bram Stoker's Dracula | |
|---|---|
 Promotional film poster | |
| Directed by | Francis Ford Coppola |
| Produced by | Francis Ford Coppola Fred Fuchs Charles Mulvehill |
| Written by | James V. Hart |
| Starring | Gary Oldman Keanu Reeves Winona Ryder Sadie Frost Richard E Grant Anthony Hopkins |
| Music by | Wojciech Kilar |
| Cinematography | Michael Ballhaus |
| Editing by | Anna Goursand Glen Scantlebury Nicholas C. Smith |
| Distributed by | Columbia Pictures |
| Release date(s) | November 13 1992 |
| Running time | 127 min |
| Country | US |
| Language | English Romanian |
| Budget | $40,000,000 (estimated) |
| All Movie Guide profile | |
| IMDb profile | |
Bram Stoker's Dracula is a 1992 horror/romance film produced and directed by Francis Ford Coppola, based on the novel Dracula by Bram Stoker. It starred Gary Oldman, Keanu Reeves, Anthony Hopkins and Winona Ryder. The score was composed by Wojciech Kilar and featured Annie Lennox. It was the 9th highest grossing film worldwide in 1992, making $215,862,692. It was the 15th highest grossing film in the U.S making $82,522,790.
Taglines:
- Love never dies.
- Beware. (Teaser Poster)
Contents |
[edit] Plot summary
Jonathan Harker (Reeves), assistant real estate agent, travels to the mountains of Transylvania to arrange the transfer of Carfax Abbey in London, Count Dracula's (Oldman) newest real estate acquisition. Harker was sent because the previous agent, Renfield (Waits) had returned from Transylvania with a complete loss of sanity. When the count sees a picture of Harker's fiancée Wilhelmina "Mina" Murray (Ryder), he tells Harker to write to her, telling her that Harker will remain in Transylvania for a month longer.
Dracula then imprisons Harker in his castle, where he is enticed by Dracula's insatiable, bloodthirsty Brides. They systematically take his blood - never enough to kill him - but keep him in a weakened state.
While Harker is being held prisoner in the castle, the count books passage on the ship Demeter to London. His purpose is not only to move into Carfax Abbey, but to meet Mina, who Dracula believes is the reincarnation of his wife, a Romanian princess who committed suicide four centuries earlier.
When the Demeter arrives in London, the entire crew is dead. Since Dracula is in his coffin and assumed to be cargo, he is delivered safely to the Abbey. Renfield becomes his servant. Dracula assimilates and gradually works his spell on Mina, coming ever closer to seducing her. Dracula also feeds on Mina's friend, Lucy Westenra (Sadie Frost). However, he meets opposition from Jonathan Harker (who had freed himself from the Brides' clutches) and Dr. Abraham Van Helsing (Hopkins), who knows Dracula is a vampire, and also knows how to defeat him.
Dracula's nocturnal feedings from Lucy have caused noticeable changes in her behavior and obvious deteriorating health. Van Helsing attempts a blood transfusion with Arthur Holmwood (Cary Elwes) as the donor. The doctor's efforts prove to be in vain, as Lucy dies shortly after following a particularly horrific encounter with Dracula. She is entombed, rises as a vampire, but is later killed by Van Helsing.
Mina is also experiencing changes in herself as she becomes more enraptured by Dracula. Entranced, she and Dracula exchange blood during an intimate moment. She is able to defer suspicion until she and Van Helsing are camped near Dracula's castle. Mina attempts to seduce him and the influence of Dracula is apparent. Van Helsing reacts quickly and shows a cross to Mina, which repels her and temporarily releases the hold Dracula has on her. She sobs, ashamed, as she realizes what she has tried to do.
The movie ends with Dracula impaled on a sword, barely alive. Mina and Dracula share a tender moment, and she forces the blade through him, finally killing him before cutting off his head.
[edit] Deviations from the novel and reality
Despite the title, the cinematic production differs markedly from Stoker's version. Notable among the variations is a subplot (introduced in an elaborate prologue) which suggests that Mina Harker is the reincarnation of Dracula's great love, a suggestion absent from the original story. The Count's relationship with Mina is different from its portrayal in the novel, in which Dracula met her late in the story after he had killed Lucy Westenra and Mina had joined the vampire's enemies. The movie version suggests that Dracula is none other than the notorious Vlad Ţepeş ("The Impaler"), a Romanian prince legendary for his cruelty, a connection absent in the original novel. In the novel, there is no mention of how the Count became a vampire (although it is implied that he was transformed at Scholomance), and little mention is made of the historical Dracula aside from a brief reference to his persistent campaigns against the Turks (which, according to Dracula expert Dr Elizabeth Miller, is due to the fact that Stoker probably didn't know anything else about him [1]).
The movie opens with Vlad's wife committing suicide, as she believes that he had been killed during one of these wars. Vlad is insane with grief due not only to the loss, but also to the supposed eternal condemnation of his wife's soul; he renounces God and takes an unholy vow to somehow avenge her, thus gaining eternal life as a force of darkness. By contrast, the historical Vlad Ţepeş married twice. The first wife did commit suicide, but it was not because she grieved his death; in reality their castle was under siege and, believing that there was no escape, she took her own life.
In the movie, Dracula is speaking Romanian while in Stoker's book he claims to be a Székely, meaning he would have spoken Hungarian. Although a deviation from the novel, it is the movie that is closer to reality as the historical Vlad III Dracula was Romanian, not a Székely.
Even with these changes, the movie is considered by many to be the most faithful version ever made. <ref>Bunson, Matthew: The Vampire Encyclopedia. Crown Trade Paperbacks, 1993. ISBN 0-517-88100-4</ref> <ref>Steiger, Brad The Werewolf Book</ref> In the Signet Classic 100th annniversary edition of the book, Leonard Wolf writes that "it is surely the most spectacular and most sexually graphic film based on Stoker's novel...an extraordinary reinvention..."
[edit] Deleted Scenes
There were an estimated 38 cuts from the movie before it was released theatrically. The large sum of cuts took place after test audiences reacted negatively to the original version. Recently, there have been copies of an uncut version circulating on eBay. Called the "Director's Cut," this version features 10-15 minutes more footage than the current 122-minute version. Much of the deleted footage and dialogue can be seen and heard in the theatrical trailer. Photos of deleted and alternate footage can be seen in the official movie book, trading cards, and comic series. There have been rumors of a Special Edition DVD for years that will contain all the deleted footage.
[edit] Television Edit
In 1997 an edited version of the film was broadcast on the FOX network. This version cuts out the character of Renfield entirely. Other edits and changes are the introduction of the Brides who are clothed in rags as opposed to their seductive nude scene in the theatrical version. It also cuts out Dracula giving them the infant to feast on; instead Dracula converses with them about finding love. Scenes of Lucy's introduction have been re-dubbed due to her quirky remarks and the illustrations in the Arabian Nights book have been blacked out. Also a part of Mina and Lucy’s later conversation in the garden as well as shots of the vessel Varna and Dracula howling as the wolf creature have been taken out completely.
[edit] Awards and other notables
- The film went on to win three technical Academy Awards, including Best Costume Design, Best Makeup and Best Sound Effects Editing.
- The film's closing theme song "Love Song for a Vampire" is written and performed by Annie Lennox.
- Mechandising for the film included a board game, a pinball game, and video game adaptations for the Super Nintendo, NES, Sega Genesis, Game Gear, and Sega CD.
- Four comics and 100 collectible cards were released based on the movie.
- A special edition DVD is rumored to be in the works.
[edit] Cast
- Gary Oldman as Dracula
- Winona Ryder as Mina Murray & Elisabeta
- Anthony Hopkins as Professor Abraham Van Helsing
- Keanu Reeves as Jonathan Harker
- Richard E. Grant as Dr. Jack Seward
- Cary Elwes as Lord Arthur Holmwood
- Billy Campbell as Quincey P. Morris
- Sadie Frost as Lucy Westenra
- Tom Waits as R.M. Renfield
- Monica Bellucci as Dracula's Bride
- Michaela Bercu as Dracula's Bride
- Florina Kendrick as Dracula's Bride
- Jay Robinson as Mr. Hawkins
[edit] References
<references/>
[edit] External links
| Francis Ford Coppola | |
|---|---|
| The Godfather series | The Godfather (1972) | The Godfather Part II (1974) | The Godfather Part III (1990) |
| 1960s | Battle Beyond the Sun (with Aleksandr Kozyr and M. Karzhukov) | The Bellboy and the Playgirls (with Fritz Umgelter and Jack Hill) | Tonight for Sure | Dementia 13 | You're a Big Boy Now | Finian's Rainbow | The Rain People |
| 1970s | The Conversation | Apocalypse Now |
| 1980s | One from the Heart | The Outsiders | Rumble Fish | The Cotton Club | Peggy Sue Got Married | Gardens of Stone | Tucker: The Man and His Dream | New York Stories (with Woody Allen and Martin Scorsese) |
| 1990s | Bram Stoker's Dracula | Jack | The Rainmaker |
| 2000s | Youth Without Youth |
| Productions | The Junky's Christmas (1993) | Mary Shelley's Frankenstein (1994) | Don Juan DeMarco (1995) | Lanai-Loa (1998) | The Florentine (1999) | The Virgin Suicides (1999) |
| Characters of Dracula |
|---|
| Dracula | Jonathan Harker | Mina Harker | Abraham Van Helsing | Lucy Westenra | Renfield |
| Film Adaptations of Dracula |
| Nosferatu | Dracula (1931) | House of Dracula | Dracula (1958) | Count Dracula (1969) | Dracula (1979) | Nosferatu: Phantom der Nacht | Love At First Bite | Bram Stoker's Dracula | Dracula: Dead and Loving It | Dracula: Pages from a Virgin's Diary |
de:Bram Stoker’s Dracula es:Drácula de Bram Stoker fr:Dracula (film, 1992) it:Dracula di Bram Stoker nl:Bram Stoker's Dracula no:Dracula (1992) pl:Drakula (film 1992) pt:Bram Stoker's Dracula ru:Дракула (фильм, 1992) fi:Bram Stokerin Dracula sv:Bram Stokers Dracula
