a_chinn Lavishly produced Dracula adaptation is a mixed bag, but there are enough positives to outweigh the weaker elements. On the plus side, Frank Langell is wonderfully suave and also quietly menacing as The Count. The production design is terrifically atmospheric, aided by moody photography by Gilbert Taylor (the same guy who shot "Dr. Strangelove," "The Omen," "Flash Gordon," and the original "Star Wars"). There's also a strong supporting cast that includes Laurence Olivier as Van Helsing, Kate Nelligan, Donald Pleasence, and the seventh Doctor, Sylvester McCoy. Top that off with a John Williams score and a smart script by W.D. Richter (the guy who directed cult classic "Buckaroo Banzai") and it's hard to imagine this film going far wrong. On the downside, the film is not particularly scary and instead is more of a bland Gothic romance where the characters all seem rather cold, which weakens the the romantic elements and results in the audience never fully engage the romantic drama. Still, it's a gorgeous production that is a must see for fans of the oft filmed Bram Stoker tale.

mike48128 Everything is wonderful: acting, cinematography, sets, costumes, story, and casting. Great music by John Williams. Amazing glass matte of "Dracula's Castle" by Albert Whitlock! Two major "faults" exist: Now almost b/w in the major scenes because Director John Badham wanted it shot entirely in b/w and he un-saturated the color in 2004 for the videos. A bit on the graphic and bloody side for my tastes. Basically a high-budget remake of the 1931 version with several embellishments. Here, Mena is the first victim and Miss Lucy becomes Dracula's bride. It should be reversed! A better screenplay than most versions. Set partially in an insane asylum run by Lucy's father. Fantastic sets and castles and shot entirely in England. Mena is "purified" by Van Helsing and Dr. Seward with a huge stake thru her heart. Mina also has her heart cut out by her father, Van Helsing.Giant vampire marks on several necks and buckets of blood. Dracula kills Renfield by breaking his neck. Langella "owns" the part. He is arrogant, boastful, sexy, vicious, and very demonic. He climbs up the shear sides of buildings, opens windows by tracing the glass with his sharp nails, turns into both a bat and a wolf several times. All very well done with traditional special effects and mattes, before CGI! Camera angles and reverse smoke. Laser effects. A glorious chase to the ship as Dracula leaves England. "Cliffhangers" include him frying in the noonday sun on a yardarm, and then "casting off" into the wind while Lucy smiles that curiously evil smile. Two intentional funny things (mentioned by other reviewers) are that Dr. Seward is constantly eating even after the most bloody of scenes, and some of the food is disgusting. The wolf howls each time the Count "scores" and this happens quite a bit! So, is Lucy still a vampire or not? "R" rated in 1979 and they mean it! My favorite "newer" version although I still love the creepy original and several "Christopher Lee" versions as well. Many scenes are now almost b/w, so crank up the "red color" saturation! This will restore much of the red, gold, and pale skin tones. Sadly, blue and green are (almost)non-existent! My old VHS version has somewhat better colors in the house and outside, but I see now why Director Badham made it darker and drearier. However, I like the color-saturated version better. Both versions should have been put on the Blu-Ray. Grey skies instead of blue? I don't understand why so many critics dislike or overlook this great version so much? It's one of the best!

Aaron1375 I had never seen this version of Dracula, but I had heard things about it. Apparently, I still haven't seen the version most people remember as it was filmed in more vibrant colors than what I had gotten with my DVD that I happened to stumble upon and decided to buy. This version of Dracula I rather enjoyed, more so, than the 1992 version (I liked that one too). This one was said to be the more romanticized Dracula, but I think the 92 version was the one that was a bit too romantic. Here people's throats get ripped out right from the get go and there are cool scenes of undead creatures residing under the cemetery. Sure, Frank Langella's Dracula is a bit of a smooth talker, but at his core is a darkness and arrogance that feels that the men have no power to stop him as he takes the women from their lives and threatens to end their pitiful existence. There are things that are changed from the novel, but I do not find a problem with that, in fact, it made for a surprise as I thought Mina was going to be the object of Dracula's desire. This one did Van Helsing a bit differently too as the cast of this one did a great job for the most part.The story has a ship trying to get rid of one of its boxes of cargo. Surprise, it gets stuck and one of the crew's throat is ripped out. The residents of a mental asylum are restless and Mina goes out and finds a man who has seemingly survived a terrible boat crash. Seems his name is Count Dracula and he is soon invited to dine at the doctor in charge of the mental asylum, Seward. He arrives and seems very polite and charming and he is not there five minutes before putting the moves on both ladies present. There is something dark about him, and why try to hide it, he is going to try to have some blood.The cast sets this Dracula apart as Frank Langella does a great job as the count, though Christopher Lee is my favorite all time Dracula. He was a monster, plain and simple, while in this one he is a charmer with a darkness about him. I read where Langella's eyes have a hard time focusing and in scenes I saw them moving, but I did not know of this condition so I just assumed he was doing it purposely as it actually made his stare more unsettling. Laurence Olivier plays Van Helsing and he is rather good, like Cushing best, but I like how he was presented here. He was a father who had lost his daughter and he wanted his revenge. They did a much better job making he and Dracula enemies than they did in the 92 version. However, I thought Donald Pleasence as Doctor Jack Seward was a more interesting character than Van Helsing. a bit of an odd man who was very helpful as he saved Van Helsing and Johnathon Harker! I read where he turned down the role of Van Helsing because he felt it was too close to Dr. Loomis, but the character he did choose, ran the mental institution. Johnathon Harker was okay, they usually miscast the character and here is no exception. I did not think he did as bad as others do, but he was a bit weak. The two girls were okay too, neither really exploding on screen though.So, all in all, a rather good retelling of the Dracula story. Granted, it does deviate from the book and while I wish they had just gone all out and made Dracula the monster he is, I still found this portrayal interesting. The movie ends on an ambiguous note that could have lead to a sequel which never occurred, which is probably for the best as it is not too long after this film that Langella kind of aged quickly. Who knows? Perhaps he was Dracula and the sun he was exposed to at the end aged him quickly or something. Seriously, I had never seen Langella look this young on screen and I had seen him in movies from the 80's! All in all a rather good Dracula film that you can really sink your teeth into...and yes, I went there!

jacobjohntaylor1 This is Laurence Olivier's best movie. It one of the best horror movies of all time. This movie has great acting. It also has a great story line. It also has great special effects. This is based on one of the best horror novels ever. And it is one of the best horror movies ever. A R.o.m.a.n.i.n vampire moves to England to look for new victims. Frank L.a.n.g.e.l.l.a is a great actor. Laurence Olivier was a great actor. Trevor Eve is a great actor. Kate N.e.l.i.g.a.n is a great actress. Donald P.l.e.a.s.n.c.e was a great actor. Tony H.a.y.g.a.t.h is a great actor. Jan Francis is a great actor. Teddy Turner was a great actor. Sylvester McCoy is a great actor. This movie is a must see. It is better Dracula (1931).