My Review of Dracula (1931)

 

Written by Garrett Ford

Directed by Tod Browning

Count Dracula: "I am Dracula. I bid you welcome."

Seeing as I have been doing a watch of Universe Monsters take on classic monsters, of course that meant I'd have to watch Dracula as well. I've seen this one before but it was a delight to go back and watch it again.

Cast in the role of the Count himself was Bela Lugosi. No stranger to this particular franchise, playing the role of Dracula of course would be his most iconic. The film itself also would be seen as an iconic iteration of the character.

Doing a role swap, it ain't Jonathan Harker this time but it's Renfield (Dwight Frye). Normally he's Dracula's subservient right hand man but here he assumed the Harker role as the lawyer tasked with spending time with Dracula in Transylvania. Renfield was warned by the villagers to avoid the Count. Renfield chose not to listen.

The funny thing about this movie was that John Harker (David Manners) did appear in the film, once things were directed back to London. There's even a relationship of sorts between him and Mina Seward (Helen Chandler). It's charming enough I suppose, until Mina nearly killed John while under the influence of Dracula.

This adaptation certainly picks and chooses what to keep and what to play around with. The remainder of Renfield's story did play out like it normally did but he also got John's story as well. Similarly this version of Mina wa the daughter of Dr Seward (Herbert Bunston) while Lucy Weston (Frances Dade) was also quickly dispatched of. Van Helsing (Edward Van Sloan) seemed the most in character.

In terms of performances, Bela Lugosi undoubtedly was the highlight of the film. He's absolutely captivating as the Count and his best scenes were ones that involved Renfield, Mina and Van Helsing. Of course this was not a great film for John Harker, with the character largely ineffectual but oftentimes that's the curse of the guy. 

- Bela Lugosi had played Dracula on stage, prior to this movie. He'd also play different characters in this particular franchise.

- At least two different scenes, including an epilogue akin to the prologue from Frankenstein (1931) were added in later releases. There are also silent and foreign language versions of this movie.

- Standout music: Tchaikovsky's  Swan Lake.

- Chronology: The late 1800s, both in Transylvania and London.

Dracula (1931) to this day will remain one of the best versions of the Count in live action. Bela Lugosi set the bar for a performance and his chemistry with his costars is magnetic. It's a beautiful looking movie and very eerie in parts. I love it.

Rating: 9 out of 10