Customer Reviews:
An Opulent Masterpiece.......2008-02-22
Bram Stoker's Dracula, directed by Francis Ford Coppola is a wonderful film. It is filled with beautiful sets, exquisite costumes, excellent make-up effects and brilliantly melodramatic performances.
Gary Oldman stars as the Count, a man who sold his soul to Satan after his wife, Elisabeta, killed herself on receiving false news of his death in battle. He is ultimately made immortal by his Master and years later, meets Jonathan Harker, a younger lawyer who has come to negotiate his buying land in England. It is at this moment that Dracula sees a photograph of Jonathan's betrothed, Mina, who bears a striking resemblance to his own love, Elisabeta. He consequently imprisons Harker and travels to England to wreak havoc and to find the woman he believes to be the reincarnation of his lost wife.
The film remains very faithful to the novel throughout which is refreshing, given the usual Hollywood tendency to "re-imagine" or change the source completely. The performances on the whole are excellent - dodgy accents and Keanu Reeves aside - and are believable in the horrific context of the story, which shocks and seduces in equal measure. Anthony Hopkins' crazed turn as Professor Van Helsing is inspired and Gary Oldman attacks the role of Dracula with great relish and is tremendous in the role.
The film was awarded three Oscars - for Best Costume Design, Best Effects and Best Make-up - and various other accolades, and is easily one of the best films of the 1990s. This film is a must see for any Dracula/vampire fan, any fan of Francis Ford Coppola or anyone who loves a good film.
The good the bad and down right s*xy.......2007-11-12
If you like Dracula, vampires and anyhting gothic you will like this movie, however there are plenty of movies out there who do gothic better. To be fair though if you've ever read the book, you'll understand the nonsensical way the story plays out.
Its a bit childish and niave but the costumes are fabulous, the sexual parts are luscious and the scenery is lovely.
Winona does very well as Mina, I found her just believable enough turning from sweet and chaste to being seduced into a vampire lover. Keanu Reeves perhaps gave the worst performance of his career if they had replaced him with a cardboard cut out I think I would have barely noticed.
Anthony Hopkins camps (vamps?) it up delightfully, (he seems to be the only one having any fun), Mina's friend Lucy provides some juicy parts aswell ;)
The madhouse was a nice touch too, with the good doctor looking almost as mad a that silly old Renfield.
Anyway I've left the best to last Gary Oldman, he's not conventional by any means, but he makes Dracula, powerful, menacing, charming, (dare i say it panty peeling) sexy, intellectual, passionate, monstrous and touchingly vulnerable in his love and humanity. Driven by his love for Mina, he becomes if not forgivable at least understandable. And that deserves four stars all on its own, good on ya Gary.
Customer Reviews:
Magnifico!!!.......2008-02-06
Totally agree with the other reviewer that this blu-ray transfer of this superlative movie is excellent. It has so been unfairly criticised by so-called movie experts which is totally unjustified. Beautiful colours, inky blacks, crisp sharp image with hardly a trace of grain or artifact. The 5.1 Dolby Digital soundtrack is also sublime with deep rumbling bass and lavish orchestration as befitting this gothic masterpiece. If you allow others with eyes that can't see, to sway you from buying this, it is your loss. Highly recommended in every way...
Great movie but the Blu-Ray adaption could have ben better.......2008-01-25
The movie itself is a fantastic movie and a great interpretation of Bram Stoker's Dracula.
My main critique of this title is the image quality which in my view is not the best blu-ray adaption I've seen. Although the image is certainly better than DVD-quality, it does not have the crystal clear image as some other blu-ray titles.
If you are looking for a great film, then look no further - but if you're looking for something to really show off your brand new Full HD TV and blu-ray player to all your friends, I would look elsewhere. For example Blade Runner Final Cut.
Excellent Movie - A First Class Blu-ray Presentation.......2007-10-30
The Movie: Very little needs to be written about the plot and production values of this 15 year old film. Chances are you've seen it at least once, if not then I would suggest looking further afield for detailed reviews, a few critics have been snippy about small details or overblown minor flaws. This is to be expected regarding a film of such high caliber, there really isn't anything substantial to berate. The movie is one of the all time greats of the 1990's, great plot (faithful to the book) which has been enhanced by F.F. Coppola's production to make the transition from book to film flawless. Rarely dull with real emotion and exciting action and horror sequences.
The Blu-ray Presentation: First of all, the major concern is that this film is advertised as being 2.40:1 aspect ratio - it isn't - it's the same as the original DVD release which is 16:9. Neither is the sound format made entirely clear, the packaging states simply '5.1' but doesn't say weather it's Dolby Digital or DTS. It isn't until you play the film that it becomes clear that it's DD. The picture clarity is excellent - and that's only on a 1080i TV - I'm sure it would be even better with a 1080p capable TV. It's amazing to think that this movie was made before High Definition was an option. The make-up and set design is absolutely flawless - really, quite stunning. Of interesting note, Gary Oldman's make-up is actually much more convincing whist he's portraying the old and decrepit Dracula; His make-up whilst in his 'young' mid 30's guise is actually less believable, but not so much as to be distracting. Winona Ryder's make-up is barely visible as is that of Keanu Reeves. The sets look realistic, solid and vivid, showing up extremely well in HD. The costumes are also flawless and vivid, with great detail visible throughout. This is a subtle movie and is well underplayed. The same can be said of the details that stand out due to the HD presentation. The viewer notices small details such as the beauty of props, sets and costumes that really stand out among the darkness of the overall film. The character of Lucy now stands out as a vivid bold character due to costume, hair and make-up whereas in the SD DVD version of the movie the character is too strong compared to the muted image portrayed, instead coming across as somewhat tarty an scandalous - the bold contrast, colours and clarity now give the character's image a very strong look which matches the personality of the character. The lower price than many Blu-ray movies is also attractive. This release offers a lot, the sound, despite not being DTS is vivid and busy with a lot of attention paid to channel separation and positioning.
Special features: These are numerous, of special note is the collection of deleted scenes, while presented in a rather muddy SD format, they are none-the-less engaging and interesting. There's a whole lot more besides, including several documentaries, trailers and commentaries. You really get the impression that a lot of care and attention has been invested in this movie, from its initial production in 1992 to its late 90's DVD presentation and on to its High Definition Special Edition release. Obviously not the very best Blu-ray release available but certainly apt and well realized treatment for a brilliant movie.
Amazon.co.uk Review
With dizzying cinematic tricks and astonishing performances, Francis Coppola's 1992 version of the oft-filmed Dracula story is one of the most exuberant, extravagant films of the 1990s. Gary Oldman and Winona Ryder, as the Count and Mina Murray, are quite a pair of star-crossed lovers. She's betrothed to another man; he can't kick the habit of feeding off the living. Anthony Hopkins plays Van Helsing, the vampire slayer, with tongue firmly in cheek. Tom Waits is great fun as Renfield, the hapless slave of Dracula who craves the blood of insects and cats. Sadie Frost is a sexy Lucy Westenra. And poor Keanu Reeves, as Jonathan Harker, has the misfortune to be seduced by Dracula's three half-naked wives. There's a little bit of everything in this version of Dracula: gore, high-speed horseback chases, passion and longing.
Customer Reviews:
Blasphemy in the name of Stoker.......2008-03-12
I read Bram Stoker's Dracula and absolutely loved it, so after reading that Francis Ford Copella's version was the closest to the book, I felt I had to watch it.
If you are a fan of the book, I have to say: never, ever, ever watch this film. I find it hard to believe that anyone who has read Stoker's Dracula could find any redeeming features about this film. Every character is twisted and changed from those in the book.
Mina Harker is flirtatious and stupid, and falls in love with Dracula whilst having no concern for Jonathan whatsoever. Van Helsing actually seems mad, I think they tried to put some humour into the film by overexaggerating his character (this isn't a criticism of Anthony Hopkins, I think he's a brilliant actor, it's a criticism of the character he plays). (Incidentally if you are looking for a humorous vampire flick, check out both Dracula's hair at the start of the film and how he seems to turn into a gorilla when he is blood sucking). Seward is a drug addict. Quincy Morris rude and common. Lucy probably would have been branded a whore in the 1890's if she had acted the way she is portrayed in the film.
As a stand-a-lone vampire film I thought this was bad, as a Dracula fan, it is a travesty, there is no bearing on the book, in fact I wonder how they had the nerve to term it "Bram Stoker's Dracula". Last words of advice, if you are a fan of Stoker's book, avoid this film like the plague.
gory and wonderful Dracula.......2008-02-28
The dark tale about the legendary vampire is brought to a vivid light by the brilliance of Godfather director Francis Ford Coppola in this dark fantasy horror.
Gary Oldman (Air Force one) portrays Count Dracula beautifully, being both malicious but sensitive at frequent occasions as he travels to London and believes to have found a woman, who is a reincarnation of a lady he once loved many many years ago.
This adaptation of Bram Stoker's novel is dark and powerful, with a strong focus upon the ideology of evil, with Oldman doing superbly to portray the Count's evilness against Anthony Hopkins' (Silence of the Lambs) goodness as Van Helsing.
Keanu Reeves (The Matrix) is a bit of a let down as Jonathan Harker with his character not being in the film not nearly enough.
Winona Ryder (Little Women) is excellent as Mina Murray, Count's love interest. The two perform well together, having tense and exciting scenes together.
It's a very dark romantic tale for these two and is portrayed by Coppola in an exciting and edgy way.
The settings used are fantastic with the darkness a key element to portray the mood of the characters and the situations.
The film took a while to get going as it had a lot of character building to get through before building on the plot and the main theme of the film.
This particular version of the legend is quite interesting because of Dracula's portrayal, in that he is portrayed more romantically than before, though still very gruesome and evil. It's interesting to take these factors into account as the film progresses.
It's quite an erotic film with plenty of sexual tension from the leading actresses as Dracula becomes more involved with his victims. It is gruesome to with a lot of blood used to emphasise the evilness of the central characters and the suffering of the victims.
It's a visually stunning dark film with great acting, great settings and an intriguing tale
Terrbile!.......2008-02-25
I have to echo "the_gore_master" here, after reading the book which i was completely engrossed with i was excited to finally get a copy of the movie which claims to be the closest movie interpretation of the book ever done. However it is nothing like the book what so ever ranging from the basic plots of the book to the characters they have all been twisted and Hollywood-ised. I was terribly disappointed by the time I got to the end of the movie and have not watched it since nor will i.
If you want to enjoy Dracula, I suggest buying the book and give this movie a complete miss. As a stand alone vampire movie I find it to be mediocre at best so if your looking for a vampire film to watch I also suggest looking elsewhere.
An Opulent Masterpiece.......2008-02-22
Bram Stoker's Dracula, directed by Francis Ford Coppola is a wonderful film. It is filled with beautiful sets, exquisite costumes, excellent make-up effects and brilliantly melodramatic performances.
Gary Oldman stars as the Count, a man who sold his soul to Satan after his wife, Elisabeta, killed herself on receiving false news of his death in battle. He is ultimately made immortal by his Master and years later, meets Jonathan Harker, a younger lawyer who has come to negotiate his buying land in England. It is at this moment that Dracula sees a photograph of Jonathan's betrothed, Mina, who bears a striking resemblance to his own love, Elisabeta. He consequently imprisons Harker and travels to England to wreak havoc and to find the woman he believes to be the reincarnation of his lost wife.
The film remains very faithful to the novel throughout which is refreshing, given the usual Hollywood tendency to "re-imagine" or change the source completely. The performances on the whole are excellent - dodgy accents and Keanu Reeves aside - and are believable in the horrific context of the story, which shocks and seduces in equal measure. Anthony Hopkins' crazed turn as Professor Van Helsing is inspired and Gary Oldman attacks the role of Dracula with great relish and is tremendous in the role.
The film was awarded three Oscars - for Best Costume Design, Best Effects and Best Make-up - and various other accolades, and is easily one of the best films of the 1990s. This film is a must see for any Dracula/vampire fan, any fan of Francis Ford Coppola or anyone who loves a good film.
"I am the last of my kind.".......2007-12-21
Originally intended as a TV production by Michael Apted, who stayed on as executive producer, Coppola's film may be a long way from his best work but at least is a welcome throwback to the days when big pictures took risks. Most of these are in terms of style, but for once this does not mean the designer gloss of the mainstream blockbuster. This at least gives the punter something different.
Filmed entirely in a studio, there are some quite wonderful visuals. Bite marks become the eyes of a wolf, a peacock's 'eye' becomes a train tunnel, a train in the extreme background casts a shadow over a journal superimposed over the foreground while unseen eyes edge into frame on the blood red sky, all to the accompaniment of Wojciech Kilar's stridently foreboding score.
Stoker's novel is told in the form of various letters and journals and Coppola's interest in toys and turn of the century technology finds expression in the various forms used by the main characters to record events - journal, typewriter, phonogram - and with the inclusion of an early Kinematograph (introduced by a street scene shot in the style of an early Lumiere camera at a jerky 18fps). Indeed, the whole film owes much to early cinema with its use of fades to iris and expressionistic touches. The castle is straight out of Cocteau with the odd nod to Caligari in its impossible gravity. The Count's shadow has a life of its own and betrays his true intentions. Revelling in it's sense of the purely cinematic, many of the effects seem to be designed not to create the illusion of reality but the illusion of illusion.
Venereal diseases, diseases of the blood and dark desires are all interwoven with rather more skill than usual for the tale. Yet despite some very sexual blood sucking and one of the most beautiful love themes of the past decade that harks back to the days when Hollywood composers came from Hungary it is less effective as a love story than the under-rated Frank Langella version. Nonetheless, those sexual fantasies on display perfectly reflect those of the period it is set in, a cross between the European brothel and dirty postcards of the turn of the century, while the film manages to touch on the fear of cultural contamination by foreigners implicit in the book.
Gary Oldman impresses as the Count in his various guises of medieval hero, embittered old man and mittle European romantic, a man who can throw a baby to his brides to feed on or turn tears to a diamond. There is something about Van Helsing that tends to bring out the worst in actors, and if Anthony Hopkins isn't as dizzyingly awful as Laurence Olivier he still veers sharply towards ham. Richard E. Grant (not Renfield, surprisingly enough) is comparatively restrained, although in his case that simply means barking rather than baying at the moon, while Tom Waits is surprisingly good as Renfield and Keanu Reeves' much mocked accent is quite acceptable, as is his performance as Harker.
Fascinating, occasionally frustrating and frequently very striking, Coppola may sometimes lose sight of the narrative with his stylistic thrust, but this doesn't disgrace itself when compared with Lugosi, Lee (1958 version) and Nosferatu.
Whilethis doesn't offer as much in theway ofextras as the2-disc edition (which reportedly has regraded the colour in some scenes), it's not completely free of extras. As well as the trailer and a costume design gallery, a rather sanitized view of Coppola at work is offered in the accompanying documentary, Bloodlines, with none of the drug abuse, madness and rampant egotism so prevalent in Hearts of Darkness. Instead, it's a straightforward promotional short with a heavy emphasis on the pre-production rehearsals. We do get Gary Oldman singing Sinatra songs and otherwise behaving oddly at almost every opportunity and Anthony Hopkins does point out that he thinks rehearsal is pointless in films, but this is more interested in putting bums on seats than showing you what really happens on a movie set. Gore fans will be disappointed to note that the special effects side gets short shrift here, but it is well put-together.
Amazon.co.uk Review
With dizzying cinematic tricks and astonishing performances, Francis Coppola's 1992 version of the oft-filmed Dracula story is one of the most exuberant, extravagant films of the 1990s. Gary Oldman and Winona Ryder, as the Count and Mina Murray, are quite a pair of star-crossed lovers. She's betrothed to another man; he can't kick the habit of feeding off the living. Anthony Hopkins plays Van Helsing, the vampire slayer, with tongue firmly in cheek. Tom Waits is great fun as Renfield, the hapless slave of Dracula who craves the blood of insects and cats. Sadie Frost is a sexy Lucy Westenra. And poor Keanu Reeves, as Jonathan Harker, has the misfortune to be seduced by Dracula's three half-naked wives. There's a little bit of everything in this version of Dracula: gore, high-speed horseback chases, passion and longing.
Average customer rating:
|
Anthony Hopkins - In The Frame Collection (The Looking Glass War/The Hunchback of Notre Dame/84 Charing Cross Road/The Remains of the Day/Legends of the Fall/Bram Stokers Dracula)
Starring:
Anthony Hopkins ,
Brad Pitt ,
Aidan Quinn ,
Emma Thompson , and
James Fox
Director:
Frank R. Pierson ,
Martin Campbell ,
David Jones ,
Francis Ford Coppola , and
Edward Zwick
Manufacturer: Sony Pictures Home Entertainment
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD
All Drama
|
Drama
|
Categories
|
DVD
|
Video
Classics
|
Categories
|
DVD
|
Video
|
All Classics
|
Children's
|
Comedy
|
Drama
|
Horror & Suspense
|
Musicals
|
Science Fiction & Fantasy
|
Silent
|
War and Westerns
DVD
|
Format (binding_browse-bin)
|
Refinements
|
DVD
|
Video
Box Set
|
Format (binding_browse-bin)
|
Refinements
|
DVD
|
Video
Similar Items:
-
Julia Roberts - In The Frame Collection (Steel Magnolias/Erin Brockovich/My Best Friends Wedding/Americas Sweethearts/Mary Reilly/Stepmom)
-
Jack Nicholson - In The Frame Collection (Five Easy Pieces/As Good As It Gets/The Last Detail/Easy Rider/A Few Good Men/ The King of Marvin Gardens)
-
Dustin Hoffman - In The Frame Collection (Papillon, Kramer vs Kramer, Tootsie, Stranger Than Fiction, Joan of Arc, Accidental Hero)
-
![The Jigsaw Man [1983]](http://images-eu.amazon.com/images/P/B00006LSFM.01.THUMBZZZ.jpg)
The Jigsaw Man [1983]
-
Clint Eastwood Collection - Play Misty For Me/Joe Kidd/Two Mules For Sister Sarah/Coogan's Bluff/The Beguiled/The Eiger Sanction/High Plains Drifter/Breezy
ASIN: B000UVGXTG
Release Date: 2007-10-29
 |
Amazon.co.uk
The Looking Glass War
At the height of the Cold War, British Intelligence discovers evidence that suggests Soviet missiles are being positioned close to the German border. With no active agents available to investigate, Fred Leiser must be called back to the colors and sent East. Once behind the Iron Curtain, Leiser meets a sympathetic German girl who tries to help him to evade the East German secret police and to complete his assignment.
84 Charing Cross Road
Helene Hanff (Anne Bancroft) and Frank Doel (Anthony Hopkins) are lifelong friends who never meet in this unique comedy-drama based on a true story. Hanff and Doel are separated by 3,000 miles of ocean and joined by a passion for old books. Their relationship begins when New Yorker Hanff orders a copy ("unabridged, please!") of Pepys's diary.
Doel, as polite and soft-spoken as Hanff is loud and overbearing, fields the request from his book shop in London. For the next two decades they correspond without ever actually sitting down for tea and crumpets. Brit director David Jones (Betrayal) does a reasonably good job of goosing a movie about something as uncinematic as letter writing, and the stars have fun chewing scenery on both sides of the Atlantic. The model for this kind of bittersweet relationship is David Lean's Brief Encounter, which, not coincidentally, is glimpsed here when Hanff steps out for a rainy-day matinee. --Glenn Lovell
The Remains of the Day
This excellent film is probably best described as subtle elegance. Framed in the present, the movie deals with the lives inside an English country home just prior to World War II. Reunited with the filmmakers from Howards End are Emma Thompson as Miss Kenton, the head housekeeper, and Anthony Hopkins as Stevens, the impeccable butler.
The bittersweet story centers on Stevens and his dedication to his master, Lord Darlington (a suitably officious and slyly pompous James Fox). Stevens summarizes: "I don't believe a man can consider himself fully content until he has done all he can to be of service to his employer." Enveloping Stevens's world are the pending war with Germany, Darlington's horribly misguided interests in said war, and, most effectively, his relationship with Miss Kenton. Stevens is the very essence of repression, but as played by Hopkins he is neither piteous nor self-righteous.
Like his master, Stevens becomes misguided in his loyalties, although his is an emotional deprivation, possibly condemning him to lifelong regret. There's so much going on in this film, and yet the action is skillfully depicted through understanding and knowing glances, through emotions expressed only through eye contact. Like other Merchant-Ivory-Ruth Prawer Jhabvala collaborations, this film is sumptuous to look at, capturing the period effectively and affectingly. Excellent in supporting roles are Christopher Reeve, Ben Chaplin, and Hugh Grant. --N.F. Mendoza
Amazon.co.uk Review
With dizzying cinematic tricks and astonishing performances, Francis Coppola's 1992 version of the oft-filmed Dracula story is one of the most exuberant, extravagant films of the 1990s. Gary Oldman and Winona Ryder, as the Count and Mina Murray, are quite a pair of star-crossed lovers. She's betrothed to another man; he can't kick the habit of feeding off the living. Anthony Hopkins plays Van Helsing, the vampire slayer, with tongue firmly in cheek. Tom Waits is great fun as Renfield, the hapless slave of Dracula who craves the blood of insects and cats. Sadie Frost is a sexy Lucy Westenra. And poor Keanu Reeves, as Jonathan Harker, has the misfortune to be seduced by Dracula's three half-naked wives. There's a little bit of everything in this version of Dracula: gore, high-speed horseback chases, passion and longing.
Customer Reviews:
Blasphemy in the name of Stoker.......2008-03-12
I read Bram Stoker's Dracula and absolutely loved it, so after reading that Francis Ford Copella's version was the closest to the book, I felt I had to watch it.
If you are a fan of the book, I have to say: never, ever, ever watch this film. I find it hard to believe that anyone who has read Stoker's Dracula could find any redeeming features about this film. Every character is twisted and changed from those in the book.
Mina Harker is flirtatious and stupid, and falls in love with Dracula whilst having no concern for Jonathan whatsoever. Van Helsing actually seems mad, I think they tried to put some humour into the film by overexaggerating his character (this isn't a criticism of Anthony Hopkins, I think he's a brilliant actor, it's a criticism of the character he plays). (Incidentally if you are looking for a humorous vampire flick, check out both Dracula's hair at the start of the film and how he seems to turn into a gorilla when he is blood sucking). Seward is a drug addict. Quincy Morris rude and common. Lucy probably would have been branded a whore in the 1890's if she had acted the way she is portrayed in the film.
As a stand-a-lone vampire film I thought this was bad, as a Dracula fan, it is a travesty, there is no bearing on the book, in fact I wonder how they had the nerve to term it "Bram Stoker's Dracula". Last words of advice, if you are a fan of Stoker's book, avoid this film like the plague.
gory and wonderful Dracula.......2008-02-28
The dark tale about the legendary vampire is brought to a vivid light by the brilliance of Godfather director Francis Ford Coppola in this dark fantasy horror.
Gary Oldman (Air Force one) portrays Count Dracula beautifully, being both malicious but sensitive at frequent occasions as he travels to London and believes to have found a woman, who is a reincarnation of a lady he once loved many many years ago.
This adaptation of Bram Stoker's novel is dark and powerful, with a strong focus upon the ideology of evil, with Oldman doing superbly to portray the Count's evilness against Anthony Hopkins' (Silence of the Lambs) goodness as Van Helsing.
Keanu Reeves (The Matrix) is a bit of a let down as Jonathan Harker with his character not being in the film not nearly enough.
Winona Ryder (Little Women) is excellent as Mina Murray, Count's love interest. The two perform well together, having tense and exciting scenes together.
It's a very dark romantic tale for these two and is portrayed by Coppola in an exciting and edgy way.
The settings used are fantastic with the darkness a key element to portray the mood of the characters and the situations.
The film took a while to get going as it had a lot of character building to get through before building on the plot and the main theme of the film.
This particular version of the legend is quite interesting because of Dracula's portrayal, in that he is portrayed more romantically than before, though still very gruesome and evil. It's interesting to take these factors into account as the film progresses.
It's quite an erotic film with plenty of sexual tension from the leading actresses as Dracula becomes more involved with his victims. It is gruesome to with a lot of blood used to emphasise the evilness of the central characters and the suffering of the victims.
It's a visually stunning dark film with great acting, great settings and an intriguing tale
Terrbile!.......2008-02-25
I have to echo "the_gore_master" here, after reading the book which i was completely engrossed with i was excited to finally get a copy of the movie which claims to be the closest movie interpretation of the book ever done. However it is nothing like the book what so ever ranging from the basic plots of the book to the characters they have all been twisted and Hollywood-ised. I was terribly disappointed by the time I got to the end of the movie and have not watched it since nor will i.
If you want to enjoy Dracula, I suggest buying the book and give this movie a complete miss. As a stand alone vampire movie I find it to be mediocre at best so if your looking for a vampire film to watch I also suggest looking elsewhere.
An Opulent Masterpiece.......2008-02-22
Bram Stoker's Dracula, directed by Francis Ford Coppola is a wonderful film. It is filled with beautiful sets, exquisite costumes, excellent make-up effects and brilliantly melodramatic performances.
Gary Oldman stars as the Count, a man who sold his soul to Satan after his wife, Elisabeta, killed herself on receiving false news of his death in battle. He is ultimately made immortal by his Master and years later, meets Jonathan Harker, a younger lawyer who has come to negotiate his buying land in England. It is at this moment that Dracula sees a photograph of Jonathan's betrothed, Mina, who bears a striking resemblance to his own love, Elisabeta. He consequently imprisons Harker and travels to England to wreak havoc and to find the woman he believes to be the reincarnation of his lost wife.
The film remains very faithful to the novel throughout which is refreshing, given the usual Hollywood tendency to "re-imagine" or change the source completely. The performances on the whole are excellent - dodgy accents and Keanu Reeves aside - and are believable in the horrific context of the story, which shocks and seduces in equal measure. Anthony Hopkins' crazed turn as Professor Van Helsing is inspired and Gary Oldman attacks the role of Dracula with great relish and is tremendous in the role.
The film was awarded three Oscars - for Best Costume Design, Best Effects and Best Make-up - and various other accolades, and is easily one of the best films of the 1990s. This film is a must see for any Dracula/vampire fan, any fan of Francis Ford Coppola or anyone who loves a good film.
"I am the last of my kind.".......2007-12-21
Originally intended as a TV production by Michael Apted, who stayed on as executive producer, Coppola's film may be a long way from his best work but at least is a welcome throwback to the days when big pictures took risks. Most of these are in terms of style, but for once this does not mean the designer gloss of the mainstream blockbuster. This at least gives the punter something different.
Filmed entirely in a studio, there are some quite wonderful visuals. Bite marks become the eyes of a wolf, a peacock's 'eye' becomes a train tunnel, a train in the extreme background casts a shadow over a journal superimposed over the foreground while unseen eyes edge into frame on the blood red sky, all to the accompaniment of Wojciech Kilar's stridently foreboding score.
Stoker's novel is told in the form of various letters and journals and Coppola's interest in toys and turn of the century technology finds expression in the various forms used by the main characters to record events - journal, typewriter, phonogram - and with the inclusion of an early Kinematograph (introduced by a street scene shot in the style of an early Lumiere camera at a jerky 18fps). Indeed, the whole film owes much to early cinema with its use of fades to iris and expressionistic touches. The castle is straight out of Cocteau with the odd nod to Caligari in its impossible gravity. The Count's shadow has a life of its own and betrays his true intentions. Revelling in it's sense of the purely cinematic, many of the effects seem to be designed not to create the illusion of reality but the illusion of illusion.
Venereal diseases, diseases of the blood and dark desires are all interwoven with rather more skill than usual for the tale. Yet despite some very sexual blood sucking and one of the most beautiful love themes of the past decade that harks back to the days when Hollywood composers came from Hungary it is less effective as a love story than the under-rated Frank Langella version. Nonetheless, those sexual fantasies on display perfectly reflect those of the period it is set in, a cross between the European brothel and dirty postcards of the turn of the century, while the film manages to touch on the fear of cultural contamination by foreigners implicit in the book.
Gary Oldman impresses as the Count in his various guises of medieval hero, embittered old man and mittle European romantic, a man who can throw a baby to his brides to feed on or turn tears to a diamond. There is something about Van Helsing that tends to bring out the worst in actors, and if Anthony Hopkins isn't as dizzyingly awful as Laurence Olivier he still veers sharply towards ham. Richard E. Grant (not Renfield, surprisingly enough) is comparatively restrained, although in his case that simply means barking rather than baying at the moon, while Tom Waits is surprisingly good as Renfield and Keanu Reeves' much mocked accent is quite acceptable, as is his performance as Harker.
Fascinating, occasionally frustrating and frequently very striking, Coppola may sometimes lose sight of the narrative with his stylistic thrust, but this doesn't disgrace itself when compared with Lugosi, Lee (1958 version) and Nosferatu.
Whilethis doesn't offer as much in theway ofextras as the2-disc edition (which reportedly has regraded the colour in some scenes), it's not completely free of extras. As well as the trailer and a costume design gallery, a rather sanitized view of Coppola at work is offered in the accompanying documentary, Bloodlines, with none of the drug abuse, madness and rampant egotism so prevalent in Hearts of Darkness. Instead, it's a straightforward promotional short with a heavy emphasis on the pre-production rehearsals. We do get Gary Oldman singing Sinatra songs and otherwise behaving oddly at almost every opportunity and Anthony Hopkins does point out that he thinks rehearsal is pointless in films, but this is more interested in putting bums on seats than showing you what really happens on a movie set. Gore fans will be disappointed to note that the special effects side gets short shrift here, but it is well put-together.
Amazon.co.uk Review
With dizzying cinematic tricks and astonishing performances, Francis Coppola's 1992 version of the oft-filmed Dracula story is one of the most exuberant, extravagant films of the 1990s. Gary Oldman and Winona Ryder, as the Count and Mina Murray, are quite a pair of star-crossed lovers. She's betrothed to another man; he can't kick the habit of feeding off the living. Anthony Hopkins plays Van Helsing, the vampire slayer, with tongue firmly in cheek. Tom Waits is great fun as Renfield, the hapless slave of Dracula who craves the blood of insects and cats. Sadie Frost is a sexy Lucy Westenra. And poor Keanu Reeves, as Jonathan Harker, has the misfortune to be seduced by Dracula's three half-naked wives. There's a little bit of everything in this version of Dracula: gore, high-speed horseback chases, passion and longing.
Customer Reviews:
Blasphemy in the name of Stoker.......2008-03-12
I read Bram Stoker's Dracula and absolutely loved it, so after reading that Francis Ford Copella's version was the closest to the book, I felt I had to watch it.
If you are a fan of the book, I have to say: never, ever, ever watch this film. I find it hard to believe that anyone who has read Stoker's Dracula could find any redeeming features about this film. Every character is twisted and changed from those in the book.
Mina Harker is flirtatious and stupid, and falls in love with Dracula whilst having no concern for Jonathan whatsoever. Van Helsing actually seems mad, I think they tried to put some humour into the film by overexaggerating his character (this isn't a criticism of Anthony Hopkins, I think he's a brilliant actor, it's a criticism of the character he plays). (Incidentally if you are looking for a humorous vampire flick, check out both Dracula's hair at the start of the film and how he seems to turn into a gorilla when he is blood sucking). Seward is a drug addict. Quincy Morris rude and common. Lucy probably would have been branded a whore in the 1890's if she had acted the way she is portrayed in the film.
As a stand-a-lone vampire film I thought this was bad, as a Dracula fan, it is a travesty, there is no bearing on the book, in fact I wonder how they had the nerve to term it "Bram Stoker's Dracula". Last words of advice, if you are a fan of Stoker's book, avoid this film like the plague.
gory and wonderful Dracula.......2008-02-28
The dark tale about the legendary vampire is brought to a vivid light by the brilliance of Godfather director Francis Ford Coppola in this dark fantasy horror.
Gary Oldman (Air Force one) portrays Count Dracula beautifully, being both malicious but sensitive at frequent occasions as he travels to London and believes to have found a woman, who is a reincarnation of a lady he once loved many many years ago.
This adaptation of Bram Stoker's novel is dark and powerful, with a strong focus upon the ideology of evil, with Oldman doing superbly to portray the Count's evilness against Anthony Hopkins' (Silence of the Lambs) goodness as Van Helsing.
Keanu Reeves (The Matrix) is a bit of a let down as Jonathan Harker with his character not being in the film not nearly enough.
Winona Ryder (Little Women) is excellent as Mina Murray, Count's love interest. The two perform well together, having tense and exciting scenes together.
It's a very dark romantic tale for these two and is portrayed by Coppola in an exciting and edgy way.
The settings used are fantastic with the darkness a key element to portray the mood of the characters and the situations.
The film took a while to get going as it had a lot of character building to get through before building on the plot and the main theme of the film.
This particular version of the legend is quite interesting because of Dracula's portrayal, in that he is portrayed more romantically than before, though still very gruesome and evil. It's interesting to take these factors into account as the film progresses.
It's quite an erotic film with plenty of sexual tension from the leading actresses as Dracula becomes more involved with his victims. It is gruesome to with a lot of blood used to emphasise the evilness of the central characters and the suffering of the victims.
It's a visually stunning dark film with great acting, great settings and an intriguing tale
Terrbile!.......2008-02-25
I have to echo "the_gore_master" here, after reading the book which i was completely engrossed with i was excited to finally get a copy of the movie which claims to be the closest movie interpretation of the book ever done. However it is nothing like the book what so ever ranging from the basic plots of the book to the characters they have all been twisted and Hollywood-ised. I was terribly disappointed by the time I got to the end of the movie and have not watched it since nor will i.
If you want to enjoy Dracula, I suggest buying the book and give this movie a complete miss. As a stand alone vampire movie I find it to be mediocre at best so if your looking for a vampire film to watch I also suggest looking elsewhere.
An Opulent Masterpiece.......2008-02-22
Bram Stoker's Dracula, directed by Francis Ford Coppola is a wonderful film. It is filled with beautiful sets, exquisite costumes, excellent make-up effects and brilliantly melodramatic performances.
Gary Oldman stars as the Count, a man who sold his soul to Satan after his wife, Elisabeta, killed herself on receiving false news of his death in battle. He is ultimately made immortal by his Master and years later, meets Jonathan Harker, a younger lawyer who has come to negotiate his buying land in England. It is at this moment that Dracula sees a photograph of Jonathan's betrothed, Mina, who bears a striking resemblance to his own love, Elisabeta. He consequently imprisons Harker and travels to England to wreak havoc and to find the woman he believes to be the reincarnation of his lost wife.
The film remains very faithful to the novel throughout which is refreshing, given the usual Hollywood tendency to "re-imagine" or change the source completely. The performances on the whole are excellent - dodgy accents and Keanu Reeves aside - and are believable in the horrific context of the story, which shocks and seduces in equal measure. Anthony Hopkins' crazed turn as Professor Van Helsing is inspired and Gary Oldman attacks the role of Dracula with great relish and is tremendous in the role.
The film was awarded three Oscars - for Best Costume Design, Best Effects and Best Make-up - and various other accolades, and is easily one of the best films of the 1990s. This film is a must see for any Dracula/vampire fan, any fan of Francis Ford Coppola or anyone who loves a good film.
"I am the last of my kind.".......2007-12-21
Originally intended as a TV production by Michael Apted, who stayed on as executive producer, Coppola's film may be a long way from his best work but at least is a welcome throwback to the days when big pictures took risks. Most of these are in terms of style, but for once this does not mean the designer gloss of the mainstream blockbuster. This at least gives the punter something different.
Filmed entirely in a studio, there are some quite wonderful visuals. Bite marks become the eyes of a wolf, a peacock's 'eye' becomes a train tunnel, a train in the extreme background casts a shadow over a journal superimposed over the foreground while unseen eyes edge into frame on the blood red sky, all to the accompaniment of Wojciech Kilar's stridently foreboding score.
Stoker's novel is told in the form of various letters and journals and Coppola's interest in toys and turn of the century technology finds expression in the various forms used by the main characters to record events - journal, typewriter, phonogram - and with the inclusion of an early Kinematograph (introduced by a street scene shot in the style of an early Lumiere camera at a jerky 18fps). Indeed, the whole film owes much to early cinema with its use of fades to iris and expressionistic touches. The castle is straight out of Cocteau with the odd nod to Caligari in its impossible gravity. The Count's shadow has a life of its own and betrays his true intentions. Revelling in it's sense of the purely cinematic, many of the effects seem to be designed not to create the illusion of reality but the illusion of illusion.
Venereal diseases, diseases of the blood and dark desires are all interwoven with rather more skill than usual for the tale. Yet despite some very sexual blood sucking and one of the most beautiful love themes of the past decade that harks back to the days when Hollywood composers came from Hungary it is less effective as a love story than the under-rated Frank Langella version. Nonetheless, those sexual fantasies on display perfectly reflect those of the period it is set in, a cross between the European brothel and dirty postcards of the turn of the century, while the film manages to touch on the fear of cultural contamination by foreigners implicit in the book.
Gary Oldman impresses as the Count in his various guises of medieval hero, embittered old man and mittle European romantic, a man who can throw a baby to his brides to feed on or turn tears to a diamond. There is something about Van Helsing that tends to bring out the worst in actors, and if Anthony Hopkins isn't as dizzyingly awful as Laurence Olivier he still veers sharply towards ham. Richard E. Grant (not Renfield, surprisingly enough) is comparatively restrained, although in his case that simply means barking rather than baying at the moon, while Tom Waits is surprisingly good as Renfield and Keanu Reeves' much mocked accent is quite acceptable, as is his performance as Harker.
Fascinating, occasionally frustrating and frequently very striking, Coppola may sometimes lose sight of the narrative with his stylistic thrust, but this doesn't disgrace itself when compared with Lugosi, Lee (1958 version) and Nosferatu.
Whilethis doesn't offer as much in theway ofextras as the2-disc edition (which reportedly has regraded the colour in some scenes), it's not completely free of extras. As well as the trailer and a costume design gallery, a rather sanitized view of Coppola at work is offered in the accompanying documentary, Bloodlines, with none of the drug abuse, madness and rampant egotism so prevalent in Hearts of Darkness. Instead, it's a straightforward promotional short with a heavy emphasis on the pre-production rehearsals. We do get Gary Oldman singing Sinatra songs and otherwise behaving oddly at almost every opportunity and Anthony Hopkins does point out that he thinks rehearsal is pointless in films, but this is more interested in putting bums on seats than showing you what really happens on a movie set. Gore fans will be disappointed to note that the special effects side gets short shrift here, but it is well put-together.
UK DVD:
- Buffy The Vampire Slayer [1992]
- Buffy the Vampire Slayer Season 6 (New Edition) [2001]
- Cabin Fever [2003]
- Candyman : Collectors Edition [1992]
- Carrie [1976]
- Child's Play 2 [1991]
- Child's Play 3 [1991]
- Christine [1983]
- Christine [1984]
- Count Dracula [1977]
UK DVD List
UK DVD
![Bram Stoker's Dracula (2 Disc Deluxe Edition) [1992]](http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/21q5olAyQ4L.jpg)
Bram Stoker's Dracula Original Soundtrack
Bram Stoker's "Dracula": the Film and the Legend: The Film and the Legend (Newmarket Pictorial Moviebooks)
![From Hell - Definitive Edition [2001]](http://images-eu.amazon.com/images/P/B000O3HFW4.01.THUMBZZZ.jpg)
From Hell - Definitive Edition [2001]
![Mary Shelley's Frankenstein [1994]](http://images-eu.amazon.com/images/P/B00004CWWL.01.THUMBZZZ.jpg)
Mary Shelley's Frankenstein [1994]
![Hollow Man (Extended Cut) [2000]](http://images-eu.amazon.com/images/P/B000SNUQYE.01.THUMBZZZ.jpg)
Hollow Man (Extended Cut) [2000]
![Bram Stoker's Dracula [Blu-ray] [1992]](http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/212n8O7-8VL.jpg)
![Hollow Man [Blu-ray] [2000]](http://images-eu.amazon.com/images/P/B000UD5LOM.01.THUMBZZZ.jpg)
![Starship Troopers [Blu-ray] [1997]](http://images-eu.amazon.com/images/P/B000R3431M.01.THUMBZZZ.jpg)
![Underworld - Evolution [Blu-ray] [2006]](http://images-eu.amazon.com/images/P/B000T2MYHG.01.THUMBZZZ.jpg)
![The Patriot [Blu-ray] [2000]](http://images-eu.amazon.com/images/P/B000R343I0.01.THUMBZZZ.jpg)
![Gothika [Blu-ray] [2003]](http://images-eu.amazon.com/images/P/B000PI3V0I.01.THUMBZZZ.jpg)
![The Lawnmower Man - The 10th Anniversary Edition [1992]](http://images-eu.amazon.com/images/P/B00006RHUH.01.THUMBZZZ.jpg)
![Hollow Man [2000]](http://images-eu.amazon.com/images/P/B000053W5H.01.THUMBZZZ.jpg)
![Welcome To Mooseport [2004]](http://images-eu.amazon.com/images/P/B0002DXGQ0.01.THUMBZZZ.jpg)
![Village Of The Damned [1995]](http://images-eu.amazon.com/images/P/B00004WZYJ.01.THUMBZZZ.jpg)
![The Ring (Special Edition) [2002]](http://images-eu.amazon.com/images/P/B0007N1B58.01.THUMBZZZ.jpg)
![Bram Stoker's Dracula [1993]](http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/213D317EWQL.jpg)
![Interview With The Vampire -- Special Edition [1995]](http://images-eu.amazon.com/images/P/B00006JY5R.01.THUMBZZZ.jpg)
![Dracula [1979]](http://images-eu.amazon.com/images/P/B000I2IZPC.01.THUMBZZZ.jpg)
![Bram Stoker's Dracula [1993] (REGION 1) (NTSC)](http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/21BHH300BVL.jpg)
![Bram Stoker's Dracula [Blu-ray] [1993] [US Import]](http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/21ZSZC79JxL.jpg)
![Dracula [1993]](http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/21QPXY2Z4NL.jpg)
![Bram Stoker's Dracula/Mary Shelly's Frankenstein [1993] (REGION 1) (NTSC)](http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/21I0rrgE00L.jpg)