A masterpiece of cinema...

Rating: 10/10 (4 June 2003)

My jaw dropped when I read some of these reviews of Dracula (1992). It seems the things people attack in it are things they do not have a background in. The medieval warfare plot is present in the film, because Vlad Dracula was a very real prince in the 15th century Wallachian state bordering Transylvania. In fact, the opening scene is depicted action for action with what happened historically, save for the blood gushing from the cross of course. Bram Stoker drew upon this historical character to drive his novel, for all the baggage such a figure would bring to the plate. As for the rest of the film, the look and style is very rooted in the Symbolist style of the period. In fact, many, many images in the film directly copy well-known Symbolist paintings to a tee. When the dreamy Symbolist style was not being employed, previous incarnations of Dracula on film are referenced. The independent shadow you mention was used in the first Dracula film, Nosferatu (1922). The special-effects employed were all limited to what was available to filmmaking at the time the novel takes place, using puppets, scrims, double-processing, et cetera.
The use of absinthe and filmmaking (two great diversions of Stoker's day), were employed to draw up a parallel between themselves and vampirism. I am not going to go into detail how filmmaking parallels it here, but if you are wondering, go watch Shadow of the Vampire for a detailed example. Absinthe drew many under its dreamlike catatonic spell, and as a result of its potency at the time, destroyed many lives, despite its allure. Bram Stoker's Dracula is one of the greatest artistic accomplishments to come out of Hollywood, and I think, the most beautiful. The stagey acting style mimics the many stage adaptations, as well as the fevered sense of the novel. Add to that the most beautiful costumes, wonderful makeup design, what is perhaps the greatest musical score in cinema history, and it all adds up to be a masterpiece. I think if you want to explore more about the reasons for certain elements, your best route would be to pick up a copy of the book, Dracula: The Film and Legend, which chronicles many of the choices made for this adaptation.