A breathtaking SFX extravaganza.

Rating: 9/10 (24 August 2000)

I thought this movie was amazing. Director Francis Ford Coppola uses every trick in the boot to invoke sheer horror in the viewer. The special effects are breathtaking and the music suitably chilling, reminiscent of the famous JAWS theme. The acting is excellent with brilliant performances by Ryder (Mina), Hopkins (Van Helsing) and Frost (Lucy). Despite being called "Bram Stoker's Dracula" it doesn't really stick to the book and would be better off being called "Francis Ford Coppola's Dracula". The film isn't very well narrated and I know some people found it rather confusing. I would recommend anyone to see this film but to also read the book, nobody tells the tale better than Stoker himself.