Romantic take on the Dracula tale

Rating: 8/10 (11 October 2008)

Francis Ford Coppola's interpretation of Bram Stoker's legendary tale seems to have plenty of mixed reviews. Many Dracula purists loathe it, some love it's romance and stunning images. Even though I've read the novel, I'm no purist, and I thoroughly enjoyed this take on the novel. In Coppola's hands Dracula is a tortured soul who searches for his lost love across oceans of time. Gary Oldman's Dracula is completely different from Bela Lugosi in that he is sexy! I actually think Oldman's performance and the ramped-up eroticism is closer to what Bram Stoker actually intended in his novel. I remember all these wonderful descriptions of draining veins, re-birth, flesh and women who seem more turned on than scared by the vampire. It's an incredibly visual film, and great to look at. Winona Ryder is little and sweet as Mina, the re-incarnation of Dracula's beloved Elisabeta. Keanu Reeves is just a terrible actor and I wonder why he was cast as Jonathon Harker. He was a teen heart-throb at the time, so maybe it was to broaden the appeal of the movie? Maybe Coppola wanted a conventional pretty-boy who acts like a piece of wood juxtaposed with the interesting Oldman, to make him doubly attractive? I was a little bit disappointed with Anthony Hopkin's performance, by his standards he's not really memorable. Overall, I liked the film a lot.