A good but under-appreciated movie

Rating: 9/10 (13 June 2005)

I first saw this movie on video because I was still too young to watch in in the theater when it came out. But the older I get the more I appreciate it.
Francis Ford Coppola was able to make a respectful movie adaptation of the mythology of Dracula/Vlad the Impaler. I can tell he was influenced by Murnau in this movie but he still succeeded in making it very original.
Winona Ryder is so beautiful in this movie and she plays Mina with the delicacy and vulnerability that was required by her character. Keanu Reeves played Jonathan Harker with the innocence that was necessary even though many people ridiculed him. And the great Gary Oldman and Anthony Hopkins were very good and convincing all throughout. Like Count Dracul himself, this is a movie that gets better with time and age. I give this movie 9 stars out of 10.