Dracula Untold
Tags: gothic, murder, violence, flashback, good versus evil, psychedelic, romantic, tragedy, revenge

Plot synopsis:
Before the Renaissance, Vlad Țepeș is the Prince of Wallachia and Transylvania. As a child, he was a royal hostage in the palace of the Sultan of the Ottoman Empire and was trained to be a soldier in the Sultan's elite Janissary corps, where he became their most feared warrior. He was called Vlad the Impaler after slaughtering thousands by impaling them on spears.
Now ruling his domains in peace, Vlad and his soldiers discover a helmet in a stream and fear that an Ottoman scouting party is preparing the way for invasion. The stream leads to Broken Tooth Mountain, the top of which has a cave carpeted in crushed bone. Within the cave they are attacked in the dark by an inhumanly strong and fast humanoid creature, killing Vlad's retinue. Returning to his castle, Vlad learns from a local monk that the creature is a vampire. Vlad celebrates an Easter feast with his wife Mirena and son Îngeraș, when an Ottoman contingent arrives at the castle. Vlad offers them the usual tribute payment of silver coins, but the emissary wants an additional tribute of 1,000 boys to be trained as Janissaries. Vlad refuses. Mirena believes Vlad can convince Sultan Mehmed II to show mercy. Vlad offers himself in place of the boys; but the Sultan refuses and demands Vlad's son in addition.
Knowing war is coming, Vlad returns to the Broken Tooth Mountain cave to seek help from the vampire. The vampire tells him there are consequences and offers him some of his blood, which will temporarily give Vlad the powers of a vampire. If he resists the intense urge to drink human blood for three days, he will turn back into a human. Otherwise, he will remain a vampire forever. Vlad accepts the offer. He discovers that he has the ability to transform into a flock of bats. When he returns to Castle Dracula, the Ottoman army attacks, but Vlad single-handedly kills them all. He then sends most of the castle's subjects to Cozia Monastery for safety.
Mirena learns of Vlad's curse, as she sees him holding silver to keep himself weak when near his people to avoid revealing his condition to them or attacking them for blood. Vlad's sudden increased strength also arouses suspicion among his subjects.
That night, the Ottoman army marches on the monastery. Vlad commands an enormous swarm of bats to repel them; however, the soldiers are actually a decoy force, allowing a handful of Turks to infiltrate the monastery, kill many of the inhabitants and kidnap Ingeras. Mirena tries to defend her son, and falls from the edge of the monastery wall. Dying, Mirena pleads with Vlad to drink her blood before the sun rises to give him the strength to save their son. Vlad reluctantly drinks her blood, triggering his final transformation into a full-blooded vampire and granting him even greater powers. As he does so, he summons black storm clouds to block out the sun. Vlad returns to the monastery and turns a small group of survivors and mortally wounded into vampires as well.
At the Ottoman army's camp, Mehmed prepares for a massive invasion of Europe. Vlad and his vampires arrive, hidden by a large lightning storm, and easily massacre the terrified Ottoman soldiers, while Vlad himself goes after Mehmed, who is holding Îngeraș captive. Aware that vampires are weakened by silver, Mehmed has lined the floor of his tent with silver coins, making Vlad's strength and speed that of a human - and impairing his vision - as Mehmed fights him with a silver sword. He overpowers Vlad and prepares to impale his heart with a wooden stake, but Vlad turns into a flock of bats and evades him. Taking the name "Dracula, Son of the Devil", he kills Mehmed with the stake and drinks his blood. With Vlad presumed dead and Europe saved from the Ottoman invasion, Îngeraș is crowned the new Prince of Wallachia.
In the present day, Vlad meets a woman named Mina, who strikingly resembles Mirena, in the streets of a modern city (London), while the vampire who cursed Vlad watches them from afar. As they walk away, he follows, saying "Let the games begin".

Review: For all who says that this movie is bad because it doesn't follow the Dracula story we all know from the past I say, it's not suppose to.
That reviewer wrote in his comment : "The film might captivate some audiences who are looking for a fun time, but there is nothing memorable or legendary about it." isn't that all a movie should be about?
So, for those who care about the chronicles of Dracula and close their mind to a different story don't watch this movie.
The movie does show this in a few scenes but in a interesting if somewhat brief way.Good action scenes, battles and some gory images, but then as it's Dracula, what do you expect.If your looking for a movie to just sit back and have fun watching, Dracula Untold is an enjoyable romp with good actors, Charles Dance is impeccable as always and Luke Evans is good as the main character..
Being a Dracula movie there are things you have to expect, yes he receives his power by drinking blood, having all the vulnerabilities as every vampire (which they do very good in this movie) but the way this movie makes you root for Vlad(Dracula) you actually find yourself engulfed in the movie wanting him to overcome the darkness and win.
He learns that the creature is a vampire.On the next day, a Turkish group of soldiers come to the Castle Dracula to collect the taxes but the emissary tells to Vlad that the Turkish Sultan Mehmed (Dominic Cooper) is demanding one thousand boys to be trained for the Turkish army.
This movie has a dramatic and full of action story, disclosed through great screenplay, special effects and music score.
This version from 2014 does come close to it in some ways but let's be honest and say no one is going to watch any movie with Dracula in the title unless it features a vampire in the title role and one wonders how many people might have been disappointed by the marketing if not the title alone ?
It's not really an actors type of character driven cinema but Luke Evans is suitably brooding while best performance is Dominic Cooper as Mehmed who doesn't appear on screen often enough here and is probably the film's trump card DU isn't a masterpiece and again it's very important that you go in to this film with the knowledge it's more of a dark sword and sorcery type tale rather than a horror movie .
Settings are good, special effects were really nice, acting was very solid for this material - Luke Evans is perfectly cast as our main hero, and Charles Dance is always someone to look at and to hear to.
There was more suspense towards the very end, but it did not culminate in a fight, promptly ending the movie in it's rather short running time.As an untold story, it's good to see the reasons and the set up as to how this man had to become the monster, yet it was not properly explored.
Several other details like this were not properly explored, which made it a rather straightforward story, enough to make the plot move, but not to make it a dramatic experience.VERDICT:Good: Great action sequences, Decent visual effects, Excellent castBad: Many minor flaws in the plot, Little suspenseSCORE: 6.5(blockbusted9.blogspot.com).
First and foremost I know it's appalling that I am giving this a 10 but because I went to watch this movie knowing fully that I ought to disregard the true history of it and the classic Dracula novel from 1897 Gothic horror by Irish author Bram Stoker.
I know there are a lot of bad criticism out there for this movie because it's not gore enough or there isn't enough bloody mess and also some that say that the special effect was a joke but I think it's definitely worth the watch and I think this movie is worthy of being in the "good movie " category.
I'm a huge fan of all these type of movies and I feel that they did an amazing job bringing Dracula to life and a character that actually makes you fear him.
If you are looking for a thriller/horror, this is not the movie for you.Actor casting was superb, the acting was fantastic, the story didn't delve too far into fantasy to put it out of beliefs grasp.
There was not one moment of this movie I didn't enjoy, it was action meets story telling done absolutely right in every way.
Been waiting so long for a good movie with a vampire in it, especially Dracula.
Not too shabby, so it can't be that bad.The Turk reviewers are up in flames, just as the Iranians (they still consider themselves Persians) were, when "300" came out.As if Vlad was a real vampire, Xerxes was really 9 foot tall, and Abraham Lincoln was really killing vampires.Be serious people, look at the movie for its entertainment value.
Dracula Untold is an intense love story that changes everything we know about the world's most famous vampire.
This movie tries to stay true to some of the history behind the classic story of Dracula which is interesting, but also confusing.
I was expecting a cool vampire film with great action and a good intro to Universal's planned cinematic monster shared universe.
I will admit however that I wish the movie had better music and was 30 min longer just to get a little more character development and emotional appeal but hey I got what I was intending which was a fun, cool, vampire flick..
The movie is great and it's quite short hour and half Full of action so you wont be wasting your time it tell how he got his power and a little truth about his life as you have seen in the trailer he try to save his family and his people from the Turks an army of a thousands men who is attacking his castle to kill everyone on there way for revenge or just to act strongit doesn't have a really disturbing scene like too many blood and sex, but you will see dead body and people burn, guess I'm just used on seeing worse like in The Walking Dead .
As his kingdom is being threatened by the Turks, young prince Vlad Tepes must become a monster feared by his own people in order to obtain the power needed to protect his own family, and the families of his kingdom.Any time a Dracula film is made, it has a stigma put upon it.
Watching the movie didn't even felt like that this part is overdone by the director or the acting is not sufficiently done or over sufficiently done it was perfect with no room to spare.The dialogues and the quotations used were excellent and not to mention the computer graphics used for action scenes was amazing.
In this one, the acting was actually pretty good, very visual scenes and overall a fun movie to watch..
Luke Evans was so well placed in the lead role that I am even more surprised that we don't see him in some of the Marvel movies, he would be make a superb super hero or bad guy!Gary Shore should have won an oscar for the directing, if there is one thing that will fail an entire movie it is the directing, again excellent performances from all involved can only be credited to good direction.
So two thumbs up there.In conclusion, watch this movie as if you have no idea about any of the Dracula stories that you may have seen, I guarantee that you will be as thrilled, riveted and fulfilled as was I..
I watched this film yesterday.I saw lots of unreal blaming against to turks and also they used real names in film.First of all Hollywood should research more historical documents.Because Vlad isn't prince of Transylvania.He was the ruler of the Wallache.He never ruled Transylvania.Vlad (dracula the devil) , his own people gave his this name because of while killing people he sits and eats his bread with the real human body dying in front of him.His own people afraid him.He tortured soldiers and innocent people.He rebelled against Ottoman.Ottoman army killed him..
I did like the concept behind "Dracula: untold" and I was expecting an action packed movie, with may be a bit of horror.
This movie was impressive, I liked, it it delivered a good story, good values and high quality effects; overall great entertainment value.
This movie was great, actually made vampires out to be dangerous and scary.I have read the original Dracula book and several biographies on Vlad The Impaler.
Dracula Untold is not a bad tale, with some well-designed action, a unique twist to the plot, and a good variety of elements to keep things interesting.
So I believe the movie is just misusing such concepts in order to gain popularity by hiding them after couple of action scenes.I tried to watch it for the action but just couldn't....Leaving aside such bullshit in the movie and concentrating on the "untold" part of the Dracula story which we learned from this movie is that how affectioned and good family father Dracula was, even if he was a blood drinking monster who sold his soul.
There is some intrigue in its storyline, but Dracula Untold ends up following the cheaper type of suspense.The film starts out promising, there might be some complexity beneath the arc of Prince Vlad: a desperate prince sacrifices himself to be a monster in order to defeat his stronger enemy.
The only actor who brings a real flavor to the film is Charles Dance, who perfectly delivers the classic vampire camp to its dreary looking world.Dracula Untold may as well be similar to another film that came out this year, Maleficent: a villain origin story that turns its character into a misjudged hero.
Vlad here is generally a cold blooded monster, but the film glosses the negative view of it with cool action scenes that makes him look more like a hero.
it's a new story dhaaaa....Good movie with a new idea (i think it's the first medieval superhero ever made) good script, stunning effects and for sure the director or someone else has actually came to Transilvania (that is in Romania not Hungary like the Brawn Stoker said).I can't wait for the sequel!.
But sometimes the world doesn't need another hero, sometimes what it needs is a monster."If you are going to make a film about the origins of one of Hollywood's most fearful monsters then you better have a solid script that focuses on the character development of Dracula rather than over-stuff the film with special effects and action scenes.
Director Gary Shore may have tried to give us an origin story, and he even gave it the title Dracula Untold, but what he really does is deliver another clichéd and familiar action film.
We really don't learn anything new about this classic character in the film other than the fact that he was a good fighter and a loving family man who sacrificed himself to protect the people he cared for.
This film was great,really felt empathy for Dracula,brilliant effects and none stop,acting was good,a nice change to the usual boring vampire flicks Felt more like a superhero movie than a vampire movie, Hope they make a second big thumbs up from me.
But Luke Evans did a fine job playing Dracula and the sets in the movie was pretty spot on, the fights scenes where pretty fun to watch and it was well shot.
The story of Dracula is told in the interesting way, but nevertheless retained the charm.The film has a historical aspect because it shows the horrors of the Turkish conquest of European countries.
But, he has only three days to either use the power and watch it fade away, or become a vampire for eternity if he gives in to the thirst.Dracula Untold was and is a surprisingly sleek and fast-paced tale of love and courage, but because of its pace, it seems like the big themes and moments of the film rush by all too quickly.
But alas, it's simply good at best.Boasting its visual prowess and grit over story-telling, Dracula Untold is neither bad nor great.
Dracula Untold is a fictional take on the story of Vlad the Impaler, as he defended his people from the Turkish invasion.
His power comes at great cost, as he struggles to hide what he has become from his people and his family, as well as resisting the thirst for blood (he is told that if he resists feeding for three days, he will revert back to being human), and therefore must defeat the Turks within that time.Luke Evans has a very commanding presence on screen, and it really shows in this film.
So the bad reviews this movie gets are not substantiated enough.I did not expect much just as the first seconds of the movie started rolling, but with every moment that was passing in the intro part, one can feel this is going to be a great devilish ride in the vampire world.The movie delivers a very fresh look on a subject that has been narrated from all possible artistic angles, and it does so successfully.The story is based only on historical facts that actually happened.
Using real names is a way of saying, "this is how it ACTUALLY happened," at least as much as ANY horror movie has ever been "inspired by true events." Nobody is going to watch this film and take it as a history lesson, if anything it's an "alternate history" (which mind you IS A GENRE) lesson, and if they do take it seriously and fail a test because of it, then they're an idiot.Yes, the script is a bit bland, but this movie is also pretty short.
It isn't so much about WHAT they say, it's about how they say it, and the acting from the main cast is EXCEPTIONAL.Realistically, this movie is about special effects, action, and Luke Evans shirtless, which it all does very well, but not in a "shut your brain off" sort of way.
This movie had it all: history, love, fiction, legend, mystery, thirst, a good cast, great lead actor, powerful delivery, great story telling and emotional charge at several points in the film that would not let you relax, but get you involve in the story, great execution from costumes and make up to the CGI bats and the use of them.I don't know what I can say more.
Straight from the start, this film has the feel of a low budget and yet it had a budget of $70,000,000!Thinking over it now, I actually don't think there was anything I liked about this movie.Even though it has Luke Evans, Dominic Cooper and Charles Dance, it's poorly acted with a terrible script.
There are scenes where the castle is being bombed and yet Vlad (Evans) and Mirena (Sarah Gadon) are standing their macking on each other and posing for glamour shots!Oh don't mind the bombs bombing your castle and your people, I'm sure they don't mind watching you try to eat each others faces off!Aside from having probably the worst version of a vampire I've seen on screen, I think Vlad accepted it too easily and seemed to know what and how to do things very quickly.It has some good special effects – there's one good thing about it.I hate to think that this is (or was) supposed to the beginning of the new cinematic universe for the Universal Monsters.CHAPPY THINKS this story should have stayed untold!.
The original story claims that Dracula became a vampire during his battles with the Turks and this movie picks up on that and tells the story of how that happened.
the story of Dracula origin represents an inspired balance between vampires movie and fantasy.
So I was able to see "Dracula Untold" in theatres today thanks to a contest from Universal Canada, and I'm here to tell you that the movie was honestly much better then I expected.The plot concerns Luke Evans as Vlad Tepes, who was taken from his home in Wallachia as a young lad along with 999 boys to be brutally trained as a Turkish Janissary.
I would also say this is one of my favorite vampire movies i have ever seen.I cannot express enough this does NOT follow the traditional story book tale of Dracula.
Dracula Untold(2014) Starring:Luke Evans, Sarah Gadon, Diarmaid Murtagh, Dominic Cooper, Noah Huntley, and Art Parkinson Written By:Matt Sazama and Burk Sharpless Directed By:Gary Shore Review I believe that if you come in to this movie expecting something else besides fun you won't like it, but if you want to have a good time with some vampires and medieval sword fights and battle then you've come to the right Dracula movie.
The story here in Dracula Untold though is effective to it's points that sometimes to do good we must do bad and unleash the monster within us.
Dracula Untold is a fun effective film with better cg and a story with a good origin in the legend of darkness and blood known as Dracula.
This movie was a major disappointment, especially if you like the story of Dracula.
It was just a shallow movie experience presented in an array of spectacular special effects.I guess director Gary Shore wanted to tell the Dracula story from the warlord's point of view, that being Vlad Tepes.
Being that it is prequel to a great movie like Dracula.
If you look for a historical movie that tells a true story you will not enjoy this.
Luke Evans was a great Dracula and all the supporting cast were also very good.