Dracula (1979)

Romanticized adaptation of Bram Stoker's 1897 classic. Set in 1913 England, the bloodsucking, but handsome, charming and seductive, Count Dracula seeks an immortal bride.

Director:

John Badham

Writers:

Bram Stoker (novel), Hamilton Deane (play),

Stars:

Frank Langella, Laurence Olivier, Donald Pleasence

1 win & 4 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Frank Langella	...	Count Dracula
Laurence Olivier	...	Prof. Abraham Van Helsing
Donald Pleasence	...	Dr. Jack Seward
Kate Nelligan	...	Lucy Seward
Trevor Eve	...	Jonathan Harker
Jan Francis	...	Mina Van Helsing
Janine Duvitski	...	Annie
Tony Haygarth	...	Milo Renfield
Teddy Turner	...	Swales
Sylvester McCoy	...	Walter (as Sylveste McCoy)
Kristine Howarth	...	Mrs. Galloway
Joe Belcher	...	Tony Hindley
Ted Carroll	...	Scarborough Sailor
Frank Birch	...	Harbormaster
Gabor Vernon	...	Captain of Demeter

Storyline

When a ship is wrecked off Whitby, the only survivor, Count Dracula, is discovered lying on the beach by the sickly young Mina Van Helsing, who is visiting her dear friend Lucy Seward. Lucy, her fiancé Jonathan Harker (a solicitor), and her father Dr. Jack Seward (who runs the local asylum) try to make the Count feel welcome to England. The Count quickly takes the life of Mina, and proceeds to romance Lucy, with the intention of making her his greatest bride. Soon after the death of Mina, the Sewards call her father Dr. Abraham Van Helsing to come to their home. As Lucy falls deeper under the spell of the Count, Dr. Van Helsing almost immediately comes to understand that his daughter fell prey to a vampire and discovers the culprit to be none other than the Count himself. Dr. Van Helsing, Dr. Seward, and Harker work together to foil the Count's plans to take Lucy away to his native Transylvania.

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Plot Keywords:

dracula | asylum | vampire | cockroach | tragic villain | 

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Taglines:

Throughout history he has filled the hearts of men with terror, and the hearts of women with desire.

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Genres:

Horror | Romance

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Certificate:

R

Details

Country:

USA UK

Language:

English Dutch Romanian Russian

Release Date:

20 July 1979 (USA)

Also Known As:

Drácula

Filming Locations:

Carlyon Bay, St Austell, Cornwall, England, UK

Box Office

Budget:

$12,164,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Universal Pictures, Mirisch Corporation, The

Technical Specs

Runtime:

109 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Along with Richard Roxburgh and Christopher Lee, Frank Langella is one of only a few actors to play both Dracula and Sherlock Holmes in film & TV.

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Goofs

VanHelsing (surrounded by the men) prepares to "purify" his now 'undead' Mina As Seward and Harker question her actual state, VanHelsing holds up a small mirror for them, insisting Mina casts no reflection. As Jonathan takes the mirror and looks, you can catch a glimpse of her hair and some skin showing. (Original release only.)

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Quotes

[Dr.Seward is sending a message to Van Helsing over the phone]
Dr. Jack Seward: Mina has died... No not *lied*! *Died*!

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Connections

Version of Drácula (1931)

User Reviews

A Gothic masterpiece. The quintessential vampire movie.

After so many years, Lugosi's performance of Dracula wilts into camp, and the overblown Coppola version, while visually stimulating, comes across as so much hyperbole. Oldman was brilliant, but a few of his lines were poorly delivered, almost laughably so.

But Langella was the master of all vampires. His performance reels with sexual presence and a charm and sophistication that renders all other Dracula movies null and void. And why not? He had countless performances on Broadway to perfect his character, and perfect it he did. He insisted on touches, such as never wearing fangs, or never appearing with blood on his face, that added class to the vampire legend and places this version a cut above the rest.

Kate Nelligan (Prince of Tides) was so young and beautiful then and it was easy to believe that she could inspire a love that could transcend death and time. Olivier was already a ghost, and many of the scenes that involved activity no more strenuous than walking actually had to be shot with a stand in. It is rumored that Sir Larry's performance was so frail that impressionist Rich Little actually had to be called in to dub some of Olivier's lines, as he had done for David Niven in his final Pink Panther film, because the originals were virtually unintelligible given the poor health of the actors.

The brooding and regal score by John Williams drives the movie quite nicely. The film was edited by John Bloom, who a couple of years later would edit The French Lieutenant's Woman with a similar feel, and shot by Gil Taylor who shot, among other greats, the original Star Wars. Stoker would have been proud of the final result, particularly so with Langella's masterful and groundbreaking performance that launched a career. Dracula is a Gothic masterpiece that has never been given its due.

In 2004 director Badham decided to release a version in which the color had been drained from the movie, in much the same way as its central character drained color, blood and life from his victims, perhaps an intentional comparison. The "making of" featurette is delightful, and producer Mirisch's hilarious tongue in cheek observation of the "holy water" effect has already been misquoted by earnest IMDb reviewers. The remake is nice, but it was gilding the lily. And although the film was indeed improved by this modification, it had already surpassed any of its would be peers and remains the quintessential vampire movie.