Movie Description
A seductive retelling of the legendary tale, BRAM STOKER'S DRACULA is Francis Ford Coppola's opulent, erotic, blood-filled feast. Count Dracula (played with irresistible intensity by Gary Oldman) reunites with his soul mate, Mina (Winona Ryder), after four centuries. Mina's friend Lucy (Sadie Frost) succumbs to the deadly bite of Dracula while Renfield (Tom Waits), locked in an asylum, eagerly waits for his master's return. Mina's fiancé, Jonathan Harker (Keanu Reeves), with the help of the eccentric Professor Van Helsing (Anthony Hopkins), attempts to save Mina's life and soul before she can become Dracula's eternal bride.
After Dracula attacks Mina's friend Lucy (Sadie Frost), Dr. Jack Seward (Richard E. Grant) calls in the legendary Professor Van Helsing (Anthony Hopkins) to cure Lucy's "disease of the blood." Jonathan escapes from the castle and he and Mina are married while Lucy dies and is resurrected as a vampire. When Dracula appears to Mina in her sleep, she declares her undying love for him. Professor Van Helsing, Jack Seward, and Lucy's fiancé, Arthur Holmwood (Cary Elwes), join Jonathan and travel to Transylvania to destroy Dracula, but Mina tries to save her tortured lover.
Musician Tom Waits appears in the film as Renfield, a Victorian lunatic singing the praises of Dracula. Ornate costume design and lighting awash in shades of blood make this film a seductive and scary must-see.
In his version of the oft-told tale, Francis Ford Coppola takes Bram Stoker's archetypical horror story and accentuates the romantic angle. Blood still flows in large amounts, and Coppola opted to do all the eye-pleasing visual effects in-camera, utilizing shadow puppets, smoke, miniatures, and other time-honored tricks of the trade--creating a visual style not unlike that of a storybook come to life.
| Credits | | Producer: | Charles Mulvehill | | Cast: | Tom Waits |
| Details | | Edition: | 2-Disc Set; Special Edition |
Editorial Reviews
"...[Oldman gives a] virtuoso performance....A veritable hailstorm of visual effects, spectacular action sequences and literary, cinematic and artistic references..."
Sight and Sound - p.42-3 - Pam Cook (02/01/1993)
"...Florid opera wall-to-walled with blood and bizarre mating rituals, the beat is fast and you can bite to it..." -- 3 1/2 out of 4 stars
USA Today - p.1D - Mike Clark
Awards
1992Academy AwardsBest Costume Design, 1992Academy AwardsBest Makeup, 1992Academy AwardsBest MakeupMatthew W. Mungle, 1992Academy AwardsBest Sound Effects Editing
| See an error? Submit a change request |
All rights reserved.
