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5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Dan Curtis' Dracula (1973), 7 Oct 2007
Dan Curtis' Dracula (1973)
After the somewhat laborious version of Dracula by Jess Franco, i found this production by Dan Curtis to be very refreshing, & had the extra bonus of being a first time viewing for me. Veteran actor Jack Palance's list of movie credits down the years is a testament to the quality of his acting skills, & is probably someone many of us will've seen on screen at some point or another. This is the first time i've seen him in a film of this genre, & i was very curious to see how he would portray the infamous Count.
Palance is immediately effective in the role, IMO. He looks of the right kind of age for the part, & the rather quietly spoken Bram Stoker dialogue in his first scene, has an edge of stern gravitas, & the right kind of ambiguity, which gives the character a certain intrigue. As the initial scenes progress, Palance gradually gives his Dracula more of a sense of power despite the softly spoken manner. This Count Dracula seems quite imposing, but in a very subtle way. 15mins in, & was already impressed with Jack Palance.
It's clear that Francis Ford Coppola's 1992 version of Dracula is influenced by this Dan Curtis production. Whilst the scenes at the castle are faithful to the novel, including Dracula reciting his family history long into the night, this is the first movie which tries to engender a measure of sympathy for the character by introducing the concept of Dracula's lost love of centuries past, who bears such an uncanny resemblence to Lucy Westonra, that the Count is clearly struggling to contain his emotions when he is first struck by Lucy's image in Harker's photo. A scene which is very well handled by Jack Palance. This slightly 'romantic' aspect to the character is underscored by a further innovation which Dan Curtis brings to the movie, in the form of a painting at the castle which depicts a horse mounted, sword weilding Dracula as the battling 'Vlad Tepes - Prince of Wallachia' in 1475, with his Lucy lookalike love of his 'natural' life, clearly seen in the background. Although Stoker's novel clearly indicates Dracula's warrior past, this is the first production that makes such a specific link to the historical figure of Vlad the Impaler, which was later made even more implicit in Coppala's 1992 movie.
The attack upon Harker by Dracula's 3 'brides' is dealt with fairly quickly in this movie, & i felt that more could've been made of this scene. There is no seduction involved, - Infact there aren't even any words, they simply attack Harker like 3 wild dogs attacking a victim. However, when Dracula intervenes to stop them, It's the first time we see Dracula in his vampire state, & once again Jack Palance makes the part his own. Dracula here, is very demonic, powerful, & frightening, & the following flashback sequence where we see the 15th century Vlad with his lost love, makes a great contrast. Palance really gives us a sense of the character's anguish.
There's a great atmosphere to the scenes where Harker is lurking around the castle after he's escaped from his room. The incidental music underscores the rising tension very well, & i particularly like the scene where Harker finds Dracula in his crypt, & his attack is cut short by the Count's servants, who leave the him at the mercy of the 3 hissing brides who mercilessly go in for the kill....... Great stuff! And commendations must also be made for Murray's Brown's excellent performance as Harker. Meanwhile, there's a great shot which demonstrates Dracula's arrival in England, where we see a lone dead sailor lashed to helm of the beached ship, cross in hand, - And Dracula stands on the beach in the twilight, his black cape billowing in the wind...... 30mins in, & this movie gets a big thumbs up so far.
Enter Van Helsing, as played here by Nigel Davenport. Davenport gives a good solid portrayal of Van Helsing. Perhaps not the most energised version of the character, but nevertheless a good, solid, & convincing performance. - Especially coming after Herbert Lom's half asleep portrayal in the previous film. I like the scenes where Van Helsing & Holmwood are keeping vigil at Lucy's beside, whilst Dracula exerts his hypnotic influence over Lucy, willing her outside into his clutches. I like dual nature of this scene: On the one hand, Dracula is runited with his lost love, & he kisses her passionately after a slight moment of tenderness. Then, looking as montstrous as ever, the Count inflicts his vampire bite, to which Lucy responds with a suggestively orgasmic reaction which would befit the Hammer Draculas.
Lucy's 'death', & her subsequent vampire rebirth are effective scenes that help to keep this film moving along at a good pace. Holmwood's night time encounter with Lucy, & her eventual staking are also well done, As is Dracula's sheer fury when he finds the dead Lucy, & relives the death of his long dead love. More good scenes for Jack Palance follow when Dracula begins to exact his revenge for Lucy's death, rampaging through the hotel & despatching about a dozen men whilst he's about it. The death toll increases further when the Count turns up to get Mina, killing the butler whilst he's there, but meanwhile Van Helsing & Holmwood are on his trail, & they arrive as Dracula is about to attack Mina. Again Palance dominates his scenes here. I love the sneer of malevolent contempt that Dracula gives Van Helsing, who comes across a bit of wet blanket as he puts up no resistance when the Count tells him to put the cross away. There's also another aspect taken directly from the novel, which hasn't specifically been used in any of the films to date. By making Mina drink his blood from the cut he makes on his chest, Dracula makes her his mental slave, but Van Helsing takes advantage of this & uses her as a medium to track Dracula back to his homeland.
After a race to Dracula's castle, Van Helsing stakes the 3 brides, & he & Holmwood then encounter the vampirised Harker who's very effectively destroyed at the hands of Holmwood. These scenes of the two intrepid vampire hunters investigating the spooky castle are all very well done, & add a lot of eerie atmosphere & tension to the latter part of the film. I liked the final confrontation with Dracula. Again, Palance looks really monstrous as Dracula is wheeling around trying to evade the effects of the large cross that Holmwood is confronting him with. In an echo of the Hammer version, Van Helsing rips down the curtains flooding the room with sunlight. Opting for a different approach to Hammer, & one which reflects the fact that in Stoker's novel, sunlight weakens, but doesn't actually destroy Dracula, the Count doesn't disintegrate in the sunlight. However, in the capable hands of Jack Palance the effect on Dracula is still quite startling & dramatic. He writhes in pain as he is bathed in the sunlight, & after being thwarted in an attempt to get back to his coffin, he's speared through the heart to the upturned table by Van Helsing, & there's a final nod to Vlad Dracula.
Well if you haven't already guessed, i really enjoyed Jack Palance's portrayal of Dracula, & the film as a whole. Unlike it's immediate predecessor, it's a well paced movie, exciting & compelling, with Palance getting some stirling support, particularly from Murray Brown as Harker, Pamela Brown as Lucy, Nigel Davenport as Van Helsing, & Simon Ward as Holmwood. A great addition the Dracula legacy. 8/10
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