Dracula (1931)

When I was a little boy I had an extreme fascination with vampires. Of course, this was before the nonsense of Anne Rice and Twilight, not that I would have really been aware of such things. I had a real fascination with the classic image of the vampire--I still do. They are romantic and dark, there is nothing loud or boorish about them; they possess a certain sensibility.

"Nosferatu" was the first of the Vampire films, but it would be Bela Lugosi's classic portrayal of Dracula which would immortalize the image of the monster in cinema, yet to be replaced. His masterful command of the screen, his thick, rolling voice, and above all else his eyes so fully capture the essence of what the vampire is that he transcends a mildly mediocre story to make it one of the screen greats.

Count Dracula, with the help of a real estate agent Renfield, decides to move to London for reasons unexplained. Transylvanian locals warn Renfield that the count is a vampire, but what sort of self-respecting, modern Englishman would believe such backward, central European superstition? The rumors are well-founded, however, and an evil is unleashed onto English streets.

Deaths begin to occur in alarming numbers and it is only when Dr. Van Helsing (Edward Van Sloan) enters the picture that the idea of the vampire is entertained and fingers pointed at Dracula. It becomes a race against the sun to stop the count before he is able to turn the lovely Mina into another vampire wife for himself.

What is so wonderful about this film is the way it has harnessed what makes a vampire so chilling. It is not like the wolf man who scares us by a primal fear of beasts, being ripped to shreds and that blood chilling sound of a howl. Lugosi and director Tom Browning fashioned a character that not only seemed half-crazed with those demonic eyes and that stately step, but he is suave and disarming as well.

The entire movie is about the quiet and the shadow, mists and street lamps. A sudden bat is a silent intruder, bringing death with the billow of a cape, not with a snarl and a scream. It works so well because it contains the air of mystery that I think of when I contemplate the old country of Romania.

Beyond Bela, credit for the dramatic atmosphere must be given to the art director and especially to the lighting designer. Rarely have a seen a film do reliant and the use of lighting in setting tone as this one and it is done spectacularly. One has only to examine the way in which the tiny lights shone on Lugosi change the way we perceive him to understand that this film would not be anything of consequence without it.

This is a great film--a classic, as cliched as that word is--and perfect for All Hallow's Eve. Certainly it isn't scary for we are far too numb to violence and gore to be afraid of a death that takes place off screen. But Lugosi's eyes truly are unforgettable, which I think was all he ever wanted. I am absolutely a fan and one of his children of the night.

3.5/4