#52 BRAM STOKER'S DRACULA

Starring Gary Oldman, Winona Ryder, Anthony Hopkins, Keanu Reeves, Sadie Frost, Richard E. Grant, Cary Elwes, Tom Waites, Monica Bellucci and Billy Campbell. Written by James V. Hart. Directed by Francis Ford Coppola.
Music by Mojciech Kilar. budget $40 million. Running time 128 minutes.

When Vlad Dracula the Impaler returns from a holy war against the Turks to discover the love of his life and wife is dead, having taken her own life, when she was misinformed that he was dead, he is somewhat crestfallen. However when his head priest tells him she's going straight to hell he proper loses his rag, desecrates the alter, renounces God and curses the almighty right to his stupid face, thus cursing himself to roam world looking to revenge his wife. 

Sticking closely to the book in terms of its plot, this film is as theatrical as the title. it's a glorious, over-egged delight of a movie, heavily stylised, art directed and lit and embracing as much Victorian melodrama as it can. Filmed using only practical effects and in shot trickery and also studio bound except for a few location shots all helps it achieve a wonderful 'other-wordly' quality. Gary Oldman is brilliant in this channelling his own personal real-life demons to bring some real passion and humanity to the role of Dracula. Likewise Winona Ryder positively pants under the weight of Victorian repressed sexuality as Mina Harker and Elisabeta, Drac's long dead wife. No one brings anything other than an 11 to the proceedings and the film is a wonder because of that. Even poor Keanu Reeves forever ridiculed for his role as Jonathan Harker is good and after all this time, it's hard to remember why he was vilified as much as he was. 

Sadie Frost as Lucy Westenra brings some real raunch to the role of the staggering horny heiress with three suitors - Richard E. Grant, Cary Elwes and Bill Campbell. And her transformation into a vampire is deeply chilling.

It's been 30 years since this last graced the big screen and definitely that long since I've last seen it on the big screen and boy did I enjoy it. So satisfying to see a film made by one man and his obsessive-driven drive and I realise that many craftsmen and artist worked on this, but it was Coppola's baby all along. 

This is a wonderfully over-the-top production, filmed on a studio backlot somewhere without a single optical or digital effect. With a cast as wonderous and a script that never slows down this was a wonderful and delightful movie! 

9/10