THROUGHOUT HISTORY HE HAS FILLED THE HEARTS OF MEN WITH TERROR, AND THE HEARTS OF WOMEN WITH DESIRE.
Whitby, England, 1913; the Romanian count Dracula (Frank Langella) is moving into a newly purchased home, but his arrival also brings unspeakable horrors. A screen adaptation of the 1920s play that was based on Bram Stoker’s classic novel. The many changes to the story are pointless but harmless; one could argue that they do bring some freshness to the concept. Less creative than another Dracula story of the same year, Nosferatu the Vampyre, but still entertaining in John Badham’s hands. Langella’s intense performance as the suave count and John Williams’s score are bonuses.
1979-U.S. 109 min. Color. Widescreen. Directed by John Badham. Play: Hamilton Deane, John L. Balderston. Music: John Williams. Cast: Frank Langella (Dracula), Laurence Olivier (Abraham Van Helsing), Donald Pleasence (Jack Seward), Kate Nelligan, Trevor Eve, Janine Duvitski.
Trivia: Pleasence was originally offered the part of Van Helsing.
