Dracula on the BBC

[The Grumpy Celt]

...I wait for the day that someone decides to do Dracula more or less as it is written, at least as far as the main points of the plot are concerned...

PBS did a surprisingly accurate miniseries in the 1970s, which feels rather sedate and dated now.

So, this new version was a let down?

 

[Templetroll]

Desperate to find a cure for his syphilis, Lord Holmwood (Dan Stevens) seeks out an occult priest, Singleton (Donald Sumpter), who tells him of Count Dracula (Marc Warren) – a legendary being with extraordinary powers who lives in Transylvania.

If Dracula could be persuaded to come to England, he could cleanse him of his corrupted blood..

Wait a minute.... what is Dracula supposed to do, drink the corrupted blood and leave nice clean blood? well, except for the vampiric spawn child of the night thing, of course.

 

[LiKral]

...I wait for the day that someone decides to do Dracula more or less as it is written, at least as far as the main points of the plot are concerned...

I agree. This BBC version was like some deranged fanfic. It bore very little resemblence to the book apart from the name. Frankly, it would have done better as an original vampire tale rather than shoehorning in elements of Dracula to give it a marketable spin.

 

[sniffles]

I actually thought it stuck fairly close to the novel, except for the inclusion of Lord Holmwood and his backstory. I could have done without that. But I still enjoyed it overall. It wasn't great, but it wasn't bad.

I really like Marc Warren now. But David Suchet wasn't in it enough.

 

[nerfherder]

...I wait for the day that someone decides to do Dracula more or less as it is written, at least as far as the main points of the plot are concerned...

"Bram Stoker's Dracula" was actually very close to the book on most points, which made the whole bit about "love across time" so jarring.

I enjoyed the BBC production. The script, acting and plot were generally pretty decent. Marc Warren was excellent - that's the second thing I've seen Marc Warren in recently, the other being Hogfather. Sophie Myles was rowr! Worth catching if you want to see a decent Victorian vampire tale, and aren't bothered by the fact that it isn't Dracula exactly by the book.