The film starts off extremely well with a visit to Dracula's castle in Transylvania. Then the movie moves to London and falls apart. For one thing, they changed the characters from the novel--Jonathan Harker went to Castle Dracula not Reinfield and everybody stands around talking about things. EVERYTHING is talked about, never shown. It's like watching a very static stage play. Also, a woman (Lucy) becomes a vampire early on. She's discussed...then ignored. It seems she's still wandering around after the movie ends! Also David Manners is very very good-looking as Harker, but his acting is bad. It's not entirely his fault--he has few lines and they're all pretty bad. Still, it should be seen for three reasons--Bela Lugosi, Dwight Frye and Edward Van Sloan. Lugosi is, of course, Dracula. He gives a great performance (hard to believe he was doing the lines phonetically) and his interpretation defined Dracula. Frye is really creepy (and funny) as Reinfeld--that laugh of his is REAL spooky! And Edward Van Sloan plays Van Helsing perfectly. Only Peter Cushing did a better job in the Hammer films. Also, Helen Chandler has one great moment playing Mina. She's under Dracula's spell and is hungrily looking at her boyfriend's neck! So, if you're a horror fan (like me) this is essential viewing, but expect lots of dull stretches when those three aren't on. Let's go listen to the children of the night...
