Dracula (1931)
#77 on my Top 100 List
In today's day and age of vampire pop culture overload, one thing stands out about this film. It was made in 1931 and therefore they really had no way to doing any kind of vampire special effects. There are no bumpy brow ridges like in Buffy the Vampire Slayer, no retractable fangs like in True Blood and no golden eyes and sparkly skin like in Twilight. All of the creepiness in the movie comes entirely from the lighting and production design. The gothic spires of Dracula's castle, the cobwebs in the basement where his coffin lies, the one strip of light that always falls across his eyes - these are the signs of good filmmaking. You take what you have access to and really making something of it. The man who plays Renfield has a laugh so crazy that it makes your skin crawl and what dialogue there is in the film seems almost out of place, like talking in a library.
My Netflix rating: 5 stars
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