Inquiring minds want to know! Is it Frankie or Drac for you?

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cinemalover
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Inquiring minds want to know! Is it Frankie or Drac for you?

Post by cinemalover »

Two of the silver screen's greatest horror icons are Dracula and Frankenstein (the creature, not the mad scientist). Each has had so many variations on a theme that you could probably never see them all. But, in our hearts, I believe that we are all attracted to one more than the other, for whatever reasons. I have always liked the tux and cape look of an elegant Count. The immortality angle, such as it is, is a fascinating aspect of the vampire. And there are definitely mornings where not being able to see myself in a mirror would not be considered a curse. Vampires or man-made monsters, which one fascinates your imagination and why?
Chris

The only bad movie is no movie at all.
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ken123
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Post by ken123 »

Back in " the old days " local Channel 7 on Sturday nights had " Shock Theatre ", which showed vintage horror films. Drac sure scarred me. :oops:
MikeBSG
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Post by MikeBSG »

I have always been drawn to Frankenstein movies. I love the Universal ones, but I also like the ones from Hammer studios, which are centered on Baron Frankenstein instead of his creations.

The Universal Dracula series is more uneven, but it seems that this was due to things beyond the studio's control. "Dracula's Daughter" is one of my favorites, and I find the 1931 original hard going after the movie leaves Transylvania. "Son of Dracula" is interesting as well, and I love Hammer's "Horror of Dracula" and "Dracula Prince of Darkness." Still, I guess I prefer the vampire in general as an archetype to Dracula specifically.

The 1977 BBC version of "Dracula" with Louis Jordan as Dracula is superb. He looks like a rotted out romantic. (Yet every time I say I like that version, people start singing "Thank Heaven for Little Girls" to me.)
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Post by SSO Admins »

MikeBSG wrote:I love Hammer's "Horror of Dracula" and "Dracula Prince of Darkness." Still, I guess I prefer the vampire in general as an archetype to Dracula specifically.
Christopher Lee made an excellent Dracula.

I love the Hammer films of both Frank and Drac. The Universal series started off great but took a serious dive after a couple of movies, while the Hammers tended to be good until near the end.
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Dewey1960
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Frank & Drac

Post by Dewey1960 »

Even though I much prefer Bela Lugosi to Boris Karloff (I actually enjoy them both, but Bela really moves me), I tend to like the Frankenstein films better than the Dracula films overall. At least the Universal ones. The pacing of the original Dracula is a little ponderous at times (no fault of Bela's) while James Whale kept the first two Frankenstein films moving at a lively clip. But once Karloff shed the Frankenstein makeup, his performances (save THE MUMMY) became pretty tired. Lugosi on the other hand, despite the cheap and often tawdry nature of his later films, seemed to command attention by the sheer and sometimes sole virtue of his presence.
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Post by Mr. Arkadin »

I have always prefered Frankenstien, because of the nature of the role and the thoughts behind the film. Can a man be as God and create life? And what are we to say of his creation?

Karloff also balances the role well between sympathy, pity, and sheer menace. The scene in the windmill where the creator and his creation are looking at each other through the turnstile is remarkable. No words are needed--their faces tell us all.
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dfordoom
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Post by dfordoom »

I love vampire movies, but I'm not a huge fan of either the Universal or Hammer vampire movies.

Favourite vampire movie:
Daughters of Darkness (1971)
nightwalker
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Post by nightwalker »

For me, the Universal Frankenstein films get the nod, mostly because they have a bit more continuity to them. When the word was given from on high to write another sequel, the scriptwriter (Curt Siodmak or whoever) had to come up with a realistic explanation for the Monster's survival from the previous picture. The Dracula movies aren't really a "series" in that sense. They don't really have a continuing character. And just who is John Carradine playing in HOUSE OF FRANKENSTEIN and HOUSE OF DRACULA? Is he playing the Count, his son, or another descendant of Dracula? Is he the same character in both movies? This is never made clear; he's just playing a vampire named Dracula.

The same, as far as the FRANKENSTEIN films, holds true for the Hammer series. I always enjoyed the explanations for how the Baron survived to make more trouble and felt them to be the highlight of the film, and when this point was ignored, as it sometimes was, I felt ripped off.

Although I enjoy the Hammer Draculas, once they determined that Dracula could be revived by dripping some blood on his remains, the script writers tended to rely on this device overly much and didn't seem to put much thought into how else the character could be revived. And also, in some of the later films, the character of Dracula himself seems to be something of an afterthought, added only to make the film more marketable.
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Post by MikeBSG »

As for the Hammer Dracula films, apparently Dracula was not supposed to appear in "Taste the Blood of Dracula," and he was only added in shortly before the movie finished filming. So I can see the problem there.

I've never really understood how the Baron (Peter Cushing) escaped from the guilllotine in "Revenge of Frankenstein," but I think Hammer was pretty good about continuity in its Frankenstein films. The Baron is always older and seems to have lessened his ambitions from film to film. At least that's how it seems to me.
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Post by nightwalker »

Mike,

I had heard that about TASTE THE BLOOD OF DRACULA, but couldn't remember which film it was.

The Baron escaped from the guillotine in REVENGE OF FRANKENSTEIN by "persuading" the priest to take his place and by taking the priest's place and leaving the prison in his clerical garb aided by an "assistant" and possibly a well-placed bribe or two.

Even in some of these films, though, how the Baron survived from the previous film is left unclear. We're never told how he survived the end of EVIL OF FRANKENSTEIN or FRANKENSTEIN MUST BE DETROYED. Nevertheless, I still would give them the nod over the Dracula films.
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Post by MikeBSG »

"Frankenstein Must Be Destroyed" is one of my favorite Hammer films (and horror films in general.) It is quite suspenseful and has a great momentum that builds and builds. I am always amazed when people dismiss it as "ordinary" or "out of date," as if people should have stopped making Gothic horror films the moment "Night of the Living Dead" was released.
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Garbomaniac
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Post by Garbomaniac »

It is a toss up for me. I would take either one at anytime.

Frankenstein, as has been said, has always been a draw for me. I have the Frankenstein trilogy on VHS and watch them every Halloween followed by Young Frakenstein, by Mel Brooks!

As for Dracula, there is only one, Bela. Anything he does as Dracula is ok in my book. I even liked the funny Jim Carey/ Lauren Hutton film, along with George Hamilton's versions, but Bela is truly the only Dracula!
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dfordoom
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Post by dfordoom »

For me, and it's a very personal choice, the ultimate Dracula was Klaus Kinski in Herzog's Nosferatu. He was, as a vampire should be, genuinely alien.
nightwalker
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Post by nightwalker »

MikeBSG wrote:"Frankenstein Must Be Destroyed" is one of my favorite Hammer films (and horror films in general.) It is quite suspenseful and has a great momentum that builds and builds. I am always amazed when people dismiss it as "ordinary" or "out of date," as if people should have stopped making Gothic horror films the moment "Night of the Living Dead" was released.
I totally agree. I would say that FRANKENSTEIN MUST BE DESTROYED is one of the best, if not THE best, of the latter day Hammers. I never cared much for NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD (in any of its incarnations).
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