Dracula (1931) [thought lost but found; old entry from old blog]
Universal Studios produced Dracula in 1931. It starred Bela Legosi in his most famous role. The role he will be remembered forever. His image has become the image of Dracula himself. That is a remarkable thing for a hack Hungarian actor that should otherwise be forgotten, but now the movie.
The 1931 version of Dracula was based off a stage play. It featured very little real scare. The vampire has no fangs. You never see him turn into a bat or bite a neck. He is supposed to be sexy and women want him. The character names are mixed up. Lucy and Mina are interchanged. Also Dr. Seward becomes Lucy’s father. The movie ends with Dracula’s staking in Carfax Abby instead of Castle Dracula. Renfield, one of the greatest minor characters ever is in this production.
The real star of the movie in my opinion is Renfield . The actor who performs him does a very good job. He later played Fritz in Frankenstein. He did not have very many parts or scenes in the movie. Renfield gives it a good go with the scenes he has.
Dr. Van Helsing in this movie is not very good. He is not the sly and wily character from the book. He isn’t even Dutch.
The movie give us the eternal archetype of the vampire. Legosi’s character will forever be the vampire, even if the acting was very bad.