Customer Reviews
dracula 
2008-09-19
so many reviews i couldnt read them all, butt this guy was the greatest actor for count dracula and who directed did superb job. butt the real count dracula lived for real and he did drink blood of the people and he killed them if they crossed him , he was a real count and very rich and mean and had a castle so just in case nobody knows this. this is based on true story
Excellent album ! 2008-09-19
Excellent album for all the tracks it has, not only for the films (English and Spanish version) but also for the documentaries. Don't miss this album if you are a true Bela Lugosi's fan. This special edition for anniversary is of as high quality in its conception. 75 years is easy to say but let's imagine the hard efforts in making the mos famous Holywood's Dracula.
2 Disc Anniversary Set You Can Sink Your Teeth Into! 2008-08-16
I've seen Dracula movies many a time in my day, but I tell ya, nothing like looking at the original! Pick this up! All subsequent Dracula films take their cue from Lugosi.
Universal Pictures made this 75th Anniversary edition, 2 DVD set perfect, that any horror fan/geek would love.
Lugos almost didn't get the part. It's all explained in this DVD. As you know the Stoker story very well, no need to detail it. What I didn't know is that it's loosely based on the Stoker novel. The majority of the film is based on the earlier Broadway screenplay. The letters and articles that Stoker wrote, in a diary style, were little used in the film. The film is in glorious black & white, too.
Other features:
Legend of the Dark Prince was an amazing mini biography of Bela Lugosi, typecast from the start, playing all kinds of madmen and freaks, never made it to the star quality of a Boris Karloff, but every script he was ever given, he played seriously, no matter how bad or crazy that script was.
When you turn on "Monster Tracks", all kinds of trivia pop up during the film, little tidbits, which I highly recommend you activate.
The feature commentaries are interesting but David J. Skal is a bit longwinded. I didn't listen to Steve Haberman's opinions. He's best known for the comedy script, Dracula: Dead and Loving It, a film that closely follows Bela Lugosi's film.
The talkies were still relatively new, so there was not a lot of music in this film - but I think the silence, the brooding and the horror of Dracula really came through on this outing. There is a score by Philip Glass that you can turn on during the DVD movie, but I kept it off. Too distracting.
Disc 2 has the same film, but with Spanish actors. Universal would film their star Lugosi in Dracula during the day, then, using the same sets, Carlos Villarias played Dracula nights. How appropriate. Intro by the gal who played Mina (Eva in the Spanish version), Lupita Tovar Kohner, who married the producer soon after production. She's hot in this film, lots of lace and low cut blouses in the Spanish version. Si, si. The production values in many ways were superior to the English version, but no one can match Bela Lugosi!
The trailers of that time, the posters and a general documentary of Universal horror pictures of the 1930s and 1940s tops the feature parade, nicely done but overly long, by Kenneth Branagh, with Karloff, Lon Chaney, Jr., and even an Abbott & Costello clip (with Bela Lugosi reprising his role).
Other films mentioned:
Abbott & Costello Meet Frankenstein
Dracula (the Frank Langella version)
Plan 9 from Outer Space (Lugosi's last film, sadly).
The blood is the life 2008-08-11
Back in 1931, the gloves came off. American cinema firmly grasps full-fledged horror and all the shadows that surround it. This is such a beautifully shot B&W classic that paved the way for the genre.
Watch The Count glide with commanding grace during his nocturnal exploits. Dark, spellbinding, and terrifying, Director Tod Browning does a masterful job. No graphic horror shots or cheap scares, we've got ATMOSPHERE. Something current horror films are sorely lacking.
Plus you can't forget about Bela. He's outstanding with his mannerisms and cultivated demeanor. And his cold smile and European accent? ICONIC!!
There are far worse things awaiting man than death.
The Optional Philip Glass Soundtrack Finally Makes the Film Accessible, 2008-07-16
There's always going to be a rift when you tamper with a classic film. That's why I think that both this Anniversary Edition and the Legacy Collection edition offer us such a rare opportunity, being able to watch the film with its original soundtrack or the new Philip Glass soundtrack, depending upon our preference. I was initially reluctant to watch with the new soundtrack, believing that classics should generally be left untouched. It was only after more than thirty minutes of viewing, when things were feeling thoroughly tedious, that I changed the soundtrack in utter desperation. What happened next utterly amazed me.
Suddenly, everything clicked and flowed beautifully. I began to discover that, all along, the film had possessed strong acting, rich, expressive shots and lighting, and a compelling story. All it had been missing was momentum. This 1931 film feels very uncomfortable with the concept of sound and, as a result, uses it poorly. Long spaces of silence and little action cause high points to feel jarred and unrelated. More than that, the film simply begins to feel boring. But Glass's soundtrack fixes all of this, bringing out the richness of tone, leveling out seemingly over the top and restrained acting alike, and adding a true sense of momentum and direction to scenes and cuts that formerly felt amorphous and, perhaps, arbitrary. Loyal fans of the film may argue that it was good enough for them to begin with. But, for someone like me, even with a strong affinity for silent and early talking films, "Dracula" shifted from utterly inaccessible to frightfully compelling with the push of a button.
Listen to Them, the Children of the Night... What Music They Make 2008-06-25
The legend of Dracula continues in this gripping, masterful 2-disc edition of cinema's most ominous vampire, digitally remastered for the 75th Anniversary Edition. Relive the horror, the mystery, and the intrigue of the original 1931 vampire masterpiece starring Bela Lugosi and directed by Tod Browning. The inspiration for hundreds of subsequent remakes and adaptations, this classic film launched the Hollywood horror genre with its eerie passion, shadowy atmosphere, and thrilling cinematography. The children of the night are calling…
should have been better 
2008-02-01
The 75th anniversary edition of this horror classic really disappointed me. While it's true that the picture is crisp and sharper than earlier editions its too bright and the sound is disgraceful the famous monsters edition had much better audio I think universal needs to go back to the drawing board on this one If you have a previous edition dont waste your money on this one!
Lugosi' Dracula 2008-01-09
Anyone who grew up watching the old Universal horror films will enjoy this one. It's the transition between silent films and talkies. Lugosi is great & is burned in our minds of the image of Dracula.
Dracula Supreme 2008-01-08
This version of Dracula is a classic and is meant for the purist in Dracula movies. The old movies and classics have so much depth and the acting is supreme.
Great collection 2007-11-30
This is a goldmine for Dracula fans, who can get the original Lugosi classic, the very interesting -- and in some ways superior -- Spanish version filmed along with the English version, and a nice selection of short subjects about Universal studios, Lugosi, and classic horror films in general. A great value.
