Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1
Audience Rating: R (Restricted)
Binding: DVD
Brand: Sony
EAN: 0043396129160
Format: Color
Label: Sony Pictures
Languages: Array
Manufacturer: Sony Pictures
MPN: COLD12916D
Number Of Items: 2
Publisher: Sony Pictures
Region Code: 99
Release Date: 2007-10-02
Running Time: 127
Studio: Sony Pictures
Theatrical Release Date: 1992-11-13

Studio: Sony Pictures Home Ent Release Date: 03/25/2008 Run time: 127 minutes Rating: R
With dizzying cinematic tricks and astonishing performances, Francis Coppola's 1992 version of the oft-filmed Dracula story is one of the most exuberant, extravagant films of the 1990s. Gary Oldman and Winona Ryder, as the Count and Mina Murray, are quite a pair of star-crossed lovers. She's betrothed to another man; he can't kick the habit of feeding off the living. Anthony Hopkins plays Van Helsing, the vampire slayer, with tongue firmly in cheek. Tom Waits is great fun as Renfield, the hapless slave of Dracula who craves the blood of insects and cats. Sadie Frost is a sexy Lucy Westenra. And poor Keanu Reeves, as Jonathan Harker, has the misfortune to be seduced by Dracula's three half-naked wives. There's a little bit of everything in this version of Dracula: gore, high-speed horseback chases, passion, and longing.
Francis Ford Coppola's 1992 Bram Stoker's Dracula is a feverishly inventive movie that often overwhelms its own narrative flow, yet proves irresistible to watch. In the high-definition transfer on this two-disc Collector's Edition, Coppola's baroque, operatic set design, costumes, and cinematography look as lavish as they did on the film's first release. The director's grab-bag of visual effects are still bold and unabashed, if often over-the-top, and the actors still appear caught up in a certain hysterical pitch that feels a little forced but can be a lot of fun to watch. Gary Oldman's imaginative performance as the titular vampire carries the weight of Coppola's vision of Count Dracula as a tragic-romantic hero with Christ-like overtones. Keanu Reeves still looks a little lost in the pivotal role of Jonathan Harker, the London clerk who finds himself a prisoner in a Transylvanian castle while a 400-year-old vampire makes a play for his fiancée back home (Winona Ryder). Anthony Hopkins is fearless as a daft Von Helsing, and Sadie Frost is very good as the doomed Lucy.

The second disc in this set includes several good documentaries, including a featurette on the making of the film, involving past and present interviews with the principal artists involved. (Coppola and screenwriter James V. Hart speak persuasively about their commitment to bringing Stoker’s vision to the screen, rather than another revision.) Another documentary, "In-Camera: The Naïve Visual Effects of 'Dracula,'" is a fascinating overview of Coppola’s sometimes-frustrated effort to get the timeless special effects he was seeking. There are also quite a few deleted scenes among the special features, the best of which is an alternative cut to the film’s bloody ending. --Tom Keogh

Customer Rating:
Summary: Fascinating failure
Comment: "Bram Stoker's...." represents the last gasp of Coppola's once-formidable talent. Like "Godfather 1 & 2", "The Conversation", and "Apocalypse Now" (the original release only), this film has personality and style to burn. The difference, and this is nearly fatal, lies in Coppola's casting choices. Clearly Winona Ryder and, especially, Keanu Reeves were chosen to grab a younger audience. That ploy may have worked at the expense of period credibiity and thespian gravitas. I enjoyed Oldman and Hopkins in their scenery-chewing glory, an antidote to the flat readings and performance of Reeves. But, what makes the film remarkable is the production itself: the sets, costumes, score, and old-style "in camera" low tech effects created by Coppola's boy Roman create an absolutely unique vision. Too bad that Coppola, who once famously fought Paramount for Pacino over Redford, and for Caan and Nino Rota, so easily capitulated to get the film made. If that was the sole way to get Columbia to greenlight the project, then it was worth it. However, the casting and, to a lesser extent James Hart's script, prevented "Bram" from being a true classic. And yet, after watching "The Rainmaker" last night, a purely journeyman effort without an ounce of cinematic personality, one longs for another effort as interesting as this "Dracula"

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Customer Rating:
Summary: Dracul
Comment: The Best version of Dracula.... comes with special features and the picture quality is great, get a great sound system and u got it all!!

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Customer Rating:
Summary: Bram Stoker's Dracula
Comment: Bram Stoker's Dracula (Collector's Edition)
A beautiful and tragic love story. The connection between Mina and Dracula is powerful and soulful. You sympathize with Dracula's deep sorrow for having lost the love of his life. Mina is his reincarnated lost love. The costumes, erotic intimations, imagery, and cinematography are breath-taking. The characters are painted in a sophmoric stroke, save for Gary Oldman's portrayal of Vlad/Dracula. He is stunning in this role.

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Customer Rating:
Summary: Dracula: PoMo Version!
Comment: First off, the extra star is for even attempting to make a vampire movie, which people don't do enough of. That being said, I don't know how this ludicrous dud of a movie received 82% positive reviews on Rotten Tomatoes, but I can only surmise that free alcohol was provided at the advance screening. Critics praised it as 'unique' and 'lavish', when what they really should have said was 'tactless' and 'gaudy'. The costumes and sets are ridiculous, including a papal length robe for Dracula and hair that can only be described as a twin mohawk afro. Keanau Reeves provides the final insult, delivering all his lines with what must be the first surfer dude inflected Southern English accent. Anyone expecting a faithful, gothic style adaptation is in for nearly 3 hours of bitterness. Unique indeed!

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Customer Rating:
Summary: Simply Awesome!!!
Comment: Well, what can I say about this movie? The first time I saw it, I wanted to be a vampire. I have seen this movie over aned over again, read the adapted book, and even inspired me to travel to Romania on the "Dracula Tour." Actually, the Romanians don't quite get the obession Americans have with Vlad Tepes "The Impaler" who by all accounts was a real life manical mass murderer. Anyway, the movie is awesome, the music is even more awesome, and the special effects is even more awesom(er) than that. Dracula, who is he? A hero. A monster. A love sick fool. A genius. A madman. A warrior. A prince. This movie is up there on my top ten list of keeper movies.

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