The plot of Dracula, directed by Tod Browning in 1931, is closer to Stoker’s original novel. Because of the dialogues and sound, the plot is much easier to understand for me compared with Nosferatu. It omitted some parts of the story which may confuse viewers, such as the reason why Dracula moves to London and how he controls people, etc. The pace of the film and the way the story suddenly ends, seems too flat and too hasty for me. The whole movie is not terrifying at all, instead, the fuzzy relationship between Dracula and Mina adds more romantic feelings, which also becomes the direction of some future vampire movies.
Although the acting of Lugosi as Dracula is somewhat dramatic, he certainly “set the earliest standard for the male vampire.” He styled the male vampire with “the dark clothes and full-flowing red-lined cape, the hair brushed back straight from the forehead, the lips extraordinarily crimson and distended in an eerie smile which reveals abnormally long canines.” Lugosi’s deep voice with accent also makes him somewhat attractive. I think the most successful part of Dracula is it wholly altered people’s impression of a male vampire figure: from former ugly bestial creature to a charming gentleman even with hypnotic power.
