Dario Argento's Dracula – IFC Independent Film (Blu-ray/3-D)

Theatrical Release Date: Italy/France/Spain, 2012
Director: Dario Argento
Writers: Dario Argento, Enrique Cerezo, Stefano Piani, Antonio Tentori
Cast: Thomas Kretschmann, Marta Gastini, Asia Argento, Unax Ugalde, Miriam Giovanelli, Rutger Hauer, Maria Cristina Heller, Giovanni Franzoni, Riccardo Cicogna, Christian Burruano, Alma Noc

Release Date: January 28th, 2014
Approximate running time: 110 Minutes 4 Seconds
Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1 Widescreen / 1080 Progressive / MPEG-4 AVC
Rating: NR
Sound: DTS-HD 5.1 English, LPCM Stereo English
Subtitles: English SDH, Spanish
Region Coding: Region A
Retail Price: $29.98

“It s been 400 years since Count Dracula’s beloved Dolingen De Gratz passed away, leaving the immortal bloodsucker forever abandoned. But when he discovers that local newlywed Mina Harker bears a striking resemblance to Dolingen, his furious yearning is reawakened as he believes Mina to be a reincarnation of his beloved. Luring her husband Jonathan away to his castle with the help of his minion (and Mina’s best friend) Lucy, Dracula embarks on a bloody quest to reunite with his long lost love and live forever with her in hellish immortality. Only the arrival of vampire expert Abraham Van Helsing can put an end to the fiend’s unholy plan.” – Synopsis provided by the Distributor

Video: 4.25/5

Dario Argento's Dracula comes on a 50 GB dual layer Blu-ray.

Disc Size: 46.3 GB

Feature: 34.3 GB

Image clarity, contrast, and black levels look strong throughout, colors are vibrant and flesh tones look correct, and there are no issues with compression. Included with this release is an option to watch the 3-D version of the film. For this review, I did not watch this version since I don’t have a 3-D setup.

Audio: 4.25/5 (DTS-HD 5.1 English, LPCM Stereo English)

This release comes with two audio options, a DTS-HD 5.1 mix in English and a LPCM stereo mix in English. Both audio mixes are in great shape; dialog comes through clearly, everything sounds balanced, ambient sounds are well-represented, and the score sounds robust. It should be noted that the Behind-the-Scenes featurette included as part of this release features the cast speaking in Italian. It’s a shame that the Italian language track was not included as part of this release, since several actors were obviously not speaking English and dubbed. This release comes with two subtitle options: English SDH and Spanish.

Extras:

Extras for this release include a theatrical trailer (1 minute 28 seconds, LPCM stereo English, no subtitles), a Red Band theatrical trailer (1 minute 47 seconds, LPCM stereo English, no subtitles), Kiss Me Dracula music video (5 minutes 10 seconds, DTS-HD stereo English, no subtitles), and a Behind-the-Scenes featurette (63 minutes 53 seconds, LPCM stereo Italian and English with removable English subtitles).

Other extras include trailers for other titles also available from IFC Independent Film.

Summary:

Bram Stoker’s Dracula is one of horror literature’s most celebrated novels. And since the early days of cinema, there have been adaptations of Dracula. With the first adaptation being F.W. Murnau’s Nosferatu in 1922. Nine years later, Tod Browning would direct the first official Dracula adaptation. And though there have been many adaptations since Tod Browning’s Dracula, his adaptation is still widely regarded as the definitive portrayal of Dracula. With many of the elements introduced in his adaptation being carried over in future adaptations.

When one discusses Italian genre cinema, there are few directors who are more recognizable than Dario Argento. He’s had a career that’s spanned five decades, though he’s most known for his work within the thriller genre. The most celebrated film, Suspiria, is arguably Italian cinema’s best horror film. Having said that, Dario Argento has remained active for the majority of his five-decade career. His adaptation of Dracula is only his twentieth feature film and, to date, his last feature film.

On paper, the idea of Dario Argento adapting Dracula should have been a perfect match. Unfortunately, Dracula, like all of Dario Argento's films, suffers from a lack of resources since Opera. And nowhere is this more glaring than when it comes to this film’s use of CGI.

Issues with CGI aside, if you’re a fan of Dario Argento, there’s plenty to enjoy in this film. That being said, visually, Dario Argento’s Dracula is his most satisfying film since Sleepless, since this film reunites him with cinematographer Luciano Tovoli. They had previously collaborated on Suspiria and Tenebrae.

When discussing the films of Dario Argento, his films are most remembered for their killing scenes. Despite the fact that the kill scenes in Dario Argento’s Dracula are not his most ferocious or innovative, they’re sufficiently gory. With the scene where Dracula confronts a group of townsmen who are plotting to betray their previous agreement with Dracula.

Most of the performances are very good, especially Thomas Kretschmann (The Stendhal Syndrome) in the iconic role of Dracula. He delivers a commanding performance that’s equally seductive and ferocious. Other notable cast members include Asia Argento (The Phantom of the Opera) in the role of Lucy Kisslinger and Rutger Hauer (Blade Runner, The Hitcher) in the role of Van Helsing.

Though Dario Argento does not stray that far from Bram Stocker’s source novel, There are little flourishes throughout this film that could have only come from the mind of Dario Argento. And throughout the film, there are several references to other Dracula films, most notably Hammer Films take on Dracula.

Dario Argento’s Dracula gets a strong release from IFC Independent Film.

Written by Michael Den Boer