"Vlad" is a halfway decent attempt to make an original vampire movie.
**SPOILERS**
In the 15th Century, Vlad Drakul (Claudiu Bleont) is captured and passes on his rule onto his son. He would be called Vlad Drakula, the source of terror around Europe for centuries, until his amulet goes missing. Today, Radescu, (Brad Dourif) an American College professor, arranges for several students to come to Romania to study the legend of Drakul. Sending local guide Adrian (Billy Zane) to pick up the gang, brother and sister Jeff (Paul Popowich) and Alexa Meyer, (Kam Heskin) Linsey, (Monica Davidescu) a Romanian, and Justin, (Nicholas Irons) and after getting introduced to one another, takes them all to the supposed burial site of the legendary figure. Since Adrian can't make the rest of the trip, he asks his friend Mircea (Emil Hostina) to lead them the rest of the way. As they travel along, everyone starts to experience weird dreams of being with Count Dracula. When Linsey reveals the truth of her visit, she puts the rest of the group in danger of Vlad Tepes, (Francesco Quinn) the real life murderer from history.
The Good News: This actually isn't all that bad of a movie. It tries to mix together a historic event about the merciless reign of Count Dracula and a new story involving them being in taken to his resting site and the horror that brings. The opening introduction to the legend of Dracula is handled well, and remains faithful to what actually happened in history. That makes the movie seem that much more genuine when taking a historical figure and translating it into fantasy. It keeps the historic facts accurate, which makes it seem all the more believable and all the more scary. We also have some great scenery here, as this seemed to have been filmed on location in Romania, and that allows the surroundings to shine through, heightening the little bit of tension it has. It needed some more, but the little it has was about right for the film. That's about what the film had going for it: atmosphere. The end has a great example of the atmosphere the film has. Going into detail about it would give away the film, so I won't say anything, but it is easily the best part. The lights, the camera movements, the angles, it's really creepy and is the best part of the movie.
The Bad News: Despite the fact it provides a nice jump, the scene it the hotel was completely unnecessary. It never comes up again in the plot, doesn't really have much going for it except for the jump, stretched it out longer than need be. The ending is kind of a let down, as the photography shifts all over the place from well-in-focus to blurry to quick-cutting style that makes it nearly impossible to figure out what is going on. It's an annoying trick that I hope goes away. This also has a very weird vampire, in that there is no neck-biting involved and it doesn't make sense for traditional vampire fans to do that. It has a slow pace to it, and withe few deaths, it sometimes can take a while to get into it. Other than that, I really didn't find much wrong with it.
The Final Verdict: Dracula could've been more of a threatening persona, as I didn't really feel scared by him, but it still has some great, creepy moments that make it seem like it had potential. It does treat a historical figure with respect, which few films do, but the horror aspect slows it down a little. Worth a look if you enjoy the legend or are interested in him, but be warned that it isn't a traditional vampire movie and that the historical part of him is only relegated to the introduction and a few pieces spread throughout the film.
Rated R: Violence, mild Language, Nudity, two sex scenes, drug use and the on-screen death of an infant.
**SPOILERS**
In the 15th Century, Vlad Drakul (Claudiu Bleont) is captured and passes on his rule onto his son. He would be called Vlad Drakula, the source of terror around Europe for centuries, until his amulet goes missing. Today, Radescu, (Brad Dourif) an American College professor, arranges for several students to come to Romania to study the legend of Drakul. Sending local guide Adrian (Billy Zane) to pick up the gang, brother and sister Jeff (Paul Popowich) and Alexa Meyer, (Kam Heskin) Linsey, (Monica Davidescu) a Romanian, and Justin, (Nicholas Irons) and after getting introduced to one another, takes them all to the supposed burial site of the legendary figure. Since Adrian can't make the rest of the trip, he asks his friend Mircea (Emil Hostina) to lead them the rest of the way. As they travel along, everyone starts to experience weird dreams of being with Count Dracula. When Linsey reveals the truth of her visit, she puts the rest of the group in danger of Vlad Tepes, (Francesco Quinn) the real life murderer from history.
The Good News: This actually isn't all that bad of a movie. It tries to mix together a historic event about the merciless reign of Count Dracula and a new story involving them being in taken to his resting site and the horror that brings. The opening introduction to the legend of Dracula is handled well, and remains faithful to what actually happened in history. That makes the movie seem that much more genuine when taking a historical figure and translating it into fantasy. It keeps the historic facts accurate, which makes it seem all the more believable and all the more scary. We also have some great scenery here, as this seemed to have been filmed on location in Romania, and that allows the surroundings to shine through, heightening the little bit of tension it has. It needed some more, but the little it has was about right for the film. That's about what the film had going for it: atmosphere. The end has a great example of the atmosphere the film has. Going into detail about it would give away the film, so I won't say anything, but it is easily the best part. The lights, the camera movements, the angles, it's really creepy and is the best part of the movie.
The Bad News: Despite the fact it provides a nice jump, the scene it the hotel was completely unnecessary. It never comes up again in the plot, doesn't really have much going for it except for the jump, stretched it out longer than need be. The ending is kind of a let down, as the photography shifts all over the place from well-in-focus to blurry to quick-cutting style that makes it nearly impossible to figure out what is going on. It's an annoying trick that I hope goes away. This also has a very weird vampire, in that there is no neck-biting involved and it doesn't make sense for traditional vampire fans to do that. It has a slow pace to it, and withe few deaths, it sometimes can take a while to get into it. Other than that, I really didn't find much wrong with it.
The Final Verdict: Dracula could've been more of a threatening persona, as I didn't really feel scared by him, but it still has some great, creepy moments that make it seem like it had potential. It does treat a historical figure with respect, which few films do, but the horror aspect slows it down a little. Worth a look if you enjoy the legend or are interested in him, but be warned that it isn't a traditional vampire movie and that the historical part of him is only relegated to the introduction and a few pieces spread throughout the film.
Rated R: Violence, mild Language, Nudity, two sex scenes, drug use and the on-screen death of an infant.