Dracula: My Hypothetical Movie Casting
Today in the Gothic Literature class I’m in, we started our discussion of Dracula by Bram Stoker. While we did the usual discussion of Jonathan Harker’s uselessness, Mina Murray’s man brain, Dracula’s foreignness, and the many ways in which one can read the text, we additionally talked about the four prominent movie adaptations of the book: Nosferatu (1922), Dracula (1931), Horror of Dracula (1958),and Bram Stoker’s Dracula (1992). However, after listing these movies, we discovered that an adaptation of the novel hasn’t come out in the past 20 years that even tries to be faithful to the original story (there was the ill-fated Dracula 2000 with Gerard Butler… but yeah…). So we were tasked with casting a movie if we got the opportunity to pick anyone to be in our version of said hypothetical movie. Therefore, my list that I am posting below was born. I think that each of the actors that I’ve placed in certain roles would be able to bring a certain truthfulness to the movie that would resound well with the novel itself. Moreover, I know that some of my choices are a little odd, but I feel that each of the people that I picked would something to the characters that would make them memorable in some way. I hope you enjoy thinking about this as much as I did. 🙂
Dracula Cast List
Dracula— Michael Fassbender
Jonathan Harker— James McAvoy
Dr. Seward— David Tennant
Lord Arthur Holmwood— Matthew MacFadyen
Quincy Morris— Robert Downey Jr.
Abraham Van Helsing— Ian McKellen
Lucy Westenra— Rachel McAdams
Mina Harker— Gemma Arterton
Renfield— Andy Serkis
Bride #1— Kiera Knightly
Bride #2— Natalie Portman
Bride #3— Claire Danes
I have my reasons for placing certain people in certain roles. Moreover, I know that some of them could occupy many different roles in the grand scheme of things.
I miss the old classic horrors like Dracula. The twenty-first century’s idea of a horror novel is seriously disappointing and more often than not, executed with stupidity and transparency. It’s all about gore and cheap thrills, these days. I actually wrote about this the other day, if you’re interested: http://freepagenumbers.wordpress.com/2012/02/21/oh-horror-what-happened-to-you/
I would definitely be interested in seeing your hypothetical version of Dracula! Interesting post!
The Dandy Lion
February 21, 2012 at 11:50 pm
I agree. I do miss the classic horror novel feeling that many modern horror novels and movies are lacking. However, I will admit that I do like a good slasher flick (by good I mean that it can’t all be about bust and butt or a complete gore-fest… it actually needs to have some substance). Yet I am not a fan of the more modern appearance of torture porn like the Hostel movies or The Humancentipede.
Conversely, I am interested in the more modern horror that shifts from the perspective of human protagonists to put us behind the monsters eyes. I think that Anne Rice (and others like her) does a good job of this in all of her novels that deal with supernatural creatures. By operating from the monster’s perspective, I feel that she echoes Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein by exploring more of the creature dynamic.
I think that modern horror should be about revising and rethinking the classics but that they shouldn’t get so far off base (Twilight) that the creatures lose their inanimate menace and become playful, sparkling critter. 🙂
barryr22
February 22, 2012 at 12:36 am
You have some really good points – perhaps I’m too quick too judge today’s horror, jaded from my poor but limited experiences. But I completely agree – the modern horror needs to take some time to reflect on where its focus ought to be.
The Dandy Lion
February 22, 2012 at 12:50 am
Yeah, exactly… I also think that modern horror writers should read some of the classics before they start producing some crappy, half-baked novel or movie…
barryr22
February 22, 2012 at 12:52 am
Dracula 2000 captured Gerard Butler with the wind ruffling his unbuttoned shirt at least six times. Wait, I forgot what I was going to say.
shaggerty
February 22, 2012 at 12:57 pm
I think that Dracula 2000 did some interesting things… however, it didn’t follow the source material at all… I don’t know if the fluttery shirtless Gerard Butler did anything for me… But seeing Capt. Von Trap kick some vampire ass was interesting. 🙂
barryr22
February 22, 2012 at 1:51 pm
Well, it gave the characters the names and the situations (kinda) from the book….
barryr22
February 22, 2012 at 1:52 pm