- Bela Lugosi is...Dracula! The movie surrounding him is a decent, if occasionally slow-paced, adaptation of the novel (or rather, the play based on the novel), but its real accomplishment was to launch the career of one of the horror genre's most famous actors. I've never been able to decide whether Lugosi was genuinely talented or if he just had the right look and voice, but ultimately it doesn't matter. He was a good enough fit to the part that he would play it (or similar roles) again and again for the following 25 years.
- As for the film itself, Dracula is a mixed bag. The set design is really outstanding and the direction occasionally masterful. Lugosi is, of course, brilliant as Dracula, Edward Van Sloan is convincing as his antithesis, the esteemed Dr. Van Helsing, and Helen Chandler is good enough as Mina, Dracula's unwitting victim. Despite all of these positive attributes, however, the film has plenty of boring stretches. How many times must we watch the mad Renfield (Dwight Frye) escape? The book had sense enough to keep his part small, but the film is much too eager to showcase his scenery chewing. Fans of the novel (including myself) will further lament the fact that Renfield is substituted for Jonathan Harker (David Manners) in the scenes at Dracula's castle, although neither actor is particularly captivating. No, the real star is Dracula himself, and the film has an unfortunate way of lagging when he isn't around. Fortunately, Lugosi lurks onscreen for enough of the film's 75 minute runtime that Dracula often manages to be pleasantly frightening.
- Bela Lugosi also starred in the play version of Dracula.
- Dwight Frye also played Fritz, the dwarf in Frankenstein, making him the go-to guy for monster assistants in the 1930's.
