dracula 2000

'Saw IV' Brings To Mind The Greatest Horror Franchises Of All Time, In Rewind
Send to Friend
Print
From 'Frankenstein' To 'Scream,' these creepy series don't recycle their scares.
By Karl Heitmueller

Del.icio.us Digg Newsvine Send to Friend Print You Tell Us

You know you've got a powerful movie franchise if it can survive the death of its main character. Such would seem to be the case with "Saw IV," which opens this weekend despite the demise of the sadistic Jigsaw in the third installment. As Halloween approaches, step into the iron maiden with us as we revisit some other knife-wielding maniacs and unstoppable monsters, counting down the greatest horror-film series of all time.

"Scream"
In 1996, realizing that cynical audiences had seen it all, Wes Craven decided to craft a postmodern horror film, the self-referential "Scream." As the murderous Ghostface stalks characters who are fully aware of, yet still complicit in, the standard behavior of teen slasher-film victims, the movie becomes ironically unpredictable. Audiences weren't sure how to react to this horror-comedy hybrid, but the film was a smash, and the first sequel again slyly turned conventions of the genre upside-down, with "Scream 2" (1997) satirizing horror sequels via the film-within-the-film, "Stab," based on the events of "Scream." But by the release of the convoluted "Scream 3" (2000), the series had become what it originally so smartly satirized, so Ghostface was happily retired (at least for now).

"Alien"
What makes the uneven "Alien" franchise noteworthy is how the sequels' respective filmmakers managed to avoid remaking the same movie over and over. Following Ridley Scott's superb original outer-space-haunted-house flick "Alien" (1979), James Cameron's 1986 sequel, "Aliens," replaced suspense with all-out action. David Fincher's much-maligned "Alien 3" (1992) is a bleak (but not bad) prison film, while Jean-Pierre Jeunet's lamentable "Alien: Resurrection" (1997) made audiences wish the franchise had stayed dead. But you can't keep a good face-hugger down, and (not counting the "Alien vs. Predator" spinoffs), rumors persist that the acidic-blood-dripping, multiple-mandibled killers will return to the big screen. Let's just hope Winona Ryder is busy.

"The Omen"
The original "Omen" trilogy follows the life of Satan-spawned Damien Thorn from demonic tot-hood to his adult ascendancy toward world domination. Richard Donner's "The Omen" (1976) is a spectacularly chilling portrait of apple-cheeked evil, and 1978's "Damien: Omen II" manages to make the teenage Damien both terrifying and sympathetic. Sadly, 1981's "The Final Conflict" brings an unsatisfying conclusion to the series as the adult Damien (Sam Neill) sets out to kill the second coming of Christ while being stalked by dagger-toting priests. The film has no style, and the awkward (but inevitable) climax has a cheesy "Left Behind" feel. Only time will tell if last year's remake of the first film will spawn further misadventures of the young Antichrist.

The Hannibal Lecter series
Boy, talk about a mixed bag. Let's skip both Michael Mann's stylish "Manhunter" (1986) and this year's prequel "Hannibal Rising" and focus on the films in which the charming, erudite serial killer is portrayed by Anthony Hopkins. Jonathan Demme's "Silence of the Lambs" shocked everyone in 1991, not just with its terrifying depiction of malevolence (and chauvinism), but by winning the top five Oscars. Less-regarded was the Ridley Scott-helmed sequel, "Hannibal" (2001), which made the mistake of turning the cannibalistic killer into the film's hero. Brett Ratner's "Red Dragon" (2002) goes back to a time when Hannibal was still behind bars, simultaneously aiding and manipulating FBI agents. But despite the varying quality of the films, Hopkins' Lecter remains a consistent joy to behold, a pitch-perfect inhabiting of a role that makes for one of the most mesmerizing characters in film history.

Universal's "Frankenstein"
In the 1930s and '40s, Universal Pictures was the home to such horror icons as Dracula, the Wolf Man, the Mummy and the monster created by the good Dr. Victor Frankenstein. While each spawned sequels, the "Frankenstein" films were more than virtual rehashes. Following the iconic 1931 original, directed by James Whale and starring Boris Karloff as the tortured patchwork man, 1935's "Bride of Frankenstein" took the genre to new heights. Surreal, funny, tragic, beautiful and scary, the movie remains deliriously mind-warping over seven decades later. Following 1939's lesser "Son of Frankenstein" (the last to star Karloff), the monster would return in five more Universal features, played by Universal Horror stalwarts Lon Chaney Jr., Glenn Strange and Bela Lugosi, the last most notably in 1948's funny-but-somewhat-derisive "Abbot and Costello Meet Frankenstein." Frankenstein's monster would be resurrected dozens more times over the years, but it's this version that's the most memorable.

"Psycho"
While the last two films (the third a mere slasher flick and the final a made-for-TV movie) are certainly dispensable, the first two "Psycho" films are great enough to land the serial killer with mommy issues on our list. Nobody needs to be convinced that Alfred Hitchcock's "Psycho" (1960) is one of the greatest thrillers of all time, with Anthony Perkins' indelible portrait of deceptively benign madman Norman Bates anchoring scenes of shocking violence (and sexuality) set to Bernard Herrmann's iconic all-strings score. But 1983's "Psycho II" is a vastly underrated film, with Norman (again Perkins) just released from a psychiatric institution and struggling to rebuild his life while being psychologically tormented by the vengeful sister of the legendary shower-scene victim. Genuine suspense, some biting commentary on changing social mores, more shocks and a surprising twist ending make this a worthy sequel to the classic original.

Hammer Films' "Dracula"
In 1958, independent studio Hammer Films released "Horror of Dracula," starring Christopher Lee as a more dashing bloodsucker than audiences were used to in a loose adaptation of Bram Stoker's 1897 novel. "The Brides of Dracula" (1960) stars David Peel as Baron Meinster, a pretty-boy disciple of the count who is utterly lacking in Lee's presence. Thankfully, Hammer lured the future Count Dooku back into the cape and fangs for six more stylish, sexy vampire flicks, starting with "Dracula: Prince of Darkness" (1966) and culminating in "The Satanic Rites of Dracula" (1973). We will not discuss 1974's kung-fu-vampire hybrid, "Legend of the 7 Golden Vampires."

"The Evil Dead"
Sam Raimi's 1981 thriller "The Evil Dead" came along at just the right time. Mindless, repetitive slasher films were all the rage, and the infusion of wit and style provided by the inaugural adventure of Ash (our hero, Bruce Campbell) battling the Book of the Dead gave the horror genre a much-needed boost. In 1987, "Evil Dead II" (sequel or remake? You decide!) was even more over-the-top, with Raimi's imagination given free reign and a bigger budget. "Army of Darkness" (1992) took Ash back to 14th-century England in a slightly less-fulfilling installment, but we can barely contain the drool over the prospect of a possible "Evil Dead IV," something that Raimi (now a Hollywood A-lister thanks to "Spider-Man") has said is a possibility.

George Romero's "Dead" series
It's impossible to overstate the impact of George Romero's classic 1968 black-and-white zombie flick "Night of the Living Dead." With its brilliant simplicity, groundbreaking casting and utterly believable characters, the movie is a timeless chunk of sheer terror. "Dawn of the Dead" (1978) used zombies in a mall to make a then-daring comment on mindless consumerism while remaining scary and exciting. In 1985, "Day of the Dead" set the flesh-eating on an Army base, a not-so-subtle condemnation of Reagan-era militarism. Two decades later, Romero returned to his undead roots with 2005's disappointing "Land of the Dead." Even if the upcoming "Diary of the Dead" stars Vanessa Hudgens as a perky teen zombie, it probably won't tarnish the legacy of those original films.

Yes, we know, we skipped some biggies. For all you fans of Freddy, Jason, Pinhead, Michael Myers, Chucky and pale, bug-eyed Japanese children, we're sorry, but endlessly repeated formulas do not great franchises make. We can hear you sharpening your knives (and glove blades) already.

Check out everything we've got on "Saw IV."

Visit Movies on MTV.com for more from Hollywood, including news, reviews, interviews and more.

For breaking news, celebrity columns, humor and more ― updated around the clock ― visit MTVMoviesBlog.com.

Want trailers? Visit the Trailer Park for the newest, scariest and funniest coming attractions anywhere.





News articles


'Saw IV' Brings To Mind The Greatest Horror Franchises Of All Time ...MTV.com
- Oct 23, 2007
- 5 hours ago
In the 1930s and '40s, Universal Pictures was the home to such horror icons as Dracula, the Wolf Man, the Mummy and the monster created by the good Dr. ...
clipped from Google - 10/2007
What's On Tonight: Prison Break, Journeyman, CalifornicationTV Squad, USA
- Oct 23, 2007
- 8 hours ago
Tonight at 8 its Scream 3, followed by Dracula 2000 and Poltergeist 2. At 9, USA has a new Monday Night RAW. GSN has a new High Stakes Poker at 9. ...
clipped from Google - 10/2007
Misunderstood Masterpieces 10.23.07: Once Bitten411mania.com, USA
- Oct 23, 2007
- 26 minutes ago
More recently, Gerard Butler, star of the awesome 300, found his way into my column by starring in the Horror-Movie Mania 2004 entry Dracula 2000. ...
clipped from Google - 10/2007
Retro Cinema: BlaculaCinematical, USA
- Oct 19, 2007
- Oct 19, 2007
(That would be Dracula 2000.) A few scenes are genuinely creepy, and director William Crain (who would go on to make Dr. Black & Mr. Hyde, naturally) did ...
clipped from Google - 10/2007
More news results ?

Blog posts


Short movies from "Dracula 2000" to "Join me in Death" Oct 20, 2007
here we have a compilation with short sequences from "Dracula 2000" (Gary oldman & Winona Ryder) to HIM's "Join me in Death" :

Showing on AMC's Monsterfest (Oct. 22 & Oct. 23) Today and Tonight! 9 hours ago
Wes Craven Presents: Dracula 2000 @ 10 PM | 9 C -- Is this one of the most classic Dracula pictures of all time? If not, what is? Poltergeist II: The Other Side 12 AM | 11 C. Creepshow 2 AM | 1 C -- Submit your answers to our Ultimate ...

Halloween horror movie poll. 5 hours ago
Wes Craven Presents Dracula 2000 (AMC CHANNEL) Check your local listings. JANAE'S NOTE: I just realize that I've been missing Monster Fest on the AMC channel, haha. Dear, god. & I was getting all upset because none of the classics seems ...



Web results


Dracula 2000 (2000)
Dracula 2000 on IMDb: Movies, TV, Celebs, and more...

Dracula 2000 - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Dracula 2000 (also known as Dracula 2001 in some countries) is a horror movie which attempts to transfer the story of Dracula into the setting of a modern ...

Amazon.com: Dracula 2000: DVD: Omar Epps,Colleen Fitzpatrick ...
Amazon.com: Dracula 2000: DVD: Omar Epps,Colleen Fitzpatrick,Christopher Plummer,Jeri Ryan,Jonny Lee Miller,Justine Waddell,Jennifer Esposito,Lochlyn Munro ...

Dracula 2000 - Rotten Tomatoes
DRACULA 2000 reviews from the nation's top critics and audiences. Also includes movie info, trailer, poster, photos, news, articles, and forum.

clipped from Google - 10/2007
More web results ?



Dracula 2000
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Jump to: navigation, search
Dracula 2000

Movie poster for Dracula 2000
Directed by Patrick Lussier
Produced by Wes Craven
Written by Joel Soisson
Starring Gerard Butler
Christopher Plummer
Jonny Lee Miller
Jennifer Esposito
Justine Waddell
Music by Marco Beltrami
Cinematography Peter Pau
Editing by Peter Devaney Flanagan
Distributed by Dimension Films
Release date(s) December 22, 2000
Running time 99 min.
Country United States
Language English
Budget $28,000,000 (estimated)
Followed by Dracula II: Ascension
All Movie Guide profile
IMDb profile
Dracula 2000 (also known as Dracula 2001 in some countries) is a horror movie which attempts to transfer the story of Dracula into the setting of a modern teen horror film. The cast included pop culture stars and possibly the youngest actor to portray Dracula in a major motion picture. The film offers a unique story for Dracula's origins not found in any other vampire movie. It is followed by two sequels, Dracula II Ascension and Dracula III Legacy

Contents
1 Plot
2 Cast
3 Production
4 Reception
5 References to other versions
6 Trivia
7 External links



[edit] Plot
The film opens in present-day London, with a group of thieves infiltrating the antique shop Carfax Abbey. Penetrating into its innermost vault they expect to find a fortune in treasure. Instead they encounter a sealed coffin. Upon attempting to move the coffin, some of the treasure-hunting party are gruesomely killed by the vault's security system, leading the survivors to believe the coffin is the treasure they have come for. It is no surprise when the coffin is later revealed to contain the dormant body of Count Dracula. We learn that Carfax Abbey (also the name of Dracula's London residence in Bram Stoker's original novel) is owned and operated by Dracula's nemesis, Abraham Van Helsing, who, after trapping and subduing Dracula a century before, has been keeping himself alive with injections of the vampire's blood filtered through leeches until he can find a way to destroy Dracula forever.

While flying the coffin back to the United States one of the thieves manages to open the coffin, releasing Dracula. The count proceeds to feast on the blood of the thieves, one of whom happens to be flying the airplane, causing them to crash in the swamps of Louisiana. Surviving the crash, he heads to New Orleans, Louisiana, where Van Helsing's estranged daughter Mary and her best friend Lucy live. Meanwhile Van Helsing and his assistant Simon head to the U.S. to recapture Dracula.

The one significant twist this film brings to the Dracula legend is its explanation of his origin. In this film, Dracula is portrayed as being in fact Judas Iscariot, cursed to walk the earth as an immortal for his betrayal of Jesus being rejected from admission to both Heaven and Hell. This explains some of the vampire's best-known weaknesses quite neatly, primarily Christian iconography and silver, as Judas was paid in silver for betraying Christ to the authorities. Although Bram Stoker makes no reference to a vulnerability to silver in his novel, it is a part of some examples of European vampire folklore.


[edit] Cast
Gerard Butler as Dracula/Judas Iscariot
Christopher Plummer as Matthew/Abraham Van Helsing
Jonny Lee Miller as Simon Sheppard
Justine Waddell as Mary Heller/Van Helsing
Danny Masterson as Nightshade
Jeri Ryan as Valerie Sharpe
Colleen Fitzpatrick (aka Vitamin C) as Lucy Westerman
Jennifer Esposito as Solina
Lochlyn Munro as Eddie
Sean Patrick Thomas as Trick
Omar Epps as Marcus
Tig Fong as Dax
Tony Munch as Charlie
Shane West as J.T.
Tom Kane as The Newscaster

[edit] Production
The film was produced by Dimension Films and Neo Art & Logic. Veteran horror film director Wes Craven was executive producer and his long time editor, Patrick Lussier, directed the film. Joel Soisson is credited with the screenplay, with the story by Soisson and Lussier. However, the film went through numerous uncredited rewrites by Scott Derrickson and Paul Harris Boardman and Ehren Krueger. Wes Craven and Laeta Kalogridis also polished certain scenes during post production. The film was noteworthy in the year of its release for the highly accelerated schedule it was made under. Production commenced on June 21st, 2000 with an unfinished script. The film was released six months later on December 22nd 2000. Its executive producer, Wes Craven commented in Entertainment Weekly on how he felt the accelerated schedule had impacted the making of the film. Principal photography finished the beginning of September 2000 with additional photography commencing for the last week of October 2000. The film continued to be rewritten throughout production and post-production with the final rewritten scenes being shot late November of 2000.


[edit] Reception
Dracula 2000 opened at #7 in its first week at the box office with $8.6 million. In its second week the film had a 56.5% drop-off, staying at #8. The film grossed $33 million domestically and $14 million in foreign countries making a total of $47 million worldwide, exceeding its $28 million budget. On its initial video release it grossed an additional $32 million in the US and Canada and is still making money worldwide. The movie received negative reviews. The site Rotten Tomatoes gives the film a "rotten" score of 15% and an average rating of 3.7/10, stating that Dracula 2000 "tries to offer a different spin on the origin of Dracula", but "Unfortunately, there's nothing here audiences haven't seen before". Metacritic.com rates the film 26 out of a 100 while its users give it 6.5 out of 10. In spite of its critical failure, Dracula 2000 was the 6th highest grossing film for Miramax/Dimension Films in 2000, exceeding the box office takes of such expensive Dimension Films releases like Reindeer Games and Impostor as well as the Miramax Film December opener for that year, All the Pretty Horses.


[edit] References to other versions
This article or section may contain original research or unverified claims.
Please improve the article by adding references. See the talk page for details. (September 2007)

The movie has numerous references to both Dracula the novel and other movie versions:

Van Helsing's business is located in Carfax Abbey, which was Dracula's English residence in the Bram Stoker novel.
When the crashed plane is found by authorities, the dead pilot has been lashed to the yoke, in parallel to the captain of the ship Demeter, which brought Dracula to London, who was found dead and lashed to the ship's wheel.
One of the doctors examining Solina is named Dr. Seward.
Mary's housemate who is made a vampire by Dracula is called Lucy Westerman, in reference to Lucy Westenra, who undergoes a similar fate.
On being offered a drink, Dracula quips "I don't drink ... coffee.", which is very similar to Bela Lugosi's line "I never drink ... wine" in Dracula (1931).
The sexual relationship between Dracula and Mary is questioned, in the end, whether or not they were in love. This refers to Francis Ford Coppola's filmed version in 1992 where Dracula (Gary Oldman) is in fact in love with Mina Harker (Winona Ryder).[citation needed]
Van Helsing declares that Dracula is neither myth "nor ravings of a mad Irish novelist" in contradiction to the 1994 movie Interview with the Vampire, in which the protagonist Louis describes Bram Stoker's book with words similar to that effect.
During the Mardi Gras parade there is a giant mask of Bela Lugosi's version of Dracula.

[edit] Trivia
Trivia sections are discouraged under Wikipedia guidelines.
The article could be improved by integrating relevant items and removing inappropriate ones.

At one point in the movie Lucy Westerman stands in front of a display of CDs by the actress who portrays her.
During filming, Butler, exhausted from several night-only shoots, mentioned to the director that he hadn't expected to be shooting so late. The director smiled at him and said "It's a Dracula movie, Gerry. Did you really think we'd be shooting days?", which - as Butler says it - put him right in his place.
The line, "Never, ever fuck with an antiques dealer!", was actually a joke that Johnny Lee Miller made up throughout filming. The director liked it so much that he added it to the film.
Pantera recorded a theme song for this movie, "Avoid the Light".