Vampire Vs Dracula

Vampires! A common creature that commonly occurs throughout pop culture is the ever-changing vampire. Vampires are the blood sucking, night-dwelling creatures, that have been dominating pop culture as we know it for more than 100 years, with folklore on vampires dating back thousands of years. Due to cultural shifts, and the advancement of cinematography the vampire as we know it has changed tremendously. From Bela Lugosi as the legendary Dracula in 1931, all the way to Eddie Murphy as the not so legendary Maximillian in Vampire in Brooklyn in 1995. Vampires tend to stick to a couple core ideals, but it is evident that vampires in Dracula compared to the vampires in Vampire in Brooklyn are completely different. In 1931 director Tod

This is extremely evident between the two films Dracula and Vampire in Brooklyn. One major change between the two is the overall image. Lugosi plays a creepy, not so attractive dweller of the night, while Murphy plays a rock star-esc persona, with good-looking hair, rings, and fancy clothes. This shift came during the 50’s and 60’s when vampires started to become more sensual. (From Dracula to Edward) Vampires started to become more attractive with actors such as Christopher Lee playing Dracula; we see the shift of the handsome vampire and the beautiful women as victims. This is the case in Vampire in Brooklyn. Also Maximillian is a black vampire, which is very different from Dracula. Although black vampires are uncommon, the first film to feature a black vampire was Blacula staring William Marshall. (“Blacula”) Although Blacula is not very critically acclaimed, it did set the stage for future black vampires that we see in films such Vampire in Brooklyn, Queen of the Damned, and even Twilight. Now it may not be a big deal, in 1931 a black actor playing the main role in a movie would have been unheard of. Black actors in Hollywood were typically given very stereotypical roles, and it was not until the later half of the 1950’s where we saw black actors getting the chance to play a different type of character. (Afircan- Americans on

In The Tomb Of Dracula, Dracula has powers like super strength, immortality, mind control, super speed, and the ability to levitate. (“Dracula”) Also a big reason for Maximillain having more powers than Dracula is that in 1931 Tod Browning did not have the technology necessary to pull off the large dramatic action scenes that Wes Craven was able to do in Vampire in Brooklyn. This is obvious looking at film as a whole. Of course a movie made in the 90’s will have better special effects than a movie made in the 30’s. For example the ability to make Maximillian levitate how he did, was not used in film until 1986, in the movie Howard the Duck, which was the first time that digital wire removal was used in order to simulate flying. (Visual and Special Effect Film Milestones) Vampires have been influencing pop culture for a very long time now, and there is really no sign of them going away anytime soon. Vampire stories have almost become a way of showing how society is changing and also how cinematography is evolving. Since Bela Lugosi as Dracula, vampires have really evolved into very complex individuals, and it seems as though our fascination with vampires has grown alongside the vampires