The character of Dracula, the famous vampire created by Bram Stoker, has been changed and reimagined countless times in literature, film, and other media. However, two recent retellings of the Dracula story, the film "Dracula Untold" and the graphic novel "Dracula Son of the Dragon," focus on the historical figure of Vlad the Impaler as a source of inspiration.
Vlad was born in 1431 in Sighișoara, Transylvania, to Vlad II Dracul, a member of the Order of the Dragon, a group of nobles dedicated to defending Christendom against the Ottoman Empire. Vlad spent much of his early life in captivity in the Ottoman court, where he learned about their military tactics and became fluent in Turkish. In 1448, Vlad and his younger brother Radu led an unsuccessful
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The film presents Vlad as a loving father and husband who is obligated to make difficult decisions in order to protect his family and his people from the invading Ottoman Empire. When the Ottoman sultan demands that Vlad send 1,000 boys to be trained as soldiers for his army, Vlad refuses and instead seeks out a source of power that will allow him to defeat the Ottomans on his own terms. He does so by finding an ancient vampire who has been hidden inside deep cave walls. In this scene, we see the ruthless Vlad the Impaler take a sacrificial route and offer himself in order to save his kingdom and family. This part of the film shows the changes the director SOSO made to Vlad’s heartless personality by Vlad offering himself to the ancient vampire. They choose to emphasize this, so the audience sees Vlad as a good guy even though it goes against his historical …show more content…
One such change in this story is Vlad's father. Vlad II, Dracul was a member of a secretive organization called the Order of the Dragon. In the book, this group is portrayed as a group of knights who fight for Christianity and against the Ottoman Empire. While it is true that Vlad II Dracul was part of the Order of the Dragon, the graphic novel presents this part of his life in a more positive and heroic manner than what historical records suggest.
Beyond that, the graphic novel chooses to emphasize Vlad's early life and his relationships with his family, particularly his brother Radu. Radu is depicted as a tragic figure caught between his loyalty to his brother Vlad and his love for their shared childhood friend, Mara. This emphasis on family relationships and the humanity of Vlad's character serves to create more of a complex and sympathetic portrayal of the historical figure than what is typically talked