Dracula (1931) on the Big Screen!
Every so often, I manage to escape my subterranean lair and spend a little time amongst the surface dwellers...
Two weeks ago, my wife and I celebrated our 31st wedding anniversary and it just so happened that the original Dracula (1931) was playing at the historic Majestic theatre in downtown Gettysburg that evening. It was quite a treat. It almost felt like I was seeing it for the first time. Is it just me, or did Dwight Frye's performance as Renfield almost steal the show from Lugosi?
When the film started, I was immediately struck by...the score??? Huh? I've seen Dracula many times. I own it on Blu-ray along with 30+ other classic horror films from Universal and I never remember hearing music during the film. I've been listening to film scores since I was six years old, so I tend to pay attention to them as I watch. It may have been a slightly distracting at times, but overall it really transformed the film for me. It helped with the pacing and added weight to the performances and dramatic moments. It also smoothed over some of the more awkward moments from the original release where the shots lingered for a little too long and there was no dialog. When the movie was over, the very first thing Laura said to me was: "man, I really liked that soundtrack!"
When I got home, I looked it up just to verify that my memory wasn't faulty. Sure enough. I was correct. The original film did not have a score. Turns out, Universal asked Phillip Glass to do a score for one of their classic horror films and he chose Dracula. The music was performed by the Kronos quartet so it's not as big or as loud a score as Max Steiner's 'King Kong' or Frank Strobel's 'Metropolis', but it was effective none the less. I believe it was recorded in 2007 and that the 75th anniversary edition DVD/Blu-ray features the score. This is probably old news for many of you, but I was completely unaware and so it was an added bonus to being able to see it in a theatre.
It's certainly not for everyone and I'm sure there are many purists that prefer the original, but I'll be adding both the soundtrack and the scored version of the movie to my collection for sure.
The score can be purchased on Amazon, but it has suddenly jumped from $17 to $38 for the CD. You can also listen on Spotify as well.
Kudos to the Majestic! We saw JAWS there last year and I hope they continue to show the classics. They're the only films worth watching these days. Besides, I'm willing to bet that Dracula out grossed 'Digger' that week ;-)
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