Now, I'm normally not one for historical movies, but this film was absolutely magnificent. Beautiful performances from Alan Rickman, reminding us why he is one of Britain's great actors, along with Ian McKellen, another sterling performance from him. Greta Scacchi effectively underplayed the role of the Tsarina, while there was a brief but excellent performance from James Frain, who is another young actor to watch. It is very hard to find fault in this film, as it was so well directed, written, acted, with wonderful costumes and sets, although I didn't realise how many Russians had a perfect english accent(ba-boom-tish). Excellent work all round.
Reviews
3 Reviews
The Tribe
(1999–2003)
You gotta love it
13 April 2001
Talk about original. This show is available in very few countries, but it really is a gem. Not only does it deal with just about every issue under the sun (illness, death, heartbreak and teen pregnancy), combining it with wacky costumes, hairstyles, make-up, names you wish you had and some of the best talent New Zealand has to offer. There should be more shows like this on TV.
Bram Stoker's Dracula
(1992)
Typical.
13 April 2001
Warning: Spoilers
**Warning - it's got spoilers**
This film had SUCH potential. It had a talented crew, great cast (disregarding the two Hollywood beauties) and the story is timeless. But, like most films based on books, this was absolutely terrible. It is clear, in my opinion, that to truly enjoy this film, you must never ever read Bram Stoker's book which, unfortunately, is one of my favourites.
The first half an hour of the film was okay-ish. It's even forgivable for the Lucy/Mina kiss, but by the time Lucy died, it either got boring or plain bizarre. Coppola completely twisted the book out of proportion by making Mina fall in love with 'Prince Vlad' who in the book she never met until near the end(I know, I'm so picky).
The supporting cast was wonderful, including a wonderful Hollywood debut by Sadie Frost. Richard E Grant and Anthony Hopkins were wonderful, as always, and, although Winona Ryder and Keanu Reeves were possibly not the best piece of casting, they put up valiant efforts, and Gary Oldman was a brilliant Dracula, although nothing could ever compare to his predecessors.
Overall, this movie could have been a wonderful visual experience but a film's never gonna work if you change the ending....
This film had SUCH potential. It had a talented crew, great cast (disregarding the two Hollywood beauties) and the story is timeless. But, like most films based on books, this was absolutely terrible. It is clear, in my opinion, that to truly enjoy this film, you must never ever read Bram Stoker's book which, unfortunately, is one of my favourites.
The first half an hour of the film was okay-ish. It's even forgivable for the Lucy/Mina kiss, but by the time Lucy died, it either got boring or plain bizarre. Coppola completely twisted the book out of proportion by making Mina fall in love with 'Prince Vlad' who in the book she never met until near the end(I know, I'm so picky).
The supporting cast was wonderful, including a wonderful Hollywood debut by Sadie Frost. Richard E Grant and Anthony Hopkins were wonderful, as always, and, although Winona Ryder and Keanu Reeves were possibly not the best piece of casting, they put up valiant efforts, and Gary Oldman was a brilliant Dracula, although nothing could ever compare to his predecessors.
Overall, this movie could have been a wonderful visual experience but a film's never gonna work if you change the ending....
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