TheSTORY
The Beeb put the blurb, "Contains Scenes Which Some Viewers May Find Disturbing", in its written teasers. And, granted, there are a few gory and disturbing scenes, however, the most disturbing thing, by far, is the story itself.
I had hopes that the trailers were wrong and that writers Mark Gatiss and Steven Moffat would make a good job of this adaptation. After the travesties of War Of The Worlds and A Christmas Carol, the BBC needed a shot in the arm. Both Gatiss and Moffat have acclaimed writing credentials and a strong portfolio. Gatiss even loves horror and has done some good documentaries on the genre. So it couldn't be too bad... could it(?)
Oh, yes it could.
The biggest letdown was the count himself. Gone is the regal evil with an ominous and overpowering persona. Arrived is the wishy-washy overly camp non-entity. We all know the count is bi when it comes to blood-sucking but he didn't have to be so stereotypical that it damaged the character and turned him into a joke.
I'm glad that the campness disappears in the second episode. However, Gatiss and Moffit fail to replace it with anything, which only strengthens his nothingness, which reaches its apex in the third episode and he nearly becomes invisible, though you can see his reflection in the mirrors. This is one of the nice twists to the vampire mythos. He can see his reflection but it's a la Dorian Grey. Dracula sees himself as he should look.
Though not all the twists work. The reason for his aversion to sunlight and the cross, for example, which is the pivotal twist, is so bad it completely destroys the Dracula mythos and you wonder why you stayed with this rubbish.
The best twist is Van Helsing. This truly makes the first two episodes watchable. However, this all changed in the last episode and without this Van Helsing, the story loses it's most interesting element. Twenty minutes in and I was itching to turn off the show and forget all about it.
If you're a fan of Inside No.9 you may smile when you get a cameo in the second episode.
theDIRECTION
Now, I believe some of the issues I raised above could be down to the directors as each episode was directed by a different director.
Unfortunately, this means we get their visual interpretation of the story. The first episode was the best of the three and I would have loved to see how his vision would have been for the entire project. Though, it may have been his idea to go camp with the count.
The second episode was okay, though not as visually stunning as the first. Though, at times the third was as imaginative in the direction as the first the story was way too bland and boring.
theACTING.
By far, Dolly Wells is the best actress in the series and is perfect as Sister Agatha...
I would not have cast Claes Bang as Dracula. Even though the character was badly written and directed, Bang doesn't have the persona to pull off the Count.
I also wouldn't have cast Lydia West as Lucy. Granted the character isn't fully recognised in the writing. This woman is a self-absorbed, egotistical, narcissist, which everybody can see except for Jack who loves her - though we're never shown why. West, unfortunately, doesn't possess the skills to make Lucy the powerful character she demands, though, she does well to make the audience hate her, which is a bad thing when shes onscreen so much.
The rest of the cast are perfect though, especially those in episode two. There's more meat on their bones and help to keep the story interesting.
theGRATIFICATION.
Go watch the films as they are ALL better than this tripe. Come on Auntie BEEB, get your act together. Gatiss and Moffat, shame on you. You could have done better.
The Beeb put the blurb, "Contains Scenes Which Some Viewers May Find Disturbing", in its written teasers. And, granted, there are a few gory and disturbing scenes, however, the most disturbing thing, by far, is the story itself.
I had hopes that the trailers were wrong and that writers Mark Gatiss and Steven Moffat would make a good job of this adaptation. After the travesties of War Of The Worlds and A Christmas Carol, the BBC needed a shot in the arm. Both Gatiss and Moffat have acclaimed writing credentials and a strong portfolio. Gatiss even loves horror and has done some good documentaries on the genre. So it couldn't be too bad... could it(?)
Oh, yes it could.
The biggest letdown was the count himself. Gone is the regal evil with an ominous and overpowering persona. Arrived is the wishy-washy overly camp non-entity. We all know the count is bi when it comes to blood-sucking but he didn't have to be so stereotypical that it damaged the character and turned him into a joke.
I'm glad that the campness disappears in the second episode. However, Gatiss and Moffit fail to replace it with anything, which only strengthens his nothingness, which reaches its apex in the third episode and he nearly becomes invisible, though you can see his reflection in the mirrors. This is one of the nice twists to the vampire mythos. He can see his reflection but it's a la Dorian Grey. Dracula sees himself as he should look.
Though not all the twists work. The reason for his aversion to sunlight and the cross, for example, which is the pivotal twist, is so bad it completely destroys the Dracula mythos and you wonder why you stayed with this rubbish.
The best twist is Van Helsing. This truly makes the first two episodes watchable. However, this all changed in the last episode and without this Van Helsing, the story loses it's most interesting element. Twenty minutes in and I was itching to turn off the show and forget all about it.
If you're a fan of Inside No.9 you may smile when you get a cameo in the second episode.
theDIRECTION
Now, I believe some of the issues I raised above could be down to the directors as each episode was directed by a different director.
Unfortunately, this means we get their visual interpretation of the story. The first episode was the best of the three and I would have loved to see how his vision would have been for the entire project. Though, it may have been his idea to go camp with the count.
The second episode was okay, though not as visually stunning as the first. Though, at times the third was as imaginative in the direction as the first the story was way too bland and boring.
theACTING.
By far, Dolly Wells is the best actress in the series and is perfect as Sister Agatha...
I would not have cast Claes Bang as Dracula. Even though the character was badly written and directed, Bang doesn't have the persona to pull off the Count.
I also wouldn't have cast Lydia West as Lucy. Granted the character isn't fully recognised in the writing. This woman is a self-absorbed, egotistical, narcissist, which everybody can see except for Jack who loves her - though we're never shown why. West, unfortunately, doesn't possess the skills to make Lucy the powerful character she demands, though, she does well to make the audience hate her, which is a bad thing when shes onscreen so much.
The rest of the cast are perfect though, especially those in episode two. There's more meat on their bones and help to keep the story interesting.
theGRATIFICATION.
Go watch the films as they are ALL better than this tripe. Come on Auntie BEEB, get your act together. Gatiss and Moffat, shame on you. You could have done better.