Bram Stoker's Dracula (Silent Film Version)

I didn't know quite what to expect, but this was superb. Somehow the editor took a bloated mess of a film and turned it into a tight fast paced horror film. The fact that this was done and given the silent treatment is truly a work of art. Everything worked perfectly, this is vastly superior to the original source material. Anyone who likes silent movies should watch this. Anyone who likes Dracula should watch this. This edit is the perfect example of less is more..

I loooove the Original Film in all its Glory and Weirdness.
And i have to say, this Version is not for everyone.
But if you have a deep love for the Coppola Film, and if you like me love the old original movies as well, this might be right up your alley.

2022 was my Vampire Year. I went on a hunt for Vampire Movies, old ones, newer ones, good ones and shaddy ones.
I just love the Theme and there are so many good films out there.
Naturally when i stumpled upon Paul´s Cut i had to give it a go.

I was a total treat.
From the first screen, the old images mixed in the new ones, the colours and the Music:
all well put together.
The chosen Soundtrack is immaculas here, it fits very well. The Soundtrack on its own feels missing something, and with the Intentional use in Dracula 1931 its very good...but i felt it here more i have to say.

I always loved the Over the Edge production that Dracula was, although with time i have to admit, i wished for some better actor than Keanu in the lead, but hey...

This Version is a total different spin, a view only old movies had, and the idea of taking all the Bombast down to a Silent Movie, with great choice of Music is just wonderfull. But still weird as this cut tiks some boxes some viewers find strange.
The sudden Death of Dracula is mentioned in some reviews, but i saw a lot of other old Vampire Movies and ai have to say in most of them the Death of the Main Villian seems rushed, so in this spirit i did not mind.

Some Scenes and the work done is just amazing for a laymann like me.
Great editing choices.

I loved it every second, and it will not be the last time, that i see it.

A/V QUALITY
Very good, high bitrate. The visual quality has been slightly intentionally degraded and the aspect ratio changed to achieve the silent film look.

A/V EDITING
The regrades are expertly chosen, as is the excellent score. The lowered framerate really sells this as silent film. There's at least one (intentional) freezeframe/near-freezeframe towards the beginning, which was well done. The establishing shots were very nice, looked like paintings. My main critique, and pretty much my only critique of this edit, is that I found the intertitles to be a little hard to read and not lasting long enough.

NARRATIVE
It's impressive how the narrative has been compressed into such a short period of time yet remains coherent throughout. Pace is good too. I definitely appreciated how the film is brought closer to the novel. A lot of scenes are reworked to better fit the book, including all the scenes relating the Mina/Dracula romance storyline, and the scene in which Mina seduces Van Helsing.

The repurposing of the battle footage to a dinner scene flashback was very smart and well executed. Throughout the whole edit there are a lot of innovative editing choices that you can greatly appreciate if you remember how the original played out.

The A/V editing at 46:25 is particularly notable. Very well done.

CONCLUSION
I'm incredibly impressed by this edit. Not a single scene, not even a single shot, is left untouched. The transitions between scenes are so well done that it feels like you're watching a modern, studio approved silent film. Overall, you can tell a lot of effort and attention to detail went into this. One of the most transformative edits I've ever seen.

It had been years since I'd revisited my copy of BRAM STOKER'S DRACULA. Now, I feel I won't need to again. This fanedit takes Coppola's goregous but flawed movie and reincarnates it using the framing of the original novel and the trappings of a silent film, and in the process creates something that both delights the Stoker purist in me, tantalizes my old horror move buff tendencies, while still holding onto, and in many places enhancing, the sumptuous visuals that made the original film memorable. This will be a treat to return to come Halloween. Bravo!

Very creative and well done. =)