Let's be realistic.

I don't have all the words right now but this film is a work of art.

There are moments that feel comical, some horrific, and some downright inspiring but the tonal shifts hardly matter as the end results come to a film that's perfect for this time.

It's simply great fun, a winsome film and an occasionally over-the-top luxury fantasy that never flags.

This film may not be the best adaptation of Dracula, but it is definitely the most special version.Bravo! It combines the charm of a silent film with the beauty of ballet. How unique it is! Throughout the film, one can hear no dialog, only music. Ideas are conveyed through graceful dancing movements. Never seen anything like this! A vampire film done like this, WOW!Seeing Dracula portrayed by an actor who looks Asian is also very interesting.What ruins the film is the finale. What happens towards the end makes absolutely no sense. Apparently, Dracula killed the small group led by Van Helsing, including the leader himself. Then later suddenly these dead guys all miraculously came back, and staked Dracula to death instead. What is also incomprehensible is that Mina took up a crucifix to repel Dracula while she, being a newly made vampire, was not affected by the holy item at all.These faults/plot holes stopped this film from being the best Dracula adaptation on my list. The ending certainly remains to be tweaked a little bit.So far, the best adaptation of Dracula is a 2002 Italian version called "Dracula's Curse", which is my favorite.Forget about that crap by Francis Coppola. That 1992 version is an insult.

Lauded Canadian avant-gardist Guy Maddin takes an old dog and teaches it new, stunning tricks, with 2002′s Dracula: Pages from a Virgin's Diary.I love Maddin. Unashamedly anachronistic, he's made a lucrative film career from borrowing the tropes of archaic silent cinema and early expressionistic talkies. But this 2002 theatre-film transcends those old celluloid days and sees maddened Maddin present Bram Stoker's classic Gothic novel Dracula, via a performance by The Winnipeg Ballet.It's certainly not for everyone, but I found this film to be an absolute feast. Maddin brings out the inherent xenophobic plot points of the novel (Dracula is played by an Asian dancer, whilst Van Helsing is a white supremacist), and mixes them with striking expressionistic facial expressions that harken back to F.W. Murnau's Nosferatu. Such grimness is matched with great beauty though. Shot in chiaroscuro black and white on Super-8 stock, hand-drawn colour seeps into shot, with dripping blood red and decadent golden yellows. Although most of the film is told in slow-motion to match Mahler's 1st symphony, the brilliant balletic choreography makes the entire film move with great poise and spectacle.Not my favourite Maddin – and it may not be my favourite adaptation of Dracula either – but it's certainly the most audacious I've ever seen. As with all of his films, Maddin has the ability to trepidatiously guide us through the maze that his mind. It may be filled with cobwebs, dark fantasies and personal nostalgia, but it's fueled on an appreciation for sheer cinematic spectacle.Read more reviews at www.366movies.com

I really had no idea what to expect coming into this film. I had heard basically nothing about it other than it's good ratings, recommendation from Ebert, and I have been interested for a while now in Guy Maddin. This is my first time watching one of his films and I am borderline speechless. I didn't know he primarily works in the silent genre and to top that, this film is entirely a ballet. Filmed in mostly black and white with silent era techniques, Maddin creates and eerie mood with this take on Brom Stoker's classic novel. I've never seen anything quite like it. It sometimes looks like it from the silent era. It's impressive. My one complaint is the jumpy nature of the camera. I was sometimes focused on his dizzying camera work than what was going on, but still a very refreshing and awakening experience.

The erotic aspects of Dracula are enhanced in this visual spectacle by Guy Madden. He uses the techniques of silent film and the Canadian Royal Ballet to produce a dream-like story of Dracula that is stunning and faithful. Even Dr. Van Helsing's examination of Lucy seems charged with eroticism.Madden's love of the cinema of the 20s and 30s is evident in this avant garde film. Using Wei-Qiang Zhang as Dracula also adds a bit of xenophobia to the film. It would certainly have the stamp of approval from Lou Dobbs.The use of color for emphasis was exquisite; and the dancing was absolutely beautiful. An amazing film.