NFR Project: 'Dracula' (Spanish version) (1931)

 

NFR Project: ‘Dracula’ (Spanish version)

Dir: George Melford

Scr: Garrett Fort; Baltasar Fernandez Cue

Pho: George Robinson

Ed: Arturo Tavares

Premiere: March 1, 1931

104 min.

This is an unusual entry. The film exists due a short-term practice in the early sound era, before overdubbing and subtitles came along. Foreign markets were an essential part of film studios’ strategies, but with the advent of sound, they had to figure out a way to present dialogue in other languages.

They did so by making alternate-language versions while they are making the primary, English-language film. Using the same sets, costumes, and props but substituting French, Spanish, German, or Swedish actors for American ones, they crafted an acceptable copy of the original film in the language of their choice.

This Dracula is one of those films. It has been argued critically that this is a superior film to the original; it is nearly a half hour longer, due to the lack of censorship in Spanish-language cinema – it is slightly creepier in spots than the original. While the original cast performed for the camera during the day, the Spanish cast would work in those same settings at night. The Spanish director Melford (he used an interpreter) would look at the daily rushes from the primary picture shoot to guide him.

Despite the slightly different styles of the two directors, the main difference in the film is the performance of Carlos Villarias as Dracula. Unlike Lugosi, who handled a difficult character and turned it into an iconic performance, Vilarias is over the top as the deadly Count, making the premise of the film seem unbelievable. Of note, however, is the performance of Pablo Alvarez Rubio as Renfield. He is as scary as Dwight Frye, in his own unique manner.

The NFR is one writer’s attempt to review all the films listed in the National Film Registry in chronological order. Next time: The Forgotten Frontier.