Vlad Dracula

 Ok, I'm not talking about Castlevania but this Dracula is so cool.
So, I accomplished a great feat last night. I finished reading Bram Stoker's Dracula. I love the story, but I am not a fan of the whole story written in journal form. Besides, who write accents in journals?

Anyway, there are a lot of differences from the book and the movies. The older movies, while keeping with whole Dracula just wants blood thing, are pretty campy. The one with Bela Lugosi has Renfield traveling to the count's home instead of Johnathon Harker. In the book, Renfield only shows up as a inmate in Seward asylum who becomes fascinated with Dracula when he moves in next door.

The movie by Francis Ford Coppola is a different story. Coppola depicts a love between Dracula and Mina that has lasted through lifetimes. In the book, Dracula chooses Mina as revenge for being hunted by her and the others. Despite this, Mina continues to do everything she can to see the creature vanquished. So where did Coppola come up with this?


Vlad Tepes.

Also know as Vlad III, Vlad Dracula, or Vlad the Impaler, he was the historical figure that most believe Stoker based the fictional vampire on. He is known for impaling his victims on stakes to frighten his enemies and warning any transgressors of his strict moral code. He is believed to have killed between 40,000 to 100,000 this way. Quite a lot, but he was in a war with the Ottoman Turks for the Wallachian throne for most of his life. Many Romanians still consider Vlad to be a hero for fending off the Turks.

There is a local legend about Vlad's first wife Jusztina Szilagyi and her death. During a turkesh raid on the castle lead by Vlad's brother Radu (he chose politics over family it seems,) an archer shot an arrow into the bed chamber to warn Vlad of Radu's approach. Jusztina read the warning and threw herself from the tower into a tributary of the Argeș River flowing below the castle, saying she would rather rot and be eaten by the fish of the Argeș than be led into captivity by the Turks. This is where Coppola got the inspiration for the romance between Vlad and Mina.

Castle Bran, also known as Castle Dracula.
I think I prefer Dracula more driven by cunning and revenge than romance, but that's how I'm feeling these days. How about you? Do you like the book or one of the movie versions?