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Post by nucleusofswarm on Apr 14, 2023 23:55:13 GMT
(Hey, Renfield and the trailer for Demeter premiered, so what timing.) He's the most iconic actor to play the Count, the gold standard and superseding how Stoker described him in the novel, but something I've been chewing on is was Lugosi actually a great actor, in an overall sense (range, versatility, depth), or was he simply great at playing a very specific kind of role?
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Post by muckypup on Apr 15, 2023 5:23:48 GMT
Not sure I agree with any of that……
The universal monsters films took very little from the source material and Dracula was no exception they certainly didn’t exceed the written word, i would say Christopher lee is more iconic in the role and much better known to anyone under 50
But every view is as valid as the next.
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Post by bonehead on Apr 15, 2023 8:07:04 GMT
He was a great actor, but was typecast as vampires and mad scientists. On the odd occasion he was able to play different kind of characters (Ygor in Son of Frankenstein, and Joseph in The Body Snatcher - both far cries from Dracula), he was excellent. It was a real shame producers didn't have the imagination to provide him with roles outside their own perceptions of him.
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Post by timleschild on Apr 15, 2023 10:58:42 GMT
Christopher Lee is the most iconic actor to play the Count. & to claim that Lugosi " superseding how Stoker described him in the novel" I strongly disagree with.
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Post by grinch on Apr 15, 2023 11:09:46 GMT
While he wasn’t exactly book accurate, there’s no doubt that he was the most iconic version of the Count.
Personally, I think he was a great actor who was limited by the roles he was given and to be honest, certain mistakes made on his part.
One can only wonder what he might have achieved had he lived longer. I feel like with television becoming a mainstay in the ‘50s and ‘60s he could have flourished on said medium.
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Post by timleschild on Apr 15, 2023 11:11:43 GMT
He was a great actor, but was typecast as vampires and mad scientists. On the odd occasion he was able to play different kind of character (Ygor in Son of Frankenstein, and Joseph in The Body Snatcher - both far cries from Dracula), he was excellent. It was a real shame producers didn't have the imagination to provide him with roles outside their own perceptions of him. Ygor is probably his best role. |
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Post by bonehead on Apr 15, 2023 11:19:50 GMT
He was a great actor, but was typecast as vampires and mad scientists. On the odd occasion he was able to play different kind of character (Ygor in Son of Frankenstein, and Joseph in The Body Snatcher - both far cries from Dracula), he was excellent. It was a real shame producers didn't have the imagination to provide him with roles outside their own perceptions of him. Ygor is probably his best role. I think so too. It allowed him to play humour, horror, drama and even tragedy. And *still* he was typecast as a vampire/mad scientist! |
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Post by nucleusofswarm on Apr 15, 2023 11:53:45 GMT
Christopher Lee is the most iconic actor to play the Count. & to claim that Lugosi " superseding how Stoker described him in the novel" I strongly disagree with. Okay, this point (and mucky also brought it up) leaves me scratching my head - what likeness is used whenever Dracula is licensed for products and logos? What version are almost all the halloween costumes and decor themed after? Which Dracula's voice is the one almost everyone and their great grandma uses if you ask them for a Dracula impression, or when the character is parodied in cartoons or comedy sketches?
Whoever you like personally is your opinion of course, but Lugosi's version is the pop-culture shorthand for Dracula - how many times have you seen book accurate Dracula depicted out in the world, with the different ages and facial hair?
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Post by Deleted on Apr 15, 2023 12:02:48 GMT
Christopher Lee is the most iconic actor to play the Count. & to claim that Lugosi " superseding how Stoker described him in the novel" I strongly disagree with. Okay, this point (and mucky also brought it up) leaves me scratching my head - what likeness is used whenever Dracula is licensed for products and logos? What version are almost all the halloween costumes and decor themed after? Which Dracula's voice is the one almost everyone and their great grandma uses if you ask them for a Dracula impression, or when the character is parodied in cartoons or comedy sketches?
Whoever you like personally is your opinion of course, but Lugosi's version is the pop-culture shorthand for Dracula.
100%. The slicked back hair and widow's peak? Lugosi. The accent? Lugosi's. The outfit? Lugosi's. Lee's version is better by FAR for me but Lugosi is the icon. Ironically he's arguably responsible for a major part of the Frankenstein's Monster icon too. Ask for an impression of the Creature and you'll always get someone holding their arms out - that's only from when he was blinded - and Lugosi was in the makeup, not Karloff. Was he a great actor? Well, Son Of Frankenstein tells me yes, he could do much, much more than most producers allowed. He stole a film from Lionel Atwill, Karloff AND Basil Rathbone. That'll do. |
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Post by timleschild on Apr 15, 2023 14:06:29 GMT
Christopher Lee is the most iconic actor to play the Count. & to claim that Lugosi " superseding how Stoker described him in the novel" I strongly disagree with. Okay, this point (and mucky also brought it up) leaves me scratching my head - what likeness is used whenever Dracula is licensed for products and logos? What version are almost all the halloween costumes and decor themed after? Which Dracula's voice is the one almost everyone and their great grandma uses if you ask them for a Dracula impression, or when the character is parodied in cartoons or comedy sketches?
Whoever you like personally is your opinion of course, but Lugosi's version is the pop-culture shorthand for Dracula - how many times have you seen book accurate Dracula depicted out in the world, with the different ages and facial hair?
no |
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Post by Deleted on Apr 15, 2023 14:44:08 GMT
Okay, this point (and mucky also brought it up) leaves me scratching my head - what likeness is used whenever Dracula is licensed for products and logos? What version are almost all the halloween costumes and decor themed after? Which Dracula's voice is the one almost everyone and their great grandma uses if you ask them for a Dracula impression, or when the character is parodied in cartoons or comedy sketches?
Whoever you like personally is your opinion of course, but Lugosi's version is the pop-culture shorthand for Dracula - how many times have you seen book accurate Dracula depicted out in the world, with the different ages and facial hair?
no It must have been a hell of a debating society you had at school with wordsmithery like that, JHD! |
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Post by timleschild on Apr 15, 2023 20:11:10 GMT
It must have been a hell of a debating society you had at school with wordsmithery like that, JHD! what? |
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Post by nucleusofswarm on Apr 16, 2023 10:21:51 GMT
One can only wonder what he might have achieved had he lived longer. I feel like with television becoming a mainstay in the ‘50s and ‘60s he could have flourished on said medium. Indeed. He was 78 when he was working with Ed Wood, so who knows how much longer he could've gone. Just imagining him going down the Karloff route and doing voices for things. Imagine Lugosi doing the narration for Cat in the Hat or Green Eggs and Ham? |
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Post by grinch on Apr 16, 2023 19:33:08 GMT
One can only wonder what he might have achieved had he lived longer. I feel like with television becoming a mainstay in the ‘50s and ‘60s he could have flourished on said medium. Indeed. He was 78 when he was working with Ed Wood, so who knows how much longer he could've gone. Just imagining him going down the Karloff route and doing voices for things. Imagine Lugosi doing the narration for Cat in the Hat or Green Eggs and Ham? He’d have been excellent in the likes of The Twilight Zone. |
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