24. In 1979 Dracula returned to the big screen
Dracula, and scores of other low-budget vampire movies which loosely covered the character created by Bram Stoker continued to appear in film every couple of years or so throughout the 1970s and 1980s. Other versions of the vampire tale appeared, and actors such as Christopher Lee and Vincent Price made horror movies which mimicked the interpretation of Bela Lugosi in the classic Universal film. In 1979, Dracula returned in a version which faithfully followed the Bram Stoker novel and the successful stage adaptation. It was performed over 900 times on Broadway between 1977 and 1980, with the film shot concurrently.
Frank Langella portrayed the title role to critical acclaim and public approbation, but in reviews, the performance was compared – perhaps inevitably – to Lugosi’s decades earlier. Unsurprisingly at the same time a gothic Dracula returned to first-run theaters, a comic version also appeared, a camp film called Love at First Bite, starring George Hamilton. Langella’s performance drew approving reviews, as did the sets and mood of the film, but it was evident that Dracula’s power to make members of the audience faint from fear was a thing of the past.