Research - Dracula (1992) film

Dracula Film Poster. (2016). [image] Available at: http://filmgrimoire.com/2014/03/20/bram-stokers-dracula-1992-i-am-the-monster-that-breathing-men-would-kill/ [Accessed 27 Jan. 2016].

This film was my first choice for watching a screen adaptation of the Dracula book as it's said to be the closest of all adaptations. I have already decided on my character I wish to design for, Lucy Westenra. I watched how the character was interpreted and concluded my feelings about the way in which she was depicted.
My feelings were nothing short of a disappointment. In the book, Mina and Lucy are such strong female characters, with a large focus and relevancy to the story line. I felt that was was not at all translated in the film, and they were reduced to nothing but sex objects. My chosen character, Lucy, was particularly poorly represented. In the book, Lucy is sensitive but very much in control of her actions, thoughts and feelings. In the film, Lucy was shown to be sloppy, dumb and easily influenced. I felt that there were a lot of completely unnecessary additions to the story line in the film such as the overuse of sex, drug addiction and a random lesbian-suggestion between Lucy and Mina that did nothing to the story line other than focus on the pleasures of the male audience. This was most likely done to keep the interest as the film often moved slowly and included irrelevant parts that seemed to be just filling out time. My one positive though, is that the film itself was visually stunning. Particularly the scene with my chosen character in her full vampire form being discovered for the first time.

Lucy Vampire Scene. (2013). [image] Available at: http://alysondunlop.com/tag/lucy/ [Accessed 27 Jan. 2016].

In terms of make-up design for my character, I felt that Lucy's everyday make-up was far too exaggerated for period that it is set as this amount would only be seen on prostitutes and actresses. Lucy is supposed to be a woman of status, who is admired by men of status, such facts wouldn't apply to the level of make-up. I felt that this was done to make the character appear a harlot, which she is in the film, but is inaccurate. Aside from this, I feel that the make-up for her vampire form was very impressive, as her white base was flawless and the dentures used for the teeth were highly realistic.

Lucy Westenra. (2014). [image] Available at: https://twitter.com/bramstokersd [Accessed 27 Jan. 2016].

Lucy Westenra - Vampire. (2015). [image] Available at: https://uk.pinterest.com/pin/274015958553348216/ [Accessed 27 Jan. 2016].

10 Key Descriptions of My Chosen Character in the Book

Here I have gathered various quotes in the original 'Dracula' book where Lucy's appearance is described. I will take each quote and gather the key words and phrases that will influence my design process.

1. "Lucy was looking sweetly pretty in her white lawn frock; she has got a beautiful colour since she has been here. I noticed that the old men did not lose any time in coming up and sitting near her when we sat down..."

From this quote I have picked up 'Sweetly pretty' and 'Beautiful colour' which means that my character, in her natural form, is very attractive. My plan is to design when she is a vampire, but this will be an important aspect as she is likely to have a very feminine hairstyle left from her true form, as well as feminine clothing, accessories and maybe even a hint of make-up.

  2. "Lucy is so sweet and sensitive that she feels influences more acutely than other people do..."

I found this quote to be relevant as I feel that her 'sweet' and 'sensitive' aspects means that she is probably very self aware, therefore she may chose to present herself in a way that is pleasing to others such as following current make-up and hair fashions to conform to people's preferences.

3. "All the time the roses in her cheeks are fading, and she gets weaker and more languid day by day;..."

This quote is relevant to me as this is part of the transitioning stage between her human self and her vampire self. The fact that the 'roses in her cheeks are fading' means that she has a lack of colour to her face, most likely pale, which is something important to incorporate in my design of her as a vampire.

  4. "I looked at her throat just now as she lay asleep, and the tiny wounds seem not to have healed. They are still open, and, if anything, larger than before, and the edges of them are faintly white. They are like little white dots with red centres..."

This quote is interesting to note as it describes a small injury on her neck, which is later relevant as we know it is a big part of the contribution to her becoming ill/vampire. Therefore, it might be worth adding to my design as it plays a big part in the story.

5. "Though she is still sadly pale and wan-looking. If she were in any way anæmic I could understand it..."

The fact that the character has specified that her complexion is similar to someone who is anemic, I feel it might be interesting to research into anemia and the typical physical signs that suggest that someone is.

  6. "My face is ghastly pale, and my throat pains me..."

From this, I note that paleness is a key element in the appearance of this character, therefore I feel it is not optional but instead vital to my design as it's mentioned various times.

7. "She was ghastly, chalkily pale; the red seemed to have gone even from her lips and gums, and the bones of her face stood out prominently..."

Again this reiterates the key element of her paleness. But this quote also tells about how there is no colour on darker fleshy parts of her face such as the gums and lips (and therefore most likely even the inner eyelids too such as the waterline) and also that she is very thin and defined in the face. This would suggest a lot of contour is necessary for this design to manipulate the structure. Due to her paleness, a contour with a greyish key tone instead of a typical brown-orange tone would be more appropriate as I would not want to add colour to the face.

8. "As the transfusion went on something like life seemed to come back to poor Lucy’s cheeks..." 

The quote tells us that when Lucy has access to blood, redness and life comes back to her face. As I am doing her in vampire form, depending on whether it's pre or post sucking blood, depends on whether I will add any colour.

9.  "Her teeth, in the dim, uncertain light, seemed longer and sharper than they had been in the morning. In particular, by some trick of the light, the canine teeth looked longer and sharper than the rest."

This quote is later in the book, near her death that is the final transformation into full vampire. These teeth are very important aspect of her vampire self, and I think it would definitely finish off my design if I am able to add sharp teeth to the final look.

10. "Van Helsing raised his lantern and drew the slide; by the concentrated light that fell on Lucy’s face we could see that the lips were crimson with fresh blood, and that the stream had trickled over her chin and stained the purity of her lawn death-robe..."

In this quote, it is said that when Lucy is seen in her vampire form, she has drawn blood and that her lips were 'crimson' with 'fresh blood' which would suggest that a fresh blood-like shade of red should be used on her lips. This has also gone down on to her clothing and therefore the is also blood on her chin.

'Dracula' by Bram Stoker, Book Review

Dracula Book Cover. (n.d.). [image] Available at: http://www.amazon.com/Dracula-Other-Horror-Classics-Stoker/dp/1435142810 [Accessed 14 Feb. 2016].

Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed reading Dracula. Although at times I felt that the storyline was slow moving and had a lot of intervals about random scenarios that often felt unrelated to the progression of the storyline (although I am sure that it unknowingly enhanced it for me), I found that for the most part it was captivating. In the book, the character I 'picked up' and interested me in the book was Lucy Westenra. Due to the way in which the book was written, although the title suggests that the main character is Dracula himself, he was in fact part of a small few main characters who's perspective was shown. In the later half of the book, Lucy was certainly a main character for a while, as her becoming 'ill' was very prolonged and was the main topic of the thoughts of other significant characters.

As like most people, I knew roughly of Dracula storyline and knew that it is the basis for the majority of later Vampire representations in modern films, books and Tv shows. Despite this, I found the story to be far more complex and interesting than I had expected and that it covered a lot of deeper topics in terms of dramatics, love, lust and even jealousy. For the time in which it was written and the time it was set, I am very aware of the risque effect it would have had on those reading it and feel that my character of choice will reflect this perfectly as she is a perfect representation of these messages. Despite these things being present, they are not explicitly used within the story line but more suggested as such topics wouldn't be risen in the way in which we would today. 

For me, the most compelling part of the story line is when my chosen character, Lucy Westenra, has turned into a vampire and is seen in such form for the first time. Compared to the rest of the story line, this is the moment that when a lot of the questions that have been risen in the book and now answered, and the real monster is seen. Therefore, it is likely that is the moment I am choosing to recreate in my make-up I will be designing for. 

My Chosen Book and Character

My Moodboard that I created for my presentation to reflect the essence of the book 'Dracula'.

Description of storyline:

The initial main character, Jonathan Harker, goes to Transylvania to help Count Dracula buy an estate in England. During his time at the castle strange things happen that he is unable to understand.
His fiancée Mina and her friend Lucy exchange letters back home. Lucy starts acting strange and is examined by a doctor. When he cant figure out whats wrong and he then brings in his friend, a famous doctor, Van Helsing. Van Helsing eventually realises that Lucy has been bitten by a vampire.
After being treated and engaging in weird behavior, she eventually dies. She is then seen to be back from the dead and the characters then find out she is a vampire. She is then killed via a stake through the heart. They realize that Count Dracula was behind it all and hunt him down. Mina falls under his spell and they hypnotize her so they can track him down. They finally catch up with him while he tries to go back to the castle. They then kill him and he turns to dust.


About my character: (Lucy Westenra)

I have chosen the character Lucy Westenra, who is the best friend of the character Mina. The reason I chose this character is because in the book she undergoes a big transformation from human to vampire.
At the beginning of the book she is described as so beautiful and pure that everyone who meets her are instantly captivated by her. Her personality is generally playful and positive. Later on in the book, when she is turned into a vampire, her entire being becomes contrasted to her previous appearance. She becomes demonic and animalistic and virtually unrecognisable except for her usual defining features. Because of this, I think that designing for the character has a lot of creative leigh-way.