There's no doubt Dracula 2000 is a testament to the new millennium. Directed by Patrick Lussier and produced by Wes Craven, this 2000 horror flick reimagines the vampire trope for the original Hot Topic generation. 20 years later, Dracula 2000 remains awash in mall goth nostalgia. Whether or not this is a good thing is up for debate.
Dracula 2000 is a major departure from Bram Stoker's 1897 novel. Its star-studded cast ranges from Gerard Butler to Omar Epps to Christopher Plummer. The film takes place in muggy New Orleans, adding extra moodiness to a film drowning in histrionics. Is Dracula 2000 a misunderstood and underrated bloodsucker feature... or is it just terrible? Read on and suss it out for yourself.
10 Underrated: Christopher Plummer Stars As Abraham Van Helsing
Christopher Plummer is a classically trained stage actor whose role in Dracula 2000 as vampire hunter Abraham Van Helsing pays homage to vintage horror films. Plummer brings much-needed familiarity to a film that veers far from the original Dracula story.
What's different about Plummer's Van Helsing is that he has captured Dracula, yet he is unable to kill the vampire. Instead, Van Helsing holds Dracula prisoner in his antique shop, keeping himself alive by regularly injecting himself with Dracula's blood.
9 Terrible: Van Helsing's Daughter, Mary
Dracula 2000 gets really weird when it introduces Abraham Van Helsing's daughter, Mary. Mary is estranged from her father and lives in New Orleans, attending college and working at the local Virgin Megastore.
Mary, played by Justine Waddell, is also deeply religious. The virginal young woman also suffers from terrible nightmares about an elusive man. Could it be Dracula? Eye roll.
8 Underrated: The Plot Unravels In New Orleans
New Orleans is the perfect place to reinterpret the story of Dracula. The movie, of course, coincides with the city's iconic yearly Mardi Gras festival.
When it doesn't focus on the French Quarter mayhem, Dracula 2000 visits old cemeteries, colorful Creole cottages, and Gothic Revival churches, providing a memorable setting.
7 Terrible: A Third Of The Movie Is Set At A Virgin Megastore
Unfortunately, a good chunk of Dracula 2000 feels like an ad for Virgin Megastores. Long before the days of streaming music, this massive chain popped up in major cities all over the world.
Mary works at the Virgin Megastore in New Orleans. She spends quite a bit of time alphabetizing compact discs while late '90s rock music blasts overhead.
6 Underrated: Gerald Butler Makes One Sultry Dracula
Before he made waves in Zack Snyder's 300, Scottish actor Gerard Butler tried his hand at Dracula. With his shoulder-length curly hair, black dusters, and intense stare, Butler definitely amps up the vampire's seductive qualities.
After being freed from Van Helsing's antique shop by a group of thieves, Dracula makes his way to New Orleans with the goal of seducing Mary. Let's be honest: he seems hard to resist.
5 Terrible: Dracula Confesses To Be Judas Iscariot
While it gets a few points for originality, Dracula 2000's attempt to tie the vampire's origin story into biblical history feels entirely unnecessary. In the movie, Dracula reveals he's none other than Judas Iscariot, the man who betrayed Jesus Christ.
Dracula says his punishment for giving his friend over to Roman authorities for a bit of silver is spending 2,000 years as a vampire.
4 Underrated: Jonny Lee Miller Plays Abraham Van Helsing's Assistant
Jonny Lee Miller plays Van Helsing's apprentice, Simon Sheppard, who travels to New Orleans with his mentor after Dracula escapes. Van Helsing and Simon made an entertaining odd couple as they struggle to fight the powerful vampire.
Simon also develops a tacit romance with Mary as he works to protect her from the ancient bloodsucker. Miller plays on Simon's quirky yet likable dorkiness.
3 Terrible: The Predictable Heist
The plot in Dracula 2000 is propelled by a group of high-stakes, professional heisters who decide to rob Van Helsing's antique shop. The thieves suspect Van Helsing's goods are quite valuable, and they can't resist the giant coffin they stumble upon. Guess who's inside.
The thieves are played by Omar Epps, Jennifer Esposito, and Danny Masterson. When they're onboard a plane back to the US from Van Helsing's shop in the UK, Dracula awakens. He then takes care of the thieves with unsurprising viciousness.
2 Underrated: Capitalizes On The '90s Goth Scene
If it's anything, Dracula 2000 is a tribute to '90s gothic subcultures. Gerard Butler's Dracula dresses like the lead singer of a macabre industrial band. His floor-length duster jacket and night-dwelling tendencies add to this image.
In effect, Dracula 2000 transforms a genre-defining gothic story into a gothic story steeped in the grungy, subversive style of the new millennium. The movie revels in this without taking itself too seriously.
1 Terrible: Employs A Nu-Metal Soundtrack
When Dracula 2000 was released, the mainstream music scene was overrun by nu metal bands like Limp Bizkit and Korn. The soundtrack is essentially a nu metal compilation.
Nu metal is a genre of music you will either love or hate. Whatever your opinion, songs from System of a Down or Linkin Park give Dracula 2000 an edge liable to be too much for some people.
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