Porn Does Dracula

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Bram Stoker, most commentators and biographers agree, saw nothing erotic in his now-classic novel.  At least he'd admit to nothing like that.  Some have agreed in the interim, but they make up a minority.  Popular imagination casts Count Dracula as the world's ultimate seducer, a demonic Cassanova irresistible to women.

No surprise then, when the adult entertainment industry looked to exploit that idea.

Only genuine attempts to adapt Stoker's novel into an adult format not only got off the ground but finished production.  The Count or some virtual clone of his made appearances, but for now let us look at those actual adaptations.  For our purposes, I'm referring to efforts at recreating the story of Dracula, not just the character.  Given the nature of the industry, is this number high or low?  Matter of opinion.

Less subjective is that the first such attempt sports the semi-topical title Lust At First Bite.  Initially titled Dracula Sucks but then changed after the wild popularity of the George Harrison/Susan St. James comedy, this film followed the Balderston-Deanne play for the most part.  It begins with Renfield's sister bringing him to Dr. Seward's private sanitorium.  Soon a mysterious nobleman from Transylvania shows up.  Strange events follow, including the death by exsanguination of Lucy, best friend of Dr. Seward's ward, Mina.  Not surprisingly, virtually no opportunity for coupling goes by unused, even to the point of adding several extra characters--Dr. Seward's sister, a maid, a nurse, and a pretty young mental patient who wanders around with a teddy bear until ravished by one of Dracula's brides.  By porn standards in the 1970s this made for a lavish production.  Period costumes, an antique car, filming on location in Death Valley--many a t.v. series has spent less!  The biggest stars of the industry had roles--Annette Haven, Seka, John Holmes, Paul Thomas (who played Peter in the film Jesus Christ Superstar), Serena and Kay Parker all had roles.  So too did a non-adult performer, Reggie Nalder who later starred in the first version of Stephen King's Salem's Lot.

More recently Hustler made one of a series of adult flicks, this one titled This Ain't Dracula, intended as an outright parody of the film Bram Stoker's Dracula.  The DVD cover made that crystal clear, as did details of costuming especially (Evan Stone as the perennial Count even dons a hairpiece recreating the weirdly oriental look of Gary Oldman).   The first porn version followed the famous stage play.  This one, in following the Coppola film, remains somewhat more faithful to the plot.  Scenes with Harker arriving at Castle Dracula begin the story, and leads to an explicit (no surprise) version in which the Brides ravish him.  As might be expected, Lucy back in England seduces Mina (in this version, the more demure, reluctant of the two).  Later of course the erstwhile vampire hunters track Lucy down, distracting her with intercourse before destroying her.  Yeah, like that makes sense.

In the end (literally) Mina succumbs to Dracula and joins him into the night, actress Jessi Palmer looking quite lovely in fangs.  She actually gives a not-bad performance.  Which parallels Annette Haven's take on what is essentially the same part a generation earlier.

Here's what's interesting.  At one time or another nearly anything that can be considered even vaguely erotic ends up exploited by the adult film industry.  One can see why.  Vampires are certainly no exception, ranging from utterly ridiculous to somewhat enticing.

So I'm told.  Yeah, right.

But the pattern that repeats in both these films parallels that of many legitimate adaptations of Dracula.  At film's climax, the sexuality of the vampire focuses clearly on Mina--his last, most virginal and upright victim.  In the Langella film she has fallen completely in love with her almost-destroyer.  Such makes for the central plot element in both Bram Stoker's Dracula as well as the musical version.  In fact it seems the basis for most versions of this story, from the original Fright Night to Spanish Dracula and Dracula Has Risen From the Grave as well as Buffy The Vampire Slayer (the series), the t.v. show Blood Ties and even True Blood.  Sexual awakening.

The novel had the same trope, but notice where Stoker put it.  Not towards the end, as part of some ambiguity involving the vampire, but in the middle.  When Lucy gains fangs, she also gets a sex drive.  Hence Van Helsing and the men who loved her must destroy the poor girl.  Much of the rest of the novel consists of race against time to keep this from happening again!

What's fascinating is that our current versions of vampire stories--in this respect--often resemble our porn versions of Bram Stoker's novel than the original.  Take that as you will.

About the Author

David MacDowell Blue blogs at http://zahirblue.blogspot.com/.  He graduated from the National Shakespeare Conservatory and is the author of The Annotated Carmilla. and Your Vampire Story (And How to Write It). He's currently writing a vampire novel titled Winter Isle.