#Judi Bowker

[kitsunetsuki]

Patrick Lichfield - Judi Bowker Wearing a Dress by John Bates at Jean Varon (Vogue UK 1969)

[oldmanpeace]

[atomic-chronoscaph]

Judi Bowker as Andromeda - Clash of the Titans (1981)

[thatbitchsimone]

[kwebtv]

Count Dracula - BBC - December 22, 1977

Horror / Drama

Running Time: 155 minutes

Stars:

Louis Jourdan as Count Dracula

Frank Finlay as Professor Van Helsing

Susan Penhaligon as Lucy Westenra

Judi Bowker as Mina Westenra

Jack Shepherd as Renfield

Mark Burns as Dr. John Seward

Bosco Hogan as Jonathan Harker

Richard Barnes as Quincey P. Holmwood

Ann Queensberry as Mrs Westenra

Sue Vanner, Susie Hickford and Belinda Meuldijk as Dracula's Brides

[luanna801]

Hi! I finished Dracula a few days ago, and I love all of the characters, but...

THE HARKERS MY BELOVED

Anyway, do you know of any adaptations that actually manage to get their relationship right?

HARKERS MY BELOVED 💕💕💕 That's awesome to hear! I'm so glad you enjoyed it and loved all the characters!

For my money (disclaimer that I haven't seen anywhere close to all of the Dracula adaptations), by far my favorite adaptation in terms of Jonathan/Mina content is Nosferatu (1922).

(That's them in my icon!) The actors have great chemistry, there are so many great moments like these showing their affection and intimacy, and while I won't spoil anything about the ending, the strength of their bond and willingness to sacrifice everything for each other is crucial to the resolution of the movie (which is somewhat different from the ending of Dracula the book.)

I've jokingly referred to Nosferatu as "Off-Brand Discount Dracula" in the past because it was made without the legal rights to the book, so the character's names are changed (Jonathan and Mina are renamed to Thomas and Ellen Hutter, for example), and it's a very condensed version of the book's story. And yet when it comes to Jonathan and Mina - and maybe even the spirit of the book as a whole - I feel like this adaptation gets it right in a way no adaptation since (at least, of the ones I've watched) really does.

Then there's the BBC miniseries Count Dracula (1977), which is probably the most accurate adaptation we've gotten overall, and certainly one that I enjoy. And Jonathan and Mina's relationship there is sweet and overall faithful to the novel:

And yet... for my money, this adaptation falls a bit flat when it comes to their relationship. It's fine, they're certainly shown to love each other and there's no Dracula/Mina nonsense as in some other adaptations. But there are so many moments and nuances from the book showing just how deep and powerful their bond is that I think this version fails to capture. I think probably the biggest moment where they drop the ball is that you don't see Jonathan holding and comforting Mina after her attack, the way he does in the book.

(On the flipside they did add a scene where Mina shoots a guy to save Jonathan in the final showdown, which was pretty cool!)

That might sound like I'm damning with faint praise, and I guess I am a bit, but this is overall a good solid adaptation and the Jonathan/Mina content we get is nice. That wouldn't be such a big deal if we had amazing adaptations that truly captured the relationships from the book, but unfortunately I don't think we've gotten any that does these characters and relationships full justice. And when it comes to Jonathan/Mina, I honestly think it's been downhill ever since Nosferatu.

[all-changes-pass-me-like-a-dream]

Judi Bowker as Saint Clare of Assisi

in Brother Sun, Sister Moon (1972) directed by Franco Zeffirelli

[mellifleurs]

judi bowker ♡

[movie--posters]

[showtiming]

Clash of the Titans (1981) Dir. Desmond Davis.

[ohbabeyeah]

[lumiere-astrale]

Judi Bowker

[thatbitchsimone]

[page-28]

1973

[all-changes-pass-me-like-a-dream]

Judi Bowker as Saint Clare of Assisi

in Brother Sun, Sister Moon (1972) directed by Franco Zeffirelli

[thethirdromana]

Ages of Dracula casts

This ask made me wonder how close past Dracula casts were to the ages of the characters as established in the novel. Looking at these adaptations:

Dracula (1931)

Horror of Dracula (1958)

Dracula (1974)

Count Dracula (1977)

Dracula (1979)

Bram Stoker’s Dracula (1992)

Dracula (2020)

In some cases characters are merged or changed; I've associated each character with the person who comes closest to having the same name.

Jonathan Harker (early 20s)

Dracula (1931) - David Manners, 31

Horror of Dracula (1958) - John Van Eyssen, 36

Dracula (1974) - Murray Brown, 37

Count Dracula (1977) - Bosco Hogan, 28

Dracula (1979) - Trevor Eve, 28

Bram Stoker's Dracula (1992) - Keanu Reeves, 28

Dracula (2020) - John Heffernan, 39

On average, Jonathan Harker is cast as 32.

Mina Murray (early 20s)

Dracula (1931) - Helen Chandler, 25

Horror of Dracula (1958) - Melissa Stribling, 32

Dracula (1974) - Penelope Horner, 35

Count Dracula (1977) - Judi Bowker, 23

Dracula (1979) - Jan Francis, 32

Bram Stoker's Dracula (1992) - Winona Ryder, 21

Dracula (2020) - Morfydd Clark, 31

On average, Mina Murray is cast as 28.

Lucy Westenra (19)

Dracula (1931) - Frances Dade, 24

Horror of Dracula (1958) - Carol Marsh, 32

Dracula (1974) - Fiona Lewis, 28

Count Dracula (1977) - Susan Penhaligon, 28

Dracula (1979) - Kate Nelligan, 29

Bram Stoker's Dracula (1992) - Sadie Frost, 27

Dracula (2020) - Lydia West, 27

On average, Lucy Westenra is cast as 28.

Jack Seward (29)

Dracula (1931) - Herbert Bunston, 57 (aged up to be Mina's dad)

Horror of Dracula (1958) - Charles Lloyd-Pack, 56

Dracula (1974) - none

Count Dracula (1977) - Mark Burns, 41

Dracula (1979) - Donald Pleasence, 60 (Lucy's dad in this one)

Bram Stoker's Dracula (1992) - Richard E Grant, 35

Dracula (2020) - Matthew Beard, 31

On average, Jack Seward is cast as 47, and also assigned Dad.

Quincey Morris (mid to late 20s)

Dracula (1931) - none

Horror of Dracula (1958) - none

Dracula (1974) - none

Count Dracula (1977) - Richard Barnes, 33

Dracula (1979) - none

Bram Stoker's Dracula (1992) - Billy Campbell, 33

Dracula (2020) - Phil Dunster, 28

On average, Quincey Morris doesn't exist. But when he does, he's 31.

Arthur Holmwood (mid to late 20s)

Dracula (1931) - none

Horror of Dracula (1958) - Michael Gough, 42

Dracula (1974) - Simon Ward, 33

Count Dracula (1977) - none

Dracula (1979) - none

Bram Stoker's Dracula (1992) - Cary Elwes, 30

Dracula (2020) - none

On average, Arthur Holmwood doesn't exist either. But when he does, he's 35.

Van Helsing (a generation older)

Dracula (1931) - Edward Van Sloan, 49

Horror of Dracula (1958) - Peter Cushing, 45

Dracula (1974) - Nigel Davenport, 46

Count Dracula (1977) - Frank Finlay, 51

Dracula (1979) - Laurence Olivier, 72

Bram Stoker's Dracula (1992) - Anthony Hopkins, 55

Dracula (2020) - Dolly Wells, 49

On average, Van Helsing is cast as 52.