I've seen Van Helsing once before, but it has been quite some time. As I was watching it what I noticed was how the movie tied many different horror characters into the story, the beginning mostly. Such as Dr. Frankenstein as "the mad scientist" and his monster. Also Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde made an appearance.
While watching the first few minutes of the movie and watching the part that implied the story of Frankenstein. They didn't use the book version that we read for the first week of class but the Frankenstein version that most people know. This movie made me remember what I thought the book Frankenstein was going to be about. A mad scientist that creates this monster. Then the monster mourns over the death of his "father" because people thought that he was mad and made this crazy invention that is his monster.
Of course I knew that Van Helsing was more than just a character in a movie so I decided to look up where the character for the movies came from. I didn't know that Van Helsing was a character in the book Dracula. I found that kind of interesting because it made me realize why the main vampire's name was Count Dracula.
This movie also brings up an interesting subject; what kills a vampire? One thing that I have really noticed about vampire movies and tv shows, since I don't really read many novels with vampires in them, is that in each movie and show their are different ways to kill a vampires. In Van Helsing, one of the characters make a special bow and arrow invention. But in most shows it's usually a stake to the heart. I just find it so interesting how many different shows and movies play-up what effects vampires in different ways, such as the sun or being killed.
For example:
twilight:
- can go in the sun but becomes glittery
- has marble-like skin
- pale-skin
- special power
true-blood:
- can't go in the sun
- has a drink called trublood that they can drink as a substitution
- has to be invited into a house each time they want to enter
- is much more organized; with sheriffs
- can control people
vampire diaries:
- some can go in the sun with special rings, most cannot
- has to only be invited into a house once
- can control people
vampire knight:
- can take tablets for blood substitution
- has a hierarchy
- has vampire hunters
- vampires who are not noble turn into different creatures called level E's
- sun hurts them but doesn't kill them
- all have special powers
I think the idea of a vampire really is just the idea that they suck human blood, but their always is a sort of substitute, wether it's animal blood, a tablet, or a drink. Also what I think makes a vampire is their strength, speed, and are affected by the sun in some way. The fact that there are so many different elements that can be played with makes vampires popular. Their a monster in human form, some have to fight their nature, which is a struggle I think even most people go through, some just love to go with it. Vampires are extreme but also capable of emotion.
I think Vampires are the extreme of what humans could be, that's why I think they are so popular.
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