IN DEFENSE OF Dracula 2000

Remember the Y2K scare? We may have flirted dangerously with technology, and felt the impending doom of a major computer meltdown. But it never happened, and other than a few crappy Radio Shack PCs, most computers prevailed. Yet then in the year 00, when we least expected it, the world met its greatest threat. Again. We're talking the dark lord himself, back from the dead and ready to go clubbing

—DRACULA.

While most film historians will attribute the Weinstein Brothers to jump starting the indie film scene and launching the careers of modern day auteurs, I'll always be enamored of brother Bob's contribution to modern horror movies. Dimension Films started as a routine exploitation line for the studio, churning out approximately 253 direct-to-video sequels to Hellraiser and Children of the Corn. But in 1996, they hit pay-dirt for the mouse-owned studio with Scream, a film that redefined the slasher flick and catapulted Dimension to the forefront of studios developing theatrical horror. But for every The Prophecy or Mimic, they managed to churn out a ton of crap fests like Phantoms or Highlander: Endgame.

Dracula 2000 is an anomaly. What should be a direct-to-video exploitation Dimension release, is actually a surprisingly fun entry in their filmography and it plays its cards right. First, it's packed with a great cast that includes Jonny Lee Miller, Omar Epps, Jennifer Esposito, Jeri Ryan and Christopher Plummer, and if that's not enough, it's blessed with an early performance by Gerard Butler as Dracula himself. Butler is almost too perfect for the role, and doesn't have much dialogue. Christopher Plummer's paycheck collecting appearance as Van Helsing is equally perfect, and he earns his pay going full camp during some of the film's more tongue-in-cheek scenes.

In fact, I'd go so far as to say that Dracula 2000 does for the Hammer Dracula movies what Scream did for the slashers. You don't just slap Wes Craven Presents on any horror movie. Well, okay, a lot of people have, but give the guy a break. This is the one time lending some production expertise paid off. Injected with equal parts scare and irreverent self-awareness, the movie knows when to poke fun at the Dracula lore, and still manage to retell it for modern audiences. One of the best moments in the New Orleans-set movie, includes a cameo appearance from the now dead Virgin Megastore.

It's not all camp though. Dracula 2000 stakes some killer scares, including an eerie swamp sequence and the most uncomfortable use of leeches since Stand By Me. And although the final climax and revelation is pretty over-the-top, by this point, it doesn’t matter. The rest of the film has been such a fun ride that the shortcomings of the final 20 minutes are completely forgivable.

Final word of warning though. Avoid the direct-to-video sequels Dracula II: Ascension and Dracula II: Legacy. They suck.

* Special thanks to Craig for defending this movie until I finally watched in nearly 10 years later.