What Near Dark Took From The Original Dracula | Screen Rant – Screen Rant

1987 vampire movie Near Dark presents a creative cure for the undead curse, but it actually traces its roots back to Bram Stoker's Dracula novel. Near Dark is sometimes referred to as a vampire western, and while it doesn't necessarily sport all the trappings of a traditional western, it certainly has the feel of one at times. Either way, it's definitely not a traditional vampire movie, and that's part of the reason it's so good, as there are literally hundreds of vampire movies that make use of the sub-genre's standard conventions.

Near Dark was a breath of fresh air within the vampire sub-genre in the 1980s, and remains a very unique film even now, over 30 years after its release. While Near Dark doesn't quite get the respect it deserves - and is often overshadowed by competing 1987 bloodsucker flick The Lost Boys - those who've seen it tend to come away very impressed. Of course, it helps that future Oscar-winner Kathryn Bigelow is behind the camera, proving with only her second feature that she was truly a filmmaker to watch.

Related: 10 Best Dracula Movies Ranked, According To IMDB

Fans will recall that Near Dark boasts a very unusual method of curing vampirism. Those affected can be cured of the condition by receiving an exchange blood transfusion from someone not infected. Vampirism is usually treated as a supernatural plague, and using a method based in medical science - or at least something that sounds believable to the average viewer - really switches things up. Yet, this cure draws partial inspiration from a plot point in the granddaddy of vampire stories, Dracula.

Near the end of Near Dark, protagonist Caleb (Adrian Pasdar) is able to get his transformation into a vampire reversed thanks to an exchange blood transfusion from his father, essentially removing his infected blood and replacing it with uninfected blood. This action is Caleb's idea, and it's unclear what inspired him to believe it could work. Work it does though, and it also works again later for Caleb's beloved Mae, the vampire who had turned him and who he had since fallen in love with. It's a pretty happy ending to what up until then is a quite dark film, literally and figuratively.

Way back in 1897, Bram Stoker's original Dracula novel set the stage for Near Dark's vampire cure, although without the same result. When the character of Lucy Westenra is attacked and bitten by Count Dracula, she is left in a weak, anemic state, and to stave off her impending death due to blood loss, Van Helsing suggests she be given a blood transfusion, and ends up requiring four in total. This being 1897, there's a grave medical oversight made in that no attempt is made to make sure the donors carry a compatible blood type. Still, knowledge of such things was still in the early stages at that time. While these transfusions don't prevent Lucy's ultimate transformation - Dracula returns later and finishes the turning process - it does keep her alive for a time, and sets the template for what director Kathryn Bigelow admits on the film's commentary track inspired Near Dark's vampire cure.

More: Who Turned Dracula Into A Vampire (In Original Books & Netflix Show)

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Michael Kennedy is an avid movie and TV fan that's been working for Screen Rant in various capacities since 2014. In that time, Michael has written over 2000 articles for the site, first working solely as a news writer, then later as a senior writer and associate news editor. Most recently, Michael helped launch Screen Rant's new horror section, and is now the lead staff writer when it comes to all things frightening. A FL native, Michael is passionate about pop culture, and earned an AS degree in film production in 2012. He also loves both Marvel and DC movies, and wishes every superhero fan could just get along. When not writing, Michael enjoys going to concerts, taking in live professional wrestling, and debating pop culture. A long-term member of the Screen Rant family, Michael looks forward to continuing on creating new content for the site for many more years to come.

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What Near Dark Took From The Original Dracula | Screen Rant - Screen Rant

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