Hoping not to go too much off-topic, I'll make a quick tie-in with DS. Remember how the early part of the 1897 storyline drew a lot of inspiration from "Jane Eyre"? For that matter, the whole governess situation that DS began with had many echoes from the novel.
I agree with David that DS viewers should find "Jane Eyre" of special interest. From what I read about the recent BBC production that aired a couple of weeks ago, though, people who hadn't read the book loved it (for example, the San Francisco Chronicle reviewer, I think it was, thought it was great but showed he wasn't very familiar with the original novel's ideas); many of those who know the book, on the other hand, had big reservations. I only turned it on for a few minutes, and at first was taken in by the beautiful settings, the filming, the costumes (probably too beautiful). And I think this actress may have been right for the part had it been written true to the book (though she was probably too pretty). And I usually hate to say that anyone is "wrong" for a part, but Toby Stephens (besides being way too pretty) was not Charlotte Bronte's character at all ... If I could let go of my impressions from the book, I might have been able to sit back and enjoy it (especially if I had thought more about DS).
That will be the challenge for me with the new "Dracula". As a great admirer of Stoker's novel, every production has disappointed me to some degree, although some more than others. (I rank Dan Curtis' version as one of the better ones.) Some of the early Barnabas scenes on DS reminded me of the Stoker novel.
David makes a good point about previous versions of "Dracula" not adhering much to the novel. I'll do my best to take his advice :
I look forward to this new Dracula as I would to any old fashioned Gothic chiller!
