With the release of Van Helsing lurking around the corner, today's Wall Street Journal [paid subscription required] takes a look at the many names borne by Dracula's nemesis.
Usually the vampire gets top billing. But when Universal decided to retell the "Dracula" legend this summer for the popcorn crowd, it named the movie "Van Helsing," after the vampire's legendary nemesis, Abraham Van Helsing.But wait: Make that Gabriel Van Helsing. In the release set to open May 7, the studio and producers decided to change the first name of a character that traces its lineage back to Bram Stoker's 1897 novel "Dracula."
So what's wrong with the name Abraham? And why pick Gabriel over, say, Brian? Writer and director Stephen Sommers, who couldn't be reached for comment, says in the studio's production notes: "I needed to find a way to make [Van Helsing] my own.... I made him younger and cooler... in a sense, I made my Van Helsing the younger brother to Stoker's character."
[Is anyone else reminded of the Simpsons episode where Otto was looking for a book from the point of view of the vampire?]
