Dracula - Masterpiece Theater

Ran across this Masterpiece Theater production of Dracula which aired on PBS earlier this year.  Seemed to have been panned by critics, but as it (to my surprise) happened to have Sophia Myles as Lucy, who's my favorite part of CBS's Moonlight series about a vampire and his reporter girlfriend, I order it and watched it this was.
The plot is a distinct variation on Stoker's original, with Dracula summoned to London by Holmwood, who has been told he can cure Holmwood's inherited syphilis before he infected his new bride Lucy.  Actually not nearly as serious a variation of the story as the Deane/Balderston play that was the basis of the 1931 and 1979, although not as close as the 1992 version.
I was pleasantly surprised by how good the production was.  Sets and settingss are uniformly outstanding, and far closer to historical accuracy that Coppola's version (which was a nice change).  Myles was very good as Lucy, and Dan Stevens and Tom Burke do outstanding jobs as Holmwood and Seward. 
By far the best thing about the production to me, however, was Marc Warren as the "old" Dracula.  He was the best I've ever seen, with aged, diseased skin, straggly white hair, filthy fingernails, and an ancient, motheaten robe.  He looked and sounded like someone a few days either side of being dead, which is exactly how I thought a vampire should be played, including Dracula at the beginning of the book - far better than Kabuki Dracula in Coppola's version (who was, admittedly a hairstyle and a dressing gown away from being what I had in mind).  I had no idea who he was until he became the "young" Dracula, and I realized he'd been the focus of an entire episode of Band of Brothers.  I am not a fan of young Draculas in general, but what was different about this one is that his attraction to women was pretty clearly some sort of hypnotic interest, not a romantic one.  He exerted some sort of power over Lucy, then Mina, but it wasn't romantic - even his seduction of Lucy was clearly when she was not conscious. 
A quick note how well the sexual frustration angle between Holmwood and Lucy - who doesn't know why her new husband won't consummate their marriage - was handled.  It could have been (enjoyably) expanded, but wasn't at all inadequate for purposes of the story, and was an interesting take on the issue, as well s bringing in through the back door all sorts of associations with Bram Stoker's life and writings. 
Warren as a vampire in full fang was somewhat annoying (as they all are) but as a young Dracula, I think he was probably the best I've seen.  It's just hard to really say, since I really don't seen the book's Dracula as a young man.  As I've said before, I probably see someone with about the age and presence of a current Tom Selleck (not the Magnum one, the Las Vegas one).  Myles and Stephanie Leonidas I'd hire as Lucy and Mina any day.  Myles just seduces the camera whever she feels like it, and Leonidas portrayed someone of markedly different social standing to Lucy, which is accurate to the book.   And neither was asked to go out of character to be some sort of seductress, or consumed by sexual hunger around Dracula.  Mina in particular was desperately in love with her Jonathan, and what Dracula gets out of her is markedly different.  Same with Lucy - her reaction to Dracula is never romantic - it is simple reaction to his power over her.  Again, to me that's a better way of telling the story.  Footnote to the seductress - of course Lucy does act this was just before being staked, and Myles' acting and the direction hits precisely the right tone - she's a vamp, but let's not overdo it.  (Her vamping on Moonlight last night under the influence of some bizarre pharmaceuticals was an order of magnitude greater, incidentally).
That having been said, the movie for me really started to fall apart as soon as they staked Lucy.  Unlike every other movie I've seen, the staking consisted of her lying compliantly on the ground - arms out of the way conveniently - while Holmwood pushes (not hammers - just pushes) a stake into her belly (not her heart).  The idea that she lies down and pulls him on top of her was an original one, but the idea she'd just lie there and let him stake her made no sense.  At least distract her or restrain her or wait till she's asleep as in the book - make it look at least remotely realistic (I guess we're supposed to think she doesn't think he'll actually do it.  Or, and I just thought of this, she's just a two day old vampire - maybe she has no idea what he was trying to do, or that it'd actually harm her, or even that he would want to harm her.  That sort of makes sense, I guess). 
After that, the movie just sort of dragged around until Dracula was the stakee.  But, all in all, not a bad production, and a worthy addition to the Dracula ouevre.  Comes in at #2 for me, and not by a whole lot.