"My Horses are Svvift. The Quinary Count No. 3"
Dracula
by
Narrated
by
I recently
undertook the personal challenge to listen to five different versions of
DRACULA because listening to Bram Stoker’s classic years ago made me a fan of
audiobooks. I enjoyed that experience so much that I decided to try to
determine if I had just gotten lucky or if there was an even better version
available. Besides, I wanted to listen to it again. With most books I feel
fortunate to have just one audio version available, but with DRACULA there are
so many versions offered that listening to them all is not practical. I first
figured that I could handle maybe three different versions but then discovered
two more that I thought deserved attention. The Audible list had these five
that I thought might be contenders:
Listed in my order of listening preference:
1) Susan Adams & Alexander Spencer (Recorded Books 1980)
2) Peter Sciarrio & Kris Faulkner & a FULL CAST, (Books in Motion 2008)
3) Greg Wise & Saskia Reeves (BBC Audiobooks 2008)
4) Robert Whitfield (aka Simon Vance), (Blackstone edition 1998)
5) Alan Cumming & Tim Curry & cast (Audible edition 2011)
Review of this version:
3) Greg Wise (m) Saskia Reeves (f), BBC Audiobooks 2008 [run time 18:24],
Of all the actors displaying their talents in narrating DRACULA, Greg Wise is the best single overall performer. At times his well-modulated voice fooled me into thinking that I was hearing several actors doing the different character voices. He has more range than any other single actor and more variety in his one voice box than the entire male cast of the Audible edition.
One of my favorite scenes came early in the novel. It was when Jonathan Harker is riding in a coach that is overtaken by another coach driven by Count Dracula himself. Greg Wise delivers the line, “My horses are swift,” as if the word was “svvift.” This was my first indication that Wise was going to be great. In chapter 18, Wise doing Renfield is amazing! He brings out his intellectual craziness!
Had Wise's partner, Saskia Reeves, been more exuberant, this would have been the best overall version. Sadly Reeves gave a less than energetic performance in places and caused me to give this Wise & Reeves version a third place ranking. Reeves chose to play Mina Harker with a touch of warm lethargy that never seems to match the dialog or the image one gets of an energetic, and even high-strung, brilliant young woman, depicted in the text.
TECHNICAL NOTES
Chapter stops every 102-116 minutes do not match book chapters.
No text duplications or omissions!
Very good sound quality. High production values.
12:16:20 Mispronunciation of “sentience.” (as SEN-t-ence)
Follows the text of THE ANNOTATED DRACULA (TAD)
Examples:
1:43:24 “Occupied in bygone days,” (TAD p. 38.1)
2:28:59 “To-morrow night, to-morrow night is yours.” (TAD p. 53.5)
Listed in my order of listening preference:
1) Susan Adams & Alexander Spencer (Recorded Books 1980)
2) Peter Sciarrio & Kris Faulkner & a FULL CAST, (Books in Motion 2008)
3) Greg Wise & Saskia Reeves (BBC Audiobooks 2008)
4) Robert Whitfield (aka Simon Vance), (Blackstone edition 1998)
5) Alan Cumming & Tim Curry & cast (Audible edition 2011)
Review of this version:
3) Greg Wise (m) Saskia Reeves (f), BBC Audiobooks 2008 [run time 18:24],
Of all the actors displaying their talents in narrating DRACULA, Greg Wise is the best single overall performer. At times his well-modulated voice fooled me into thinking that I was hearing several actors doing the different character voices. He has more range than any other single actor and more variety in his one voice box than the entire male cast of the Audible edition.
One of my favorite scenes came early in the novel. It was when Jonathan Harker is riding in a coach that is overtaken by another coach driven by Count Dracula himself. Greg Wise delivers the line, “My horses are swift,” as if the word was “svvift.” This was my first indication that Wise was going to be great. In chapter 18, Wise doing Renfield is amazing! He brings out his intellectual craziness!
Had Wise's partner, Saskia Reeves, been more exuberant, this would have been the best overall version. Sadly Reeves gave a less than energetic performance in places and caused me to give this Wise & Reeves version a third place ranking. Reeves chose to play Mina Harker with a touch of warm lethargy that never seems to match the dialog or the image one gets of an energetic, and even high-strung, brilliant young woman, depicted in the text.
TECHNICAL NOTES
Chapter stops every 102-116 minutes do not match book chapters.
No text duplications or omissions!
Very good sound quality. High production values.
12:16:20 Mispronunciation of “sentience.” (as SEN-t-ence)
Follows the text of THE ANNOTATED DRACULA (TAD)
Examples:
1:43:24 “Occupied in bygone days,” (TAD p. 38.1)
2:28:59 “To-morrow night, to-morrow night is yours.” (TAD p. 53.5)
posted by Doug Eigsti at Tuesday, July 23, 2013
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