When the audience is finally introduced to Count Dracula as a vampire, he disgusts and repels them with his 'old' appearance. In the novel, the reader is not repelled by Dracula's older appearance, only by his cruel and evil actions. As time progresses and Dracula's appearance becomes younger, the audience is only repelled during the scenes of him draining his victim's blood. Furthermore, throughout the novel, Count Dracula is known for his multiple powers. He can assume the form of an animal, control the weather, and he is stronger than twenty men combined. However, his powers are limited. For instance, he cannot enter a home unless he is invited, he cannot cross water unless he is being carried, and he is powerless during the day. Unlike the novel, the movie uses visual stimuli in order to show Dracula's transformations. The audience is able to witness his facial appearance change numerous times throughout the movie. One transformation that the audience witness is Dracula's transformation into a green colored mist. This specific moment, in the movie, is when he enters Mina Murray's chambers through her slightly open window in the form of a green mist and appears directly above her in her bed. By the use of visual and auditory stimuli throughout the movie, the audience is frightened by how easily the count can enter any room at his convenience. .
To continue, Count Dracula's life in Francis Ford Coppola's movie is controlled by a completely different objective than Count Dracula in Bram Stoker's Dracula. In the first, it is evident that the director wishes to portray a love story between Count Dracula and Mina Murray; she being a representation of his only love, Elisabeta. By casting Winona Ryder to play both Mina Murray and Elisabeta, the connection between the two characters has already been established by the director. Also, in the scene where Mina is able to describe Count Dracula's homeland by herself is another method used by Francis Ford Coppola to demonstrate the reincarnation of Elisabeta through Mina Murray.
