Parents' Guide to Dracula (2020)

Parents need to know that Dracula is a TV adaptation of Bram Stoker's classic 1897 gothic horror novel. Created by Mark Gatiss and Steven Moffat, the duo behind the Sherlock and Doctor Who television reboots, the 3-episode series is set in Transylvania and Budapest at the end of the 19th century and tells the story of a British lawyer John Harker who is imprisoned by Count Dracula in his labyrinthian castle. Harker escapes and ends up in a Hungarian convent, tended to a nun named Sister Agatha Van Helsing, and relives his days of terror. There's a lot of violent imagery and action in this classic vampire story; corpses rise from wooden coffins, a woman is decapitated, there are stakes driven into hearts, a group of women are torn apart by wolves. There is ripping flesh, gaping open wounds, oozing blood -- but much of the violence happens offscreen. It's more philosophically and psychologically terrifying for its religious, good verses evil, symbolism. Both Sister Agatha and Harker are strong, compelling characters who act with courage and selflessness. There are a few fleeting shots of a fully-clothed sexual act between an engaged couple, interrogations about whether or not Dracula preyed on Harker sexually, and a scene in which Dracula emerges naked from the skin of a wolf, although there is only a dimly lit shot of his buttocks. Horror fans will likely enjoy this well-done interpretation of a classic tale, but the violent imagery and mature themes makes this best for teens and up.