Here's the thing about vampires: They're not only cool to begin with but they are also afforded endless opportunities to further their coolness. This is where they differ significantly from werewolves and Frankenstein's monster. I mean, if proms and singles' parties were held in the realm of paranormal creatures, vampires would be the ones getting all the hot dates, leaving werewolves weeping into their wine and Frankenstein's monster tinkering with the bolts sticking out of his head. But I digress.

The vampire in "Dracula Untold" is even cooler than the rest, if you can believe that. Directed by Gary Shore, who used to make commercials before this debut feature, "Dracula Untold" is fresh, sexy and does not feature teenagers with fangs. No, the whole package seems designed for a more mature audience who grew up collecting Marvel comic books and loving Batman — and boy, will they get this Dracula.

Luke Evans stars as Vlad Tepes, a prince in 15th-century Transylvania. Like most of the rest of Europe, Vlad's country has suffered much at the hands of the Turks, but during the first scenes, he's celebrating 10 years of peace with his wife Mirena (Sarah Gadon) and friends. Alas, the festivities are cut short when news comes in that the Turks are back, and they're demanding 1,000 Transylvanian boys to become slave soldiers in the Turkish army.