Dracula Review – The French Director’s Love-Struck Reinterpretation of the Classic Horror Story is Ridiculous but Watchable
Maybe there is no great enthusiasm for a new version of Dracula from Luc Besson, the filmmaker known for stylish excess. And yet, one must admit: his opulently crafted romantic vampire tale displays creativity and style – and amid its theatrical camp, it could be preferable compared with Robert Eggers’s recent, solemnly classy version of Nosferatu. Odd details emerge, including one shot that appears to show a land border between France and Romania.
The Veteran Actor as a Witty Yet Careworn Vampire-Hunting Priest
Christoph Waltz plays a clever but beleaguered man of the church pursuing the undead – it’s surprising he never took on such a part earlier – who finds himself in Paris in 1889 for the French Revolution centenary celebrations. The same goes for the malevolent vampire count, enacted by the body-horror veteran Caleb Landry Jones using a distorted Eastern European tone evoking Carell’s Gru character in the Despicable Me films. This is a part that he too was born to take on.
The Plot: A Tale of Love and Loss
The plot unfolds as follows: Dracula has traveled ceaselessly the earth in sorrow over four centuries since he became undead, a consequence due to his blasphemous mourning over the death of his beloved Elisabeta (an inaugural screen appearance for Zoë Bleu, the offspring of Rosanna Arquette). Dracula has sought relentlessly for a female who might be the reincarnation of his lost love. Unfortunately, the fortunate female is revealed as Mina (also Bleu, of course), the reserved future wife of Dracula’s feeble property handler, Jonathan Harker (Ewens Abid), who lately visited to the count’s castle to discuss his real estate holdings and the tiny painting of the lovely Mina attracted Dracula’s gaze.
Besson’s Direction and Lighthearted Touch
Besson structures Dracula’s second-act backstory of worldwide travels wearing flamboyant outfits confidently, and he doesn’t shy away from offering some comedy moments with a distinctly Mel Brooks flavour – like the count’s repeated and futile attempts to kill himself after Elisabeta’s death, in addition to farcical scenes that follow Dracula douses himself in a certain perfume during the 1700s in Florence, which makes him compelling to the opposite sex. Outlandish but entertaining.
Dracula is on digital platforms from 1 December and in disc format from 22 December. It screens in Australian cinemas beginning on the fifth of February, 2026.
