Dracula Review – Besson’s Romantic Reinterpretation of the Classic Horror Story is Outlandish but Engaging
Maybe audiences aren’t clamoring for a fresh take of Dracula from Luc Besson, the French maestro for stylish excess. And yet, one must admit: his lavishly upholstered love story with vampires displays creativity and style – and amid its theatrical camp, I might just favor compared with the recent, stately interpretation by Robert Eggers of Nosferatu. A few strange elements appear, such as a scene that seems to depict a land border between France and Romania.
Waltz as a Witty Yet Careworn Clergyman Hunting Vampires
Christoph Waltz portrays a clever but beleaguered man of the church pursuing the undead – I can’t believe he hasn’t played this role before – who arrives in Paris in 1889 during the centennial of the French Revolution. So does the sinister Dracula, enacted by the body-horror veteran Caleb Landry Jones with a mangled central European accent similar to the voice of Gru by Steve Carell from the Despicable Me comedies. This character he seemed destined to play.
The Narrative: A Tale of Love and Loss
The plot unfolds as follows: Dracula has been restlessly roaming the globe in sorrow for hundreds of years since he became undead, a penalty due to his blasphemous mourning over the death of his wife, Elisabeta (a first film part for Zoë Bleu, daughter of Rosanna Arquette). Dracula has looked tirelessly for a female who might be the reincarnation of his departed beloved. Unfortunately, the chosen woman proves to be Mina (again played by Bleu), the demure fiancee of Dracula’s wimpish land agent, Jonathan Harker (enacted by Ewens Abid), who has recently been to Dracula’s fortress to review his property portfolio and whose miniature portrait of the charming Mina attracted Dracula’s gaze.
Besson’s Direction and Lighthearted Touch
Besson organizes Dracula’s middle-section history of international journeys wearing flamboyant outfits skillfully, and he is not above providing humorous scenes reminiscent of Mel Brooks – such as Dracula’s ongoing failed efforts to kill himself after Elisabeta’s death, in addition to comical sequences that result after Dracula applies to himself in a certain perfume in 18th-century Florence, which causes him to be unavoidably attractive to females. Absurd yet engaging.
Dracula is on digital platforms from 1 December and on DVD and Blu-ray from 22 December. It plays in Australian cinemas starting February 5, 2026.
