Dracula Movie Critique – Luc Besson’s Passionate Revamp of the Classic Horror Story is Ridiculous but Watchable
Maybe audiences aren’t clamoring for a new version of Dracula from Luc Besson, the French maestro for glossiness and bloat. Still, one must admit: his opulently crafted vampire romance has ambition and panache – and in all its Hammer-y cheesiness, I’m not sure I wouldn’t prefer to it to the recent, stately interpretation by Robert Eggers of Nosferatu. There are some very bizarre touches, including one shot that seems to depict a land border between France and Romania.
The Veteran Actor as a Humorously Exhausted Clergyman Hunting Vampires
Christoph Waltz portrays a witty yet careworn man of the church pursuing the undead – I can’t believe he hasn’t played such a part earlier – who arrives in Paris in 1889 for the French Revolution centenary celebrations. The same goes for the malevolent vampire count, played by the body-horror veteran Caleb Landry Jones speaking in a twisted regional dialect evoking Steve Carell’s Gru of the Despicable Me series. This is a part suits him perfectly.
The Story: A Chronicle of Longing
Here’s the premise: Dracula has wandered endlessly the earth in anguish for hundreds of years after his transformation into a vampire, a punishment due to his blasphemous mourning following the loss of his beloved Elisabeta (an inaugural screen appearance for Zoë Bleu, daughter of Rosanna Arquette). the vampire has sought relentlessly for some woman who would be the rebirth of his deceased partner. As ill fortune would have it, the lucky lady is revealed as Mina (again played by Bleu), the modest betrothed of Dracula’s feeble property handler, Jonathan Harker (Ewens Abid), who lately visited to the vampire’s estate to review his property portfolio and the small picture of the winsome Mina drew the vampire’s attention.
Besson’s Handling and Humorous Style
Besson structures Dracula’s second-act backstory of international journeys wearing flamboyant outfits confidently, and he willingly includes providing funny bits with a distinctly Mel Brooks flavour – like the count’s repeated and futile attempts to commit suicide following Elisabeta’s passing, as well as absurd moments that occur when Dracula douses himself using a particular scent in historic Florence, that renders him irresistible to women. Ridiculous and watchable.
Dracula is on digital platforms beginning on the first of December and on DVD and Blu-ray from 22 December. It plays in Australian cinemas from 5 February 2026.
