Dracula Review – Besson’s Romantic Reimagining of the Gothic Classic is Absurd but Engaging
It’s possible interest is limited for a new version of Dracula from Luc Besson, the celebrated French director for glossiness and bloat. Still, it’s worth noting: his lavishly upholstered love story with vampires boasts bold vision and flair – and amid its theatrical camp, it could be preferable to it to Eggers’s dignified recent take of Nosferatu. There are some very bizarre touches, like a particular moment that looks like it presents a geographic divide between France and Romania.
The Veteran Actor as a Witty Yet Careworn Priest Tracking the Undead
Christoph Waltz plays a witty yet careworn cleric fighting vampires – it’s surprising he never took on this role before – who arrives in Paris in 1889 during the centennial of the French Revolution. Likewise present is the sinister Dracula, brought to life by the expert in grotesque roles Caleb Landry Jones using a distorted Eastern European tone similar to the voice of Gru by Steve Carell of the Despicable Me series. This is a part that he too was born to take on.
The Story: A Tale of Love and Loss
The plot unfolds as follows: the vampire lord has wandered endlessly the world in torment for 400 years after his transformation into a vampire, a consequence due to his blasphemous mourning over the death of his spouse Elisabeta (an inaugural screen appearance for Zoë Bleu, the offspring of Rosanna Arquette). Dracula has looked tirelessly for a female who might be the rebirth of his deceased partner. By cruel fate, the lucky lady is revealed as Mina (also Bleu, of course), the demure fiancee of the count’s timid estate manager, Jonathan Harker (Ewens Abid), who lately visited to Dracula’s fortress to review his real estate holdings and whose miniature portrait of the winsome Mina attracted Dracula’s gaze.
The Filmmaker’s Approach and Lighthearted Touch
Besson structures Dracula’s second-act backstory of worldwide travels sporting extravagant attire skillfully, and he doesn’t shy away from giving us humorous scenes in the style of Mel Brooks – such as Dracula’s ongoing failed efforts to kill himself post-Elisabeta’s demise, as well as absurd moments that follow Dracula sprays himself in a certain perfume in historic Florence, that renders him unavoidably attractive to females. Ridiculous and watchable.
Dracula is available digitally beginning on the first of December and in disc format from 22 December. It will be shown in Australian cinemas beginning on the fifth of February, 2026.
