Dracula Movie Critique – The French Director’s Romantic Reimagining of the Gothic Classic is Absurd but Watchable

Perhaps audiences aren’t clamoring for a fresh take of Dracula from Luc Besson, the filmmaker known for glossiness and bloat. However, it’s worth noting: his lavishly upholstered love story with vampires displays creativity and style – and amid its theatrical camp, I’m not sure I wouldn’t prefer to it to Robert Eggers’s recent, solemnly classy version of Nosferatu. Odd details emerge, such as a scene that looks like it presents a geographic divide between France and Romania.

Christoph Waltz as a Clever but Weary Clergyman Hunting Vampires

Christoph Waltz portrays a witty yet careworn cleric fighting vampires – it feels natural for him to tackle such a part earlier – who finds himself in Paris in 1889 during the centennial of the French Revolution. So does the evil Count Dracula, played by the body-horror veteran Caleb Landry Jones using a distorted Eastern European tone evoking Steve Carell’s Gru from the Despicable Me comedies. This character suits him perfectly.

The Story: A Tale of Love and Loss

Here’s the premise: the count has been restlessly roaming the earth in torment over four centuries after his transformation into a vampire, a penalty due to his blasphemous mourning after the passing of his spouse Elisabeta (a movie debut role for Zoë Bleu, Rosanna Arquette’s child). The count has been searching, searching, searching for some woman who would be the rebirth of his lost love. Unfortunately, the chosen woman turns out to be Mina (portrayed once more by Bleu), the reserved future wife of the count’s timid estate manager, Jonathan Harker (Ewens Abid), who has recently been to the vampire’s estate to review his property portfolio and the small picture of the charming Mina attracted Dracula’s gaze.

Besson’s Handling and Lighthearted Touch

Besson arranges Dracula’s middle-section history of international journeys wearing flamboyant outfits with a sure hand, and he doesn’t shy away from giving us humorous scenes in the style of Mel Brooks – for example the vampire’s constant unsuccessful tries to end his own life post-Elisabeta’s demise, as well as comical sequences that occur when Dracula sprays himself with a specific fragrance in historic Florence, that renders him compelling to the opposite sex. Outlandish but entertaining.

Dracula is available digitally beginning on the first of December and on DVD and Blu-ray from December 22nd. It will be shown in Australian cinemas starting February 5, 2026.