Dracula Movie Critique – The French Director’s Passionate Reimagining of the Classic Horror Story is Absurd but Entertaining

Maybe audiences aren’t clamoring for a new version of Dracula from Luc Besson, the filmmaker known for stylish excess. And yet, it has to be said: his lavishly upholstered love story with vampires has ambition and panache – and with its B-movie charm, I might just favor to it to the recent, stately interpretation by Robert Eggers of Nosferatu. Odd details emerge, like a particular moment that seems to depict a geographic divide between France and Romania.

Waltz as a Humorously Exhausted Priest Tracking the Undead

Christoph Waltz portrays a humorous yet burdened man of the church pursuing the undead – it’s surprising he never took on this role before – who finds himself in Paris in 1889 for the French Revolution centenary celebrations. Likewise present is the evil Count Dracula, brought to life by the expert in grotesque roles Caleb Landry Jones speaking in a twisted regional dialect reminiscent of Carell’s Gru character of the Despicable Me series. This character that he too was born to take on.

The Narrative: A Saga of Heartbreak

The plot unfolds as follows: the vampire lord has traveled ceaselessly the world in anguish for 400 years after his transformation into a vampire, a punishment due to his blasphemous mourning following the loss of his wife, Elisabeta (a movie debut role for Zoë Bleu, daughter of Rosanna Arquette). The count has looked tirelessly for some woman who might be the reincarnation of his lost love. Unfortunately, the chosen woman is revealed as Mina (again played by Bleu), the demure fiancee of Dracula’s wimpish land agent, Jonathan Harker (played by Ewens Abid), who has recently been to Dracula’s fortress to review his land assets and the tiny painting of the lovely Mina attracted Dracula’s gaze.

Besson’s Direction and Comic Flair

Besson arranges Dracula’s second-act backstory of worldwide travels in various outrageous costumes confidently, and he willingly includes giving us funny bits in the style of Mel Brooks – such as the vampire’s constant unsuccessful tries to end his own life post-Elisabeta’s demise, in addition to comical sequences that result after Dracula douses himself in a certain perfume in historic Florence, which causes him to be compelling to the opposite sex. Absurd yet engaging.

Dracula is available digitally from 1 December and on DVD and Blu-ray from December 22nd. It plays in Australian cinemas starting February 5, 2026.