Dracula Review – Besson’s Romantic Reimagining of the Gothic Classic is Absurd but Engaging

It’s possible audiences aren’t clamoring for a fresh take of Dracula from Luc Besson, the filmmaker known for polished extravagance. And yet, one must admit: his lavishly upholstered vampire romance boasts bold vision and flair – and in all its Hammer-y cheesiness, I’m not sure I wouldn’t prefer compared with Eggers’s dignified recent take of Nosferatu. A few strange elements appear, including one shot that looks like it presents a land border between France and Romania.

Christoph Waltz as a Witty Yet Careworn Vampire-Hunting Priest

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 ends up in Paris in 1889 to mark the 100th anniversary of the French Revolution. The same goes for the malevolent vampire count, brought to life by the expert in grotesque roles Caleb Landry Jones with a mangled central European accent evoking Steve Carell’s Gru in the Despicable Me films. This character that he too was born to take on.

The Plot: A Tale of Love and Loss

The plot unfolds as follows: the vampire lord has traveled ceaselessly the globe in sorrow for hundreds of years after his transformation into a vampire, a penalty due to his blasphemous mourning after the passing of his spouse Elisabeta (an inaugural screen appearance for Zoë Bleu, Rosanna Arquette’s child). the vampire has sought relentlessly for a female who would be the reincarnation of his lost love. Unfortunately, the fortunate female proves to be Mina (also Bleu, of course), the modest betrothed of Dracula’s feeble property handler, Jonathan Harker (Ewens Abid), who has recently been to the vampire’s estate to review his real estate holdings and whose miniature portrait of the lovely Mina caught the count’s hooded eye.

Besson’s Handling and Comic Flair

Besson organizes Dracula’s middle-section history of global roaming sporting extravagant attire skillfully, and he willingly includes offering humorous scenes reminiscent of Mel Brooks – like the vampire’s constant unsuccessful tries to end his own life following Elisabeta’s passing, in addition to absurd moments that occur when Dracula douses himself using a particular scent in historic Florence, that renders him unavoidably attractive to females. Ridiculous and watchable.

Dracula is on digital platforms starting December 1st and for physical purchase starting the twenty-second of December. It screens in Australian cinemas beginning on the fifth of February, 2026.