Dracula Movie Critique – The French Director’s Love-Struck Revamp of the Timeless Gothic Tale is Ridiculous but Watchable

It’s possible there is no great enthusiasm for an updated adaptation of Dracula from Luc Besson, the celebrated French director for glossiness and bloat. And yet, it’s worth noting: his opulently crafted vampire romance boasts bold vision and flair – and with its B-movie charm, it could be preferable to it to the recent, stately interpretation by Robert Eggers of Nosferatu. Odd details emerge, including one shot that seems to depict a land border between France and Romania.

Waltz as a Witty Yet Careworn Clergyman Hunting Vampires

Christoph Waltz plays a clever but beleaguered vampire-hunting priest – it’s surprising he never took on such a part earlier – who finds himself in Paris in 1889 during the centennial of the French Revolution. Likewise present is the sinister Dracula, played by the seasoned horror actor Caleb Landry Jones speaking in a twisted regional dialect similar to the voice of Gru by Steve Carell from the Despicable Me comedies. It’s a role that he too was born to take on.

The Story: A Chronicle of Longing

Here’s the premise: the count has wandered endlessly the world in torment for hundreds of years following his rise as one of the undead, a punishment for his faithless sorrow after the passing of his spouse Elisabeta (an inaugural screen appearance for Zoë Bleu, the offspring of Rosanna Arquette). The count has been searching, searching, searching for some woman who might be the rebirth of his lost love. Unfortunately, the lucky lady is revealed as Mina (portrayed once more by Bleu), the reserved future wife of Dracula’s feeble property handler, Jonathan Harker (Ewens Abid), who lately visited to Dracula’s fortress to discuss his land assets and whose miniature portrait of the winsome Mina caught the count’s hooded eye.

Besson’s Direction and Humorous Style

Besson arranges Dracula’s flashback sequence of international journeys in various outrageous costumes skillfully, and he willingly includes giving us funny bits in the style of Mel Brooks – for example the vampire’s constant unsuccessful tries to commit suicide following Elisabeta’s passing, as well as farcical scenes that follow Dracula douses himself in a certain perfume during the 1700s in Florence, that renders him compelling to the opposite sex. Absurd yet engaging.

Dracula can be streamed online from 1 December and for physical purchase from December 22nd. It screens in Australian cinemas from 5 February 2026.