Dracula Review – The French Director’s Romantic Revamp of the Gothic Classic is Ridiculous but Engaging

Perhaps interest is limited for an updated adaptation of Dracula from Luc Besson, the filmmaker known for polished extravagance. However, one must admit: his opulently crafted romantic vampire tale boasts bold vision and flair – and in all its Hammer-y cheesiness, I might just favor compared with the recent, stately interpretation by Robert Eggers of Nosferatu. Odd details emerge, including one shot that looks like it presents a land border between France and Romania.

The Veteran Actor as a Witty Yet Careworn Clergyman Hunting Vampires

Christoph Waltz portrays a witty yet careworn man of the church pursuing the undead – it feels natural for him to tackle such a part earlier – who arrives in Paris in 1889 for the French Revolution centenary celebrations. The same goes for the malevolent vampire count, played by the body-horror veteran Caleb Landry Jones with a mangled central European accent evoking Steve Carell’s Gru of the Despicable Me series. It’s a role suits him perfectly.

The Story: A Tale of Love and Loss

The story is this: Dracula has been restlessly roaming the earth in anguish for hundreds of years after his transformation into a vampire, a punishment for his irreligious grief following the loss of his spouse Elisabeta (an inaugural screen appearance for Zoë Bleu, daughter of Rosanna Arquette). The count has looked tirelessly for a female who could be the rebirth of his deceased partner. Unfortunately, the fortunate female proves to be Mina (again played by Bleu), the modest betrothed of Dracula’s feeble property handler, Jonathan Harker (enacted by Ewens Abid), who has recently been to Dracula’s fortress to review his land assets and the small picture of the winsome Mina caught the count’s hooded eye.

The Filmmaker’s Approach and Lighthearted Touch

Besson structures Dracula’s middle-section history of international journeys in various outrageous costumes skillfully, and he willingly includes offering humorous scenes in the style of Mel Brooks – such as the vampire’s constant unsuccessful tries to end his own life following Elisabeta’s passing, as well as comical sequences that follow Dracula douses himself in a certain perfume in historic Florence, that renders him compelling to the opposite sex. Outlandish but entertaining.

Dracula can be streamed online starting December 1st and for physical purchase starting the twenty-second of December. It plays in Australian cinemas beginning on the fifth of February, 2026.