Dracula Movie Review

I’ll ask you, “Did we really need another Dracula flick?” This particular “vampire” film is primarily a romance, so if you’re looking for a fright, look elsewhere. But if you’re interested in director Luc Besson’s interpretation of Bram Stoker’s Dracula, you’ll like what you find here; it’s exceptional in the acting department and has remarkable visuals. ​

A romantic Dracula isn’t all bad; it’s just not what you typically expect from your 400+ year old monster. I’m not saying he’s a good pal, a friendly neighbor, or anything, but he’s on the hunt for his love here, not what he’s usually stalking, the blood of anyone who comes close enough when he happens to be hungry. Be that as it may, if you like the Dracula story, the acting here, by everyone involved, makes it worth the time to give this a watch. Some silliness may leave you wanting to turn it off on occasion, but Caleb Landry Jones as Vlad, Christoph Waltz as the priest, Zoë Bleu as Elisabeta / Mina Murray, and Matilda De Angelis as Maria are exceptional and will keep your butt planted in your seat. Director Luc Besson used the original source material, the book, which was about love, not about what a filmmaker could tantalize their audience with, mostly gore.

Vlad tells a priest to demand God end his life, since he took his love from him. It doesn’t go well when the priest refuses. Vlad (Count Dracula) has been waiting for his Elisabeta to be reincarnated so he could be with her again. Life hasn’t been easy on him, dining on the blood of whoever wanders near, or the occasional mouse has lost its luster. And he has no friends to talk to. However, he has his hate of God to keep him going for the most part. 400 years later, and Vlad looks a little worse for wear. He ends up looking like Gary Oldman from his version of the character. He goes through several other variations to tell the story. Vlad has been trying to die all this time. He has tried every way to do that very thing, but God torments him with life. He envies those who are claimed by death… he’s so lonely.

We meet another priest who’ll attempt to get to know Vlad. He knows a lot about Vampires, especially when they’re the less scary ones, the females with the large canines, not the big guy with the scary face. He hasn’t met him yet, but he’s a man of science and will be fascinated to study anyone who doesn’t look like your typical human.

A young lawyer finds a reason to go to Vlad’s castle. He’s invited to eat. After accepting, he asks Vlad if he’s going to eat. He replies with a cool, “later,” of course. There are a lot of fun moments like this. Just about everything Vlad says is cleverly written and perfectly stated. There’s a scene with Gargoyles that come to life to do Dracula’s bidding. They are his bodyguards and kind of… cute, but in a Dracula movie, there shouldn’t be cute. Vlad sees who he thinks is his reincarnated love, and, with a perfume he has created, he hopes to convince her of his love and whisk her away to her new forever home.

A scene where young women go to the circus is intriguing. Lines like, “Your beauty brings light to this place filled with dark suits and top hats” are intriguing, especially with how Jones delivers them. Dracula tries hard to show her his love and that he’s a catch, but she isn’t interested, until she hears the music play from a small music box.

The costumes, cinematography, and production design are outstanding, giving you something worth looking at that goes with the acting that improves the fact that you’ve been down this road before. If you’ve not seen too many versions of this story, see this. If you love the story a lot, don’t miss this, as it’s another good adaptation. However, if you’re so-so about this Dracula fella, this won’t earn you over to continue searching for what may top the favorite you already have.