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

It’s possible audiences aren’t clamoring for an updated adaptation of Dracula from Luc Besson, the filmmaker known for polished extravagance. However, it’s worth noting: his lavishly upholstered love story with vampires boasts bold vision and flair – and with its B-movie charm, I’m not sure I wouldn’t prefer over Eggers’s dignified recent take of Nosferatu. Odd details emerge, like a particular moment that looks like it presents a geographic divide between France and Romania.

Christoph Waltz as a Witty Yet Careworn Clergyman Hunting Vampires

Christoph Waltz embodies a humorous yet burdened vampire-hunting priest – 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, brought to life by the expert in grotesque roles Caleb Landry Jones speaking in a twisted regional dialect reminiscent of the voice of Gru by Steve Carell from the Despicable Me comedies. This is a part he seemed destined to play.

The Plot: A Saga of Heartbreak

Here’s the premise: the vampire lord has been restlessly roaming the earth in torment for 400 years following his rise as one of the undead, a penalty for his irreligious grief over the death of his wife, Elisabeta (a movie debut role for Zoë Bleu, daughter of Rosanna Arquette). The count has been searching, searching, searching for a female who would be the return of his lost love. By cruel fate, the chosen woman is revealed as Mina (also Bleu, of course), the modest betrothed of the count’s timid estate manager, Jonathan Harker (enacted by Ewens Abid), who just traveled to Dracula’s fortress to discuss his property portfolio and whose miniature portrait of the winsome Mina attracted Dracula’s gaze.

The Filmmaker’s Approach and Lighthearted Touch

Besson arranges Dracula’s flashback sequence of worldwide travels in various outrageous costumes with a sure hand, and he doesn’t shy away from providing some comedy moments in the style of Mel Brooks – like the vampire’s constant unsuccessful tries to end his own life after Elisabeta’s death, along with comical sequences that occur when Dracula sprays himself in a certain perfume in historic Florence, that renders him unavoidably attractive to females. Outlandish but entertaining.

Dracula is on digital platforms beginning on the first of December and in disc format starting the twenty-second of December. It screens in Australian cinemas beginning on the fifth of February, 2026.