Dracula Review – The French Director’s Romantic Reinterpretation of the Timeless Gothic Tale is Absurd but Engaging

Maybe there is no great enthusiasm for an updated adaptation of Dracula from Luc Besson, the French maestro for polished extravagance. However, one must admit: his opulently crafted romantic vampire tale displays creativity and style – and amid its theatrical camp, I’m not sure I wouldn’t prefer compared with Robert Eggers’s recent, solemnly classy version of Nosferatu. A few strange elements appear, including one shot that appears to show a territorial boundary between France and Romania.

Waltz as a Humorously Exhausted Vampire-Hunting Priest

Christoph Waltz portrays a humorous yet burdened cleric fighting vampires – I can’t believe he hasn’t played this role before – who arrives in Paris in 1889 to mark the 100th anniversary of the French Revolution. Likewise present is the sinister Dracula, brought to life by the expert in grotesque roles Caleb Landry Jones with a mangled central European accent reminiscent of the voice of Gru by Steve Carell in the Despicable Me films. This is a part that he too was born to take on.

The Story: A Saga of Heartbreak

Here’s the premise: the count has been restlessly roaming the earth in torment for 400 years since he became undead, a punishment for his faithless sorrow following the loss of his wife, Elisabeta (a first film part for Zoë Bleu, the offspring of Rosanna Arquette). The count has been searching, searching, searching for a lady who would be the reincarnation of his deceased partner. By cruel fate, the chosen woman is revealed as Mina (again played by Bleu), the reserved future wife of Dracula’s wimpish land agent, Jonathan Harker (enacted by Ewens Abid), who just traveled to Dracula’s fortress to negotiate his property portfolio and the tiny painting of the lovely Mina caught the count’s hooded eye.

Besson’s Handling and Comic Flair

Besson arranges Dracula’s flashback sequence of global roaming in various outrageous costumes skillfully, and he is not above offering some comedy moments with a distinctly Mel Brooks flavour – like Dracula’s ongoing failed efforts to commit suicide post-Elisabeta’s demise, in addition to farcical scenes that result after Dracula sprays himself with a specific fragrance in historic Florence, which causes him to be compelling to the opposite sex. Absurd yet engaging.

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