Dracula Review – Luc Besson’s Romantic Reinterpretation of the Timeless Gothic Tale is Ridiculous but Entertaining

Maybe there is no great enthusiasm for a fresh take of Dracula from Luc Besson, the celebrated French director for glossiness and bloat. However, it’s worth noting: his richly designed vampire romance boasts bold vision and flair – and in all its Hammer-y cheesiness, I might just favor over Eggers’s dignified recent take of Nosferatu. Odd details emerge, such as a scene that looks like it presents a territorial boundary between France and Romania.

Waltz as a Witty Yet Careworn Vampire-Hunting Priest

Christoph Waltz embodies a witty yet careworn vampire-hunting priest – it’s surprising he never took on this role before – who arrives in Paris in 1889 during the centennial of the French Revolution. Likewise present is the sinister Dracula, enacted by the body-horror veteran Caleb Landry Jones speaking in a twisted regional dialect reminiscent of Steve Carell’s Gru of the Despicable Me series. This is a part suits him perfectly.

The Narrative: A Saga of Heartbreak

Here’s the premise: the vampire lord has been restlessly roaming the earth in anguish for 400 years since he became undead, a consequence for his irreligious grief over the death of his wife, Elisabeta (an inaugural screen appearance for Zoë Bleu, Rosanna Arquette’s child). Dracula has sought relentlessly for a female who would be the reincarnation of his deceased partner. As ill fortune would have it, the fortunate female proves to be Mina (portrayed once more by Bleu), the modest betrothed of Dracula’s wimpish land agent, Jonathan Harker (enacted by Ewens Abid), who lately visited to the count’s castle to review his land assets and the small picture of the charming Mina caught the count’s hooded eye.

Besson’s Handling and Humorous Style

Besson arranges Dracula’s middle-section history of international journeys sporting extravagant attire confidently, and he is not above offering some comedy moments with a distinctly Mel Brooks flavour – such as Dracula’s ongoing failed efforts to kill himself following Elisabeta’s passing, along with absurd moments that occur when Dracula applies to himself using a particular scent during the 1700s in Florence, which makes him compelling to the opposite sex. Outlandish but entertaining.

Dracula can be streamed online starting December 1st and in disc format from 22 December. It plays in Australian cinemas starting February 5, 2026.