PLOT: When a 15th-century prince denounces God after the loss of his wife he inherits an eternal curse: he becomes Dracula. Condemned to wander the centuries, he defies fate and death, guided by a single hope – to be reunited with his lost love.
REVIEW: I’m not sure if there’s any story that’s been adapted to film as much Dracula. Whether it’s Bram Stoker’s novel or more of a focus on Vlad the Impaler himself, it’s popularity has spread over a century. This time, it’s Luc Besson‘s turn and he takes a decidedly more romantic approach, blending Stoker’s book with his unique style. And it’s really a showcase for Caleb Landry Jones as the titular character. Just prepare yourself for plenty of absurdity and even…interpretative dancing?
While I’m sure everyone knows the story of Dracula at this point, Besson’s version only really uses the bones of it. There’s a bit of Vlad the Impaler’s war exploits mixed with the story of Jonathan Harker. But he’s mostly just used as a tool for Dracula to tell his story and the focus is mostly on Vlad’s love for Mina and how losing her caused him to renounce God and walk the earth for centuries trying to find her again. While there’s certainly a monstrous side to Dracula, this is very much a love story, where all of his motivations are centered around getting the love of his life back in some way.
Caleb Landry Jones has always been a great actor, but this allows him to show his commitment in the face of a pretty absurd role. The way he obsesses over his love Mina, never breaking eye contact as his soldiers put on his armor, or the way he bounces about in his full monster form, Jones appears to be having a blast. This manages to give his scenes a lot of energy that is sometimes lacking when he’s not around. Zoë Bleu plays his love Mina and her new incarnation, Elisabeta, but it’s a role that doesn’t really leave much impact. The “Damsel in Distress” archetype doesn’t really work in this day and age, and the character really needed some agency of her own.
Christoph Waltz essentially plays Van Helsing, though in this version he’s simply known as “Priest.” He’s clearly religious but takes a more scientific approach to the vampire plague. It’s an interesting contrast to what we’re used to seeing, though the logical and divine sides are sometimes at odds with each other. Waltz almost feels like an afterthought in the overall narrative, but he makes the most of his limited scenes.
Dracula has an almost playful tone, with similar beats that we’ve seen so many times but Jones is having so much fun, that it translates to the viewer. It’s just unfortunate that they took so many very strange detours along the way. The narrative is told out of order, and you have to play catchup, which feels weird since the beats are well known. Moments are very heightened and, despite trying to ground certain elements, the presentation is very fantastical and almost theatrical in it’s over the top nature. The production design is fantastic, with some gothic sets that feel very lived in. And the score from Danny Elfman is fairly memorable.
There are some alterations, like instead of hounds protecting Dracula, they’re instead gargoyles. But they serve much of the same purpose in the story, keeping watch over the Count and guarding Jonathan Harker. I didn’t mind them until they started doing head-scissors takedowns and fighting like Judoku experts. It just kind of adds to the humor of the story and not taking itself overly serious. But this corniness can sometimes damper the experience and put this in a schlockier category than it likely intends to be. And the ending really makes so much of the journey feel futile.
In many ways, Luc Besson’s Dracula feels like it owes a lot to Francis Ford Coppola’s film, as the visual language and plot beats are very similar. This is more of another adaptation of that film, than one of Stoker’s original novel. Even Jones’ attire more closely resembles that of Gary Oldman’s, with his monster form looking damn near identical. There’s a lot more corniness present here, with random moments of dance, and strange plot contrivances. I enjoyed the silliness overall, but it won’t be for everybody. This is really just a showcase for Jones, and the rest comes second.
Dracula releases to theaters on February 6th, 2026.
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