Because hundreds of vampire movies have been made (thousands? perhaps) genuine originality — or even a fresh approach — is difficult to find.  Yet sometimes creativity can be sparked by a return to an original source and finding inspiration there.  That’s what has happened with Bram Stoker’s “Dracula,” in which a harrowing sea voyage is made from Romania to England.  That episode is only part of a chapter in Stoker’s novel, but it has been fleshed out to feature length to provide an exciting twist on the very well known tale.

Andre Øvredal’s film is a stylish, gritty glimpse back to the late 1890s, when the Demeter is chartered to deliver fifty crates to England.  What the crew doesn’t know will eventually frighten them silly and kill most of them, one by one.  Anyone expecting a handsome, well-dressed Dracula will be disappointed; this version of the famous vampire is much more Nosferatu, primal, monstrous and utterly evil.  It’s a frightening vision to us, and we know all the legends; imagine how it appears to simple seamen who know nothing about Transylvania terror.

The film works because of its brutality and shock value.  Events proceed logically and the men behave very believably under the circumstances.  Superstition runs rampant and fear is palpable, all of which makes perfect sense.  If the crew could have understood what was occurring earlier they might have been able to form a defense, or hunt the thing down during the day when it is vulnerable.  But they don’t know what they are facing, and that confusion pretty much wipes them out.  Ørvedal has described this film as essentially “Alien on a ship in 1897,” and that is an apt description.  Most of the film takes place on the ship, which is beautifully, convincingly realized, with outstanding production design.  It is just claustrophobic enough to bother the crew as they realize they have no way to escape what is hunting them.

Another benefit is that the story gets stronger as it develops.  While I wish that the crew members and their reticent captain would have actually discussed what was happening and how to deal with it properly, the film doesn’t fail because of that lapse.  It just isn’t as powerful as it could have been.  It’s still pretty suspenseful and tense, especially once the fiend stops hiding and makes his presence fully known.  This is one of the better vampire movies I’ve seen in a long while.  ☆ ☆ ☆.  21 August 2023.