[FILM REVIEW] DRACULA: VOYAGE OF THE DEMETER Review (2023)

August 10, 2023August 13, 2023 Dave Aisling Franciosi, Alex First, Andre Ovredal, Andy Murray, Bragi F Schut, Central Coast Radio, Chris Walley, Christopher York, Corey Hawkins, David Dastmalchian, David Griffiths, Dracula: Voyage Of The Demeter, Italy, Jon Jon Briones, Kyle McGrath, Lee Griffiths, Liam Cunningham, Malta, Martin Furulund, Nicolo Pasetti, Nikolai Nikolaeff, Stefan Kapicic, The Popcorn Conspiracy Radio Show, UK, USA, Woody Norman, Zak Olewicz

Summary: A crew sailing from Carpathia to England find that they are carrying very dangerous cargo.

Year: 2023

Cinema Release Dates: 10th August 2023 (Australia), 10th August 2023 (Thailand), TBA (UK), 11th August 2023 (USA)

VOD Release Dates: TBA

Country: USA, UK. Malta, Italy

Director: Andre Ovredal

Screenwriter: Bragi F. Schut, Zak Olewicz

Cast: Javier Botet (Dracula/Nosferatu), Jon Jon Briones (Joseph), Liam Cunningham (Captain Eliot), David Dastmalchian (Wojchek), Aisling Franciosi (Anna), Martin Furulund (Larsen), Corey Hawkins (Clemens), Stefan Kapicic (Olgaren), Andy Murray (Deputy Fisher), Nikolai Nikolaeff (Petrofsky), Woody Norman (Toby), Nicolo Pasetti (Deputy Hirsch), Chris Walley (Abrams), Christopher York (Fletcher)

Running Time: 118 mins

Classification: MA15+ (Australia), TBC (Thailand), TBC (UK), R (USA)

OUR DRACULA: VOYAGE OF THE DEMETER REVIEWS

David Griffiths, Kyle McGrath and Lee Griffiths” Dracula: Voyage of The Demeter Review

David’s rating Out Of 5

Kyle’s rating Out Of 5

Lee’s rating Out Of 5

Alex First’s Dracula: Voyage of The Demeter Review

Atmospheric, Dracula: Voyage of the Demeter is based on a chapter from Bram Stoker’s 1897 classic novel Dracula.

It concerns the terrifying story of the merchant ship Demeter, chartered to carry private cargo – 50 unmarked wooden crates – from Carpathia to London.

Honourable, Captain Eliot (Liam Cunningham) has already decided this will be his last voyage ahead of retirement.

He has anointed his first mate, Wojchek (David Dastmalchian), to assume his post.

Joining the crew is a well-spoken, Cambridge-educated doctor, Clemens (Corey Hawkins).

At first, the ship makes steady progress and all are in line for the monetary bonus that will come with their early arrival in port.

The discovery of an unwitting stowaway, Anna (Aisling Franciosi), changes everything.

She is all but dead and her survival is squarely in the hands of the medico, who arranges ongoing blood transfusions.

It is a portent of what is to follow as, for centuries, Anna’s village has been plagued by the bloodthirsty Dracula.

All on the ship are doomed, stalked each night by a merciless presence.

When the Demeter finally does make it to England, it is as a charred, derelict wreck.

In Stoker’s book, the ship’s final voyage is written as an excerpt in a daily newspaper.

Screenwriters Bragi Schut Jr. and Zak Olkewicz have adapted that and run with it.

We – the audience – watch as one-by-one those aboard the Demeter are “picked off”.

Dracula grows from a grey shadowy figure to a giant flying vulture with bat wings.

The story is greatly enhanced by the production and sound design, which lay the foundations of the ordeal faced by those aboard the vessel.

I got what I anticipated I would from Dracula: Voyage of the Demeter.

That includes a little detail about those on the ship. Some are rough and ready, others decent, but, of course, the real story is their predetermined fate.

Much attention is focused on the doctor and his desire to make sense of the world and of the entity that is plaguing the ship.

Corey Hawkins comes across as a respectable man of science, who has copped a bad rap because of his colour (he is a black man).

Trust grows between the doc and Anna, whom he saves, as the voyage unfolds.

Aisling Franciosi brings a greater sense of understanding than the others to her representation of the castaway.

The captain runs a tight ship. An experienced navigator, nevertheless he is way out of his depth here.

Liam Cunningham well captures his transition, as fear consumes all.

Curiosity and a desire to please are the hallmarks of Toby, his eight-year-old grandson, played by Woody Norman.

There is a dark edge to David Dastmalchian as Wojchek, a Polish orphan who has spent his entire life at sea and regards the Demeter as his one true home.

Dracula: Voyage of the Demeter has impact, but few – if any – surprises.

At nearly two hours, it becomes a long sit and could have benefited from prudent pruning. Nevertheless, the Norwegian director Andre Ovredal has captured the somber mood and frightening essence of the Dracula story.

Alex’s rating Out Of 5

Average Subculture rating Out Of 5

Other Dracula: Voyage Of The Demeter Reviews:

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