The Vourdalak (2023) An Inventive and Unique Vampire Tale (Review)

Dracula may be the best known fictional vampire around but Bram Stoker’s creation is far from the origin point. European folklore and stories like John Polidori’s “The Vampyre” from 1819 had long established vampires as frightening creatures, and it’s this tradition that Adrien Beau draws on for his take. He specifically adapts Aleksy Tolstoy’s novella “The Family of the Vourdalak”, which has previously received two cinematic treatments, the most memorable being as one of the stories in Mario Bava’s Black Sabbath.

In contrast to Bava’s stagey melodrama, Beau’s feature debut builds on the genre fluidity previously explored in his short films, melding historical drama with fantasy to tell a gothic vampire tale through the aesthetics of folk horror. There’s a bit of Hammer Horror in there too, and being shot on 16mm film brings a whole other aesthetic into play, so far from being a hodge-podge of ideas, Beau crafts his own vision in a beguiling and strange way...

... For all the complex themes it tackles, the film never feels overstuffed and works as a slow-burn creepy horror. The house and area surrounding are ideal locations, especially as the film mostly takes place in day-time, which offers the illusion of openness and freedom. The smallest of details add to the horror, like the sign of the vourdalak when they noisily suck on clothing – an innocuous activity that becomes disturbing when hyperfocused on. With The Vourdalak as his debut feature film, Beau marks himself as one to watch by bringing something new to a familiar horror creature.