Dracula Eternal follows Mina (Cody Renee Cameron) as she works with detectives to figure out the trail of crimes happening around her city that could possibly be linked to something supernatural. As she loses two of the most important people in her life, we watch as she chases after the killer in hopes of getting answers.

The characters in this film are really good into fitting into their respective horror movie tropes while still having their own uniqueness. Lucy (LeeAnne Bauer) was one of my favorite characters at the beginning, playing the tough best friend who’s always ready to jump in to defend her loved ones. While I did expect her to be the main character and with Mina getting possessed, I was surprised when she was the one that got bit instead of Mina. Their friendship is sweet, with Mina always ready to help Lucy even as she’s being changed by the bite. The detective duo was also fun to watch, seeing how different they were but how they still wanted to work together to solve this odd trail of crimes taking over the city. I feel as though the romance seems out of place but trust me, stick to the end and it will make perfect sense. The reveal left me in shock, I did not see it coming at all but once you see it, small things in the film start to make sense which I loved when it all connected together.

The atmosphere in this movie reminds me of old 80’s horror movies, especially the introduction scene with the couple. I only wished that the coloring was darker to fit the gothic vampire aesthetic, but a good percentage of this film is during nighttime, which I love since it is a vampire film. The city setting is beautiful, and they get amazing shots, especially during the creepy scenes and even including a stalker POV in the introduction. 

The music that plays in the background of some scenes is so perfect. There is a scene halfway through the film that threw me off guard because it’s Lucy, possessed, randomly dancing to a (really good) rock snippet after scaring Mina off but what happens right after this is one of my favorite parts. We get these cool shots where the camera is following Mina through the house as she’s looking for Lucy and this great suspenseful music plays in the background. I really loved how this was shot because it feels like we’re in the house, scared, with Mina and the music just adds onto it perfectly, leaving you in anticipation of what’s going to happen next after Lucy’s “random” (in Mina’s eyes) outburst. The movie does a really good job at these build up scenes with jump scares that did make me jump at times, like when the vampire took the detective. 

As a big vampire lover, I was excited to watch this film when I saw the name Dracula in the title. I feel as though this was a nice modern take on vampires since no one would really believe the idea of it being a vampire immediately. The priest’s retelling of an old vampire tale with a gothic sounding instrumental in the background definitely fed my love of vampires. 

I think it’s a fun film to watch for any vampire lover or someone who wants a fun horror film. Mina’s character development throughout the film as someone who needs protecting to taking matters into her own hands after losing her best friend and fiance is so good. I would definitely recommend it! You could tell it was made with love and was an interesting take on the classic vampire tale and Mina ended up being a character I really grew to love.