Shocktober 2024 - The Last Voyage of the Demeter (2023)

“I have finally seen the true darkness that dwells beneath the surface of this world, the evil that neither science nor reason can explain.” – Clemens

Welcome to perhaps one of the best Dracula films you’ve probably never seen.

The Last Voyage of the Demeter covers the literary Dracula in a way we have never seen before – kind of a story within a story that I’ve been curious about ever since I saw the 1931 Universal Pictures classic a half century ago. The classic tale by Bram Stoker tells us of Jonathan Harker’s voyage to Transylvania to seal the lease of the English Carfax Abbey to a mysterious nobleman who of course is Count Dracula. What’s usually missing, or at least glossed over, is the trip back to England.

My curiosity was as I mentioned, first piqued when in the Universal version, we see a schooner being tossed around in a severe storm, with the Count (Bela Lugosi) staring with menacing intent at the crew. The next scene, the ship arrived in England with its crew dead, its captain tied to the wheel. It’s often said that what isn’t seen is scarier that what’s shown, because imagination is powerful. But over the past fifty years, I kind of wanted to see what happened. Well, I of course KNOW what happened, because I know what happened next – but there’s a story there. And there have long been rumours that an additional scene had in fact been filmed back in 1931, filling in part of the blank – but was cut from the final release print and hasn’t been seen since.

So, when this movie was announced for theatrical release last year, I was understandably looking forward to seeing it. The American release came and went, but nothing in the UK. Release in several countries was postponed indefinitely due to Entertainment One, one of the production companies involved, being sold to Lionsgate. To the date of writing (October 4) the movie STILL hasn’t been released in the UK, or several other countries – but is being made available (at a cost) on Amazon Prime from October 7. Also, I believe it was shown at Frightfest this past summer.

So, how did I manage to see it? How did it make 5th on my Good, Bad & Fugly list of last year? Well, it’s available on home media Stateside, and I was given the imported disc at Christmas. Easy.

The big question is, is the film worth watching? After all, if you’re in any way acquainted with the Dracula story, you know how it all turns out, with Dracula continuing his bloodthirsty reign of terror in England, right?

The answer is an overwhelming “yes”. The Last Voyage of the Demeter is a textbook study in menace, dread and a sense of helplessness on behalf of the crew, who are faced with a force they have no idea how to contend with as their numbers dwindle and the strength of their adversary grows. They are in the middle of the ocean, they’re out of contact with the rest of the world and they literally have nowhere to hide. If I were to compare the film and its setup to another movie, I would say this is Alien, set on board a sailing ship in the late 1800s.

The narrative is told in flashback, as a police constable reads the log of a ship washed up on Whitby beach on a stormy night in 1897. The Demeter is a Russian ship, carrying a cargo of some boxes from Transylvania to England, and departs from a port in Bulgaria. Due to one of the boxes falling and spilling part of its contents, we see it’s filled with soil. Another box splits open in the cargo hold, and a woman is discovered buried inside, somehow barely alive. Anna (Aisling Franciosi) is immediately transfused with blood by the ship’s sort of doctor. Well, the only sailor on board with any medical training, Clemens (Corey Hawkins) who fears she might be suffering an infection. The rest of the crew consider her a stowaway to be dropped off at the next available port. Anna’s story is worse than the crew can imagine. She was “given” to Dracula as a bride of blood, in the hope that he would leave her village alone. He feeds on her, keeping her just alive enough that he can feed some more. Now, he’s loose on the ship and he’s hungry. But not just hungry, he craves blood like an addict craves drugs. In his first evening, he slaughters all the animals kept on board for food. His first human victim is Olgaren (Stefan Kapicic) who becomes his slave, presumably to lure others – beginning with the captain’s young grandson Toby. As the sailors fight to restrain Olgaren, the child is bitten by Dracula. Caught, Olgaren is tied to the mast, and as the sun rises, he bursts into flames. Despite several blood transfusions, Toby dies and he also bursts into flames on contact with direct sunlight.

Land is still several days away, the crew numbers are falling, eventually the sun will set, and Dracula is still hungry.

What about Dracula himself? His appearance in the film is the stuff of nightmares. There’s no formal evening attire, no top hat or opera cape, he is bestial, feral and merciless. His appearance changes during the course of the film, as he grows stronger. He evolves from weak and skeletal to a more bat-like monstrosity, complete with wings. Overall, his look is heavily influenced by that of Max Shreck in the silent Nosferatu: Ein Symphonie des Grauens (1922) which was also used effectively in the ’79 version of ‘Salem’s Lot.

Despite the limitations of the cast numbers, and the restrictive setting of the ship, this is a truly eerie movie that plays the stifling claustrophobia, gloom and helplessness pervading it to their best advantage, ultimately becoming more than the sum of its parts. This is a film worthy of your consideration on Halloween night.

And that winds things up for Shocktober 2024. I can confirm that nexr year's list is pretty much set, with a little bit of elbow room in case I see something that demands inclusion. But for now, it's time to take a break (maybe) after a busy month. Have a safe and happy Halloween, my friends. And if you're stuck for entertainment, Steve and I can keep you company while we count down our top 10 Hammer classics on our Piercing the Veil Shocktober Special right here.

Until the next time, may all your nightmares have a happy ending in the final reel.