⭐️⭐️⭐️1/2
The year is 1897 and a Russian schooner is chartered to carry private cargo from Romania to England. If you have any knowledge of horror literature or film, you know exactly what is aboard this vessel and what horror awaits the crew. Captain Eliot (Hell yeah! It’s Liam Cunningham) keeps a journal and although he may not be there to help anyone on land, he warns that something awful was aboard and if they failed at stopping it, all hell is about to break loose on the mainland. We get the story of exactly what went down from the satin-smooth voice of Cunningham. Corey Hawkins is a doctor who gets himself hired aboard because he needs a spot to get back home to England and the ship needs a crew... it helps that he saves the life of the Captain’s grandson. Even if the captain’s number one in command (Ayyyye! It’s David Dastmalchian!) doesn’t think he’s suitable enough to be a sailor. The symbol of the dragon on the mysterious crate being shipped has more than a few people spooked and unwilling to join the journey. Further foreboding hits when it’s revealed a woman was stowed away aboard the ship in one of the crates. And to think, good weather and a nice bonus had their voyage off to such a promising start. And as we already know, this sick woman in need of a blood transfusion ain’t the only stowaway. A monstrous vampire by the name of Dracula is aboard and very hungry. The creature makes quick work of the livestock (and unfortunately the ship’s dog) and they land on it maybe being rabies causing the animals to go insane. Still, folks begin to turn on each other. Well, at least on the dark-skinned doctor they’ve never sailed with and the woman who shouldn’t be there. I mean, if anyone jumped to the conclusion that some kind of albino bat-rat-looking human-demon were aboard, they should probably be tossed into the sea. So I get it. One crew member got a quick look at whatever the hell is stalking the ship but is having a tough time getting anyone to believe him. Bad weather and a lack of rats aboard also adds to some troubled vibes and eventually dead sailors with ripped throats confirm something nasty has hitched a ride. The girl finally regains consciousness and lets them know they’re pretty much fucked. Survival becomes key as more folks get got. Worse than the dead men are the ones who survive a bite because they’re quickly tainted and become slaves to the master. The set design is awesome (who doesn’t love an old ship getting rain swept?) and Dracula is definitely looking more Barlow than Lugosi which is how I prefer my undead blood drinkers. There’s not many options for escape (unless you’re fine with drowning) so it makes sense that everyone is doing their damndest to get out of this impossible situation with their life intact and we’re fortunate enough to have a strong cast adding some class to the characters.
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