Review: The Last Voyage Of The Demeter

Image courtesy of Universal Pictures.

Universal Pictures has long been trying to stick the landing with its Dark Universe series and, to be fair, there has been the occasional success, such as 2020's "The Invisible Man." However, there was also "Renfield," "The Mummy," and "Dracula Untold," which were - to say the least - not as successful.

Its latest attempt is "The Last Voyage of the Demeter," another Dracula tale that comes a mere four months after "Renfield," which took a campy approach to the famed bloodsucker, whereas this latest picture - which is based on a single chapter in Bram Stoker's "Dracula" - is much more like an old-school Hammer horror film. It's occasionally creepy and deadly serious.

All in all, it's not a bad attempt at once again reviving the count. It's better than "Renfield," "The Mummy" and some other attempts at bringing Universal's classic horror villains back to life, although it's not nearly as good as "The Invisible Man."

Atmosphere goes a long way in "Demeter." The film chronicles the doomed ship in which Dracula's coffin was transported from Romania to England. Not surprisingly, the crew and nearly all aboard - which also includes a woman, a kid, and some livestock - are no longer among the living by the end of the journey. The film holds few surprises up its sleeve, but it does a reasonable job of handling the material, even if I'd never exactly imagined Dracula as a gigantic bat-looking creature with wings.

The tale of the Demeter is told through the ship captain's log in both the book and, to an extent, in the film, but the lead character is a doctor named Clemens (Corey Hawkins), who has a difficult time gaining the trust of the crew, both due to his race and to the fact that he's never before sailed with anyone else on the boat. 

Soon, it becomes apparent that something strange is afoot aboard the ship after the livestock are brutally slaughtered and a woman, who appears to have a blood infection, is discovered as a stowaway. Shortly thereafter, the crew starts getting picked off by a creepy presence that lurks in the ship's shadows. As a man of science, Clemens is quick to dismiss the presence as supernatural, while the ship's cook - who's religious - believes the devil is along for the ride.

Not a whole lot happens that you won't see coming from a mile away, but "Demeter" is often creepy and atmospheric enough to keep it interesting. At the same time, the film is more passable than invigorating. It's the type of picture where I could admire the craft, while at the same time not see anything that I hadn't seen some variation of numerous times before. It's passable - albeit mostly well made - summer fare.