The Last Voyage Of The Demeter Is Getting Praise From Two Absolute Movie Legends
This weekend's major new release in theaters is "The Last Voyage of the Demeter," which has finally made its way to the big screen after spending literal decades stuck in development hell. Unfortunately, it feels a little bit like Universal Pictures isn't giving the big horror flick the push one might expect for a Dracula movie with an A-list cast. But a couple of cinematic icons in the form of Stephen King and Guillermo del Toro are out here spreading the gospel, as they've both had very nice things to say about the film.
King, one of the most prolific authors of our time whose works have inspired movies like "It" and this year's "The Boogeyman," took to Twitter recently to share his thoughts on director André Øvredal's latest. King admitted his skepticism, but the film ended up winning him over. "I was doubtful about 'The Last Voyage of the Demeter,' but it's a throat-ripping good time," King wrote on Twitter. "It reminded me of the best of the Hammer movies from the 60s and 70s." That's no small thing coming from a titan of King's stature.
I was doubtful about THE LAST VOYAGE OF THE DEMETER, but it's a throat-ripping good time. It reminded me of the best of the Hammer movies from the 60s and 70s.
— Stephen King (@StephenKing) August 10, 2023
Elsewhere, del Toro, the filmmaker behind movies such as "The Shape of Water" and "Blade II," gave his thoughts on the adaptation of a very specific portion of Bram Stoker's "Dracula." Also taking to Twitter, del Toro shared his praise writing, "I enjoyed 'Last Voyage of the Demeter' so much: gorgeous, lavish and savage!!" The filmmaker had previously worked with Øvredal on 2019's "Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark," so it's nice to see him out here supporting his collaborator's latest as well.
I enjoyed Last Voyage of the Demeter so much: gorgeous, lavish and savage!!
— Guillermo del Toro (@RealGDT) August 10, 2023
This movie could use the help
"The Last Voyage of the Demeter" adapts a single chapter from Stoker's novel titled "The Captain's Log," which covers the vampire's journey across the sea. But what happened on that voyage? Nothing good. It tells the story of the merchant ship Demeter, which was chartered to carry private cargo in the form of 50 unmarked wooden crates from Carpathia to London. The impressive ensemble cast includes Corey Hawkins ("Kong: Skull Island"), Aisling Franciosi ("The Nightingale"), Liam Cunningham ("Game of Thrones"), and David Dastmalchian ("Dune"), with monster actor extraordinaire Javier Botet as Dracula.
Unfortunately, this movie is going to need all the help it can get as competition is fierce in theaters right now. "Barbie" and "Oppenheimer" are still going strong, with "Meg 2" and "TMNT: Mutant Mayhem" entering their second weekends. We've also got both "Strays" and "Blue Beetle" hitting theaters next weekend. It certainly doesn't help that the ongoing writers' and actors' strikes are preventing the cast from promoting the film, although strikes are meant to be disruptive, after all.
That being said, having respected voices like Stephen King and Guillermo del Toro out here shining a spotlight is more than a nice gesture. But they're not the only ones who liked it, it's worth pointing out. You can read /Film's 6 out of 10 review by Chris Evangelista right here. If "'Alien' but on a boat" with a feral Dracula sounds appealing to horror fans out there, this might well be the movie for you.
"The Last Voyage of the Demeter" is in theaters now.