Bram Stoker’s Dracula set in a French neighborhood with a pre-adolescent girl is, perhaps, a simple idea, but the atmosphere created by Rodrigue Huart and the final crescendo gives the film a touch that is as surprising as it is shocking, and a little naughty.
Young French director Rodrigue Huart makes his fiction debut with this interesting short film, winner of the 2024 Grand Jury Award at the SXSW Festival. The setting is a French suburb, an urban space where several teenage neighbours spend their time when they are not at school. Ewa, 10 years old, needs someone to accompany her to reign over her province. So, will Transylvanie be a film about bullying a young girl who thinks she’s a vampire?; a work about pre-teen love?; or will it simply be bloodlust and eternity? There are multiple references, from Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Twilight, Dracula, Carrie or Fright Night. However, between the horror, the social drama and the comedy, the doubt remains until the last image. (Carlos Natálio)
