Cross Jane Austen’s tendencies with Bram Stoker’s, and you’ve got the surprisingly terrifying and fun new gothic horror photo “The Invitation”.
The movie took me by surprise. My expectations were low when I went to the theater. In late August through September, it is often a studio dump for hard-to-find films. When I went to the movies, my biggest hope was not to fall asleep halfway through the movie.
I shouldn’t have worried. “The Invitation” was one of the most surprising and fun trips to the theater this summer for me. Do not get me wrong. Directed by Jessica M Thompson from a script by her and Blair Butler, the film revolves around an oft-told B-movie plot; however, the film’s performance and production values are on the A-list in my book.
Thompson and her cinematographer Autumn Eakin team up to create a beautifully staged and shot film that resembles A-list production values despite the film’s meaty fare. Beautifully shot in its darkness, the film is delightful to enjoy despite the foreboding sense of doom that unfolds in the film’s opening scene.
Warning: Spoilers Section
Unfortunately, the trailer betrayed the film’s big reveal. The story begins as a romance, but is actually an undercover vampire movie.
Even without the giveaway, astute moviegoers would have quickly picked up on the vampire scent as the film started dropping a slew of references to Stoker’s 1897 novel “Dracula” and subsequent film adaptations halfway through the film’s first act. Admittedly, I’m a sucker for a solid vampire movie, and “The Invitation” fits the bill. Others who don’t share my taste for classic vampires may not be as entertained as I am.
Nathalie Emmanuel plays the infectious and lovable heroine Evie, whose guts and fate almost immediately put the audience on her side. She is young, talented and alone after the death of her mother. Her father died when she was 14. Desperate for a family connection, she consults an online genealogy website that puts her in touch with a family in England. Almost immediately, a cousin makes contact with her, and while visiting her in New York, he invites her to a family wedding in England.
Sure, the situation seems like her katfish, but she’s interested enough not to turn down an all-expenses-paid trip to England to reconnect with family. Upon arrival at her host Walter (Thomas Doherty’s) estate, New Carfax Abbey – Dracula fans will get the reference – things get weird pretty quickly.
Evie discovers she’s the only woman in her family populated by a bunch of stuffy British male cousins. She thinks nothing of it, but the fact comes into play later.
Strange things happen to Evie in and around the mansion, however, but the charming yet enigmatic Walt calms her fears and comforts her one night. Before she knows it, the two are in a relationship. After a night together, Walt seemingly asks Evie to marry him as a joke, and she gives in to the request by jokingly accepting.
Walt isn’t kidding, though. He plans to make Evie just like him and add her to his collection of vampire brides – Viktoria (Stephanie Corneliussen) and Lucy (Alana Boden). Now that the four families are united in an unholy marriage, the vampire clan’s power will once again be complete.
All Walt and his two other brides have to do is mix their blood with Evie’s. Things are looking dark for Evie.
I’ll reveal no more, but the climax is action packed. The atmospheric film is no masterpiece, but if you enjoy gothic horror, you’ll likely appreciate it on some level. For fans of Dracula and vampires in general, the movie is filled with tidbits that will enhance your enjoyment of the movie but not hinder the film’s plot or pace. I probably will watch the movie again when it’s released to a streaming channel just to catch any Easter eggs I may have missed.
Emmanuel is the type of hero everyone will love to look for, even if she’s as gullible as most horror queens. Doherty gives a strong predatory performance that is both charming and dangerous. Corneliussen and Boden have a blast chewing the scenery in their supporting bridal roles, and Sean Pertwee is suitably creepy as Mr. Fields, Walt’s right-hand man.
This would have been a fun movie for the Halloween season. It will probably be played on a streaming network in time for October this year.