Marquis d’Urfé (Kacey Mottet Klein) is lost and in search of refuge at the beginning of the new gothic thriller The Vourdalak. On his way back to the King’s court in France, the Marquis is lost and headed into some real danger. He discovers a strange family shrouded in mystery and steeped in years of regional conflict and distrust. Based on “La famille du Vourdalak”, a story that predates Bram Stoker’s Dracula by over a decade, we are treated to an intimate, richly atmospheric tale of love, loss, and intrigue.

The Marquis d’Urfé is urged to find safety at the house of Old Gorcha where he will find safety, shelter, and a place to recover before moving on to Paris. When the Marquis gets to the house of Gorcha, he encounters a rather secretive family led by older brother Jegor (Grégoire Colin), sister Sdenka (Ariane Labed), and younger brother Piotr (Vassili Schneider). It seems that Gorcha himself has left to fight another local conflict but has left his family very specific instructions regarding his return. Gorcha explains that if he has not returned in six days, he must be treated as a stranger and not welcomed back into the home. Pro tempore head of household Jegor welcomes the Marquis into his home and this tenuous situation promising a horse the next morning to get him on his way.

At dinner, moments after Gorcha’s self-imposed deadline passes, Jegor’s wife Anja (Claire Duburcq) spots her father-in-law near the house. They bring him back into the fold and it is to their ultimate demise. As the Marquis d’Urfé valiantly attempts to maintain decorum and seek his departure, he is witness to his hosts being hunted by their gaunt patriarch. Or is it all a dream?

I enjoyed The Vourdalak on so many levels. This is a shrewdly produced period piece that captures the intimate story of a simple narrative. Adrien Beau and  Hadrien Bouvier adapt the original work by Aleksei Tolstoy with an eye on capturing the time that it was conceived. The story remains small, eerie, and constrained to the immediate action. Another lovely touch is the rich photography by David Chizallet who captures the organic look of Hammer films in a digital age. The candles flicker with a smear, the colors are rich and blotchy,  and the film grain seems to churn with life.

At the end of the day though, The Vourdalak is an effort to give credit to the inspirations of what we now call classics. It does so admirably. Less attention is given to the fine ensemble, the fun effects, and the beautiful production design to simply lay credit at the feet of Tolstoy who seems to have originated vampires in published fiction. Ideas start somewhere. and sometimes they come forth from the darkest corners of the forest to feast on our flesh. C’est la guerre.

7 out of 10