Movie Review: The Vourdalak
The Vourdalak (French: *Le Vourdalak), a 2023 French horror drama, marks the feature film debut of co-writer and director Adrien Beau. Premiering at the 80th Venice Film Festival, this film is a gripping adaptation of Aleksey Konstantinovich Tolstoy’s 1839 novella The Family of the Vourdalak.
Set in 18th-century Eastern Europe, the story follows Marquis Jacques Antoine, a courtier and envoy of the King of France, who finds himself stranded after being robbed of his horse and companions. Seeking refuge, he knocks on a stranger’s door in the dead of night, only to be turned away and directed to the house of a man named Gorcha.
The following day, Jacques Antoine traverses a dense forest and encounters Sdenka, Gorcha’s daughter, who vanishes before he can speak to her. He then meets Gorcha’s youngest son, Piotr, who reluctantly leads him to their home.
The household is tense, with Gorcha’s eldest son, Jegor, having just returned after a month spent avenging the village’s pillaging by Turks. Jegor’s family, including his wife Anja, son Vlad, Piotr, and Sdenka, constantly dreads Gorcha’s return.
Gorcha had set out to fight the Turks, instructing his family that if he did not return within six days, it would mean his death in battle. However, if he returned after six days, he would have become a vourdalak—a vampire-like creature—and should not be let in.
While Piotr and Sdenka believe this warning, Jegor dismisses it as superstition. Jegor assures Jacques Antoine that he can find a horse for him, but only the next day.
Starring Kacey Mottet Klein and Ariane Labed, *The Vourdalak* is a haunting exploration of fear, superstition, and familial bonds under supernatural duress. The film weaves a tense atmosphere, building on the chilling uncertainty of Gorcha’s fate and the ominous potential of his return. Beau’s direction and evocative performances bring this eerie tale to life, making *The Vourdalak* a standout in contemporary horror-drama cinema.
The Vourdalak was released on September 2, 2023, and continues to captivate audiences with its atmospheric tension and psychological depth.
The cast features Kacey Mottet Klein as Marquis Jacques Antoine Saturnin d’Urfe, Ariane Labed as Sdenka, Grégoire Colin as Jegor, Vassili Schneider as Piotr, Claire Duburcq as Anja, Gabriel Pavie as Vlad, Erwan Ribard as The Hermit, and Adrien Beau providing the voice for Gorcha.
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