Radu Jude’s “Dracula” runs for a hefty 170 minutes, which feels like a playful jab at the audience. Yes, it’s lengthy, but this isn’t new for Jude. His previous film, “Do Not Expect Too Much from the End of the World,” also took its sweet time. The real joke with “Dracula” is its childish absurdity. It has moments of sheer nonsense that don’t require such a long viewing time to grasp its message.
Jude loves to use bad language. The opening sex scene of his film “Bad Luck Banging or Loony Porn” is explicit, and in “Dracula,” crude humor elevates to new heights. Picture dismembered body parts crashing into frantic actors, reminiscent of the chaos in Hitchcock’s movies. Add in goofy vampires dressed as Vlad the Impaler and hints of Romania’s literary past, and you get a bizarre mix that’s unmistakably Jude.
What’s especially interesting is how “Dracula” showcases sequences created by generative AI. With the narrator in a simple monastery-like setting, explaining how he’s trying to make a Dracula movie using fictional AI programs, the film dives deep into a surreal zone. These AI-generated scenes are a visual mess, yet they raise a fascinating question: How do we distinguish between reality and fiction?
The non-AI parts are poorly shot in their own quirky way, reminiscent of public-access TV. One scene features a long adaptation of the Romanian novel “Vampirul,” where the modern world intrudes upon the 19th-century setting. In another subplot, characters escape a vampire-themed dinner theater that resembles a disturbing sex trafficking ring—all captured in low-resolution video.
The film takes a satirical turn with its portrayal of Vlad the Impaler, showing him in various comedic scenarios—spying on tours and visiting a vampire dentist. One of the more coherent segments critiques the exploitation of labor in modern society, reflecting themes explored in Jude’s earlier works.
Vlad III remains a significant part of Romanian identity, though his historical image has been diluted over time. Jude cleverly turns the fearsome ruler into a mere caricature, highlighting the commercialization of his legacy. As history morphs into commodified entertainment, Jude contrasts this with the rapid transformation brought by AI—processing reality into something trivial almost instantly.
This film echoes Cory Doctorow’s concept of “enshittification”—the idea that technology combined with capitalism ultimately degrades quality. Generative AI has created overwhelming amounts of disordered content, shaping our world in uncanny and often unrecognizable ways.
“Dracula” has a raw, repetitive quality. It’s a reflection of today’s chaotic digital landscape; a world filled with mindless content. Jude’s contempt for the mechanisms behind this decay is apparent. While it may not change the minds of AI enthusiasts, it serves as a sobering commentary on the future of creativity. The reality of the AI revolution, wrapped in crude humor, is both unsettling and thought-provoking.
In a rapidly changing landscape influenced by technology, Jude’s film resonates with those feeling the effects of this transformation. As one viewer pointed out on social media, “It’s a film that makes you question what’s real.” Jude gives us a lens to examine our reality, albeit through a lens of absurdity.
For more insights on technology and its effects on culture, you might find this Wired article useful.
