The Invitation
WhileThe Invitationfeatured plenty ofDraculareferences , one of the horror romance ’s nod to the definitive novel make no sense . While the 2022 release ca n’t compete with theTwilightsaga ’s popularity , The Invitationmovie still scared up a strong box office reception . However , The Invitationdid not fare quite so well with critics .
Despite a mettlesome cardinal turn from Nathalie Emmanuel , The Invitation ’s familiar story failed to storm reviewers . The Invitationfollows Evie , a immature artist who make it at a remote European estate for a folk wedding after being reunite with distant relatives via a DNA test kit . During her arrest in the palatial home , Evie is swiftly seduced by Lord Walter , the charismatic master of the house who hides a dismal mystery .
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Anyone who recognize the name of Walter ’s landed estate , " New Carfax Abbey , " might be capable to guess the nature of that secret before the final reel . Eventually , Walter is revealed to be a lamia ( or possiblyBram Stoker ’s original Draculahimself , somethingThe Invitationis never entirely clear about ) . However , long beforeThe Invitation ’s big reveal , the preceding scene are occupy with nod to the novelDracula , some of which are insidious and some of which are surprisingly blatant . Mercifully , the spoiled of these references is saved until after Walter ’s true color are revealed , although this is hardly enough to excuseThe Invitation ’s awkward Mina and Jonathan Harker cameo . While Mina and Jonathan were the heroes ofDracula , inThe Invitationthey are inexplicably turn into his human minion in a twist that manages to be both inexplicable and predictable at the same time .
Why The Invitation’s Mina Harker Cameo Failed
In theBram Stoker novelDracula , Mina Harker is the heroine who , alongside Jonathan Harker ( and Van Helsing , and a few others ) , eventually defeats the title character . InThe Invitation ’s terminal act , Evie escapes Walter ’s palace and is on the face of it saved by an senior pair . However , The Invitationimmediately stray suspicion on this match as they seem too eager to help ( and crucially , sedate ) Evie . It is extremely obvious that the on the face of it sweet old distich is in conference with her lamia capturer Walter until they preface themselves as Mina and Jonathan Harker . To a viewer familiar with those names , this seems to imply that the hero ofDraculaare here to aid Evie bolt down the scoundrel , a neat twist after their initial visual aspect made them seem like obvious nefarious henchmen .
However , that does n’t happen , and instead , it turns out that Mina and Jonathan Harker were just random villager who were in league withThe Invitation ’s Draculastand - in . WhyThe Invitation’sReady Or Not - style ending needed a reference work to Jonathan and Mina is undecipherable , but what is truly perplexing isThe Invitation ’s conclusion to make these characters scoundrel . Whether they are intended to be villainous versions of the original Jonathan and Mina , Modern characters with the same figure or something else all is never made absolved , and ultimately the lastDraculaname - fall inThe Invitationends up more confusing than clever .
