The Last Voyage of the Demeter Blu-Ray Review

For our earlier theatrical review of The Last Voyage of the Demeter, click here.

Directed by André Øvredal of Scary Stories To Tell in the Dark fame, The Last Voyage of the Demeter is based on the chapter entitled “The Captain’s Log” from Bram Stoker’s iconic Dracula and follows the crew of the Demeter, a merchant ship tasked to traverse the ocean and transport mysterious cargo to London. As an ungodly stowaway emerged from the depths, the fates of the crew were essentially sealed as their voyage became one of survival as a creature known as Dracula picked them off one-by-one. Evoking the classic gothic horror films of yesteryear and set within the tight confines of the titular ship, tension and suspense remained high. While it won’t be for everyone, fans of monster movies will surely find themselves at home here.

Compared to its initial theatrical release, what was arguably a darkly-lit film on the big screen looks discernibly brighter on a smaller screen (experiences may very slightly based on home set-ups). That being said, though a smaller screen better highlights certain features, it also exposes others. The power of the VFX is somewhat lessened as it has less room to hide. The most apparent examples of this are the countless VFX-aided shots and the CGI water. Though apparent theatrically, they were even more so here. The exception is of course the Dracula himself where the combination of practical effects and CGI used in his creation were easier to appreciate what was the best part of the film on a smaller screen. The work to create the ship should be applauded but the repetitive look takes away from the subtilties done to indicate day and night and the passage of time over the course of the film. Meanwhile, the sound gets a boost with 7.1 Dolby Atmos sound (English) to heighten the sound effects, creating an uncomfortable atmosphere and bringing the ship to life. Be it the various creaks, echoes, sounds of the waves hitting different parts of the ship, the ship showed its age and wear. The intricacies of the score, and how it adjusts accordingly, also added to the immersive sound work.

In terms of home releases, The Last Voyage of the Demeter has the features one would expect such as an alternate opening, deleted scenes, featurettes about the undertaking behind bringing the story and the film to life and another offering a look into film’s VFX, and audio commentary track featuring Øvredal and producer Bradley J. Fischer. All of these features may not be revolutionary by any means but the insight from the commentary track available across the film, alternate opening, and deleted scenes was certainly interesting to listen to. The insight from Øvredal and Fischer about their collective filmmaking process, and their inspirations behind their various choices while making the film, along with plenty of fun anecdotes added a fascinating context that will appeal to cinephiles and especially fans of horror and monster movies. However, perhaps talking both a little too much over the film and also not enough about it, more specifics would have been better. The commentary over the alternate opening and deleted scenes was equally insightful. As an aside, some of those deleted scenes should have been in the theatrical version to help clear up some character development issues.

In the end, The Last Voyage of the Demeter gets the look and the sound right but its standard fare Blu-ray should appeal to diehard horror and monster movie fans.

For more information and to buy The Last Voyage of the Demeter, click here.

still courtesy of Universal Pictures

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Keith Noakes

The EIC of the coincidentally-named keithlovesmovies.com. A Canadian who prefers to get out of the cold and into the warmth of a movie theatre.