- Kevin Durand, Kathryn Newton, Melissa barrera, Dan Stevens, Giancarlo Esposito
- April 19th 2024
- Matt Bettinelli-Olpin, Tyler Gillett
Alisha Weir plays a vampire child who is kidnapped by foolish criminals in this reimagining of 1936’s Dracula’s Daughter.
Horror directors Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett made a name for themselves with Ready or Not and two Scream movies and now they’ve taken on the vampire sub-genre with Abigail.
The film begins like a kidnapping thriller, with Joey (Melissa Barrera), Frank (Dan Stevens), Sammy (Kathryn Newton), Peter (Kevin Durand), Dean (Angus Cloud) and Rickles (William Catlett) capturing a young ballerina named Abigail (Alisha Weir).
The team must watch over the young girl for 24 hours while their boss Lambert (Giancarlo Esposito) demands a $50 million ransom from her father, a powerful underworld boss.
The story takes a sharp swerve into the horror zone when they discover that Abigail is no ordinary girl – she is a vampire!
Abigail, a reimagining of 1936’s Dracula’s Daughter, is the most entertaining horror of the year so far. This is an absolute riot!
It is very aware of how silly the concept is and doesn’t take itself too seriously. All of the actors are in on the joke and there are plenty of laughs.
But don’t worry, horror fans, you’ll still get your fix! There is gore, jump scares, brutal kills and buckets and buckets of blood.
Weir, who gained recognition in the title role in 2022’s Matilda the Musical, shows off a very different side of herself as the titular Abigail. The 14-year-old is convincing as a centuries-old vampire pretending to be a young girl and is quite unnerving in full horror mode.
Barrera, who worked with the directing duo on both Screams, leads the movie as the responsible Joey, Stevens seems to be having a ball as the annoying Frank, and Durand and Newton bring the laughs.
Durand is hilarious as the team’s resident dummy, while Newton is relatably funny as the scared character.
Admittedly, the story is predictable at times and there’s slightly too much bickering between the kidnappers, but the film is so much fun that you can forgive these niggles.
If you enjoyed last year’s M3GAN then you’ll love Abigail – there is another dancing monster, but this time, there is more blood and gore!
In cinemas from Friday 19th April.
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