The following contains spoilers for Sony's The Invitation, now playing in theaters.
As with almost all vampire properties, The Invitation had a lot of blood, painting a harrowing picture of how the rabid species lived in the shadows. But this time, it all occurred under the veil of aristocracy. The story focused on a New York artist, Evie (Nathalie Emmanuel), being lured to New Carfax in England, not realizing she wasn't a wedding guest. In fact, she was destined to be the bride of the movie's Dracula, Walter De Ville, which led to Evie fighting back to escape. This paved the way for quite a few horrific kills, so let's dissect and rank their brutal natures.
5. The Invitation's Maid Got Slit Right Open
When Evie sat for dinner at the mansion, she was still fresh off her and Walter hooking up. However, she wondered why the white folks at the table were scrutinizing her. She soon got the message when Viktoria (one of Walter's other brides) mentioned the elites were getting bored. It led to the chief butler, Fields, coming up behind one of the maids and slitting her throat. It was a terrifying scene, which resulted in the woman's blood being drained into a goblet, so Walter could drink and celebrate the announcement that Evie would be betrothed to him.
What made it even more gut-wrenching was how The Invitation used the others around the table, ripping apart their meat as a statement on class, leaving Evie petrified over what was to come. The other four maids were left screaming, which had Evie wondering if she was dreaming. Seeing all the blood and Walter drinking shaped an air of disbelief, as she couldn't believe someone could take another life so easily. This led to Walter showing his fangs when she tried to run, making it clear she'd have no agency, just like this maid.
4. Emmaline's Escape Was Heartbreaking
The Invitation opened with a woman, Emmaline, hanging herself at the mansion, which was revealed to be centuries prior. This was Evie's ancestor, which meant Evie, as the last remaining female in the Alexander bloodline, now had a spot at the New Carfax table. Her long-lost relative, Oliver, invited her over, but the context of the incident remained a mystery.
But as Evie ran her own investigation, getting secrets from the staff, she learned Emmaline had an affair with a gentry worker of color. This resulted in Evie being born down the line, as the mixed heritage lineage had to hide from the racist, colonial Alexanders. They'd have killed to keep their dynasty pure, which affected Emmaline. As one of Dracula's brides, she also didn't want to feed on the servants, so she hung herself with a wire. Evie kept getting flashbacks of this, which implied Emmaline's spirit connected to her, too, making the death resonate over and over.
3. The Butler Got Butchered in The Invitation
Fields hated the sight of Evie because it reminded him of how the staff failed to stop Emmaline years ago from diluting the bloodline. After all, the Alexanders were one of three families that looked after Walter, giving him brides over centuries as they possessed unique genetics he took to. Thus, Fields wanted it as pure and white as possible, not hiding his xenophobic tendencies. It's why, when Evie tried to escape the wedding, he was all too glad to ambush her.
Fields rushed her with a spike in the cellar, angry at how she staked Walter earlier on when he tried to induct her during the ritual. Thankfully, Evie drank from Walter's cut in the ceremony, so she got vampiric super-strength. She used this to then overpower the butler and impale him in a scene fit for Mortal Kombat. It was apt revenge because while many had started calling her "halfling" due to Walter not biting her to complete the ritual, it was a crass shot at her being half-Black, half-white.
2. The Other Brides Were Skewered
Dracula's two other brides were the kind-hearted Lucy and the bitter Viktoria. The former actually bonded with Evie, as she wasn't married to Walter for more than a century. As a result, Lucy entertained the idea of being 'sisters' with Evie and seeing the world. Granted, at the time, Evie had no clue of their vampire blood and that Lucy was confined to the mansion forever, as vampires were forbidden from leaving their grounds.
Clearly, Lucy hated being a prisoner, evoking the torment Emmaline endured. It's why when Viktoria ambushed a fleeing Evie in the cellar, Lucy intervened. She clawed her comrade in the back, begging Viktoria to break the cycle. However, Viktoria was married for 500 years, so she adored Walter's twisted ways. It led to the women scrapping and Lucy using her strength to push Viktoria onto the spear of St. George. Sadly, she got impaled on the statue, too, sacrificing herself so Evie could go free. Seeing her turn to ash was quite heartbreaking, as it gave Lucy a cruel fate.
1. Walter Got Maimed and Incinerated
Evie learned from a repentant mansion worker that vamps could die via decapitation, staking and fire, ergo why she dumped the candles over and tried to burn the wedding down. But despite her stabbing Walter, he showed up in The Invitation's final fight, wanting to hurt Evie for ruining his plans and killing his trusted inner circle. However, he was weak from her draining him and the stake she plunged into his chest. It's why he looked pale and decrepit.
This allowed Evie to then use a wire as he choked her, wrap it around his arm and saw it off. Clearly, his body was withering, which then encouraged her to kick him into the flames behind him. She soaked in his screams and how weak he was, enjoying how he was now the one without agency. It was fitting, as she got revenge for Emmaline, not to mention that as the vamp king burned, his essence on Earth was removed. It caused Evie's claws and fangs to disappear, meaning she was now fully human again as she watched her 'husband' turn to dust.
To see these squeamish deaths, The Invitation is in theaters now.