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Nosferatu Movie Review

Nosferatu is a 1922 German silent horror film directed by F. W. Murnau and starring Max Schreck. It’s one of the best vampire movies of all time.

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“Your wife has such a beautiful neck“

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Hutter is sent by his master to finalize a deal with Count Orlok. However, he soon learns that Orlok is a vampire who has his eyes set on Hutter’s wife, Ellen. This was essentially an adaptation of Bram Stoker’s ‘Dracula’ with a few alterations, so it was no surprise that the author’s estate sued the filmmakers over it. Not only is this obviously an adaptation of that classic novel, but it also ranks among the most faithful takes on the famous story. It has that feel of impending doom and dread that the book had and it is absolutely timeless in its appeal.

This is a German Expressionist picture, so it has all of those wonderful elements that make that genre as incredible as it is even today. The atmosphere is astonishing, the score is quite strong and the cinematography masterfully captured the regular and horrific sequences alike. The best aspect to this project was the use of light and shadow to tell its story with the blue tint also giving the film an ethereal feel that made it quite special. The movie did feel long in certain stretches, but it was otherwise superbly edited and directed. This is one of Murnau’s finest efforts and another proof of how strong of a grip he had on German cinema.

If there is one fallback to the picture it has to be the overwhelming use of intertitles, especially in the transitional scenes. There was absolutely no need to include so many of those explanatory words as we can tell what is going on from the imagery alone. I would have preferred to have had more dialogue between the characters instead. But other than that small issue, the movie otherwise worked – the first act is an intriguing build-up, the second one is highly atmospheric and the third act is intense and very memorable.

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Max Schreck delivered one of the iconic monster turns in the great role of Count Orlok. This take on the Dracula character is much more effective than pretty much any other in movie history. This is because he was approached more so as an animalistic monster than as a strange human with the taste for flesh. Thus, he ended up being immensely creepy. The design is phenomenal – the fangs at the center of the mouth made him look like a rodent while his stature is one that is eerily slander and inhuman.

There is that incredible moment where he rises from the lying position and this sequence stood the test of time and is still quite effective. Undoubtedly, this must have scared the audiences of the time shitless. I loved the scenes in the castle and in those coffins, but the scenes with Ellen were expectedly much less interesting. The romantic elements were quite subdued in this version.

I also did not care for the main character’s actor. He overacted the hell out of those scenes where he was scared, making for a dated performance for sure. With that being said, Nosferatu is all about the titular vampire and he was truly unforgettable. There is a classical feel to the movie in its tone, atmosphere and setting (it was cleverly shot in Slovakia) that made it feel ageless. The ending is also fantastic.

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