Ellen Hutter: “Professor, my dreams grow darker. Does evil come from within us, or from beyond?”
Following in the wake of F.W. Murnau’s iconic original 1922 version and the Werner Herzog1979 edition starring Klaus Kinski, modern maestro Robert Eggers follows up his memorable movies The Witch (2015), The Lighthouse (2019), and his sole non horror production The Northman (2022) with his longtime passion project Nosferatu (2024) – which he both wrote the screenplay for and also directed (he has been working on the project since 2015).
Once again demonstrating his love for folkloric horror and accurate historical touches, the first two things immediately noticed are its use of real film (which has a distinct look when compared to digital) and its frequent use of natural lighting – often candles and fireplaces. . . while mirror trickery, lenses, and camera filters are used for moonlight effects. When paired with its real locations (like Corvin and Pernštejn Castle), as well as the painstakingly built fictional village of Wisburg – a whopping five city blocks, you’ve got a true spectacle for the eyes.
In many ways staying true to the original Nosferatu and Dracula source material, the narrative follows newly married couple Ellen and Thomas Hutter (Lily-Rose Depp and Nicholas Hoult), as the legal clerk who must immediately depart for Transylvania to complete an estate deal with still ancient Dacian language speaking (that is early Romanian) Count Orlok – a.k.a. Nosferatu (Bill Skarsgård), who is looking to leave his drafty old castle surrounded by superstitious gypsies in the Carpathian mountains and upgrade to a drafty old Manor house in Germany. . . much to the chagrin of Thomas’ wife – who is struggling with what doctors at the time would term to be melancholia (though she also has seizures once in a blue moon).
Fearing her nightmares, which seem to be more like omens of a coming evil, most people, including their posh friends Friedrich and Anna Harding (Aaron Taylor-Johnson and Emma Corrin) and the local doctor, Wilhelm Sievers (Ralph Ineson – The Witch), shrug it off as nothing more than a certain sadness that comes from her husband departing so soon after the wedding. . . that is, all except quirky (and some would say quacky) expert Prof. Albin Eberhart von Franz (Willem Dafoe – The Lighthouse; The Northman) – who sees it as something much more alarming.
Eggers thrives in the nightmarish landscape of the overwrought traveling husband and his lugubrious wife, furthered by Jarin Blashchke’s striking cinematography that provides many a shadowy hiding place surrounding the natural light, just as ominous the manor/castle that provides a labyrinth of inescapability, and perhaps more than anything, the seemingly unbreakable psychic bond between Ellen and the evil Count’s plague of sorrowful death and destruction. It’s also worth noting that at times it feels like Wes Anderson is shooting a horror film here – as Eggers utilizes some stunning symmetrical shots that are reminiscent of the proportionate director.
A perfect film for lovers of traditional horror, Nosferatu is an example of pure folkloric vampires done right (Eggers and Skarsgård never coming close to copying Max Schreck or Kinski’s takes on the character). Living in its moody atmosphere, though it has moments of horrific eroticism and squeamish violence, it will linger in your mind a lot longer thanks to its early 19th century setting, accurately haunting spirit of the era, as well as the frightful visages of its cast and eerily possessed movements of Depp. Lastly, it’s also worth highlighting Robin Carolan’s string heavy score (an impressive sixty string players in total), it lending an almost primordial fear to the motion picture. So, help the light shine on this dark mood piece, it is a true symphony of horror.