Nosferatu (1922) Review

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        Happy October! It feels good to finally arrive at this month where I get to talk about horror. Well, think of it like a personal view guide from the early part of the 20th century to now. As always, the toughest part of picking which movie to talk about is always the ones that get left over for next year. That’s always a pain, but you still get an appreciation of how one genre evolves and spawned a sect of sub-genres. With all that out of the way, let’s talk about the most influential horror movie. 

1. Story without Dracula

        There’s so much behind the scenes info for this movie. For one thing, it was supposed to be an adaptation of Bram Stocker’s “Dracula”. Although, the filmmakers didn’t have the license to make the adaptation. To get around it, they altered how the story is being presented. Mostly retaining the central idea of “Dracula” but creating a new character. 

        Basically, the story involves Hutter who is tasked with helping the hermit Orlock get a piece of property. As he travels to meet with the recluse, he scoffs at the inn’s residents about the danger of the man. So much so he reads a piece of text that describes the count but laughs at the absurdity of it.

        Even though the movie is 100 years old, it’s always interesting how it’s presented. I’ll elaborate more on the version of the movie that I watched. The main gist is that during the silent era, the European way of showing horror was showing the macabre and grotesque. While the American way of horror was more psychological and understanding the monster or threat. 

        More so when watching a silent movie, there’s no sound. It’s interesting how the story is presented with the body language of the main character. We can imply what’s being talked about when we have brief moments of dialogue of what’s being said. Additionally, see what’s being established as the next act or scene is about to take place. 

2. Count Orlock

        Yeah, Nosferatu is the stand in for Dracula. The way he’s presented still elicits that creepy aspect about him. It’s his face, something about it without ever uttering a sound has that unsettling factor to it. Even when he moves, its stilted but its just uncomfortable to look at since with it being in black and white enhances his threat. 

        When watching the movie, you’re probably wondering why there isn’t a bat. One motif that I found interesting is that he’s mostly associated with rats and vermin. Once more with his face, there’s a shot where he has sharpened buck teeth. Fitting since he bites his victims, and it leaves the distinct mark. Additionally, the motif of rats is appropriate since that’s usually associated with disease. 

        For instance, when he boards the ship to head for the main characters town. One of the sailors checks on the coffin cargo. He damages it and sees that it’s full of rats as they spill out. Ultimately, we see the Count rise up strangely. In fact, when translating Nosferatu from either Roman or Greek languages, it says either unclean spirit or bringer of plague. Again, as the creature is mostly associated with rats. 

One more thing that makes this character distinct is his shadow. You don’t have to see the movie but that iconic shot of his shadow going up the stairs is the main highlight. I feel that his shadow is supposed to be a representation of the art style called German Expressionism. If you want to know what that is, please refer to my review for The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari. Anyways, it’s more tame than Caligari, but manages to show fear when we don’t see the actual figure.

3. Legacy

        As I mentioned before, the filmmakers weren’t allowed to use Dracula, but they forged ahead. They even included the credit of being inspired by the story. Inevitably, the widow of the author took the filmmakers to court, and the judge ordered the film to be destroyed. For a while it was a lost movie. Various copies popped up in different parts of the globe, but were damaged due to the film being combustible. So, what I saw was a surviving print.

        The movie has been an immense influential piece of cinema. Many more films adopted the gothic feel of Nosferatu and copied characteristics that have since become a defining feature of a vampire. As always with any movie prompted a remake with filmmaker Werner Herzog‘s adaptation in the 70s. And it was adapted once more in 2000 under the name Shadow of the Vampire. That one was framed as a ‘making of’ featuring John Malkovich and Willem Dafoe. 

        In fact, my first exposure to Nosferatu was Spongebob Squarepants of all things. It was in the episode "Graveyard Shift". Near the end, the main characters figured out what was causing the lights to flicker and lo and behold it was the Count. Surprisingly, it’s being adapted for a second time. With director Robert Eggers helming the adaptation. I trust him to deliver on the goods since he has a knack to make his films feel historic such as The Witch and The Northman.   

4. Overall

        With Nosferatu being 100 years old, I recommend watching this influential piece of cinema to see how far the vampire has evolved.