The story behind
1922's Nosferatu is a fascinating one: as a clear rip-off
of Dracula the film lost a lawsuit against Bram Stoker's
estate back in the day and was almost wiped from existence as a result, but
luckily some copies survived and it is now considered a cinematic classic in
its own right. Like Count Orlok the film has proven hard to kill, with the
original’s unlikely survival, a remake in 1979, and a remake in late 2024. This
last one had a lot to live up to (and die down to?), but thanks to some
stunning cinematography, exceptional performances, and a hauntingly beautiful
score it is every bit as artistic and beautiful as its previous incarnations.
Vampires have always inexorably been linked
with sexual metaphor, and 2024’s Nosferatu makes this much
clearer than its predecessors by juxtaposing the blatantly sensual with the
very, very gross. It can be an uncomfortable film in that way, but it never
loses the beauty that results from some truly impressive filmmaking. The
original was, of course, in black and white, and for some reason I expected
this one to be as well. The reason for this became clear pretty quickly—there
are moments where the 2024 version pays clever tribute to its predecessor by
staging certain scenes entirely by moonlight, sapping the surroundings of
warmth and giving the illusion of black and white filmmaking. Such interesting
tricks give the film a haunting gothic quality that dominates even when color
manages to leech in.
The performances in Nosferatu are
not terribly subtle but they work. Bill Skarsgard plays the titular creature
sublimely, and although it sometimes is a bit hard to understand what he is
saying he nails the role just as much as he did Pennywise in the most
recent It adaptation. The real star of the show is Lily-Rose
Depp as the conflicted and haunted Ellen, a young newlywed tortured by
tantalizing visions of Count Orlok. The broad nature of the acting, instead of
being hammy, adds to Nosferatu’s feeling of epic tragedy.
The original film is sometimes given the
subtitle A Symphony of Horror, and for this reason I paid
particularly close attention to the music in the 2024 remake. The score by
Robin Carolan is another impressive cog in the well-oiled gothic machine that
is Nosferatu, never failing to enhance the horror, drama, and
tragedy whenever it is called upon to do so. It is thrilling when all the
pieces of a film come together so effortlessly, and Nosferatu is
one beautiful puzzle.
The movie does feel a bit over-long in the
final act, as if the characters and filmmakers sensed the end approaching and
were determined to do everything in their power to procrastinate and prolong
the inevitable conclusion to their pretty little gothic world, but this is a
small complaint for a film that is destined to become a classic. It looks like,
despite all odds, this old vampire has some life left in it yet.
Nosferatu is now playing in
theaters.
This review was first published in the
Keizertimes on January 3rd, 2025. Visit at www.keizertimes.com
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