ROBERT EGGERS -NOSFERATU – MOVIE REVIEW

Written by John Darius

Director Robert Eggers has been geared by many to be one of the best storytellers to work within the film industry in years. Giving us some of the most memorable yet darkest horror tales to come as of late in titles involving: 2015’s folklore The Witch, 2019’s psychological thriller The Lighthouse, 2022’s epic historical action feature The Northman, and of course lastly his most recent work yet in 2024’s re-imagining, of F.W. Murnau’s 1922 Nosferatu. A film that I may add has become an obsession and inspiration for director Eggers, and has ultimately helped push him into becoming the well established filmmaker he is today.

For many unaware, Nosferatu was a silent feature produced by Prana Film, made over 100 years ago that acted as the first of its kind, and was categorized as an unofficial adaptation of Bram Stoker’s 1897 novel, Dracula. Director Robert Eggers quickly grew a fascination for this film as a kid, and even went on in directing a play on stage of the same name during his early days as a filmmaker stating:

“I wore my VHS out and then in high school as a senior I directed a play with my friend Ashley Kelly Tata – she’s now an experimental opera director in New York – of Nosferatu on stage, with black-and-white makeup and costumes and sets. A local theatre impresario, Edward Langlois, saw it and invited us to do it in his theatre in a more professional setting. And that was what cemented the fact that I wanted to do this work. The idea of doing Nosferatuas a film was exciting. It’s been about ten years since I started working on it, and weirdly, because I’ve been thinking about it for so long, it’s just as personal of a film to me as The Witch. It had a long gestation period and all the characters and locations feel very close to me.”

As for our cast on screen, comes some of the best performances seen within the genre of horror in some time. Especially from rising star Lily Rose Depp who does a magnificent job carrying this film from beginning to end. Unleashing what many would say an act that was otherworldly in itself. Depp plays a young woman by the name of Ellen who when we first meet her prays upon the heavens for a guardian angel to help rid her of loneliness and despair. Only to later be possessed by a beast not of this world. Blown away by her audition, director Eggers himself was bought to tears and immediately knew that Depp was his choice in leading this project:

“Myself, the casting director, and even the videographer were in tears, because it was so powerful,” Eggers says. “She was, as she is in the film, incredibly brave, and raw, and powerful. Her ability to tune into this dark and haunted place so quickly is pretty phenomenal.”

Depp’s portrayal of a character that is all but lost in her own darkness. While yearning for a desire to be loved is just simply outstanding to watch unravel on its own, and in many ways is sure to rival other big names to have come this year as well. Audiences will be left in shock with how great of a performer she has become in such a short amount of time. A true star in the making who has built an incredible career for herself, and is sure to become an even bigger name in the near future.

Another huge A-lister that must be mentioned is none other than Bill Skarsgard himself. Playing the villainous role, Count Orlok/Nosferatu. Skarsgard has built an amazing filmography within the last few years, & has even gone as far as taking on the reigns of the terrifying clown known only as Pennywise, in director Andy Muschietti’s 2017 film adaptation of Stephen King’s novel IT. Skarsgard as an actor is a pure joy to witness on screen, and does a wonderful job conveying to the audience a monster who’s become relentless in his pursuit of wanting to capture the soul of a woman that has been deeply shackled by her own fears.

A lot of the inspiration that came with developing Nosferatu into the monstrous vampire that see throughout the film was done very early on during the stages of pre-production. Speaking with Fangoria, Skarsgard talks about some of the training he went through creating the voice of the character:

“We had this kind of 10-day workshop where he shared with me a lot of the material he had used for inspiration—different performances in different movies, what Orlok would have been like when he was alive, all that kind of stuff. And also how he saw Orlok’s look, which was quite specific. Then I started working on it. I began with voice memos, and then I would send little clips of myself doing certain things. This was all before the actual screen test; it was all during COVID. Those 10 days were a very deep dive into the process of developing this guy, and proof for myself that I could do it. It was a great sort of dating phase with Robert as well, to see how we would collaborate. Auditions are usually horrible, but with this particular way of doing it, it was quite creative.”

Even after having been attached to this project for years, Skarsgard states that not much had changed before filming began. Talking about what inspired the overall aesthetic look of Orlok, Skarsgard reveals what director Eggers wanted to get across most to us as an audience when watching him on screen:

“A lot of the character’s look is, what did a Romanian or Hungarian nobleman look like in the 16th century? As you probably know, Robert does extensive research and tries to be as historically accurate as possible in anything he does. So, the look is a representation of that. It’s a historically accurate Romanian nobleman [laughs]. And the same with the costumes. It was pretty specific, and what Orlok looks like in the movie is pretty close to what Robert initially envisioned.“

Other great names included in this incredible adaptation that cannot go unnoticed are: Nicholas Hoult as co-lead Thomas Hutter. Loosely based on Bram Stoker’s character Jonathan Harker, and husband/lover to Ellen(Lily-Rose Depp). Aaron Taylor Johnson as Friedrich Harding, Emma Corrin as Anna Harding, and Willem Dafoe as Professor Albin Eberhart Von Franz. The supporting cast listed here alone are some of the strongest elements attached to this film, and help allow us as viewers to easily fall in love with this world that Eggers has created. Each actor on screen plays off of one another beautifully. Showcasing the amazing chemistry and commitment they all shared making this project. It is truly without a doubt one the best ensemble of a cast ever witnessed on camera, and is sure to capture the hearts of many seeing this well-made story unfold for the first time.

Lastly one last member of the crew that must be mentioned is the British-Irish film composer, Robin Carolan. The score he creates within this film is exceptional and captures the atmosphere perfectly for a cinematic world such as this one. Speaking with Variety, Carolan mentions how director Eggers didn’t want him to us any electronics or synthesizers, and how he decided to instead play off the tragedy that unravels within these characters revealing:

“I wanted to lean into the tragedy and the melancholy of the story, and a lot of that comes from Ellen’s character.”

While talking with FilmmakerMagazine, Carolan also discusses the beginning process of creating the soundtrack alongside director Eggers stating:

“Robert and I build up huge playlists of music that we like—some are literally three days long. I spend ages walking around and sifting through it all to try to get ideas. I always carry around a Dictaphone, so any time I have some sort of melodic idea, I just hum and store all these hums, then make notes about them and how I think they might work.”

All in all, it is fascinating film to watch, and surely stands as one of the best to come out of the year 2024. A masterpiece in every way of the word that deserves all the recognition and more. Hope you all enjoyed this review, and please comment below or send us your thoughts through our social media pages so we can hear from you. Thank you for reading, and peace to all.

NOSFERATU (2024) MOVIE TRAILER:

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