Nosferatu is a 2024 gothic horror remake of the F. W. Murnau classic “Nosferatu: A Symphony of Horror.” It is directed by acclaimed director Robert Eggers, known for movies such as “The Witch,” “The Lighthouse” and “The Northman.” The film cast features Lily-Rose Depp (Ellen Hutter,) Nicholas Hoult (Thomas Hutter) and Bill Skarsgard (Count Orlok) in the main roles, with Willem Dafoe, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Emma Corin, Ralph Inseon and Simon McBurney as supporting roles.
The story begins in the early 1800s with young Ellen Hutter, who is lonely and wants a compassionate male to bring her companionship. She prays to spirits to grant her request, but unfortunately calls out to an ancient dark vampire (Count Orlok) from Transylvania to Germany. Count Orlok tells her telepathically that Ellen awakened him from an eternity of darkness and that Ellen is not of humankind. The sinister count demands her to submit to his will and she does, which causes disturbing nightmares of marrying Death itself. Years later, in 1838, Ellen married a kind and gentle man, Thomas Hutter. To ensure financial stability with his wife, Thomas’s employer requests that he deposit a house to a Transylvanian count in the Carpathian Mountains, Count Orlok. Ellen begs Thomas not to leave her to go out to Romania because of the growing dark nightmares she has been having which have been causing her seizures and seductive fantasies with “Death.” Thomas dismisses her and goes on his way to the Count’s Castle.
The strengths of the film are the performances, visual atmosphere and storytelling. The first half of the movie keeps the pacing going and does not waste any time attempting to get the audience to understand every aspect of the plot. This is another example of a horror movie that does not always have to involve jumpscares to horrify an audience, but a dark atmosphere with creepy themes gives the movie a true nightmarish experience. Depp gives an Oscar-worthy performance, as she can control her own physical movements and facial expressions in an exorcism or a scene of her speaking about her fears. There are some flaws in the pre-climax, as it tries to set up the characters to try and take the evil down; however, it falls flat and doesn’t set up anything. As great as Depp was in the movie, she is constantly having seizures and nightmarish possessions and it gets too repetitive, as the audience is already aware of the danger at bay.
Out of all the movies I have seen in 2024, this has to be the best production design of that year. I don’t think it deserves a best picture nomination, but it is definitely a top 10 of the year. I would agree if it gets nominated cinematography, sound design, best actress and art direction. The film received critical and financial success, grossing over $135 million in over a couple of weeks worldwide. I enjoyed this in IMAX when I saw it on the big screen, and it is easy to get drawn in the director’s vision. The 1922 original film “Nosferatu: A Symphony of Horror” was a passion of Eggers since he was 9 years old. Eggers performed a play at his local elementary school of the original classic. After his feature film debut “The Witch,” he wanted to direct a remake of the original 1922 original but was unsure how he would do it. The script was underdeveloped, lacked authentic storytelling, and not a prepared cast. However after a few more years of experience with his other films, Eggers was finally convinced he could direct the remake he always was passionate about and it was worth the effort.
OVERALL: 4.2 out of 5
