The story of Dracula is one that has been told and told again countless times over the last century. Based on the novel by Irish author Bram Stoker in 1897, Dracula has been adapted into films countless times, the Count himself being portrayed by notable actors such as Bela Lugosi, Sir Christopher Lee, and Gary Oldman among many others. In this one, I will be discussing a lesser-known adaptation of Dracula known as Nosferatu, a silent German film made in 1922, technically making it the first film featuring "Dracula". The reason I say 'technically' will be explained more later. And I understand that most of you probably won't be quite as willing to watch this or expect a positive review out of me because this is an ancient silent film, but please, just sit through this review.
Most people are probably familiar with Nosferatu from an episode of SpongeBob Squarepants. Graveyard Shift, where the infamous creature appeared it in at the end briefly. Now, the history of how this film got made is actually a very fascinating one. The filmmakers did not have the rights to portray Dracula on screen, so they ended up making a vampire ("Nosferatu" meaning "Vampire" in Romanian) film based heavily on Bram Stoker's novel. In order to avoid heavy lawsuits, they changed many of the character's names, most prominently Count Dracula to Count Orlok. Despite their 'precautions', Stoker's family sued the film company, and the court ordered for all copies of Nosferatu to be destroyed. Somehow, a couple of them survived, allowing us to watch this film today.
So what did I think of Nosferatu? I certainly found it an enjoyable watch. I wouldn't call the film exactly 'terrifying', but it was certainly quite off-putting. Big kudos goes to Max Schreck (Count Orlok) for being a brilliant actor the whole way through. Although the Count's introduction and death is rather underwhelming to say the least, Schreck definitely made it believable that he was an undead monster. A major factor attributed to this is definitely the makeup, which was done very well on Schreck, transforming him into a very creepy monster. Max Schreck also brought to the role a certain style of walking that was very disconcerting. I don't quite have the words to describe the walking style accurately, but it was sort of robotic/zombie-like, and Schreck didn't move his upper body at all, so you get a very strong impression that Schreck is portraying this undead creature that doesn't belong in this world, and that really was one of the most creepy parts of the movie for me, especially the infamous scene where Count Orlok unstintingly stalks up the stairs.
The acting by the rest of the cast was very good. Although they couldn't speak, their non-verbal acting was very good for the majority of the cast. Being black & white and having technological restraints and such, the film couldn't quite carry the tone it needed for parts of the movie. For example, the scene where Count Orlok feeds on the boat crew takes place in the middle of the night, but due to the technical restraints, it looks like it takes place in the day, which can seem strange because later in the movie, the Count dies from the sunlight. Apart from the technical errors, the movie seem to suffer from a few pacing issues, with some scenes dragging out longer then perhaps necessary, but there were scenes that were very well filmed and certainly added to the creepy aspects of the film. I know it doesn't matter to this review, but I'd also like to add that the movie was surprisingly rather faithful to the novel... up to a certain point, and then it removes the final portion of the novel.
Overall, Nosferatu certainly wasn't unwatchable. I definitely didn't HATE it, but I don't think it's a movie I'll watch again... It did a good job being off-putting, but it wasn't particularly horrifying for me, but that's probably because of the 100-year difference in the audience, considering that the movie apparently gave nightmares to many people when it first came out. The movie is also supposed to be watched with a live orchestra, so that may have played a factor in adding to the terror as well. I'm not telling you to go out of your way and make this movie a number 1 priority for you to watch or anything, but if you are a fan of horror movies and especially if you are fan of vampires and specifically Dracula, this is a movie that I don't think you'll regret watching. Personally, I haven't seen too many horror movies, and I'm not particularly a big Dracula or vampire fan, so this movie was okay for me. It wasn't horrible, but it wouldn't be something I would watch again anytime soon. Still, despite my personal feelings, it still doesn't change the fact that it's still a well-made and decently watchable movie in today's time. My final score for this movie is: 3/5.
So THAT was my review of the horror classic Nosferatu (1922). I'm currently not sure on what I'll do for my next post, but I think it will be an adaptation review, and departing from my recent horror-related posts, I have the perfect book & movie in mind. I always will enjoy hearing from all of you, so if you have any comments, feedbacks, opinions, suggestions, etc., please feel free to comment, and I WILL respond to ALL comments!
Music and other sound effects are an integral part of any film, particularly a horror movie. As a result, it is understandable that a modern viewer such as yourself, who has no access to the sounds of the movie, would not enjoy it as much. (Not to mention the fact that modern cinemaphiles have access to much more intense horror movies)
ReplyDeletePrecisely! This movie is meant for a very different audience, so it of course makes sense that today's audience, such as myself, wouldn't find it as impactful. The movie was still generally enjoyable, and it was unnerving enough that most people would enjoy it, I think.
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