Nosferatu (2024)

It’s finally here!
A highly anticipated remake of the original 1922 German silent film of the same name.
Laura’s Rating: 4/5 Stars
Plot: Newlywed estate agent Thomas leaves his wife Ellen to journey to a client in Transylvania. Left in the care of friends, Ellen begins to have horrific visions and feels an evil presence. (The original Nosferatu film is an unauthorized adaptation of Bram Stoker’s Dracula).
Opinion: The film’s biggest strength is the stunning cinematography, thoughtful framing, and intentional coloring. All these elements work together to create an atmosphere that fits the foreboding and heavy tone of the film perfectly.
I thought all of the acting was great, but Willem Dafoe is easily my favorite and delivers some of the best lines of the film. His eccentric edge fits the character perfectly and adds some life into the otherwise somber film. One of his lines, among many, that stuck with me: “If we are to tame darkness we must first face that it exists.”
Now onto my criticisms: Ellen (Lily-Rose Depp) is kind of an unlikable character from the beginning and I wish there were a few scenes of her and Thomas happy in their relationship to establish a baseline before they are separated. The psychic connection between Orlok and Ellen was in line with the original story but I didn’t really like the possession-esque elements added in this version. While performed well by Depp, her convulsions and seizures were just too much for me.
In a similar vein, although Orlock is certainly supernatural and is often interpreted as a sorcerer of sorts, I didn’t love the time lapses that occurred during Thomas’s journey to and time inside Orlock’s castle. They were distracting and disorienting rather than spooky in my opinion.
The film is pretty fast paced, with a lot going on. I almost think there are too many events packed in, without enough depth to each of them (i.e. the ship scenes). The general filmmaking (set, cinematography, soundtrack, light, costuming) for Nosferatu is magnificent, but the directing and editing wasn’t quite what I wanted.
I had very high expectations for this film and was ready to be blown away. Unfortunately, I wasn’t quite as captivated as I had hoped to be, but it was still a solid film.
Kommentare