Directed By Robert Eggers

Starring – Lily-Rose Depp, Nicholas Hoult, Bill Skarsgard

The Plot – A gothic tale of obsession between a haunted young woman (Depp) and the terrifying vampire (Skarsgard) infatuated with her, causing untold horror in its wake.

Rated R for bloody violent content, graphic nudity and some sexual content.

NOSFERATU – Official Trailer [HD] – Only In Theaters December 25

POSITIVES

Eggers has his finger on the pulse of every artistic decision made under the movie’s production, and as a result ‘Nosferatu’ is every bit the majestically macabre gothic nightmare that only one of the most unique visionaries of atmospheric ambiance can properly render. In terms of technique, the film effortlessly earns nominations into every single category of the Oscars, with the swift abruptness of the abrasively absorbing editing stitching together these surrealist instances towards feeling like a continuous never-ending nightmare for those involved, with an equally entrancing element to the sound mixing and editing inscribing an immensity of influence towards Count Orlok, who feels as powerful as ever, despite groggily distorted breathing patterns that vividly convey insight into the torturous history of the character. When Orlok walks into or away from a room, we feel his boldly blanketing steps like rhythmic responses to our very own heartbeats within the suspense factor that envelopes him, with echoed impacts so immensely titanic that they premeditate the dread in his disturbance, and when combined with originality in character design of make-up and prosthetics work that seamlessly wipes away any shred of familiarity from Skarsgard, helps elicit an unshakable grip on our attention spans that dominates any room that he chooses to invade, particularly during the opening introductions to the character involving obscuring shadows that help maintain the mystique and aura about his grisly appearance. In fact, shadow play is one of the most valuable tools of technique throughout the engagement, leading to these breathtakingly scenic sequences involving symbolism from the darkest depths of Orlok’s influence that mirrors the dread and devastation of his untimely arrival, all the while maintaining the bigger than life sensationalism of these dreamlike sequences artistically dividing night and day as two divided worlds of the horrifying realities. This is where Eggers longtime cinematographer Jarin Blaschke pitches a mesmerizingly haunting and decaying beauty to much of the movie’s presentation, with daytime sequences eliciting an atmospheric fog that continuously hangs over the town like a forthcoming plague, and nighttime sequences absorbing themselves in the off-beat blues and coating greys that makes these instances feel like they’re quite literally shot in classic black and white. This obviously gives the film the timely feeling to its productive essence that it so vividly depends on, looking and feeling like a film that was shot in the early spin of the 20th century, but beyond that blurs the line of fantasy and reality in the captivity of its characters, making it intentionally difficult to decipher if what we’re seeing is in fact happening, or just another example of the wandering spell that Orlok holds over his helpless victims. The camera work particularly is remarkable here, panning closer to character perspectives when in the grasp of overwhelming helplessness and vulnerability, whenever in Orlok’s crosshairs, but refusing to obscure the clarity and coherence of tastefully distributed gore, which protrudes poetically with stark contrast in its coloring of reds across a nearly colorless canvas that makes them pop in the most ocularly fetching kind of method. Likewise, Blaschke’s boldness and beauty for impeccable framing during scenic shots can easily be plucked for art gallery gawking, particularly those of Orlok’s castle in the mountains catching all of its moodily cold and damp surroundings that establish an essence to the character, long before the script or exposition has a chance to. Every shot in the 127-minute presentation feels meticulously plucked and seamlessly executed, and as a result we not only have one of the more beautifully intoxicating presentations of the entire cinematic year, but also one that immediately sets you in the right frame of mind for a story that predates this effort by over a hundred years, and yet still finds original ways to add to its legacy. When I initially learned of the film’s ambitious run time, I wondered how they could add 38 minutes of material to an original film that was merely 89 minutes, and the answer turns out to be additional context that casts a firmer grasp not only on the depth of these characters, but also further articulation towards the stakes and circumstances of Orlok’s arrival that I thought were underwhelming for the predecessor. Considering some of the character motivations during that 1922 original elicit unintentional laughter every time I watch them, dimensions and complexity here give much-needed transparency to characterization in ways that seamlessly subscribe humanity to such cryptic conditions, especially that of Depp’s Ellen, whose initialized loneliness during the intro puts the motions into development in the haunting of the character, in turn making her the unofficial protagonist for the movie’s exploration, to which Depp pays off incredibly with her performance. That’s probably one of the bigger changes in the film, as Eggers has far too much respect for the original to change it too dramatically, but even in such justifies the appeal of this particular rendition by taking more time contextualizing each unsettling development, all without sacrificing iconic instances in the original that earned a faithful audience for itself. As for the ensemble, the casting choices pay off immensely in the movie’s favor, with Skarsgard, Hoult and especially Depp maximizing the dramatic potential in performances with these gut-wrenchingly gripping portrayals that stick with you, long after the film is over. Perhaps it’s a testament to how Eggers commands these actors, but it nevertheless attains Depp’s most meaningful work to date, straining her body both physically and emotionally towards utilizing all of the loneliness, helplessness and trauma of Ellen’s dreaded disposition, to which Depp unloads what feels like generations of suppressed female sexuality. Likewise, Hoult’s captivity within the damsel in distress role of sorts makes his fear feel viscerally real, with unstable breathing patterns and vocal elevations that convey the kind of male vulnerability not often seen in Dracula movies, ratcheting up the tension to eleven during those initial engagements with Orlok, where he sees the undead character long before we ever get a chance to. This is probably all the easier when you consider that Skarsgard’s Orlok is one of the most memorable renderings of the character, with increased hunger and agitation that we can tangibly feel as a result of Skarsgard’s own transformation into the character. While his appearance disappears in the depths of aforementioned prosthetics and make-up of the most believably grotesque variety, the vocal work belongs exclusively to Bill, as his working with a vocal coach for weeks leading up to the shoot dropped his voice an entire octave level lower for the portrayal, and he uses his unrecognizability for rumbling aggressions that play instinctively to the physicality of the performance, where every nuanced expression or muscular movement is timed to the outward impulses of Orlok’s growing ferocity, which Skarsgard paints with such imposing psychology that makes this one of the more cerebral-driven Dracula portrayals of all-time.

NEGATIVES

While the problems are minimal, there are a couple of issues with the film that I wish didn’t leave such a lasting influence to my otherwise perfect engagement, beginning with the inconsistency of the movie’s pacing, which I don’t think can be blamed on a barely over two hour run time. Instead, I think it’s those scenes of exposition-building between such evocatively fun set pieces that don’t feel as compelling or momentous, and with a film that never even flinches during an engagement that is tonally and atmospherically dark and foreboding, the length asked to mainstream audiences might start to feel taxing towards the movie’s second half, especially when some of the more familiar beats to the storytelling’s structure start to feel evident. In addition to pacing schemes that won’t be for everybody, some of the dialect with Orlok and the elderly townsfolk is a bit incoherent with what they’re trying to convey to the audience, particularly during metaphorical figures of speech that feel a bit too outdated to remain faithfully invested to these interactions. One such example pertains to Willem Dafoe’s occultist doctor, who articulates the term ‘sunrise’ as “The first crow of Cock”, and while I know that this phrase is mentioned in the original ‘Bram Stoker’s Dracula’, I think it serves as a barrier to mainstream audiences who are attempting to understand the details of the conflict, especially with inflections in accents that already take a while to get used to. For me, I understood every word that was coming out of the character dialogue, but didn’t always immediately interpret what they were attempting with phrases like these, and it left me momentarily distracted to piece together what they meant, when they could’ve taken the easy road and just used the most accessible dialogue to articulate certain points. Finally, as I previously assessed, all of the main cast performances are exceptional in their various approaches and deliveries, but one in the supporting cast felt more distracting than naturalistic, and I’m referring to Kraven the Hunter himself, Aaron-Taylor Johnson, whom I found overly eccentric and even annoying in his deliveries. The character is outlined to be a bit of an impersonal snob, so Johnson is probably asked to ham it up a bit, and each time he’s on screen I saw him convey a type, when everyone else was articulating a character, which is especially troubling during scenes closer to the movie’s climax, where the tension dissipates a bit when he exaggerates towards chewing more scenery than Orlok chews flesh.

OVERALL
‘Nosferatu’ is a seductively supercharged gothic nightmare full of mesmerizingly dreamy visuals and captivating performances that honor the immense legacy of its 100-year-old iconic predecessor. Eggers’ passionate remake stretches his creative influence on every single aspect of the collective experience, crafting auteurs the immersive gift of devilishly potent filmmaking that is every bit as chilling as the weather outside, just in time for Christmas

My Grade: 9/10 or A-