Robert Egger, the director of beloved movies “The Witch,” “The Lighthouse,” and “The Northman” returns to the big screen with his newest work, “Nosferatu.” Eggers’s “Nosferatu” takes on a new perspective of the praised original “Nosferatu" released back in 1922. Instead of focusing on Thomas Hutter (Nicholas Hoult) as the central figure, Egger decides to shift the attention to Ellen Hutter (Lily-Rose Depp), who now is the one with control over the story, and her obsessive but erotic relationship with Count Orlok (Bill Skarsgard).
The story begins with a young married couple who have started to settle in their new married life. Thomas Hutter receives an offer from his boss to visit a count in order to purchase the castle the count resides in. Upon arriving at the castle, Tomas comes face to face with the count who is Count Orlok. Thomas experiences a series of unsettling events and is plagued with unsettling visions that torment him. While Thomas is away, Ellen suffers from visions as Orlok is fixated on her and aims to claim her. Orlok’s relentless pursuit of Ellen causes pain and suffering to the community and people around Ellen and Thomas. Thomas finally realizes Orlok’s plans and it is up to him and Ellen to confront this ancient evil.
Much like every other Rober Eggers film, “Nosferatu” is deeply related with the history of the world. “The Witch” dealt with 17th century New England and the puritan experience, “The Northman” is set in 10th century Iceland and is based on the historical facts and texts of the Viking Age. Finally, “Nosferatu” takes place during the early Victorian Period which is known for its gothic atmosphere, repression, strict moral code and social norms. These aspects play a major role in Eggers's most recent film as it takes inspiration from gothic atmospheres and juxtaposes the social norms with the characters revealing what the film truly wants to talk about.
“Nosferatu” deals with one’s shameful desires and the process of facing those desires. This can be shown through the characters of Orlok and Ellen and the obsessive relationship between the two. Ellen internally struggles with her sexual desires, which are looked down on for women to have during the Victorian Age, as she seems to be terrified but also drawn towards Orlok, who represents Ellen’s shameful desires. The historical setting of the film further highlights this theme as it creates a contrast between Ellen and the social norms of the Victorian Age.
The film heavily relies on the performances the actors bring to the table in order for it to succeed. Lily-Rose Depp gives a career best performance with a historically accurate accent and captures the vulnerability of her character’s fear and curiosity. A great amount of physical acting was required of Depp as she twists her body in inhuman positions to help create the feeling of horror. Nicholas Hoult brings a strong performance conveying the helplessness and determination his character undergoes throughout the film. Lastly, Bill Skarsgard returns to the peak of his powers through his portrayal of Count Orlok. Skarsgard masterfully creates a terrifying yet strangely mesmerizing character.
Skarsgard’s performance was heightened with the help of technicians as they stunningly created the image of Count Orlok from head to toe making him feel alive and believable. The cinematography and technical aspects are still of high quality but seemed like a step back from Eggers’s past films. Eggers doesn’t develop anything new from his previous films which could cause followers of his past work to be less surprised and even bored.
Overall, Robert Eggers’s “Nosferatu” is a good movie and surprises with its novel reimagining of the horror classic. The first half of the movie might be a drag occasionally for some people and technically nothing much stands out beside Orlok for people who have seen Eggers’s previous works. However, Eggers continues to prove why he is one of the best directors working right now with his creative way of connecting history to his works. “Nosferatu” will be a great watch to anyone who enjoyed the original, horror fans, or anyone who have not seen any of Egger’s films and want to try out something new.
Nosferatu
Fantasy/Drama/Horror
132 Minutes
2024
Director
Robert Eggers
Cast
Lily-Rose Depp as Ellen Hutter
Bill Skarsgard as Count Orlok
Nicholas Hoult as Thomas Hutter
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