Robert Eggers’s “Nosferatu” Delights in Depp's Performance, Haunting Atmosphere, and Vampire Creation

Review

By Colton Gomez | 12/30/24 | 5:57 P.M. Mountain Time

Horror, Drama| Rated R | 2 hr 12 min | "Nosferatu" Release Date: December 25, 2024

Nosferatu's Castle ©Universal Pictures ©Focus Features

I walked out of the theater in a coat that suddenly felt like a lord’s cloak. A pale-orange sun fought against the gradient sky that dropped snow flurries. I stared at the white mountains whose tops were hidden by dark grey clouds. I practiced my Count Orlok voice the whole drive home. Not even the two blabber-heads next to me or the four people that got up and walked out could ruin the feeling that resonates.

If you’re like me, your first introduction to Nosferatu was the SpongeBob episode featuring the Hash-Slinging Slasher. Nosferatu is revealed at the end as the prankster who keeps turning the lights off and on. This led me in my later years to discover it was from a real-life movie called “Nosferatu: A Symphony of Horror.” I would find it again when studying film seriously for a paper on German expressionism. Now I encounter Robert Eggers’s newest take on the vampire which gives him a grounded appearance in prosthetics that pairs with a hauntingly resonant voice.

Praying to either god or demon, anyone who would listen, young Ellen (Lily-Rose Depp) covets herself everlastingly to Count Orlok (Bill Skarsgård). Years later, Ellen is married to real estate agent Thomas Hutter (Nicholas Hoult), who’s summoned to a castle in the mountains to cater to a prospective buyer. Ellen is left in the care of Thomas’s friends who soon find themselves dealing with the ripples of Ellen’s past. Treated by doctors and dabblers in the occult, nothing can stop the sickness coming to their town.

The film’s story doesn’t really stay with me. What lingers after the film is the feeling of it all. The atmosphere created by Eggers and his team is why I’ll watch this film again. The use of Nosferatu’s shadows in this film is something I wish other filmmakers would take note of. That right there is dreadful anticipation. Seeing the shadow of a long, thin, unmanicured hand stretching out into the night accompanied with the wind sound of deep bass is so captivating. His influence is everywhere so he doesn’t have to be.

Depp excels as the film’s top performer. Hers is a very demanding role in physicality and emotionality. She contorts her body in possessed spasms. She shudders her torso as she shakes off a possession in a conversation. She cries in fear and melancholy. She puts on an English accent, which many may be surprised to learn is not native to her. Her very vulnerable and powerful performance may earn her the Oscar nom for Best Actress and it would be well-deserved.

Skarsgård, as the titular vampire, also does excellent work here. He transforms his voice into a lower register and loudly whispers through an eastern European accent. (I so wish I had subtitles for this film because he can be hard to understand at times.) His role might demand a different brand of physicality, as well as mental fortitude, as he wears a prosthetic skin suit for many of his appearances (we all know the Jim Carrey/Grinch example, right?). He towers over his co-star, Depp, in tall heels and moves with power through each frame. Whenever he’s on screen, he is Nosferatu.

The film’s pace felt a little off to me. It plays best in its setup and payoff of terror. In its weaker moments, it jumps from a terrifying scene to an expositional one. We were with Thomas in the castle, frightened. Now, we’re on the beach and sad. The flow just doesn’t feel as natural as it could be. Because of this, I think the story takes some hits, making it feel longer than it has to. If the film were to do one more cut, I think it would improve a little, but the larger problems lie in the script and how the story is laid out. There’s a lot of information we need to know but we also want to feel the eeriness of Orlok and his influence. The script tries to give both of them their time to shine but it comes off as a strange balance.

Hoult gives a compelling performance that turns his character from proper English businessman into a man terrified out of his wits. During that first interaction between Orlok and Hutter, Hoult brilliantly conveys a man experiencing the layers of modern society peel away as he’s terrified by Orlok but feels a career pressure to finish the deal. His range in this film is outshone by his co-star Depp and out-spectacled by Skarsgård’s vampire, but he is also something to behold in this film.

If you’re into weird characters, look for Herr Knock (Simon McBurney). He was an absolute delight to watch. From his first interaction with Hoult as Hutter’s boss, something seems immediately off about him. He gets too close in conversation, he speaks as if he knows something you don’t, and then goes way off the rails from there. I don’t want to spoil the specifics because seeing it unfold adds a strangely necessary dark flavor of levity that balances the film’s tone just enough. He’s odd, he’s creepy, I didn’t laugh every time he came on screen. But the suddenness of his actions that he commits one hundred percent to caught me so off guard that I had no other reaction than laughter. The film certainly has a distinct personality.

The film touches on themes including science, medicine, religion, the occult, responsibility, and dreams. There’s some interesting interjections into each conversation but nothing feels quite fleshed out enough to encompass the whole movie, except for responsibility. The argument between religion and science/medicine is interesting but it doesn’t necessarily add anything new.

The film’s standouts are definitely the performances, atmosphere, and the direction that pulls all of it together just beautifully. I wouldn’t be surprised if “Nosferatu” earns several Academy nods in categories of Makeup, Actress, Director, and Cinematography. It’s darkly fascinating and sometimes humorous (but in an odd way). See it with family at your own peril.

_______________________________________________________________

Review by Colton Gomez

Colton Gomez earned his BA in Film Studies from Weber State University. He owns and operates ColtonGomez.com. Here, he covers new releases in theaters and on streaming. For short versions of his reviews, check out his LetterBoxd

_______________________________________________________________

Summary