Nosferatu info:
Director: Robert Eggers
Writer: Robert Eggers, Henrik Galeen, and Bram Stoker
Starring: Lily-Rose Depp, Nicholas Hoult, Bill Skarsgård, and Willem Dafoe
Hello and welcome to another week here at 1guysmindlessmoviereviews.com. There’s been lots of snow and wind in parts of the country. I hope everyone is staying safe and warm. This is a great time of the year to stay in, cuddle up, and watch one of your favorite movies. At my house, we like to take turns picking movies to watch as a family. It’s fun and it helps us spend time together during those busy weeks. I also want to put out my heartfelt sorrow to everyone battling the wildfires in California. All of the brave people fighting the fire and all who have lost something or someone to the fire… you are in our thoughts!
Even though 2024 was a big year of watching movies for me, there is still plenty that I didn’t see. This is why I’m returning to last year to talk about a big release at the end of 2024. But before I talk about “Nosferatu”, let me first warn you that this will have spoilers, so if you don’t want to know what happens and think it will haunt you, then you may want to spend some time here first and see what else I have in store… then come back.
Myself and Mrs. Mindless had a rare date night this past weekend with the kids staying elsewhere. We were able to go out for a nice dinner and of course, end the night with a movie. Even better, I got to try a theater that I’d never been to before. It was an Emagine Theater… and it was a good time. You should check one out if you get the chance. Our choice was between “Nosferatu” and “A Complete Unknown”. I’m not sure the Mrs. liked our choice, but I was happy with it and wish I had watched it during the last calendar year… it would have easily made my list of Top Ten list of the year.
Depp, in easily her biggest role to date, comes out swinging as the main protagonist, Ellen Hutter. You can tell early on that she has already had some troubling issues with a dark force and that will be in for a ride later on. Her husband Thomas Hutter (Hoult) wants to make a name for himself and make lots of money for himself and his new bride, so he jumps on the opportunity to tackle a new real estate deal that his boss Knock (Simon McBurney) set up for him.
Unbeknownst to him, this deal will take him on a faraway journey to meet with Count Orlok (Skarsgård). There he succumbs to his fears and becomes prey for the ancient vampire. Honestly, words can not describe Skarsgård here. He played Count Orlok so well and he was completely scary and demanding the way he held that role. As Thomas was fighting a losing battle, his poor wife was back at home fighting her own demons. While Thomas was away, she was staying with their dear friends Friedrich (Aaron Taylor-Johnson) and Anna (Emma Corrin) Harding. Her nightly outrages and convulsions were taking a toll on everyone.
As if the cast of “Nosferatu” wasn’t enough already, in comes Dafoe as Prof. Albin Eberhart von Franz. Man, this guy makes some seriously great choices in the roles he picks… or maybe they pick him for these great characters. Either way, he was once again a delight to watch on-screen as he used his knowledge of the occult to narrow down what was afflicting Ellen. All of them along with Dr. Sievers (Ralph Ineson) play well off each other as they navigate this new plague that hits their city.
That’s right, shortly after Thomas gets away, Count Orlock makes his way to the Hutter’s home country so he can finish terrorizing them. When he arrives, he brings a plague with him. So, on top of everything else, the people of the town are now starting to get sick and die. But, Orlock is the real plague as he starts killing people that Ellen cares about (including Anna and her daughters). Eventually, Ellen decides to give in to Orlock’s demands so she can save everyone else. So, that night while Thomas, Prof. Albin, and Dr. Sievers are at the castle, she gives herself to the Count and holds him there till morning so they both die together.
This film was a fantastic node to not only the original “Nosferatu” from 1922 but a lot of the classic black and white monster films from the 1930s. The cinematography was out of this world, some of those camera shots were very modern and it played well with the classic look of the film. The cast was also on their “A” game, but one person stood out and I feel like I need to call out Simon McBurney and his role as Knock. That guy did some crazy stuff in this film, some gross and some disturbing, but he went all out for this and for that, I give him an “A+”.
Overall, this was a really well-made movie and I’m glad I got to experience it on a big scale. This is a beautiful film to see and there are plenty of nods to some of the Dracula/Nosferatu stories from the past. So, my frightfully good score for this is going to be an 8 out of 10!
Before we leave each other again, please let me know if you’ve seen “Nosferatu” yet. If you have, how high would you rate it? Were you as creeped out as my wife was? Until next time, be sure to sleep with an eye open and I will see you again next week with another mindless movie review of some sort.
