Robert Eggers has struck magic with his Christmas day release Nosferatu. This remake of a 1922 silent film of the same name bears the same general plot but creates a beautiful aesthetic that would only be possible with 2024 filmmaking techniques.

Nosferatu is grand, beautiful, and genuinely terrifying. After his work on The Witch, The Lighthouse, and The Northman, Eggers had already solidified his stature as a filmmaker. But with Nosferatu Eggers may have created his signature masterpiece. And a film that will be watched and beloved by many for years to come.

Gothic Horror

Robert Eggers began his treatment for a Nosferatu remake as far back as 2015 after his debut film The Witch. The grandiose idea of taking on a film as influential as Nosferatu for his sophomore project was not lost on Eggers and he rightfully decided to get a few more films under his belt before returning to his passion project.

Nosferatu feels like a film that could only come after The Lighthouse and The Northman. The Lighthouse with it’s cool black and white aesthetic and The Northman with its epic folklore nature, feel like perfect lead-ins to Eggers latest work. These influences are seen throughout and while Nosferatu is certainly its own film, it feels like an amalgamation of Eggers previous works.

Remaking A Classic

The original 1922 film set trends in horror that are still followed in cinema today. There are few films, specifically genre films, that are as influential as the original Nosferatu. Eggers and the cast do not try and abandon the original work, but rather update it to the scale and scope of a modern film.

Despite the incredible sets, beautiful costumes, and epic narrative, Nosferatu still retains the charm of a simpler film. The performances are front and center and every actor here is delivering a career-best performance. This in addition to the various practical effects and location set pieces, makes the film feel like something that could have been done in the 20’s. If only we had the technology to capture such beautiful images in IMAX quality.

Melancholy

Every actor in this movie gives a spot on performance but Lily-Rose Depp is of particular praise for her performance as Ellen Hutter. Depp gives an incredibly physical and emotional performance as the manic, depressed, and lust-filled wife. She has an encounter with Count Orlock, the titular Nosferatu, early on in her life and this rendezvous is the table setting for the rest of the film. The gravitas and sincerity she brings to this role are second to none and truly one of the best performances of the year.

Rounding out the cast is Nicholas Hoult as Depp’s husband. Bill Skarsgard as Nosferatu. And Willem Dafoe as Albin Eberhart Von Franz, a stand-in for famous vampire hunter Van Helsing. Each actor falls into their role with Skarsgard being completely unrecognizable and Hoult melting into his helpless husband persona. Eggers has a knack for getting fantastic performances out of his actors and Nosferatu is no exception.

Framing Transylvania

Aside from the incredible performances, Jarin Blaschke also captures beautiful shots. Blaschke has been the cinematographer on every Eggers film and his work here is nothing short of incredible. There are mesmerizing scenes of Depp acting against a shadowed white curtain or rats infesting German streets that are awe-inspiring. The film switches effortlessly between giant cityscapes to gut-wrenching closeups and they are all captured gorgeously through Blashcke’s lens.

The sets and costumes play a huge role in bringing the world of Count Orlock to life. Scenes set against the drab cold tones of Germany feel like a time portal to a worse time. The castle inhabited by Nosferatu feels epic and grand in scope even with so little of the film’s runtime taking place there. And the scenes on a ship or a prison feel claustrophobic and unsettling. It’s a testament to the team who worked on this film that everything looks beautiful and is captured masterfully.

Fear

Nosferatu is a horror movie first. The entire film is bathed in a cold blue aesthetic that transitions from color to black and white throughout. Gothic imagery is littered throughout and the film even has a few jump scares thrown in for good measures. But the true horror comes from the dread of evil lurking in every scene.

Nosferatu visualizes Count Orloks’ growing power through a citywide infestation of rats. There isn’t just a sense of evil, but a grotesque visual representation of it throughout the film. It’s an effective image and one that pairs perfectly with the world created by Nosferatu.

The Plague Returns

This film follows the same plot as the original 1922 Nosferatu but adds a great layer of thematic subtext to the story. The themes of plagues, the religious undertones, and sensual desire were present in 1922 but are on full display here. As Nosferatu exits his castle and makes his way to Germany, the streets become infested with rats and illness. The people believe the illness is brought on by the rats but really it’s brought on by the embodiment of evil itself. An evil that’s searching for the pure of heart Ellen.

Ellen’s pure heart is ravaged by Orlock and in turn, seen as melancholy and paranoia by doctors and her own friends. It’s only the eccentric Prof. Von Franz who understands the true nature of her sickness and devises a plan to save their city. It’s a classic story, the same almost as what is told in Bram Stoker’s original Dracula novel. But the ending here and in the original is sadder but also more profound. Where Stroker’s novel ends with a triumphant hero, Nosferatu ends with great sacrifice. It comes full circle to the religious themes the film lays out early on. The pure woman sins, lets evil in, and in the end, she is the only one who can save us.

Redemption

Nosferatu is an incredible achievement in film and one of the best movies of 2024. The film has deep themes, gorgeous cinematography, and some of the years best performances. Robert Eggers has truly managed to make a spectacular piece of fiction, even if he had a pretty strong outline to work with.

Nosferatu may not be for everyone. There are some immensely frightening scenes, darkly gothic aesthetics, and multiple layers of subtext below the surface. It is not a straightforward horror film, but it’s the exact type of film we want to see from Eggers. A genre film from a filmmaker at the top of his game.