The kind of filmmaker that Robert Eggers is has started to fully form on his last two outings. His previous film ‘The Northman’ was a painstaking recreation of Nordic Vikings doing battle with one another and vying for the right to rule. The story is based on the legend of Amleth, a story that William Shakespeare cribbed heavily from to create his story of Hamlet. The painstaking recreation of a specific time is the center piece of who Eggers is, and I expect, will continue to be and it’s the type of artistic production design and cinematography that make movies the visual art pieces that they are.

Now we have his spin on another, albeit slightly less, ancient tale. A reworking of the 1922 German silent film ‘Nosferatu’ bearing it’s story, it’s horrifying monster, and it’s title. Eggers version does not wander far from the path of the original, if at all really. The story is heavily steeped in the battle of chastity and desire, as well as fears about plague knocking on the door of the world. It makes sense to have that fear following the COVID Pandemic, as well as it should be noted that the first film came out shortly after the Spanich Flu epidemic of the 1920s.

We meet real estate broker Thomas Hutter (Nicolas Hoult) and his wife Ellen (Lily Rose-Depp). Thomas has been sent out by his boss to visit Count Orlok (Bill Skarsgard) and ensure the finalization of his purchase of a mansion in town. As he travels to meet the Count his wife suffers terrifying visions, beckoning her to give into her desire to serve the vampiric count.

The main issue I have with the movie is how closely it sticks to the original plot. It’s hard to complain about something being “just Nosferatu” but I had hoped that Eggers would zag where many times the film seemed to zig right into the plot of every Dracula story that’s ever been told. But if you just sit back and enjoy the ride, the look and performances are sure to put any concerns at ease. Lily Rose-Depp for one is a horrifying delight as she descends further into the clutches of the monster. And Willem Dafoe puts on exactly the right amount of ham as he barges into the picture as a Swiss occultist.

The vampire Count Orlok is a massive beast, and the voice that Bill Skarsgard uses to bring him to life is a rhythmically haunting song, song through a thick Carpathian accent. Gone is the enchanting nature of Edward Cullen, the brooding stoicism of Angel, this vampire is a monster in the trueset sense, and that depiction makes it all the more shocking to see the pureness of a young woman fall deeper and deeper into his enchantments.

While the film has horror elements, the drive of the film gives it an almost action adventure feel. The characters dash around town to brace the populace for the arrival of the beast, think ‘The Mummy‘ but less quips. It’s maybe a slightly simpler telling than I had expected from someone like Eggers, but it’s still an absolute cinematic feat.

4/5