Nosferatu

Twice in 12 hours, 3 more showtimes scheduled on the docket. This means something to me man, I’ll do my best to not ramble but I WILL be insufferable like I warned everyone for years leading up to this. Every single thing I wanted and a number of things I never new I needed but got them anyway, Robert Eggers is doing things nobody else is even remotely interested, coming away with some of the most searing, indelible results you can muster and yes I will die on this hill. There are some choices made here that are simply not going to work for everyone, little surprises to be had that they nearly every single one worked in full harmony for me. A seeping portrait of guilt and repression overtaking your every fabric of life as you’re viewed within the confines of the Romantic era just before the Victorian era. This is Ellen Hutter’s story through and through with her desperate attempt to articulate what’s already threatening to consume falling to a noiseless whimper to these men so desperate to control;understand but firmly fail to ever see inside to recognize unaltered darkness. Ellen has had to fully embrace what’s been extending outwards for her entire natural life and never once was able to receive a morsel of solace or understanding despite her pleading, it’s absolutely heartbreaking in the most putrid and mesmerizing way imaginable. For a core text that’s dating back well over a century with the abundance of lore being warped and manipulated over the years, there are some pretty remarkable swings with some people surely going to outright reject them and that’s fine. The fact that this would still be considered to be Robert Eggers most accessible film by a comfortable margin as something that contains relentless lurking imagery in the form of desire; corruption, is holding film history to a standard that is a pure obsessor enacting a through-line so powerful that you’ll be transported somewhere else entirely. You just may not be sure where, and chances are you may not even like where you find yourself with your thoughts that are eager to be what vilifies you according to your current existential plane. I figured this film would have came earlier in the career of Robert Eggers career and I’m sure he did too, this was initially set to be his second film after The Witch with numbering pieces in different places. In 2016 it was Dafoe who was set to play Count Orlock and Bill Skarsgård on board to play Thomas Hutter. Things developed slowly and everyone, including Eggers began to work on other projects but this always had a firm ember lit underneath it. He’s been incredibly vocal about the influence that F.W. Murnau’s 1922 film had on him as a young boy that watched a 16mm print on VHS. From here his obsession with all his now interests began to fester. Things like history, fantasy, mythology, folklore, the occult or basically anything else which allows him to deep dive into worlds once very alive but seem so out of reach to people like us. He first directed a black and white stage play of Nosferatu with his friend in high school and was offered by a requisite theater to show the play on a more professional scale, from here he knew he wanted to be a director. I’m not going to say Murnau’s film had anywhere near that level of inspiration on me, except it’s the very first film I studied in college on top of being from source material that I adore. Getting a chance to nerd out in a film circle moment with one of my favorite filmmakers of all time doing the exact same thing is incredibly special to me and I’m shamelessly a dork because of it. If you’re familiar with the story then you know exactly what the core elements are but how you get their and who’s telling the story can dictate emotions strong enough to part seas or even reconcile the evil that’s tainted humanity since its existence. Eggers says he’s grateful he didn’t make the film when he initially set out because he would have fell into pitfalls and needed time to grow as a filmmaker. I think those years he spend working diligently with his repeat crew of hyper obsessed historians looking to imbue his same passion really paid supreme dividends and the proof is in this wholly realized world portal that’s showcasing taunting craftsmanship in every possible category, so I will try to give as much love to these people as I can. I’ll begin with frequent collaborators such as cinematographer Jarin Blaschke who’s now worked with Robert Eggers on all four of his films and really just evolved in remarkable ways as well. His use of natural light, fire and candlelight should actually be studied by everyone because he found ways to do things I’ve routinely never seen before and Nosferatu is no different. With each out they seem to be adding something to the overall package, whether it’s something like The Lighthouse which uses a 1.19:1 aspect ratio and uses a ridiculous amount of techniques that include mixing digital footage with color negative film stock, using shortpass and photographic filters and even employing some Schneider lenses that were directly redesigned from their time period or something like The Northman which is looking to create these entrances into a entirely new scale with these sweeping camera movements and uninterrupted takes, there is somebody who’s actively trying to change how visual connectivity works. In Nosferatu, Blaschke is doing stuff with shadows and moonlighting in ordnance with the most hand built sets that Eggers has used up until now that’s simply remarkable. The sense of fantastical mysticism has never seemed more palpable large in part thanks to this ability to completely hypnotize the viewer on all levels. The 180 degree camera movements on either axis is something so constant, you find yourself constantly entering a new area, racing to search through the overwhelming darkness. Next up I would like to shout out Craig Lathrop for the production design as well as Linda Muir for costume design since they’re both going hand in hand with something like this, working on every one of Eggers’ films together. I mentioned the set design earlier but after seeing it twice I’m still in awe, just a relentless barrage of shapes and spaces that make something feel seamless when it’s anything but in its construction. My eyes couldn’t soak up what was being given to me fast enough, they’re deep layers to get lost on whenever the story is not providing that. You won’t find a single unremarkable outfit in this entire film, everything films so unashamedly lived in and in a perfect world these below the line categories will be getting some love come award season. Everything that happens after Hutter’s visit to Orlock’s Castle is just I remarkable piece of adaption and filmmaking, it’s the closest I can imagine us ever possibly getting to the sense of unnatural discomfort in a way that perhaps people were feeling in 1922. Of course with how things have advanced we’ll never get to that actual point once again but Robert Eggers is doing his best to look down these past ventures without judgement upon their fallacies, something almost unheard of today. Now that being said, like all his films there is something brooding, sinister and even comical at points which is why I believe I always get so swept up in his abilities to communicate. I find the entire element that channels the sheer overwhelming noble power that Lily-Rose Depp’s character of Ellen embodies to be incredibly moving and highlights the more horrifying part of anything else going on, being displaced from an era or society that accepts you. In this case these individuals can’t even rationalize the guilt and shame lurking inside of someone like Ellen, the very notion of her holding this shakes them to their core in a blind retreat. Despite all this, she’s willing to offer herself completely and it’s beautiful and devastating. A remarkable creation and a Christmas experience that I’ll remember forever, thanks to big Bobby Omelette for always telling me to never end it because he’s got something like this for me, a personalized experience made for me and nobody else. IMAX later tonight. 2024 Ranked