It is a simple and well-known story but sadly this version overcomplicates it to its detriment.
Nosferatu: The Vampyre (1979)
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Reviews Counted: 32
Fresh: 30
Rotten:2
Average Rating: 7.6/10
Consensus: Stunning visuals from Werner Herzog and an intense portrayal of the famed bloodsucker from Klaus Kinski make this remake of Nosferatu a horror classic in its own right.
Runtime: 3 hrs 34 mins
Genre: Horror/Suspense
Synopsis: Approaching the legendary German classic 1922 film NOSFERATU: EIN SYMPHONIE DES GRAUENS by F.W. Murnau with his own unique sensibilities, Werner Herzog establishes a link between himself and the... Approaching the legendary German classic 1922 film NOSFERATU: EIN SYMPHONIE DES GRAUENS by F.W. Murnau with his own unique sensibilities, Werner Herzog establishes a link between himself and the classic days of German cinema and in the process crafts a lush adaptation as well as a classic in its own right. Stark, symbolic cinematography and intensely stylized performances create what Herzog refers to as a different plane of reality, injecting the age-old tale of Count Dracula with a modern sense of mysticism, desire, and wonder. Frequent Herzog collaborator Klaus Kinski portrays the Dracula character with a silent intensity, tingeing the vampire's inhuman monstrosity with a deep sense of pathos and longing. Completing a stellar international cast are Bruno Ganz (a regular in the films of Wim Wenders) and French film star Isabelle Adjani, both giving subtle yet compelling performances as the formerly happy couple who fall prey to Dracula's lust for life and love. From the opening image of rows of openmouthed mummies and the repeated motif of a bat in slow-motion flight to beautiful scenic shots of European mountains and beaches, NOSFERATU is a visually stunning film, presenting visual tableaus taken directly from the original as well as those of Herzog's invention. The extreme stylization of the film recalls Herzog's similarly hypnotic and haunting film HEART OF GLASS--creating a wholly original film, that despite its differences maintains a strict and loving faithfulness to the original. [More]
Starring: Bruno Ganz, Walter Ladengast, Dan van Husen, Carsten Bodinus
Starring: Bruno Ganz, Walter Ladengast, Dan van Husen, Carsten Bodinus, Martje Grohmann, Rijk de Gooyer, Rijk de Gooyer, Clemens Scheitz, Jacques Dufilho, Beverly Walker, John Leddy
Screenwriter: Werner Herzog
Story: Henrik Galeen, Henrik Galeen, Bram Stoker, Bram Stoker
Composer: Popol Vuh, Popol Vuh, Florian Fricke, Richard Wagner, Richard Wagner, Charles Gounod, Charles Gounod
Reviews for Nosferatu: The Vampyre
Sumptuous yet earthy, philosophical yet humorous, it's a masterpiece in its own right.
A competent, atmospheric remake, but, considering the quality of Murnau's masterwork, is it necessary?
Sometimes dismissed for being too slowly paced and too slavish to its source, it is in fact superior to the original.
You can love this movie without having to admit it�s merely an okay version of Dracula.
Between the hordes of stowaway rats that accompany Dracula's arrival, and a town-plaza dance of folly by doomed survivors (a Herzog addition), it's like being present at the birth of a medieval legend.
Herzog and Kinski succeed here because they convey a sense of pity for a creature so visually repulsive it's hard to look at him.
The acting is too eccentric and the narrative drive too weak to satisfy fans of the genre, but Herzog's admirers will find much in the film's animistic landscapes and clusters of visionary imagery.
The film's reason for being (it's a shrine to Herzog's favourite German director) is also the end of the conversation.
It's funny without being silly, eerie without being foolish and uncommonly beautiful in a way that has nothing to do with mere prettiness.
As with the film's more naturalistic elements, Herzog's camera hangs back from the action, observing Kinski's slow, spidery movements and terrifying outbursts of bloodlust
Nosferatu explores the Dracula legend in a way that is both serious and seductive.
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