Nosferatu (2024)

Starring: Lily-Rose Depp, Nicholas Hoult, Bill Skarsgard, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Willem Dafoe, Emma Corrin, Ralph Ineson, Simon McBurney
Directed by: Robert Eggers
Rating: R
Genre: Horror
2024

Times Seen:
Tim: 1

Summary: A dark curse descends upon a city when Count Orlok (Bill Skarsgard) purses a troubled woman (Lily-Rose Depp).

Review:

Tim: The original Nosferatu is one of the best, most important movies ever made. It seems a big swing to remake the film, even 102 years after its release. Fortunately, the movie is in the hands of the brilliant Robert Eggers, who delivers a great film. While I don't believe this movie is as good as the original, it's one of the most fascinating, beautiful (in a haunted way), atmospheric films I've seen in many years. It's absolutely one of the best movies of 2024.

What I loved most about this film is that Eggers creates this chilling atmosphere that pervades every second of the film. Maybe a bit surprisingly, this isn't that scary of a movie. Eggers isn't interested in jump scares. He's not setting out to "frighten" the audience, as much as disturb them with a powerful, visceral story. It struck me how rare it is to see a horror movie put drama and mental anguish above the lowest common denominator paths to try and "scare" people. I don't think I ever felt frightened by this movie, but I felt compelled and focused. That is the mark of a great director.

Eggers assembles an impressive cast, but most stunning is that he uses solid actors in some unexpected ways. This starts with Lily-Rose Depp. I've seen her a few times and it felt like she was at least a decent actress, but very young and relatively inexperienced. There's a scent of nepotism still about her. That changes with this film- Depp is excellent in a physical, challenging performance. I do believe Eggers' direction coaxed a great performance out of her, but I don't mean this to minimize how good she is on screen. She more than holds her own and several of the most powerful scenes in the film are brought about because of her acting. She impressed me far beyond what I expected. Nicholas Hoult gives a solid performance, too. I was struck by how impressive he was at showing fear. So often, we see characters in terrifying situations and it feels like someone forgot to tell the actor that. Hoult leans into this aspect of his character and shows us the fear growing inside of him. Hoult is so important because he carries the early scenes. Eventually, the film does feel like it moves past him and I was a little disappointed that he got fewer chances to showcase his skill in the back half of the film. Still, Hoult is vital to the film's success. It was great seeing Willem Dafoe here, in a supporting but powerful role. I found myself watching him intently, whatever he was doing on screen. Eggers and Dafoe were a powerhouse team in The Lighthouse (still Eggers' best film) and Dafoe leverages that comfort with his director for another terrific performance here. I loved what Aaron Taylor-Johnson did on screen here. I was a bit surprised he was cast in this role- he's definitely been leaning into action movies and blockbuster films. I admit I forgot that he's a truly talented actor. He gives a great dramatic performance here, reminding me that he's truly talented. I enjoyed Emma Corrin's performance, too. It's very different from her other 2024 film (a memorable villainous turn in Deadpool & Wolverine) and she does positively impact the film. Ralph Ineson deserves credit for turning a thankless role into something more. He brings immense gravitas to this performance and while he doesn't get much to do, he makes an outsized contribution to the movie.

And, that brings us to Bill Skarsgard. This guy is tremendous. I don't have the right words to praise Skarsgard's acting in this film. It's one of the finest horror movie performances I've ever seen. In some ways, it had to feel challenging to bring this character to life when so little of Skarsgard himself shows up here. The makeup, the prosthetics, he's unrecognizable. Skarsgard truly transforms himself into Orlok. What I was most impressed with is the chilling, jarring way he speaks. He almost spits out the words, the cadence feels odd- everything he does on screen feels inhuman. He's not exactly "scary", but he's unbelievably frightening and realistic. He makes this creature feel larger-than-life. The fear those around him feel is earned- they are right to be afraid. There's something so wrong, so disturbing about every second of his screen time. It's one of the great horror performances you will ever see and it's one of the main reasons why this movie works so exceptionally well. I loved his performance here.

Nosferatu is a brilliantly directed, intense atmospheric film that jams itself under your skin. It was nominated for 4 Academy Awards- Best Makeup and Hairstyling, Best Cinematography, Best Production Design, and Best Costume Design. Technical nominations, all, but all quite deserving. I thought this had some of the best cinematography of any film I've seen this year- it was absolutely gorgeous to look at. The sets were stunning, the costumes perfection. The makeup, especially for Orlok is grotesque, unforgettable. You could argue the film deserved to win any of these four awards. Sadly, it didn't win any. Still, the recognition is yet another data point that Eggers directs a brilliant film, especially technically.

While I did love Nosferatur, I do think there are some flaws. Chief among them is that the ending feels a bit rushed, a little unearned. The movie takes a lot of time setting things up, then explores the evil of Orlok, the ways he's negatively impacted everyone who comes into contact with him. We see a lot of dramatic scenes of what his curse does to innocent people. And then, as the movie builds up, the climax feels a bit underwhelming. Oh, the scene itself is brilliant, powerful, memorable. However, that scene between Depp and Skarsgard feels less connected to everything that came before it. It's like the movie is climbing a specific mountain the entire time, and then, just as you get to the peak, you see the movie is actually ending on a different peak- no less beautiful and memorable than the one you'd been working towards, but a bit jarring to feel that disconnect. That hurts the movie some, although not enough for me to not praise it highly.

It's likely impossible that this movie could have been better than the original movie. That 1922 film is too important, it was too much of a landmark. I don't think Eggers was trying for that, though. This director has such confidence that he took an all-time classic, told the story in his own way, and did it justice. Nosferatu is one of the best movies of 2024. It deserved to win at least one Oscar. I was transfixed and compelled by the detail and attention that Eggers brought to every scene. This is a great movie and further proof that Eggers is one of the best directors working today.

Rating 1-10
Tim's Rating: 8



If You Enjoyed This Movie, We Recommend:
The Lighthouse, It, It: Chapter Two, The Witch