Nosferatu is a 'seductively frightening' celebration of vampire horror, critics say

Nosferatu is Robert Eggers passion project, a remake that The Northman filmmaker has been working on for more than a decade, according to critics.

Based on FW Murnau's iconic 1922 silent film, itself an unauthorised interpretation of Bram Stoker's Dracula, the film centres on Ellen Hutter (Lily-Rose Depp) who is plagued by nightmarish visitings from Count Orlok (Bill Skarsgård) with whom she made a pact in her youth.

When she marries Thomas (Nicholas Hoult), he is tricked into visiting the Count's Romanian castle to sell him a home in the German port town they live, and it is soon revealed that the villain is, in fact, a vampire.

The longer her husband is with the Count the more the vampire is able to seep into Ellen's psyche until he is able to torment her for real. Orlok, who leaves plague and death in his wake, wants her and he will stop at nothing to get her. What follows will be familiar to those with any knowledge of Nosferatu or indeed Dracula, complete with Willem Dafoe's camp expert in the occult Von Franz.

Critics lauded the film with praise, with many commending Eggers sumptuous vision for the vampiric tale and his embracing of the story's grotesque yet seductive nature.

The Independent's Clarrise Loughrey, for example, argued that the film is "a luxurious, Gothic revelation" that is "one of the most profoundly, seductively frightening horrors in years, all because its terrors seem to crawl right out from our own stomachs".

Loughrey praised Jarin Blaschke’s cinematography and wrote that Eggers has created a "staggeringly detailed" film that is a feast for the eyes. But what helps to strengthen the film is its cast, namely Depp who the critic wrote "does magnificent work" as Ellen.

The critic added: "Nosferatu not only revitalises a classic monster, it reminds us why they matter at all."

For Digital Spy's Ian Sandwell the film was also a five star horror, with the critic similarly writing that it is "a seductive horror that seeps into your bones".

Sandwell seconded the support of Depp's take on Ellen, writing: "Key to it is the fearless performance of Lily-Rose Depp, marking a career-best for her. It's a demanding, physical role and one that requires her to commit fully; one sequence where she's overcome with passion could easily have slipped into parody, but it remains compelling and believable."

The critic also celebrated Skarsgård's Orlok, by saying he is the "perfect vessel" to embody "disease, death, and sex in a base, brutal, and unforgiving way" like Eggers intended. Sandwell added: "It's a transformation that marries terrific prosthetics with the star's physicality and chillingly deep voice to unforgettable effect."

Not everyone was as enamoured with the movie, The Guardian's Peter Bradshaw gave the film a commendable 3 stars and wrote that it was "handsomely produced and shot, with good performances" but never felt more than just a "intelligently respectful and faithful" homage.

"For me Skarsgård’s vampire is opaque and forbiddingly gruesome without being necessarily as scary as could be expected," Bradshaw wrote. "Murnau’s creation took the vampire into a more fabular realm of demon or monster, and away from the novelistic tradition of being a personable, patrician, plausibly human persona."

Watch the trailer for Nosferatu:

Variety's Peter Debruge also felt the film wasn't scary enough, especially Count Orlok. The critic wrote that as "visually striking as it is" the film feels "eerily drained of life", and Debruge felt that Eggers "boasts a strong vision, but struggles as a storyteller" since the film feels even more indebted to Dracula than the 1922 original was.

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The critic also was not convinced by the cast, as he wrote: "The meticulously detail-oriented director offers his take on the classic, treating nearly every frame as a work of art unto itself, while further embellishing the story’s Romantic aspects — which might have succeeded, if not for the cast.

"Nosferatu builds to a tragic finale, but is weighed down by pretentious dialogue, somnolent pacing and weak performances, especially that of Lily-Rose Depp as the doomed damsel."

This sentiment felt in contrast to Nerdist's Kyle Anderson, who described the film as "nearly flawlessly" filling the enormous shoes of both the 1922 silent film and Dracula. The critic argued that Nosferatu was "a damn scary vampire movie" and was especially taken with Count Orlok who "is not a Hollywood vampire and instead a repugnant creature of death and destruction borne out of Romani folklore and historical accounts."

Anderson felt that Depp had "by far the hardest job" in the movie and pulled it off "masterfully", writing that she allows "Ellen to be a raw nerve without ever grating or losing credulity." The critic also praised other members of the cast, saying Hoult "never once feels over the top" despite it being necessary that he remain act scared throughout the film, while Dafoe is "weird and goofy" in the best way.

"Robert Eggers’ Nosferatu sits apart as not merely a remake or reimagining but a wholly singular interpretation," the critic wrote, and said of Skarsgård's character: "Count Orlok is at once the most repulsive and most seductive version of the vampire we’ve ever seen.

"The movie is austere and refined as well as horny and animalistic. It’s a triumph, and I have faith it will scare you plenty. The perfect chiller for the chilliest time of year."

Nosferatu premieres in UK cinemas on Wednesday 1 January.