Why it’s okay if you didn’t like Nosferatu
…from someone who did
Back when I had a podcast, there was something my co-host and I would talk about a lot; learning to analyse films was the best and worst thing that ever happened to us. It gave us a deeper appreciation of a media form that we had always loved, but it also gave us the tools to pick at the seams and sometimes discover things we wished had stayed buried. While the average cinema-goer is fully capable of picking apart a film, it’s that second part that usually evades them.
Nosferatu was not made for the average cinema-goer. Not that the average cinema-goer wouldn’t enjoy the film, but that is not who was in mind during production. By no means do I intend to insult anyone with the term “average cinema-goer”; it’s simply the easiest way I could think of to refer to someone who is not an avid fan of horror or the gothic. The average cinema-goer is someone who saw the hype being built around Nosferatu and decided to check it out for themselves.
There have been plenty of times when I have considered myself an “average cinema-goer”, taking a chance on a popular film to form my own opinion. In the case of Nosferatu, however, my own personal hype had been building since it was announced. So, if you are not someone who loves picking apart films, enjoys more subtle horror or adores the gothic aesthetic, there’s a chance you left the cinema thinking that Nosferatu is a bad film.
While you are completely entitled to your own opinion, I’d argue that your feelings towards Nosferatu are not “proof” that it is a bad film. Instead, it's just that this remake of a gothic horror classic was not made for you. There’s plenty of evidence to support this, and the reason I felt the need to explore this deeper is because there is a worryingly recent wave of people condemning films (and a lot of other media, including books) just because they didn’t appeal to their particular appetites.
History
Nosferatu is dripping in a long and rich history – a history that almost never was. Over 100 years ago, back in 1922, the original Nosferatu film was released and nearly every copy was destroyed. Despite acknowledging Dracula as a source for the film, Bram Stoker’s widow still sued for copyright infringement. A court ruling ordered all copies of the film to be destroyed but enough prints survived for Nosferatu to be regarded as an influential masterpiece.
The influence of this masterpiece would weave its dark magic on a young Robert Eggers. In high school, the director adapted Nosferatu for the stage and thus first unleashed his love for the gothic romanticism of both Nosferatu and Dracula upon the world. Eggers’s interest in vampire lore expands beyond these two worlds and is evident in his 2024 remake of Nosferatu.
Now, why is any of this relevant to your viewing of the film? The attention to detail in Nosferatu could only have been delivered by someone who treated it as a true passion project. The colours, the costumes, the craftsmanship all pay tribute to the gothic and folklore origins of the original film and its country of origin. Eggers specifically wanted to move away from the cinematic tropes we’ve become a little too used to in recent horror and vampire films.
Count Orlok is not your vampire boyfriend next door but nor is he a mindless killer – two things the average cinema-goer has come to expect from any vampire/horror movie. Orlok stands as a representation of stolen youth, repressed sexuality, public perversion, sexual trauma, fear of disease and a number of uncomfortable topics. However, your discomfort from watching the film (while valid) does not make it a bad film. Instead, it acts as evidence that the film accomplished its goal and could only have done so with a true fan of the original text at its helm.
Actors
Another argument I have found interesting for Nosferatu being a bad film is the acting in it. Apart from Bill Skarsgård’s unrecognisable performance as Count Orlok, Lily Rose Depp’s surprisingly visceral rendition of Ellen Hutter and Nicolas Holt’s vulnerability as Thomas Hutter, a lot of average cinema-goers were left disappointed by the cast. Two in particular who have received an unfair amount of ridicule are Aaron Taylor-Johnson as Friedrich Harding and Willem Dafoe as Professor Albin Eberhart von Franz.
The two main critiques have been that Taylor Johnson was too ridiculously rigid and Dafoe was simply just ridiculous. However, neither of these critiques take into account the context of the film and these characters’ places within that context. Taylor-Johnson was a man facing the impossible but bound by society’s expectations of a husband and the moral battle between faith and science during this time. Von Franz was driven to the edge of his sanity for the very same reasons.
When viewing these actors' performances outside of the world they were placed in, it’s understandable that both (as well as others) seem to commit themselves to over-the-top portrayals. However, without even taking the time to consider these acting choices in the context of the film, nearly everyone cast in Nosferatu has a history of stellar performances. Therefore, any “over-the-top” acting choices cannot be a product of “bad acting” but a conscious choice – even if it’s a choice you don’t agree with.
If you didn’t like the acting choices in Nosferatu, that is okay, but it does not reduce the film itself to the label of “bad”. Even if you liked that actor in something else and were surprised to see them in this sort of role, it doesn’t diminish the work they put into transforming themselves into these characters.
Style
Of all the critiques Nosferatu has received, comments on its style are the ones that have surprised me the most. From beginning to end, the film was a gothic nightmare, from the colours to the costumes, from the lighting to the locations. However, some complaints of the style have criticised how dark it was or that some scenes seemed over the top while others were barely lingered on. Once again, I have to draw your attention to intention.
Every character in Nosferatu is slowly slipping into madness. Whilst some might be more obvious than others, everyone is battling with their sanity and questioning the world they thought they lived in. The style of Nosferatu perfectly conveys this gradual but unavoidable descent into insanity. The colouring is drab, yes, but it represents the dire situation our characters are in. Count Orlok is hidden in shadow for most of the film, of course, so that we may understand his overpowering presence in the corner of each character's mind.
Other scenes, such as Orlok’s shadow hand flying across the city, are both intentional representations of his control and a homage to the original film. Again, outside of context, these choices may seem “goofy” or poorly thought through, but when you view the text as a complete medium, they work together to infuse exactly what Eggers intended into Nosferatu.
Final Thoughts
Why did I feel so passionate about defending Nosferatu? Why have I taken the time to give another perspective to people who potentially couldn’t care less? Well, in some ways, this is bigger than Nosferatu. At the beginning of this review, I mentioned that I have seen an increasing number of people tearing apart films, books and TV shows when they were actually never the target audience for that piece of media.
By no means am I saying that we shouldn’t be critical of media or that “bad” films don’t exist. But I want to urge people to consider what purpose their critiques are serving. Are you simply tearing something apart that you didn’t enjoy, or do you have something of weight to add to the conversation? Or, could we all possibly benefit from you declaring that you did not like something and moving on so fans can continue enjoying it?
More film/TV reviews…
The Power of All of Us Strangers
Did we need Squid Game Season 2?
There’s something people are forgetting about Doctor Who
Book reviews…
Romance that gets under your skin
Horror like you've never known it before
I Who Have Never Known Men Review
Something a little different…
In Love With All Of These Vampires: Vampirism's Place in the LGBTQ+ Community