Nosferatu (1922)

Considered the first adaptation of Bram Stroker's Dracula, the Granddad of the vampire sub-genre of horror.

As I mentioned on my Dr Caligari post, I saw these two German films as a double feature in a college media class, and I always preferred Nosferatu as a horror film.

Whilst I appreciated the fantastic imagery created in Dr Caligari, as a horror picture, I found Nosferatu to be a much more terrifying and unsettling experience. Count Orlok is a grotesque take on the Dracula vampire. Hunched over, long finger nails, staring eyes that don't move in sync with the rest of his head, when he awakens and rises from the coffin I was definitely left feeling a little uneasy, I can only imagine what audiences in the early 20s were feeling!

Director F.W. Murnau was an influential filmmaker and often cited as one of the great directors of silent pictures, he became best known for Sunrise: A Song Of Two Humans (1927), but even here in 1922 he shines with his inventive use of camera and use of shadow and darkness to create the Gothic. The Vampire sub-genre grew from this early classic, Nosferatu itself spawning a 1970s Werner Herzog remake, that I have yet to see but is also highly rated.
  
BEST SCENE: Count Orlok stalks his prey, we see the shadow of the staircase and the Count's disfigured, hunched and eerily creeping. A great use of shadow and an early example of not seeing/partially seeing the horror be more scary and effective than seeing it, something that will become a prevalent trope of horror.

BEST CHARACTER: Count Orlok

BEST QUOTE: N/A

RATING:  ★★★★ - fantastic early example of the horror genre. Max Schrek gives a frightening performance as the undead Nosferatu. Whilst not as visually striking as Dr Caligari, the linear story, clearly defined protagonist, damsel in distress and  haunting imagery make this a strong 4 star movie.

MOVIES WATCHED:7
MOVIES REMAINING: 994