Nosferatu, eine Symphonie des Grauens (1922)

User Rating:

8.1/10   

Director:

F.W. Murnau

Writer:

Henrik Galeen (writer)

Release Date:

3 June 1929 (USA)

Genre:

Horror

Plot:

Vampire Count Orlok expresses interest in a new residence and real estate agent Hutter's wife. Silent classic based on the story "Dracula."

Plot Keywords:

Real Estate Agent | Obsession | Vampire | Real Estate | German Expressionism

Cast

Max Schreck	...	Graf Orlok
Gustav von Wangenheim	...	Hutter (as Gustav v. Wangenheim)
Greta Schröder	...	Ellen Hutter, seine Frau (as Greta Schroeder)
Alexander Granach	...	Knock, ein Häusermakler
Georg H. Schnell	...	Westenra - Hutters Freund (as G.H. Schnell)
Ruth Landshoff	...	Lucy, Westenras Frau
John Gottowt	...	Professor Bulwer, ein Paracelsianer
Gustav Botz	...	Professor Sievers - der Stadtarzt
Max Nemetz	...	Käpitän der Demeter
Wolfgang Heinz	...	Matrose 1
Albert Venohr	...	Matrose 2
Eric van Viele	...	Matrose 3

Also Known As:

Nosferatu (USA) (short title)
Nosferatu the Vampire (USA)
Nosferatu, a Symphony of Horror
Nosferatu, a Symphony of Terror
Terror of Dracula

Runtime:

94 min | USA:81 min | Spain:65 min (VHS version) | Spain:92 min (DVD edition) | 84 min (1994 restored version projected at 20 fps) | UK:88 min (1997 restored version) | Belgium:85 min | Sweden:84 min (DVD version)

Country:

Germany

Language:

German

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Silent

Certification:

Canada:PG (Manitoba/Nova Scotia) (DVD rating) (video rating) | Finland:(Banned) (1922) | Finland:K-12 (1987) | Iceland:L | Canada:13+ (Ontario) | Brazil:12 | Czech Republic:U | Argentina:13 | Australia:PG | Germany:12 | Spain:13 | Sweden:(Banned) | UK:PG | USA:Unrated | Spain:T | South Korea:12 (DVD rating) | Portugal:M/12 (DVD rating) | Canada:G (Quebec)

Filming Locations:

Baltic Sea

Company:

Jofa-Atelier Berlin-Johannisthal

Trivia:

The creature that they say is a werewolf, during the scene at the Inn, is actually a Hyena.

Goofs:

Crew or equipment visible: When Hutter is going to bed in his room at the inn, a waving arm of a crew member (holding some piece of cloth) can be seen at the far right corner.

Quotes:

[as Hutter is on his way to Knock's real estate office]
Prof. Bulwer: Wait, young man. You cannot escape destiny by running away!

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Wieners (2008)

A Symphony of Horrors

They don't make films like this faded, haunting masterpiece of silent cinema anymore.

When Dracula was first put on sale for movie rights; the one of the first men to grab it was F.W.Murnau one of the most of the famous German directors of his time. By the time word got back to them about using the rights of the name and storyline of Dracula (Owned by the rights of Florence's widow.) Murnau had alread started production on the film; so to get around it they cut out the name 'Dracula' and replaced it with Count Orlok, Jonathan Harker became Hutter and Ban Helsing became Professor Bulwer; Orlock stalks the gothic streets of Bremen instead of Vistorian London.

What is so different from Nosferatu and many of the others films of the time was that most of the film was shot on actually locations around Eastern Europe; the production hardly used any studio sets. What makes the most haunting feature tho is the sense of realism and the expressionism (most evident in the interiors od Orlok's Castle) that gives the film its hypnotic visual power.

If there is any film a film student would need to have in his/her collection, it's this film. Although it is a hard task to find any surving copies. The reason for this is when the film was released Florence Stoker (widow of the author of Dracula) noticed the comparsion; she pursued the case relentlessly and in July 1925 a German court ordered all prints of the film to be destroyed. Luckily for us several prints of the film survived; a few in which have still been lost over the last few 8 decades.

But thanks to the 2000 release of 'Shadow of a Vampire' a film which looks behind the filming of Nosferatu and starring John Malkovich (F.W.Murnau) and Willem Dafoe (Count Orlok) the film was released for the first time on DVD in it's full original length of 94 minutes.

Sadly soon after the film hit America in 1929; at the age of 43; Murnau was killed in a car crash.

"Men must die. Nosferatu does not die!" proclaimed the original publcity for the film. We can only hope it's the truth for this film.