‘Nosferatu’ review: Dir. Robert Eggers (2024)

Robert Eggers’ The Witch is one of the best directorial debuts in modern history. The film helped turn Anya Taylor-Joy into a star and reignited audience interest in period-set genre stories. Since then, Eggers has gone on to direct both The Lighthouse and The Northman, two more historical tales that impressed audiences. Now comes Eggers’ version of Nosferatu, a film that has been nearly a decade in the making. 

Nosferatu was originally meant to be Robert Eggers’ second film, but due to a variety of reasons, it had been sitting on the backburner. The long gestation period has been used well with Eggers’ creating a Gothic horror that sweeps the audience away. Using both F. W. Murnau’s 1922 film Nosferatu, and Bram Stoker’s Dracula novel, as his source, Eggers has woven together a sumptuous story that feels familiar, whilst having enough of the director’s stamp to set it apart from other versions. 

The story follows the plight of Ellen (Lily-Rose Depp) and Thomas Hutter (Nicholas Hoult), a newly-wed couple whose love is torn apart when Thomas is sent to Transylvania to meet with the mysterious Count Orlok (Bill Skarsgård). Whilst this follows the narrative of both Stoker’s original novel, and Henrik Galeen’s Nosferatu screenplay (which heavily plagiarised Dracula), Eggers puts a lot more focus onto the character of Ellen. He uses the familiar story to explore female sexuality, and the repression of it, during the Victorian era, the film unfolding just a year after Queen Victoria’s ascension to the throne. 

Lily-Rose Depp’s turn as Ellen is impeccable, the actress tackling both the emotional and physical aspects of the character wonderfully. It is with Ellen that the story both begins and ends, and as the conduit for the events, it is vital that her performance is strong – and it is. Right from the opening moment, her expressive eyes hook in the viewer. Watching her unravel and fall apart as Orlok tries to control her borders on heartbreaking, whilst the physicality that Depp brings to the horror elements causes chills. Not since The Exorcist has someone convulsed and contorted so horrifically, and as such it is these moments that will stick with the viewer.

Playing opposite her as rivals for her affections are the always remarkable Nicholas Hoult and Bill Skarsgård. Hoult has previous experience with the Dracula lore, having previously played a modern version of his helper in Renfield. This time he is playing Thomas, the unfortunate real estate agent sent to help Count Orlok sign the papers, equipped with a vast array of terrified expressions for his ordeal. Much of the first hour of Nosferatu is spent chronicling Thomas’ journey and forms the scarier half of the movie. Upon arrival in Transylvania, Eggers expertly orchestrates the tension, causing the viewer, like Thomas, to dare not breathe. The events that unfold in Orlok’s castle are the strongest in the film and prove Eggers worthy of modern horror master status. 

Helping Eggers’ meticulous work at crafting atmosphere and tension is another stellar monstrous turn from Skarsgård. Once more, the Swedish actor disappears completely inside the make-up of his character as he did with Pennywise the Clown in It. Despite being entirely unrecognisable, he manages to make his presence known, never relying on Orlok’s ghastly visage to sell his menacing nature. In fact, Eggers is careful to not reveal too much of Orlok on any occasion. The marketing has also kept Orlok mostly hidden, ensuring that the impact of his unholy image has an impactful reveal on the audience. The creation may be hideous, but it is Skarsgård’s movements and demonic voice that serve to ratchet the fear factor. Orlok is so unwholesome and repulsive that even when not on screen, his presence is felt, aided beautifully by some superb shadowplay from Eggers. 

It isn’t just the core cast that excel in Nosferatu, the supporting cast match their abilities. Aaron Taylor-Johnson and Emma Corrin play Thomas and Ellen’s dear friends who take in Ellen whilst Thomas travels. The two are the archetypal rich English couple of the time and like everything to be Christian and proper. Seeing them tainted by the evil of Orlok adds an extra layer of tragedy onto an already bleak story. Ralph Innes is on form as the doctor called in to help diagnose Ellen’s peculiar behaviour, with Willem Dafoe almost stealing the show as eccentric Professor Franz. Of the supporting cast however, it is the work of Simon Mcburney who deserves the most praise as his iteration of the Renfield-style character is sublime. 

That the performances are all so mesmerising can be attributed to the work of both costume and production design. As with The Witch, the work of the production and costume team is flawless, crafting a world that feels precisely what life in 1838 Germany might have been like. Their hard work makes the actors’ job easier as there is little need for them to pretend. The attention to detail on screen is simply incredible, leading Nosferatu in dire need of repeat viewing so as to fully digest all the flourishes. 

As painstakingly hard as Nosferatu has been put together, the pacing does suffer slightly in its second act. The first act is so exceptionally tautly wound that the shift from Thomas and Orlok to Ellen and the others diffuses the dread. Eggers works hard to rebuild this – and succeeds – but that doesn’t prevent a small portion of Nosferatu from dragging. This sag is relatively miniscule and is caused by the need for the story to introduce its final key players, making it somewhat unavoidable. Although inescapable, thankfully this lull is temporary and by the final act, the audience is fully invested in Ellen’s fight against Orlok, and Nosferatu’s closing imagery erases all woes. 

Meticulous, menacing, and full of malevolent intentions, Robert Eggers’ Nosferatu is another triumph for the filmmaker. The decision to shelve this story for so long rather than forming his follow up to The Witch, was the correct one. Eggers has clearly used the time, and films, in between to hone his skills dramatically, making his Nosferatu a Gothic horror nightmare capable of lasting the test of time. 

Nosferatu is released in cinemas across the UK on 1st January 2025; tickets are on sale now.