I Love It!..I say this very enthusiastically, as normally I am slow to warm to remakes. Especially when the original is such a masterpiece itself. This German remake is magnificent. Written, produced and directed by Werner Herzog, and starring Klaus Kinski, Isabelle Adjani, and Bruno Ganz, it's an intoxicating,and edge of your seat horror film, that you won't want to miss a minute of.The images are beautifully photographed,the score is inticing,the story is brillantly acted and Herzog is artful in his direction.

The story takes place in the mid 19th century. Johnathan Harker, is about to leave his most beautiful and pure hearted wife Lucy to complete a big real estate deal. He must travel far to Transylvania, and not many are willing to lead him there. There are stories of wolves and spirits, and beautiful Lucy has a bad premonition of things to come.

Johnathon does not heed any of the warnings. He arrives, after a long journey, at the castle of "Count Dracula". Dracula(Kinski) is horrifying to look at and mysterious as well. Harker, closes the deal, and, the vampire Dracula is off to spread the Plague and danger to Harker's town and mostly his pure hearted wife! It's as thrilling as any Dracula movie ever and even "Renfield" adds his charms!

Anchor Bay has made a nice transfer to DVD. The wonderful cinematography is done justice as it is presented in widescreen(1.85:1), with a nice picture and colors(although at times it seemed a bit grainey). It may be viewed in either the original German Language(Dolby surround) with or without English subtitles, or the English Language version(Mono),also widescreen. There are no subtitiles on the English side, but was helpful to view all the credits in English after I watched the German version. There is director commentary, behind the scene featurettes and U.S. and Spanish Theatrical trailers. It also came in one of the better DVD cases I've seen.

This masterful remake of an already classic German masterpiece, is a wonderful homage to F.W. Murnau. If you haven't seen it yet, go for it, it's well worth it.

Have dinner with "The Count"....enjoy...Laurie


Stylistically Faithful Remake of Murnau's Masterpiece.   December 9, 2004
 21 out of 22 found this review helpful

"Nosferatu the Vampyre" is director Werner Herzog's tribute to F. W. Murnau, whom he considers to be Germany's greatest filmmaker, as well as a haunting gothic horror tale in its own right. It is a remake of Murnau's 1922 film "Nosferatu", which is the earliest surviving cinematic adaptation of Bram Stoker's novel "Dracula". Herzog has combined ideas from Murnau's film, Bram Stoker's novel, and his own imagination in creating a film that is, if anything, even more expressionistic and romanticist than the 1922 masterpiece. It is also more languid and pathetic than other "Dracula" adaptations.

This version of the Dracula tale, like 1922's "Nosferatu", takes place in Germany and Transylvania. Jonathan Harker (Bruno Ganz) is a real estate agent employed by a madman named Renfield (Roland Topor) to deliver a contract to Count Dracula in Transylvania, who wishes to purchase property in Wismar, Germany. When he reaches his destination, Jonathan finds a hideous, predatory Count Dracula (Klaus Kinski) eager to sign the deed to his new home. Several days later, ill and traumatized by horrors that he experienced at Dracula's castle, Jonathan understands that his young wife Lucy (Isabelle Adjani) will be in grave danger if Dracula reaches Wismar and sets out to save her. Count Dracula's arrival in Wismar coincides with the Plague. The city is overrun with rats and its population decimated by disease. Only Lucy comprehends the nature of the evil that has befallen the city and understands what she must do to stop it.

"Nosferatu the Vampyre" adheres pretty closely to Murnau's storyline, rather than Stoker's, except for the ending. The characters and actions have been embellished, however, sometimes with inspiration from the "Dracula" novel. Herzog's film moves slowly but steadily and spends more time with the characters than any previous "Dracula" adaptation. Count Dracula closely resembles Murnau's vampire but is even more grotesque and the least aristocratic of any cinematic Dracula. He is rodent-like and closely associated with rats and the Plague. But he departs from other Dracula interpretations in lamenting his permanent un-dead existence without light or love for centuries, which makes him a slightly tragic character. Although Count Dracula is the force that drives the narrative, the first half of the film is about Jonathan, and the second half concentrates on Lucy. Lucy Harker takes much inspiration from the character of Mina Harker in the novel "Dracula". The film's Lucy is more mystical and less methodical than the book's Mina. But, like Mina, she is stronger and smarter than the characters who surround her, and she tries her best to save everyone in spite of their blindness. Isabelle Adjani's Lucy Harker is the strongest heroine of any "Dracula" film.

Like Murnau's 1922 film, "Nosferatu the Vampyre" is visually expressionistic and romanticist. More of the film takes place outdoors than in other adaptations. There are lots of wide open spaces which are brightly lit, lending the outdoor scenes an airy feel, while scenes indoors tend to be dark and oppressive. This is clearly taken from the Murnau film, with its seaside scenes and bright sunshine. But the color cinematography and superior technology creates a sense of space that Murnau's film doesn't have. Colored lighting is lifted directly from Murnau's film, however. 1922's "Nosferatu" was filmed in black-and-white and tinted several colors to communicate time and mood. "Nosferatu the Vampyre"'s night scenes are bathed in blue light, and the inside of Dracula's castle is close to sepia, producing much the same effects as Murnau's toning.

English and German versions of "Nosferatu the Vampyre" were filmed concurrently. Werner Herzog shot the scenes with dialogue twice -once in German, once in English. The two versions differ by only seconds in length, but they are edited slightly differently. Whichever one you see, "Nosferatu the Vampyre" is one of the most interesting adaptations of Bram Stoker's "Dracula", even if it is an indirect adaptation. It is also the slowest paced and highly expressionistic, which somewhat narrow its appeal.


Cerebral, dream-like horror   May 7, 2001
 10 out of 14 found this review helpful

Nosferatu unfolds like a languorous, disturbing dream. The images have an hallucinogenic, archetypal quality: mummified human remains in an ancient tomb; the figure of a woman sitting on a beach studded with tombstones; a dead sea-captain lashed to the wheel of a deserted sailing ship.

Like Kubrick's The Shining, Nosferatu is less a standard genre film than a singular expression of a filmmaker's vision. Writer-director Werner Herzog began with F.W. Murnau's expressionist classic, mixed in elements from Bram Stoker's novel Dracula, then set about creating a meditation on the vampire myth. What would it really mean to live forever, and be compelled to feed on the blood of others? What of the unspeakable boredom? The longing for companionship? For normalcy? For death? As played by Klaus Kinski, Herzog's Dracula has spent hundreds, if not thousands of years alone with these thoughts. He is the ultimate poster boy for German angst. If not for the skill of his performance and Herzog's direction, he might have lapsed into self-parody.

There are shots that all but reproduce moments from the silent classic - right down to the overwrought body language. But Herzog, Kinski, and the rest of the cast (including Bruno Ganz as Jonathon Harker and Isabelle Adjani as his wife Lucy) keep it in check and keep it beautifully stylized, so it all works.

Probably due to the involvement of American studio 20th-Century Fox, Nosferatu was shot in both English and German versions. Both are on this double-sided DVD; comparing them is instructive, since there are non-trivial differences in the visual construction of both films. Most critics agree (and I concur) that the German one is superior.

Finally, to get an idea of whether you will like this - or any - Werner Herzog film, take the Armageddon-Matrix test: if you hated Armageddon because it was empty and overblown, but kind of liked The Matrix because of its ideas, then you may like Nosferatu. If, on the other hand, you thought Armageddon rocked, but only kind of liked The Matrix because it was slow in places, then don't even think about it.


The Thinking Viewer's Vampire   June 5, 2000
 9 out of 11 found this review helpful

"Nosferatu" is a wonderous example of what an innovative, imaginative filmmaker can do with a worn out formulaic idea. Werner Herzog injects his film with poetic imagery and a amazing restraint in telling the tale told in the original 1922 version. Klaus Kinski is a pathetic, pale-faced, recreation of the character made famous by Max Schreck. He is eccentric, educated, and diabolically evil at the same time. The film moves at a slow, ponderous pace, that draws one in with its' melodic and well filmed sequentially staged scenes. The film is not for those expecting a loud, obnoxious, "Lost Boys" or "Interview With The Vampire" type storytelling. It is a strange type of art form that will hopefully be eventually seen as the classic that it is. The DVD presentation is excellent, both the original German Language version and the lesser English language version are contained on the disk. There is also interesting commentary by the director in which he points out many similarities between the earlier version and his. The film is also letterboxed, presenting the entire scope of beautiful and horrific images. "Nosferatu" is simply a great film that those looking for a change of pace from the usual should see.


Werner Herzog's Epic Masterpiece   March 10, 1999
 9 out of 9 found this review helpful

Werner Herzog's remake of the 1922 classic is an epic masterpiece in movie making. Beautifully filmed with glorious music, knock-out performance by Klaus Kinski as the flambouyant Count Dracula. Only one other film in history has impressed me this much with unforgettable scenes of the true nature and feeling of vampires. This isn't an ordinary vampire movie, it doesn't have any scares, it doesn't have any bloody scenes either, it's not made to scare or gross the audience, it's made to give the audience remarkable visions of vampires, so masterfully done that they are impossible to forget. Nosferatu The Vampyre remains poignant to this day and stands as one of the greatest films in history.