Nosferatuwho celebrates his 102nd birthday this year, remains an essential figure in horror cinema. Directed by Friedrich Wilhelm Murnau in 1922, this cult film has spanned the ages and continues to influence filmmakers today. The current adaptation by Robert Eggers, to be discovered in theaters Wednesday December 25, is proof of this.
An expert in the horror genre, Eggers manages to modernize this work while paying homage to the unique atmosphere of this expressionist film. Franceinfo Culture looks back on the three versions of a film which profoundly influenced the history of the 7th art.
Pioneering work of silent cinema, Nosferatu is a free version of the novel Dracula by Bram Stoker (1897), modified to avoid copyright issues. This film features the arrival of a mysterious Count, Orlok, a terrifying vampire who instills terror by devouring his victims.
Nosferatuwith its dark atmosphere and innovative visual effects, immediately leaves its mark on cinema. The interpretation of Max Schreck, in the role of Count Orlok, with his bald head, his long and thin silhouette, his hooked fingers and his jerky gestures, remained engraved in the memories.
FW Murnau imposes an image of the vampire totally devoid of sensuality and glamor. The Count is not a seductive creature, but a skeletal, almost inhuman figure, whose decaying appearance is frightening. The film, silent and in black and white, plunges the viewer into a destabilizing visual atmosphere, where shadows and distortions of the settings underline the supernatural aspect of the story.
Murnau, using innovative special effects for the time, creates a palpable tension that makes Nosferatu a masterpiece of horror cinema. However, this first version did not survive without incident the legal appeals brought by the heirs of Bram Stoker, the similarities with Dracula being too obvious. Many copies of the film were destroyed, but enough remained for Nosferatu establishes itself as a pillar of the genre.
Fifty-seven years later, a change of style for Count Orlok, and this time, another German takes over. In 1979, Werner Herzog reinvented the myth with Nosferatu, ghost of the night. Unlike Murnau, Herzog adopts a more contemporary approach, offering a vision of the vampire as terrifying as ever, but now imbued with a more philosophical, even dreamlike, reflection. The film, shot in color (and speaking), is also slower and more contemplative.
Klaus Kinski, in the role of Count Orlok, gives a striking interpretation: his creature is deformed by suffering and loneliness, an entity haunted by the idea of his own curse. Herzog does not just remake the film, he questions it, anchoring it in a darker vision of humanity and death. Herzog's Nosferatu is not only a monster, it is also a reflection on time and illness, on inevitable decline and loneliness. This more introspective look of the vampire plunges the viewer into a more psychological dimension, where the supernatural mixes with a reflection on the human condition.
American director recognized for his historical films and his mastery of detailed horror, Robert Eggers, in 2024, takes his turn tackling the monster. Her Nosferatumarked by memories and personal experiences, comes to life in Transylvania in the 1830s.
With Bill Skarsgård, Willem Dafoe and Lily-Rose Depp in the cast, the film brings its original and intimate touch. Inspired by Murnau, Eggers highlights the figure of the monstrous vampire, contrasting with the seductive and glamorous representations of modern vampires. Orlok, played by Bill Skarsgård, takes shape in a tangible way, moving away from the spectral archetype: a monster of flesh, barely distinguishable, hidden in the shadows.
In this version, Eggers creates a heavy and realistic atmosphere, highlighting the brutality and inhuman aspect of his vampire. Nosferatu is also notable for its exploration of ancient popular beliefs about vampires, contrasted with contemporary images.
Through this rereading, Eggers revives a more primal and terrifying vampire figure, faithful to ancestral legends, while infusing his work with a unique dimension specific to his style of horror.
What unites these three films is not only the character of Orlok, but also their exploration of humanity through monstrosity. Each version questions the nature of fear, illness, and death. Murnau introduces a vision of an alien, supernatural vampire who embodies raw fear through his terrifying appearance. Herzog deepens this dimension by exploring solitude and suffering, giving a more tragic dimension to his Nosferatu. Robert Eggers, for his part, returns to the folkloric roots of the vampire, infusing it with a more visceral and primitive terror, far from modern and glamorous representations.
Through these three films, Nosferatu explores themes like eternity, decay and fear of the unknown. Each new version of the film remains faithful to the original work while addressing the anxieties specific to its era. Count Orlok remains an emblematic figure of cinematic horror, continuing to leave its mark on filmmakers and audiences. The vampire, far from simply being a monster, represents an essential figure in our collective imagination. Films such as Dracula by Coppola, Dark Shadows or Twilight are the heirs of a long cinematic tradition, which dates back to Murnau's masterpiece, both in terms of visual style and in the representation of the vampire.
