Nosferatu-- My Take On The Movie With Spoilers

 

Plot: A remake of the 1922 silent film, the movie tells the story of a terrifying vampire's obsession with a young woman.

Quick Movie Review and My Take On The Movie

Everyone knows the story of Dracula and has seen some version of it in different media. But there has been nothing like Nosferatu till date.

Nosferatu is an attempt to bring raw, uninhibited cinema to the screen, and it is a mesmerising effort.

Every scene is a picture of art, and every actor does full justice to their roles.

Nosferatu is a movie that should not be missed. It's a visual cinematic experience that you will remember for a long time.

NOSFERATU Movie Plot

The film opens with Ellen praying for some companionship. Her prayers are literally answered. She goes towards the windows, and we catch a silhouette in the billowing curtains. Ellen levitates.

In the next instant, she's in a garden and in a trance. Nosferatue talks to her offscreen about how she has awakened him.

As she has a seizure, we see our first glimpse of Nosferatu.

Years later, Ellen is married to Thomas. She's still in bed, reeling from her latest nightmare while he is getting ready to go to his job in a real estate office. They are currently in Germany in a town called Wisborg.

Thomas assures her that all her dreams are just fancies. He goes to work, leaving Ellen to have an intuition that her husband is going to get the job and that he will be sent away.

Thomas makes his way through a busy street to the office, where he is told that he is fifteen minutes late.

He meets his boss, Herr Knock, who tells him that his aged client has agreed to buy the ruined Grunewald Manor. Herr Knock insists Thomas go all the way to meet Count Orlok as he can not come here.

Thomas agrees to go.

Ellen is holding flowers when Thomas tells her. He insists she puts the flower in a vase, but she tells him what the point is since the flowers are going to die anyway. She creates a scene about him leaving her and insists her dreams portend doom for them.

She tells him about the dream she had where she was marrying death. Everyone around her is dead and decaying, yet she is happy.

Thomas shrugs it off as only a nightmare and convinces her that with the money he gets, he will be able to afford her a lifestyle. Ellen wants none of that, but in the next scene, she is already being taken to stay with their friends Fredrich and Anna.

Ellen is playing with her pregnant friend's girls, Clara and Louise. The girls are playing the role of annoying children very well. As they go off to bed, the girls insist their father check their room because there is a monster present.

Thomas leaves, and Ellen feels despondent.

Thomas stays in a village for the night and witnesses a bizarre ritual where the locals stake a man in a sarcophagus.

The next morning, his horse is gone, and he must now travel on foot.

At night, it is dark and snowing when a carriage pulls up right in front of him.

There appears to be no one in it, but Thomas gets in anyway, weary from his journey.

He arrives at a castle in the mountains and meets with Count Orlok. He's mostly in the shadows, and when we don't get a clear view of him until later.

But the way Thomas acts and the expressions on his face show that what he's seeing is frightening him, and that is enough for us to feel a little spooked as well.

Count Orlok quickly lays down the rules. He is to be addressed as My Lord. His presence is looming, and Thomas is practically shivering as he brings out the deeds.

As Thomas is eating, he accidentally cuts himself. Count Orlok notices this and approaches Thomas as he tries to tend to his wound. He screams when the Count lunges at him.

Thomas wakes up, sprawled on the floor. He notices teeth marks on his chest near the heart.

He goes to see the Count, who makes him sign a document in another script but tells him that they are documents to complete the sale since he's the agent.

Count Orlok points out a locket hanging from his belt. It is the same locket Ellen had given him with a lock of hair inside. It's also the same locket Thomas removed from his neck after he experienced a series of nightmares.

He gives it to Count Orlok, who inspects it and then gives the papers to Thomas to sign since he's making the deal. Count Orlok then takes out a pouch of gold coins and hands it over to Thomas.

Following that, Count Orlok leaves while commanding Thomas to stay  the night.

Thomas tries to make excuses about not feeling well, but Count Orlok has already left. He has also taken the locket.

Ridden with nightmares, Thomas no longer wants to stay in the castle. He looks for the Count and finds the door to a room open. Inside is a sarcophagus. He slides it open to find the Count sleeping. Rats are crawling all around him.

Certain that he is dangerous, Thomas takes the pickaxe beside the sarcophagus and raises it to stab the Count only for him to stand up in the nude.

Horrified, Thomas makes a run for it, but all the doors are locked. The Count sends wolves behind him, and Thomas manages to get into a room. He gets on the window ledge to try to escape only to slip and fall into the river below.

On the other side, Ellen is not doing so well. When Thomas doesn't return, she feels depressed. Friedrich looks like he's getting fed up with Ellen's moodswings but tries to contain his irritation for his wife, who is fond of Ellen.

They suddenly here a cry and find Ellen sprawled near the sea and having a seizure.

They get her checked by Dr. Sievers, who checks Ellen and finds that she has extra blood in her body. When Ellen mumbles about him coming, Dr. Sievers place a napkin over her mouth to knock her out.

Dr. Sievers then seeks out his colleague Dr Von Franz because he suspects Ellen may be suffering from an unusual ailment. Dr Von Franz is eccentric and believes in the Occult. The two of them decide to meet Thomas' employer Herr Knock, who has been admitted to a mental institution.

Herr Knock has scribbled words all over the walls and was apparently controlled by Count Orlok because he has pledged his loyalty to him. While they are questioning, Herr Knock grabs a pigeon and tears its head off. He then states that he is coming.

Dr Von Franz has heard of the Vampyr Nosferatue and quickly deduces that they are all under threat. He then meets with Ellen, who is bedridden, and keeps talking about death and her dreams. Dr Von Franz understands that Ellen is being influenced by Nosferatu.

Count Orlok is stowed away on a ship in a box filled with dirt. There are rats everywhere that run aboard the ship. Count Orlok manages to get out and kill everyone aboard the ship. The ship crashes in Wisborg, and the rats scurry everywhere.

Thomas is saved by a group of nuns. He, however, doesn't stay long and runs to Ellen, certain that she is in danger.

Elsewhere, Herr Knock kills the staff at the institution and runs away, aware that Count Orlok has returned.

When Thomas returns, Ellen is not herself and taunts him about their relationship.

Count Orlok and Herr Knock make it to the new residence where he explains that he can not just take Ellen by force. He needs her to come to him on her own.

At night, he opens the window and lets the shadow of his hand creep out.

Ellen and Anna are in bed, with both of them happy that their friendship is what's keeping them positive through all the things going around them.

While they are sleeping, Ellen gets into a trance-like state again. Count Orlok comes to her and reminds her of her pledge. Ellen tells him that she only loves Thomas. He mocks her love and tells her that Thomas signed the papers to annul their marriage for a few coins. Ellen is still adamant about her love for her husband.

Angered, Count Orlok tells her that she has three nights, starting with this one, to come to him or else he will kill everyone in his wake.

Ellen wakes up and finds Anna gone. She gets up and finds Anna being bitten by rats.

Anna has the plague now and is very sick. Friedrich is beside himself, and he and Ellen get into an argument.

While Ellen pleads with him to listen to her warning about Count Orlok, he tells her that he doesn't want her in the house anymore and that she needs to leave with Thomas right away.

She pleads with him to let them stay since Thomas is ill, but Friedrich is fed up with her trance and seizures and blames her for bringing the plague to Wisborg.

Ellen leaves with Thomas right away. The scene in the city is bleak as several coffins are shown being carried. More and more people die because of the plague.

At night, Anna wakes up from her sleep to hear her daughters screaming. She rushes to their bedroom to find the silhouette of Count Orlok, ripping out their throats.

She screams in fright before he advances upon her.

On the other side, Ellen doesn't want Count Orlok to think her marriage has failed. She taunts Thomas until her takes her roughly. She does it only to show Count Orlok that she loves her husband. This is probably why Count Orlok goes after Anna and the girls.

Friedrich is in mourning as the three coffins are carried away from his home. He gets annoyed when he sees Ellen, Thomas, and Doctor Von Franz. He tells Ellen to get lost, but the men explain that they all need to team up to kill the Count before he causes more deaths. Since he is a vampire, they plan to go to the mansion and stake him during the day.

Friedrich agrees to help but is drowning in grief. He is dropped to his home.

Ellen walks Dr Von Franz to his home and tells him that she understands that the plan may not work and that she must sacrifice herself. Dr Von Franz commends her bravery and promises to keep the others distracted for as long as possible.

NOSFERATU Ending Explained

The men gather, but Friedrich is missing. Thomas refuses to go on without him even though they are losing daylight. He decides to go and search for him.

Friedrich is at his wife and daughters' tomb. He opens Anna's coffin and kisses her, preferring to die with her and their unborn child.

The men find him and burn down the entire tomb.

They then go to the mansion, aware that it is night but taking a chance anyway.

Ellen has beckoned Count Orlok to her. She's wearing a wedding dress and submits herself to him.

He kisses her before biting her in the chest.

The men enter the mansion, find the sarcophagus, open it, and straight away stake whoever is inside it. It's not Count Orlok. It's Herr Knock.

He regrets helping the Count since he didn't keep any of his promises. Thomas realizes Dr. Von Franz has been delaying him. He admits he was, but that was because Ellen told him to.

Thomas rushes to his house.

Ellen is weakened by the blood loss, but Count Orlok keeps going. The sun begins to rise, and he soon realizes that he has been deceived.

Ellen holds onto him as he begins to disintegrate and dies in her arms.

Thomas arrives just in time before Ellen takes her last breath. He weeps for her and the sacrifice she has made to save the town.

The movie ends.

Final Thoughts About The Movie

Nosferatu is a must-watch movie. You do not want to ignore this cinematic masterpiece that does justice to the original work.

Scare Scale: 4/5

Amazon Link: Nosferatu (4K Ultra HD + Blu-ray + Digital)