"Nosferatu" & the Gothic Romance

Analyzing the gothic from a modern lens

LIGHT SPOILER WARNING

TRIGGER WARNING: MENTION OF SEXUAL VIOLENCE

This retelling of F. W. Murnau’s Nosferatu: A Symphony of Horrors has been a hit with audiences in recent weeks. I admit this movie shook me to my core because I am an absolute baby, but as a devoted pop culture girly I had to see what all the buzz was about. Although I was deeply unsettled, Robert Eggers’ Nosferatu was imbued with an undeniable understanding of gothic horror that left it lingering in my head as more than just a nightmare.

The story begins with newlyweds Ellen and Thomas Hutter — portrayed by Lily-Rose Depp and Nicholas Hoult, respectively. Nightmares of the demonic vampire Nosferatu have haunted Ellen since he raped her as a child., Thomas has been given the opportunity for a promotion, but he must travel to Transylvania to close the sale of an estate with the eccentric Count Orlok— who we soon find out is the same Nosferatu who haunts Ellen. With a compelling setup, so begins the tale of this couple and their entanglements with Nosferatu.

Bill Skarsgård portrays Count Orlok with impeccable precision. He understood the balance of creepiness, decay, and just a touch of humor for which the voice of a vampiric count calls. There are other notable performances from Emma Corrin, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, and Willem Dafoe. However, two actors were the highlight for me.

Depp’s performance as Ellen is unlike anything I have ever seen. She embodies Ellen’s “dead girl walking” aura, while also giving one of the best physical performances I have ever seen. Ellen’s nightmares lead to convulsions and contortions that Depp pulls off with ease. This was easily one of the most haunting aspects of the film. The other performance that captivated me was by Simon McBurney as Herr Knock. He was far from the center of the story, but McBurney’s portrayal of a man descending into madness by Nosferatu was brilliant and immersive. While this trope is common, he brings a rawness to it that goes beyond the typical. Without this performance, Skarsgård’s Nosferatu would not evoke the same terror.

The rawness of his actors’ performances reflects the rawness with which Eggers himself approached the film. As usual, he did his research. Eggers is famously very detail oriented and strives to achieve the closest thing possible to historical accuracy. In Nosferatu, that detail shows itself in his attention to vampiric legends, as well as an understanding of the gothic.

Eggers has discussed decisions he made, such as using metal stakes instead of the popular wooden stakes and having the vampire such blood from the chest as opposed to the neck. These decisions were all made after researching the Germanic mythology and beliefs surrounding vampires. Even Orlok’s character design reflects that sensibility. Instead of a sleek, sophisticated vampire like we often see now in pop culture, Orlok simply looks like the rotting corpse of a Transylvanian count. He is a folk vampire, not a Hollywood one.

In Eggers adaptation of the original film, the focus shifts to Ellen and her relationship with Nosferatu. That decision changes the tone of the film from strict horror into a gothic romance. The vampire is not only drawn to Ellen’s blood, but he also experiences powerful sexual desire for her. Gothic romance is characterized by dark settings, supernatural forces, mystery, suspense, female protagonists, and struggles between lovers.

Many gothic romances, such as Emily Brontë’s Wuthering Heights, feature conflicts between “purer” and “darker” romantic interests. The female protagonist finds herself caught between love and desire. The lustful pull toward the darker love interest is portrayed as perverse and symbolic of some kind of evil or darkness inside the character herself.

In Nosferatu, Ellen is haunted by Nosferatu, but she also gravitates toward him. She describes feeling caught between two worlds and feels connected to spirits and death from a young age Ellen is characterized as someone who is open to spiritual control. In a moment of struggle, she even remarks to Thomas that he is not as good a lover as Nosferatu— imagine being told a literal CORPSE is better than you in bed.While Ellen is genuinely haunted and disturbed by the vampire, there is also a pull toward him that resembles the desire characteristic of gothic romance. Just as in gothic literature, that desire ultimately costs Ellen her life.

While the attention to gothic story-telling is admirable, I find myself struggling with what this restructuring says about its characters. Ellen is a tragic character. The movie comments on restrictions on women in various ways, such as the doctors restraining her and drugging her, as well as the men around her not believing her when she warns of danger. These decisions clearly indicate that the movie is trying to deconstruct the insane woman trope.

However, Ellen still suffers for her desire. She saves the town by giving herself to Nosferatu but suffers for that sacrifice. While she asserts her agency in making that decision, the movie sends mixed messages about that agency. As much as the “believe women” narrative makes its way into the film, it does not save her from punishment. I find it hard to see that finale as more than just another tragically beautiful woman being penalized for being weird and expressing sexual desire.

Eggers has said that he does not think or talk about themes when making a movie, so this message may not be intentional at all. He may have just been trying to think about this story through a different lens, and any commentary could be coincidental.

But whatever the intention may have been, the conflicting ideals are worth mentioning. Gothic literature has its roots in a puritanical culture that loves to escape into perverse stories but needs to see that perversions snuffed out in the end. Any modern reimagining of the gothic must reckon with that in some way, and I don’t think Eggers did. He shows an understanding of gothic story-telling but not a grasp of its cultural significance.

Nosferatu was more interesting to me than I expected. Despite being utterly terrified, I do not regret seeing it. As a lover of gothic literature, anything riffing on its ideas compels me. While I do not think this landed 100%, it is still quite the achievement. If you’re not a scaredy cat like me, I recommend seeing it and soaking in the gothic.