Customer Reviews:
A Classic.......2007-10-23
This is pure genius and I wasn't sure I'd be convinced when I bought this (but it was cheaper than the original).
Here's a hint: turn the colour saturation down on your TV when watching this, it gives it a more eery effect which is why i rated this 4 stars, it wouldve been A LOT better in black and white.
As good as the original.......2007-04-28
Yes I know the original is a classic. But no one said you couldn't try to improve. And Klaus Kinski (you should see him with makeup on) is a natural. I liked his rabbit teeth instead of canine fangs. The movie is not really gory. It is more suspenseful. The script is tight and when you get in to it seems plausible. Everyone thought that the plague was bumping off people. Although the real victim was Nosfaratu who just wanted to be human and love and be loved.
Bottom line don't let the Lucys (Isabelle Adjani) of the world distract you until the cock crows. And especially no matter what you do if you see someone surrounded by crumbled consecrated host, do not let them talk you into cleaning the dusty floor.
See Klaus again in Aguirre, The Wrath of God (1973) ASIN: 6305972761
A REMAKE TO DO THE ORIGINAL JUSTICE.......2007-03-13
The vampire genre has seen its share of lackluster films. Indeed, the centerpiece of the grand tradition, the Dracula legend, has seen so many remakes and revisionist attempts that one would be hard pressed to find a version of the tale that is original in its telling. Dracula, like it or not, is a cornerstone of Western society. And it is wholly unfortunate that Bela Lugosi is considered THE Dracula (although Hammer fans may contend that Christopher Lee holds the title since he played the good Count over twenty times).
With Werner Herzog's "Nosferatu: Phantom der Nacht" (also known as "Nosferatu: The Vampyre"), the old Hollywood rules seem to have been thrown out the window in favor of F.W. Murnau's striking silent film, the 1922 masterpiece "Nosferatu: Eine Symphonie der Grauens" ("Nosferatu: A Symphony of Terror"). While many purists of the genre balk at the idea of favoring the Nosferatu tale over the time-tested Tod Browning and Terence Fisher entries, one must realize that the cape-clad widow's peak Count has been sullied by a thousand parodies over time, and is simply not a frightening entity any longer. This was a matter much pondered by Francis Ford Coppola when considering his adaptation. While Gary Oldman's portrayal was serviceable and definitely different, something key was lacking from the tale.
This is what Herzog and his long-time "trouble and strife" lead man Klaus Kinski found when they ventured upon the "Nosferatu" remake. Herzog shifted the attention of the viewer away from the plot, which acts mostly as a backdrop for the imagery, and made it so the primary intake becomes a visual one. Kinski's Dracula is not the scowling insect of the Murnau film. He portrays the Count in a way that no other actor has quite grasped. In this film, Dracula is a suffering being, loathing every moment of his curse's continuation. Of course, as the good Count himself states, "Young men. You are like the villagers. and cannot place yourself in the soul of the hunter." The vampyre is trapped by his instincts, and Kinski's eyes betray harrowing madness (as they did in "Aguirre, der Zorn Gottes"), spiteful malice, and a sorrow so bottomless it defies description. It is as if the beast wishes to weep, but has forgotten how.
Filming on location in Germany, Herzog uses the same dreamlike camera angles, mixing them with a rich color palette and masterful lighting. There is a certain uneasiness that filters outward from the screen as you watch. As Jonathan Harker explores his surroundings during his lodging at Castle Dracula, there is inexplicably a young gypsy boy incessantly playing a scratchy violin under the archway. The surreality of the picture is only matched by its attention to the dark magic of the vampire. Like its predecessor, it actually seems to believe in the creatures, and respects them. It holds the legend, the plight of the people of Wismar, and the plight of the Count himself in deep reverence.
What can be extracted from the dialogue and plot is that this is not your average bloodsuckers extravaganza. In fact, the good Count only sets his fangs to the throat of the living once on screen, and when that occurs, it lends more of a feeling of sacrifice and sorrow than of terror. Indeed, the tone of the film is driven toward tragedy, and does not shift its course. One of the film's more telling moments is when Dracula, alone with Harker's beloved Lucy, ventures to plead with the beautiful lady, "Will you come to me. become my ally? Bring salvation to your husband. and to me. The absence of love. is the most abject pain." When she refuses, he does not lash out or decide to make a meal of her then and there. He instead moans with the intonation of a wounded animal and slinks off into the night.
"Nosferatu: Phantom der Nacht" is the most complete of vampire films, and towers over the genre. It could be considered a pity that the only film that sits upon its coattails is its predecessor of the same name. Under Herzog's direction (wisely choosing to avoid remaking classic shots), we get an entirely different film that exudes an entirely different feeling. It not only maintains the eerie horror that the genre deserves, but also achieves a beauty and mystique that has been lost over the years. A must-see.
Brilliant, but you might as well just get the boxset!.......2006-12-20
This loses a star, only because it's available in the Herzog-Kinski boxset, which is an absolutely essential purchase. So why should you own three copies of this film?
How does that make three copies? Well, this is where this release redeems itself: you can watch it in original german on disc one, or in the english language version that they filmed alongside it on disc two. Apart from this, there's not much point in buying this is you've got the box set, especially considering that the German version is better.
Customer Reviews:
moody & atmosheric !.......2007-10-31
"nosferatu the vampyre" is the amazing journey of jonathan harker to castle dracula,forget hollywood or hammer this is in a class of its own.
the director werner herzog makes full use of the towns,countryside &ruined castle to tell the story sometimes without script.klaus kinski is
amazing as a ghostly-white gloomy figure of the vampyre with his manacing look
&when harker cuts his finger on the knife the count is almost animal-like
with his thirst for blood.this movie is not just a remake of the 1922 max shreck original but a tribute to both it & bram stokers novel dracula.
the brooding music& the counts journey on the ship to the mainland where he spreads the plague through millions of rats.but eventually draculas
thirst for blood & lust for lucy harker leads to his demise! the anchor bay dvd has disc 1 german extended version & disc 2 english version,fab!
Nosferatu: Phantom der Nacht.......2005-05-01
Yes I know the original is a classic. But no one said you couldn't try to improve. And Klaus Kinski (you should see him with makeup on) is a natural. I liked his rabbit teeth instead of canine fangs. The movie is not really gory. It is more suspenseful. The script is tight and when you get in to it seems plausible. Everyone thought that the plague was bumping off people. Although the real victim was Nosfaratu who just wanted to be human and love and be loved.
Bottom line don't let the Lucys (Isabelle Adjani) of the world distract you until the cock crows. And especially no matter what you do if you see someone surrounded by crumbled consecrated host; do not let them talk you into cleaning the dusty floor.
See Klaus again in "Aguirre, The Wrath of God" (1973)
What A Wooden Bore.......2005-04-26
This film is a joke from start to finish. When compared to the original, which is what I wanted, it is just pathetic. The acting is as wooden as the coffins. The actors(for want of a better name), seemed to think they were in the silent film original, with everything exaggerated. They couldn't get the name of the Count right either as in the original he was, Count Orlock, and not Dracula. The german director whose name escapes me for the moment said he was trying do the original in a modern way. He also wanted to pay homage to one of the film greats of german cinema, well I am sorry to say he failed dismally. This has all the tension of a deflated balloon. Which is sad since the original B&W film of 1927, is one of the most creepy films I have ever seen. If you want to watch a film based on the original, watch Shadow Of The Vampire. With Willem DeFoe and John Malkovitch.
A decidely non-Hollywood film.......2004-05-23
Instead of an action-packed, blood&gore laden, shallow, visually unassuming Hollywood-flick, you get an almost sinisterly dark and incredibly beautiful piece of art. Don't watch the English version, it lacks the atmosphere of the German version, probably due to the German actors' inability to cope well with the English language. Everything is more fluent with the German and this translates into better acting overall. If your German isn't fluent, then watch it with the English subtitles on.
This movie attempts to capture the deeper currents of the Vampire myth, to get to the heart of the curse that is embodied in Dracula. Klaus Kinski is brilliant as Count Dracula and makes the movie all by himself. Which isn't easy, as the director is obviously set on translating the vampire myth into something as close to believable or "real" as possible.
The scenes are long and cumbersome in places, that is true. But this only serves to work the sinister and dark atmosphere into the viewer. If you immerse yourself, then the movie is a thrilling experience.
A strange new way of looking at things.......2003-11-16
A straight remake of F.W.Murnau's original chilling terror story, or is it? Herzog wanted to remake this classic tale, as a tribute to Murnau and to German Expressionism. To cut to the chase, it does not work.
Kinski plays a very lonely Vampire. He is very humane in the film, and we are led to feel sympathy for a character, who is suposed to terrify us. Herzog loves to show nature in all its splendour, and implied in this film, is that Vampires are merely part of nature and natural humane beings. We are also led to think that the Vampire, is a form of a disease, and it can be passed on through the bite, as it is at the end of the film. Yet a natural being, is confined by supernatural means?
It is a clever idea, and a very ambitious one, but it does not appeal at all to me. Herzog does not pull it off, and we are left with a very dull and boring sympathetic horror
Customer Reviews:
moody & atmosheric !.......2007-10-31
"nosferatu the vampyre" is the amazing journey of jonathan harker to castle dracula,forget hollywood or hammer this is in a class of its own.
the director werner herzog makes full use of the towns,countryside &ruined castle to tell the story sometimes without script.klaus kinski is
amazing as a ghostly-white gloomy figure of the vampyre with his manacing look
&when harker cuts his finger on the knife the count is almost animal-like
with his thirst for blood.this movie is not just a remake of the 1922 max shreck original but a tribute to both it & bram stokers novel dracula.
the brooding music& the counts journey on the ship to the mainland where he spreads the plague through millions of rats.but eventually draculas
thirst for blood & lust for lucy harker leads to his demise! the anchor bay dvd has disc 1 german extended version & disc 2 english version,fab!
Nosferatu: Phantom der Nacht.......2005-05-01
Yes I know the original is a classic. But no one said you couldn't try to improve. And Klaus Kinski (you should see him with makeup on) is a natural. I liked his rabbit teeth instead of canine fangs. The movie is not really gory. It is more suspenseful. The script is tight and when you get in to it seems plausible. Everyone thought that the plague was bumping off people. Although the real victim was Nosfaratu who just wanted to be human and love and be loved.
Bottom line don't let the Lucys (Isabelle Adjani) of the world distract you until the cock crows. And especially no matter what you do if you see someone surrounded by crumbled consecrated host; do not let them talk you into cleaning the dusty floor.
See Klaus again in "Aguirre, The Wrath of God" (1973)
What A Wooden Bore.......2005-04-26
This film is a joke from start to finish. When compared to the original, which is what I wanted, it is just pathetic. The acting is as wooden as the coffins. The actors(for want of a better name), seemed to think they were in the silent film original, with everything exaggerated. They couldn't get the name of the Count right either as in the original he was, Count Orlock, and not Dracula. The german director whose name escapes me for the moment said he was trying do the original in a modern way. He also wanted to pay homage to one of the film greats of german cinema, well I am sorry to say he failed dismally. This has all the tension of a deflated balloon. Which is sad since the original B&W film of 1927, is one of the most creepy films I have ever seen. If you want to watch a film based on the original, watch Shadow Of The Vampire. With Willem DeFoe and John Malkovitch.
A decidely non-Hollywood film.......2004-05-23
Instead of an action-packed, blood&gore laden, shallow, visually unassuming Hollywood-flick, you get an almost sinisterly dark and incredibly beautiful piece of art. Don't watch the English version, it lacks the atmosphere of the German version, probably due to the German actors' inability to cope well with the English language. Everything is more fluent with the German and this translates into better acting overall. If your German isn't fluent, then watch it with the English subtitles on.
This movie attempts to capture the deeper currents of the Vampire myth, to get to the heart of the curse that is embodied in Dracula. Klaus Kinski is brilliant as Count Dracula and makes the movie all by himself. Which isn't easy, as the director is obviously set on translating the vampire myth into something as close to believable or "real" as possible.
The scenes are long and cumbersome in places, that is true. But this only serves to work the sinister and dark atmosphere into the viewer. If you immerse yourself, then the movie is a thrilling experience.
A strange new way of looking at things.......2003-11-16
A straight remake of F.W.Murnau's original chilling terror story, or is it? Herzog wanted to remake this classic tale, as a tribute to Murnau and to German Expressionism. To cut to the chase, it does not work.
Kinski plays a very lonely Vampire. He is very humane in the film, and we are led to feel sympathy for a character, who is suposed to terrify us. Herzog loves to show nature in all its splendour, and implied in this film, is that Vampires are merely part of nature and natural humane beings. We are also led to think that the Vampire, is a form of a disease, and it can be passed on through the bite, as it is at the end of the film. Yet a natural being, is confined by supernatural means?
It is a clever idea, and a very ambitious one, but it does not appeal at all to me. Herzog does not pull it off, and we are left with a very dull and boring sympathetic horror
Customer Reviews:
moody & atmosheric !.......2007-10-31
"nosferatu the vampyre" is the amazing journey of jonathan harker to castle dracula,forget hollywood or hammer this is in a class of its own.
the director werner herzog makes full use of the towns,countryside &ruined castle to tell the story sometimes without script.klaus kinski is
amazing as a ghostly-white gloomy figure of the vampyre with his manacing look
&when harker cuts his finger on the knife the count is almost animal-like
with his thirst for blood.this movie is not just a remake of the 1922 max shreck original but a tribute to both it & bram stokers novel dracula.
the brooding music& the counts journey on the ship to the mainland where he spreads the plague through millions of rats.but eventually draculas
thirst for blood & lust for lucy harker leads to his demise! the anchor bay dvd has disc 1 german extended version & disc 2 english version,fab!
Nosferatu: Phantom der Nacht.......2005-05-01
Yes I know the original is a classic. But no one said you couldn't try to improve. And Klaus Kinski (you should see him with makeup on) is a natural. I liked his rabbit teeth instead of canine fangs. The movie is not really gory. It is more suspenseful. The script is tight and when you get in to it seems plausible. Everyone thought that the plague was bumping off people. Although the real victim was Nosfaratu who just wanted to be human and love and be loved.
Bottom line don't let the Lucys (Isabelle Adjani) of the world distract you until the cock crows. And especially no matter what you do if you see someone surrounded by crumbled consecrated host; do not let them talk you into cleaning the dusty floor.
See Klaus again in "Aguirre, The Wrath of God" (1973)
What A Wooden Bore.......2005-04-26
This film is a joke from start to finish. When compared to the original, which is what I wanted, it is just pathetic. The acting is as wooden as the coffins. The actors(for want of a better name), seemed to think they were in the silent film original, with everything exaggerated. They couldn't get the name of the Count right either as in the original he was, Count Orlock, and not Dracula. The german director whose name escapes me for the moment said he was trying do the original in a modern way. He also wanted to pay homage to one of the film greats of german cinema, well I am sorry to say he failed dismally. This has all the tension of a deflated balloon. Which is sad since the original B&W film of 1927, is one of the most creepy films I have ever seen. If you want to watch a film based on the original, watch Shadow Of The Vampire. With Willem DeFoe and John Malkovitch.
A decidely non-Hollywood film.......2004-05-23
Instead of an action-packed, blood&gore laden, shallow, visually unassuming Hollywood-flick, you get an almost sinisterly dark and incredibly beautiful piece of art. Don't watch the English version, it lacks the atmosphere of the German version, probably due to the German actors' inability to cope well with the English language. Everything is more fluent with the German and this translates into better acting overall. If your German isn't fluent, then watch it with the English subtitles on.
This movie attempts to capture the deeper currents of the Vampire myth, to get to the heart of the curse that is embodied in Dracula. Klaus Kinski is brilliant as Count Dracula and makes the movie all by himself. Which isn't easy, as the director is obviously set on translating the vampire myth into something as close to believable or "real" as possible.
The scenes are long and cumbersome in places, that is true. But this only serves to work the sinister and dark atmosphere into the viewer. If you immerse yourself, then the movie is a thrilling experience.
A strange new way of looking at things.......2003-11-16
A straight remake of F.W.Murnau's original chilling terror story, or is it? Herzog wanted to remake this classic tale, as a tribute to Murnau and to German Expressionism. To cut to the chase, it does not work.
Kinski plays a very lonely Vampire. He is very humane in the film, and we are led to feel sympathy for a character, who is suposed to terrify us. Herzog loves to show nature in all its splendour, and implied in this film, is that Vampires are merely part of nature and natural humane beings. We are also led to think that the Vampire, is a form of a disease, and it can be passed on through the bite, as it is at the end of the film. Yet a natural being, is confined by supernatural means?
It is a clever idea, and a very ambitious one, but it does not appeal at all to me. Herzog does not pull it off, and we are left with a very dull and boring sympathetic horror
Customer Reviews:
moody & atmosheric !.......2007-10-31
"nosferatu the vampyre" is the amazing journey of jonathan harker to castle dracula,forget hollywood or hammer this is in a class of its own.
the director werner herzog makes full use of the towns,countryside &ruined castle to tell the story sometimes without script.klaus kinski is
amazing as a ghostly-white gloomy figure of the vampyre with his manacing look
&when harker cuts his finger on the knife the count is almost animal-like
with his thirst for blood.this movie is not just a remake of the 1922 max shreck original but a tribute to both it & bram stokers novel dracula.
the brooding music& the counts journey on the ship to the mainland where he spreads the plague through millions of rats.but eventually draculas
thirst for blood & lust for lucy harker leads to his demise! the anchor bay dvd has disc 1 german extended version & disc 2 english version,fab!
Nosferatu: Phantom der Nacht.......2005-05-01
Yes I know the original is a classic. But no one said you couldn't try to improve. And Klaus Kinski (you should see him with makeup on) is a natural. I liked his rabbit teeth instead of canine fangs. The movie is not really gory. It is more suspenseful. The script is tight and when you get in to it seems plausible. Everyone thought that the plague was bumping off people. Although the real victim was Nosfaratu who just wanted to be human and love and be loved.
Bottom line don't let the Lucys (Isabelle Adjani) of the world distract you until the cock crows. And especially no matter what you do if you see someone surrounded by crumbled consecrated host; do not let them talk you into cleaning the dusty floor.
See Klaus again in "Aguirre, The Wrath of God" (1973)
What A Wooden Bore.......2005-04-26
This film is a joke from start to finish. When compared to the original, which is what I wanted, it is just pathetic. The acting is as wooden as the coffins. The actors(for want of a better name), seemed to think they were in the silent film original, with everything exaggerated. They couldn't get the name of the Count right either as in the original he was, Count Orlock, and not Dracula. The german director whose name escapes me for the moment said he was trying do the original in a modern way. He also wanted to pay homage to one of the film greats of german cinema, well I am sorry to say he failed dismally. This has all the tension of a deflated balloon. Which is sad since the original B&W film of 1927, is one of the most creepy films I have ever seen. If you want to watch a film based on the original, watch Shadow Of The Vampire. With Willem DeFoe and John Malkovitch.
A decidely non-Hollywood film.......2004-05-23
Instead of an action-packed, blood&gore laden, shallow, visually unassuming Hollywood-flick, you get an almost sinisterly dark and incredibly beautiful piece of art. Don't watch the English version, it lacks the atmosphere of the German version, probably due to the German actors' inability to cope well with the English language. Everything is more fluent with the German and this translates into better acting overall. If your German isn't fluent, then watch it with the English subtitles on.
This movie attempts to capture the deeper currents of the Vampire myth, to get to the heart of the curse that is embodied in Dracula. Klaus Kinski is brilliant as Count Dracula and makes the movie all by himself. Which isn't easy, as the director is obviously set on translating the vampire myth into something as close to believable or "real" as possible.
The scenes are long and cumbersome in places, that is true. But this only serves to work the sinister and dark atmosphere into the viewer. If you immerse yourself, then the movie is a thrilling experience.
A strange new way of looking at things.......2003-11-16
A straight remake of F.W.Murnau's original chilling terror story, or is it? Herzog wanted to remake this classic tale, as a tribute to Murnau and to German Expressionism. To cut to the chase, it does not work.
Kinski plays a very lonely Vampire. He is very humane in the film, and we are led to feel sympathy for a character, who is suposed to terrify us. Herzog loves to show nature in all its splendour, and implied in this film, is that Vampires are merely part of nature and natural humane beings. We are also led to think that the Vampire, is a form of a disease, and it can be passed on through the bite, as it is at the end of the film. Yet a natural being, is confined by supernatural means?
It is a clever idea, and a very ambitious one, but it does not appeal at all to me. Herzog does not pull it off, and we are left with a very dull and boring sympathetic horror
UK DVD:
- Poltergeist III [1988]
- Pulse [2006]
- Rabid [1977]
- Ray Bradbury's The Martian Chronicles [1980] (REGION 1) (NTSC)
- Requiem [2006]
- Riding The Bullet [2004]
- Rise - The Blood Hunter [2007]
- Saw Quadrilogy - Limited Edition Jigsaw Special Packaging [2004]
- Scream [1997]
- See No Evil [2006]
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