Nosferatu the Vampyre (1979) Nosferatu: Phantom der Nacht (original title)

Director:

Werner Herzog

Writer:

Werner Herzog (writer)
(more)

Release Date:

17 January 1979 (France)

Genre:

Horror

Plot:

Jonathan and Lucy live in Wismar and the Count wants a house there. Varna is a port on the Black Sea, close to Dracula's castle.

Plot Keywords:

Dracula | Vampire | Castle | Plague | Blood

Awards:

5 wins & 3 nominations

Cast

Klaus Kinski	...	Count Dracula
Isabelle Adjani	...	Lucy Harker
Bruno Ganz	...	Jonathan Harker
Roland Topor	...	Renfield
Walter Ladengast	...	Dr. Van Helsing
Dan van Husen	...	Warden
Jan Groth	...	Harbormaster
Carsten Bodinus	...	Schrader
Martje Grohmann	...	Mina
Rijk de Gooyer	...	Town official (as Ryk de Gooyer)
Clemens Scheitz	...	Clerk
Lo van Hensbergen	...	Harbormaster's Assistent
John Leddy	...	Coachman
Margiet van Hartingsveld	...	Vrouw
Tim Beekman	...	Coffinbearer
Jacques Dufilho	...	Captain
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Michael Edols	...	Lord of the manor (uncredited)
Werner Herzog	...	Hand and Feet in Box with Rats (uncredited)
Stefan Husar	...	(uncredited)
Norbert Losch	...	(uncredited)
Johan te Slaa	...	(uncredited)
Beverly Walker	...	Nun (uncredited)
Attila Árpa	...	Violinist Boy (uncredited)

Directed by
Werner Herzog

Writing credits (in alphabetical order)
Werner Herzog		writer
Bram Stoker		novel "Dracula" (uncredited)

Produced by
Werner Herzog	....	producer
Walter Saxer	....	executive producer
Michael Gruskoff	....	producer (uncredited)
Daniel Toscan du Plantier	....	producer (uncredited)

Original Music by
Popol Vuh

Cinematography by
Jörg Schmidt-Reitwein

Film Editing by
Beate Mainka-Jellinghaus

Production Design by
Henning von Gierke

Costume Design by
Gisela Storch

Makeup Department
Dominique Colladant	....	makeup artist
Reiko Kruk	....	makeup artist
Ludovic Paris	....	hair stylist

Production Management
Rudolf Wolf	....	production manager: Czechoslovakia

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Remmelt Remmelts	....	assistant director
Mirko Tichacek	....	assistant director

Art Department
Ulrich Bergfelder	....	property master

Sound Department
Jean Fontaine	....	sound assistant
Harald Maury	....	sound

Special Effects by
Cornelius Siegel	....	special effects

Camera and Electrical Department
Claude Chiarini	....	still photographer (as Dr. Claude Chiarini)
Mike Gast	....	second camera (as Michael Gast)
Martin Gerbl	....	gaffer
Anton Urban	....	lighting technician

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Ann Poppel	....	assistant costume designer

Music Department
Vokal-Ensemble Gordela	....	musician

Other crew
Joschi Arpa	....	location manager
Michael Gruskoff	....	presenter
Anja Schmidt-Zäringer	....	script girl

Production Companies

• Werner Herzog Filmproduktion (as Werner Herzog Filmproduktion, München)
• Gaumont (as Gaumont S.A., Paris)
• Zweites Deutsches Fernsehen (ZDF) (German version)

Distributors

• Werner Herzog Filmproduktion (1979) (worldwide) (all media) (rights)
• 20th Century Fox of Germany (1979) (West Germany) (theatrical)
• Gaumont (1979) (France) (theatrical) (French version)
• 20th Century Fox Italia (1979) (Italy) (theatrical)
• 20th Century Fox (1985) (Japan) (theatrical) (English short version)
• 518 Media (2005) (USA) (theatrical) (re-release)
• Cinema Ten Corporation (1985) (Japan) (theatrical) (English short version)
• City Film (1979) (Netherlands) (theatrical)
• Hemispheric Pictures (2005) (USA) (theatrical) (re-release)
• Ipma (2005) (Mexico) (theatrical)
• Národní Filmový Archiv (NFA) (2009) (Czech Republic) (theatrical) (subtitled)
• Twentieth Century Fox Film Company (1979) (UK) (theatrical)
• Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation (1979) (USA) (theatrical) (English short version)
• A-Film Home Entertainment (2007) (Netherlands) (DVD) (as part of the Werner Herzog filmbox)
• Altomedia. Co. Ltd. (Korea) (DVD)
• Altomedia. Co. Ltd. (Korea) (VHS)
• Anchor Bay Entertainment (UK) (2001) (UK) (DVD)
• Anchor Bay Entertainment (????) (Canada) (DVD)
• Anchor Bay Entertainment (1999) (USA) (DVD) (VHS)
• Anchor Bay Entertainment (2000) (USA) (VHS)
• Anchor Bay Entertainment (2001) (USA) (DVD)
• Anchor Bay Entertainment (2002) (USA) (DVD) (includes both German and English language versions)
• Crown Video (19??) (USA) (VHS)
• Jef Films International (2004) (USA) (VHS)
• Ripley's Home Video (2004) (Italy) (DVD)
• Ripley's Home Video (2005) (Italy) (DVD) (boxed set)
• Roan Group, The (laserdisc)
• Shochiku CBS/Fox Video (SCF) (????) (Japan) (VHS) (English short version)
• Tohokushinsha Film (2001) (Japan) (DVD) (German version)
• Umbrella Entertainment (2004) (Australia) (DVD)

Also Known As:

"Nosferatu: Phantom der Nacht" - West Germany (original title)
"Nosferatu: Phantom of the Night" - International (English title) (literal title)

Runtime:

107 min | USA:96 min (theatrical version)

Country:

West Germany | France

Language:

English | German | Romany

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Argentina:16 | Australia:PG | Denmark:16 | Finland:K-16 | Norway:16 | Sweden:15 | UK:AA (original rating) | USA:PG | West Germany:16 | Iceland:16 | Spain:13 | Italy:VM14 (original rating) | Netherlands:16 (original rating) | Canada:G (Quebec) | UK:15 (re-rating) | Singapore:PG

Filming Locations:

Bavaria, Germany

Company:

Werner Herzog Filmproduktion

Trivia:

Cameo: [Beverly Walker]as a nun.

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: When Dracula breaks in on Lucy Harker at night and talks to her, you can see the tips of his fingers being reflected in the mirror, as well as his face in the top right-hand corner, until Lucy moves in front of it. Later on, Lucy reads that vampires do not have a reflection.

Quotes:

Count Dracula:[subtitled version] Time is an abyss... profound as a thousand nights... Centuries come and go... To be unable to grow old is terrible... Death is not the worst... Can you imagine enduring centuries, experiencing each day the same futilities...

Movie Connections:

Featured in Never Sleep Again: The Elm Street Legacy (2010) (V)

Soundtrack:

Das Rheingold

Stunning!!

I just purchased this on DVD and its easily one of my favorite new disks. Included in the DVD masterpiece are: the English Version, the German Version with English subtitles, audio commentary by director Werner Herzog, 2 different US theatrical trailers, 1 Spanish theatrical trailer and even a making of the movie mini-feature!!! Very worth the money!!!

This is not an average movie by any means!!! It also appears to be a salute to the great German Expressionist films of the early 1900's. The story line is very intelligent and compassionate. The dialogue is spoken very soft and slowly. There is not very much action in the film, but the performances and cinematography are nothing short of breathtaking!!

Klaus Kinski plays a very convincing Dracula in this 1979 classic. His slow movements are almost hypnotizing!!! Just watch how he moves his hands!! They move so slow and very mysterious!! The guy who played the "nut case" was great!! The images of coffins, crucifixes, rats, and how rumors of the plague were spreading were brilliantly executed.

If you liked this film, you might want to check out 1992's "The Cronos" for another example of a compassionate and intelligent story about Vampires, but set in Mexico. Both films explore the "humanistic" internal conflict in vampires.