Nosferatu the Vampyre (1979)

Count Dracula moves from Transylvania to Wismar, spreading the Black Plague across the land. Only a woman pure of heart can bring an end to his reign of horror.

Director:

Werner Herzog

Writer:

Werner Herzog

Stars:

Klaus Kinski, Isabelle Adjani, Bruno Ganz

5 wins & 8 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
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

Storyline

Jonathan Harker is sent away to Count Dracula's castle to sell him a house in Wismar where Jonathan lives. But Count Dracula is a vampire, an undead ghoul living off of men's blood. Inspired by a photograph of Lucy Harker, Jonathan's wife, Dracula moves to Wismar, bringing with him death and plague... An unusually contemplative version of Dracula, in which the vampire bears the curse of not being able to get old and die.

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Plot Keywords:

vampire | castle | plague | transylvania | rat | 

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Genres:

Drama | Horror

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Certificate:

PG

Details

Country:

West Germany France

Language:

German English Romany

Release Date:

15 February 1979 (Italy)

Also Known As:

Nosferatu the Vampyre

Filming Locations:

Tatra Mountains, Slovakia

Box Office

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$2,874

Company Credits

Production Co:

Werner Herzog Filmproduktion, Gaumont, Zweites Deutsches Fernsehen (ZDF)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

107 min 96 min (theatrical)

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Werner Herzog cast Roland Topor as Renfield after seeing him in a French TV show. He had been greatly impressed with the crazy, utterly desperate laugh with which Topor had concluded his every statement on that show. Reprising the laugh in "Nosferatu", it is much more pronounced in the English version of the film than the German.

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Goofs

There are modern light switches next to the main entrance, and a side door in the hall of the Schrader's house when Lisa finds the body of Mina.

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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...

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Alternate Versions

The English-language version was only available in a shorter cut until 2000, which was about 10 minutes shorter.

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Connections

Version of Dracula: The Musical (2010)

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Soundtracks

Sanctus
by Charles Gounod
Performed by Lorengar/Heinz Hoppe/Franz Crass/Choeurs René Duclos/Orchestre De La Société Des Concerts Du Conservatoire (uncredited)
Conducted by Jean-Claude Hartemann (uncredited)

User Reviews

A work of art in motion

If anybody ever founds a Vampire Museum (and who knows, somebody somewhere probably already has), it would be unjust to devote anything less than a wing to Werner Herzog's "Nosferatu," one of the most stunningly beautiful 'horror' films I've ever seen. While I place 'horror' in quotes, it is not because of a default urge to pigeonhole something into a genre to which it barely qualifies--no, it's because "Nosferatu" is like watching an exquisite painting magically put in motion. There is fear and eerie atmosphere aplenty (much of which is provided by a recurring classical music cue), mixed with a rat fixation that becomes oddly symbolic. Unlike F.W. Murnau's 1922 version, this 1979 remake is as much about the existential despair of the undead condition rather than simply the plight of a blood-sucking vampire; while many scenes are recreated shot-for-shot, Herzog is no plagiarist, and actually improves on many of the technical shortcomings that hindered Murnau's film decades before ('night' no longer looks like mid-day, for instance). The film's supernatural love triangle remains intact, and again hinges on Lucy Harker (Isabelle Adjani), who steals the movie from the none-too-modest talents of Klaus Kinski (Count Dracula) and Bruno Ganz (Jonathan Harker). While some may find it slow and ponderous, this "Nosferatu" is one of the best vampire films ever made (besting even Murnau's version), a moody character piece with visual ingenuity to spare.