Nosferatu 2024 is a near classic, a great homage to its namesake

 

Robert Eggers new version of Nosferatu is a near classic. I thoroughly enjoyed virtually every frame of this gorgeous period piece, with beauty and bleakness, and piety and refinement sharing time with the profane grotesque.

Nosferatu 2024 is not solely the horror film F.W. Murnau’s 1922 Nosferatu is. Egger’s film is better defined as a very dark romance, with elements of horror. The film captures the spirit and dread of its vintage namesake, something that for a generation Universal has failed to do with their reboots. Atmosphere, expressionism, religious hope and despair encompass this film. The cinematography is superb, the locations, interior settings, costuming, all perfect. Bill  Skarsgard’s Count Orlok is a blend of horror, humanity, evil, ambition and lust. Nicholas Hoult, Lily-Rose Depp, Willem Dafoe also excel.

Go see the film. Like its predecessor, Nosferatu captures the dread, panic and despair of an entire village and population facing annihilation. This is something that even my beloved Dracula films usually fail to capture. And it underscores the true element of horror – that Deity cannot prevail against the demons. … Unless a young woman perhaps makes a Christ-like sacrifice to save her people.

-- Doug Gibson

To read Joe Gibson's thoughts on this film, follow the link here: https://planninecrunch.blogspot.com/2024/12/nosferatu-symphony-of-misplaced.html

The Last Voyage of the Demeter is an above-average current Universal horror

 

Review by Doug Gibson

"The Last Voyage of the Demeter" is a superb Gothic-type horror film. It's atmospheric, creepy with frightening scenes. I don't know if it will be a money-maker because it's a bleak tale. But it has an engrossing, suspenseful, and hopeful climax/ending.

“The Last Voyage of the Demeter” comprises chapter 7 of Bram Stoker’s Dracula novel, in which the vampire travels to London. When the ship drifts into Whitby harbor, it’s deserted and the crew is dead. The depiction of the ship is realistic. The cinematography is gorgeous, and the musical score from Bear McCreary adds to the gothic dread and drama.

It’s a good cast. Of particular note is Aisling Franciosi, as Anna, a Roma woman stowed away on the ship to be essentially a chew toy for Dracula. Her character slowly gains resolve as her strength returns. Apparently the Anna character was a late addition by producers. It was a smart move. She’s a protagonist who provides courage and sacrifice in the life and death battle.

Also strong are Liam Cunningham as Captain Eliot, and Corey Hawkins as Clemens, a member of the crew. Clemens is a black doctor who cannot find employment in his profession due to racism. He saves Anna from death and eventually becomes the leader in the struggle to survive the vampire.

If there is a weakness, it is how Dracula is portrayed. I don’t mind the Nosferatu-like appearance, but having Dracula appear as a human-oid bat is a bit off. He looks like an outcast from the Island of Dr. Moreau. However, Javier Botet as Conde Dracula is creepy and savage and I am happy the producers resisted the urge to go all computer on the character.

The secret to a good horror film is that it provides character depth to the victims of evil. You, as the viewer, care about – and grieve the deaths of well-developed characters. This is what separates a classic horror film, such as “Halloween,” from slasher dreck like “Friday the 13^th.”

In “… Demeter,” there is a well-developed, likable character that we sympathize with. This character is ultimately doomed. We grieve for this character’s fate. It adds to the horror because the filmmakers took the time for audiences to get to know this character.

 

This is an above-average film. It reminds me of a cross between Universal expressionism and the Hammer genre, with its savage, Nosferatu-like vampire. However, watching it I knew this would lose money. It's suspenseful but not often scary. It doesn't have the jump scares, head explosions and torture porn that many contemporary viewers want. I do think its reputation will increase with time.

A final note: As mentioned, the film seems to be underperforming at the box office. Nevertheless, it’s an excellent effort. I wonder today why $45 million would be spent on “…Demeter,” which is a solid B movie. If this film had cost $15 million it might have ended in the black and we’d be able to one day watch what the filmmakers appear to have set up as a potential sequel.

Scrooge, 1935, and A Christmas Carol, 1938 -- comparing and contrasting

By Steve D. Stones

SCROOGE, 1935

During Christmas time in the mid-1980s, I walked into a Musicland store at my local shopping mall to look at Led Zeppelin cassette tapes. As I passed the VHS movies section, I was drawn to an image of Sir Seymour Hicks on the front cover of a video box. The image looked worn and hand-colored. It was contained on a VHS print of the 1935 version of Scrooge, put out by Goodtimes Home Video.

Although I have never been much of a fan of Christmas movies, the image on the VHS box made me want to purchase the film. Instead of buying a Led Zeppelin cassette tape (I didn't have enough money), I decided to buy the Scrooge video. Not being knowledgeable at the time of when sound films were first made, I assumed Scrooge was going to be a silent era film with intertitles and music.

When I got the video home and began to watch it, I was greatly intrigued by the worn out appearance of it. The print was slightly out of focus and very dark in contrast. Nothing on the screen was sharply focused. This did not disappoint me in any way or take away from my experience of enjoying the film.

I loved how the 1935 film portrayed 19^th century London as dark, gritty and poverty stricken. Most exterior shots of the film show London as dark, overcast and foggy. This made me think I was watching a classic Universal horror film, and not a Christmas film.

The full length version of Scrooge (which was not the version I bought) runs one hour and eighteen minutes and uses elements of German Expressionism. Sharply defined shadows cast on solid, flat walls, and even on Scrooge's face, often frame and emphasize a character in the scene. The ghosts of Jacob Marley and of Christmas past and future are not shown, but greatly implied for the viewer to imagine, which adds to the intrigue I felt as I watched the film for the first time.

Sir Seymour Hicks (seen above) has the perfect droopy old face to communicate his crusty, selfish character, but at the same time show a genuinely frightened and fearful expression when confronted by the ghost of Jacob Marley. Reginald Owen's depiction of Scrooge in A Christmas Carol (1938) shows us a taller and younger Scrooge. He's just as grumpy and hard nosed at Hicks' Scrooge, but he is missing more hair and his appearance is less poverty stricken. He dresses well and presents himself as prim and proper.

A CHRISTMAS CAROL, 1938

The 1938 version of A Christmas Carol shows us a more upbeat, hustle and bustle depiction of 19^th century London in the opening sequence. The Cratchit children play a game of sliding on an ice sheet in the streets of London and throw snowballs at other children. The 1935 Scrooge shows us a bleak view of London that discourages children from playing out in the streets. We wouldn't expect to see children out in the streets in the 1935 version.

Scrooge's home in the 1935 version is a run down, untidy one bedroom apartment with few furnishings and minimal lighting. In the 1938 version -- starring Reginald Owen, seen above -- he appears to live in a mansion with fancy furnishings and lots of space – giving us the impression that he is much better off financially than the 1935 Scrooge. The viewer gets a sense that the 1935 Scrooge is a more isolated and introverted man who avoids people completely because of his living environment.

The 1938 A Christmas Carol relies less on expressionist elements of sharp shadows and dark interiors and more on well lit interiors, helping to clearly define each ghost that visits Scrooge. The ghosts are not implied, but clearly shown to Scrooge and the viewer. More screen time is spent with each individual ghost in the 1938 version.

The 1938 film was the first Hollywood sound version of A Christmas Carol – produced by MGM studios, so the much larger budget is clearly apparent in the film. The lower budget and minimal elements of the 1935 Scrooge helps to communicate the poverty stricken atmosphere contained in the Charles Dickens story.

Whatever version of A Christmas Carol you choose to watch this holiday season, Charles Dickens' story will remain a great classic of Christmas entertainment. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!