Time: 132 Minutes
Age Rating: R16 – Violence, horror, sex scenes & content that may disturb
Cast:
Lily-Rose Depp as Ellen Hutter
Nicholas Hoult as Thomas Hutter
Bill Skarsgård as Count Orlok/Nosferatu
Aaron Taylor-Johnson as Friedrich Harding
Willem Dafoe as Prof. Albin Eberhart Von Franz
Emma Corrin as Anna Harding
Ralph Ineson as Dr. Wilhelm Sievers
Simon McBurney as Herr Knock
Director: Robert Eggers

Nosferatu was my most anticipated movie of 2024. Robert Eggers has quickly become one of my favourite directors and I was looking forward to seeing his take on the classic horror film Nosferatu, with the addition of a great cast including Bill Skarsgard, Nicholas Hoult and Willem Dafoe. It did not disappoint.

2024’s Nosferatu storywise is similar to the previous versions and has reverence for the original film, but at the same time feels like its own interpretation of Nosferatu with its own fresh approach, and makes little changes which alters the story in notable ways. It’s a captivating and immersive gothic horror story which maintains feelings of dread and uneasiness over the entire 2 hour and 10 minute runtime which only increases as the movie progresses.

Every actor in the talented ensemble gets their chance to shine. In the lead role, Lily-Rose Depp is fantastic. Between her haunted expressions and uncanny body contortions, she delivers an incredible, raw and vulnerable performance, which is one of the year’s best. Bill Skarsgard is amazing as Count Orlok. He was deliberately hidden from much of the marketing for the movie and it paid off really well. You don’t recognise Skarsgard at all here; his voice sounds otherworldly and the prosthetics and makeup have truly transformed him into something else. Skarsgard creates such an unsettling yet intriguing presence in his scenes and you always feel him in the story even when he’s not on screen. Nicholas Hoult is amazing and gives one of his best performances, excellent at conveying fear especially when he’s encountering Orlok in the first act. Willem Dafoe is expectedly great playing the Van Helsing character, and the rest of the cast in Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Emma Corrin, Ralph Ineson, and Simon McBurney are also stellar.

Nosferatu unsurprisingly was exceptionally crafted by Robert Eggers. It is beautifully shot with amazing use of lighting and shadows, and the production designs and costumes are impressive and period accurate with so much attention to detail. The sound design is outstanding, and the film is accompanied by a beautiful yet uneasy score from Robin Carolin. All these elements come together to make for an effectively atmospheric, claustrophobic and dread-infused experience. The makeup and prosthetics used to transform Bill Skarsgard into Count Orlok was amazing, even if some people might not agree with every design choice (I personally loved the interpretation that they went with here).

Nosferatu is an exceptional, atmospheric, immersive, visually gorgeous, meticulously directed and incredibly acted gothic horror. It’s a fantastic new take on a classic, and one of 2024’s best films.