For the 100th anniversary of the great German silent film Nosferatu, European tax-funded “culture” channel arte gave us a week of obscure vampire movies and a really great documentary about the film’s creation, creators, and impact.
Nosferatu – Ein Film wie ein Vampir (2022)
arte, original Deutsch
Sensitive Viewer Warning for excessive gore
Graf Orlock, still sprightly for his age, goes on a journey of recollection and self-discovery, and brings us along. He visits film sites, talks with fans and experts, and muses on the changes in European society and culture since his time. He is not fond of French feminist snuff pornography (“there are no more women like Elle”), metal bands who use blood in their theatrics (“such a waste”), or Coppola portraying him as a werewolf. We are introduced to his “fathers”–director FW Murnau and producer Albin Grau. As he takes us into Murnau’s crypt, we learn his head has been stolen, something I’m going to end up thinking about at least once a week for the rest of my life.
Only Lovers Left Alive (2013)
arte Mediathek, original English
Immortal hipsters. FFS. The male, Adam, collects vintage instruments and vinyl. He is bored enough by nocturnal life in Detroit to commission a bullet made of hardwood so he can end it all, which you can appreciate even more after his wife, Eve (real original…), pops over from Tangiers. Her return to North America psychically draws in her ditzy Californian teenage sister, who ruins everything.
The music was interesting and the film delivered some dark chuckles, but I don’t need to see it again.
Near Dark (1987)
arte Mediathek, original English
If this was supposed to be a western with a vampire overlay, it’s a pretty crappy western. The leads had zero chemistry, the directors’ disdain for rural America dripped all over the picture, and the plot was a snooze. Maybe there was a reason this movie bombed in America.
Some of the cinematography was nice; a couple of thunderstorms, some silhouettes of tractors in the sunset. And–people who knew me as a teen will understand how I enjoyed this–a Chevy Impala station wagon explodes into a nice fireball.
But, final opinion: This film should stay obscure.
Zinda Laash (1967)
arte Mediathek, original Urdu with German subtitles
This early Pakistani horror film opens with a disclaimer: only Allah has power over life and death, this is merely story about one man’s ill-fated and immoral attempt to steal that power with science. After that, it was oddly enjoyable. The opening credits claim it was based on the Stoker novel, but the Harker character dies, then the Mina character dies, then after undead Mina goes after her niece and the evil scientist goes after Mina’s sister, the husband/father/brother-in-law finds a Van Helsing type to help out. There are lots of recognizable quotes sprinkled throughout the dialog, at least (I recognized them in German, not in Urdu).
Mina has a lot of friends, and Harker and Van Helsing spend some time at a jazz club in town, which segues into the most charming aspect of this film: Between acts, there are attractive women singing and dancing. They were apparently cut into the film to make it less scary and win the approval of the censors. 1960s Pakistan filmmaking was still catching up to other regions in terms of sophistication, but if you like American movies from the 1930s, this one is fine. And, apparently rare in vampire films: no nudity or gore (Islamic censor board…), so you don’t have any awkwardness if you watch it with your dad.
Norway (2014)
arte Mediathek, original Greek with German subtitles
First five minutes: Hrm, this looks interesting. Next 45 minutes or so: What is the point? Get to the point… And then the point hits like a V2 on London. This one was worth the time.
There is a scene with a man who is watching a movie he made twenty years before, where he says being in a movie is like being immortal; long after he is gone, he will live on the screen. The whole point of Nosferatu week.
3 Comments on “Happy Birthday, Nosferatu!”