The film I choose to discuss is Nosferatu: a symphony of horror; The film itself is truly a horror classic and the first film adaptation of Dracula, even years later this film remains as the most intelligent adaptation of the novel in 1890. This movie is one of the best films in German cinema which is black and white and silent. Murnau's version of a vampire is truer than any other versions; he created a masterpiece that is very odd and bizarre along with starting a genre of films that have been represented over and over again in time. The main character, Orlock (played by Max Schreck) is of a rat-like man; not a playboy-vampire type, stands very tall and is hunched over, and wears a simple dark suit that looks like he has been wearing it …show more content…
Also saying that the film is an awe of its material and truly believe in vampires; the vampire should come across not like a flamboyant actor but like a man suffering from a dread curse. Schreck plays the count more like an animal than a human being. He clearly said that Nosferatu is a better tittle than Dracula which is how it was supposed to be titled originally. In the review is mention how one of the most popular scenes became one of the most frightening scenes of the film. A brave mate goes below with a hatchet to open a coffin, and rats tumble out. Then Count Orlok rises straight up, stiff and eerie, from one of the coffins, he states the shot was as frightening and famous in its time as the rotating head in “The Exorcist.” He admires the film more for its artistry and ideas, its atmosphere and images, than for its ability to manipulate emotions like a skillful modern horror film. It suggests these dark fears in the very style of its visuals. Much of the film is shot in shadow. The corners of the screen are used more than is ordinary; characters lurk or cower there, and it's a rule of composition that tension is created when the subject of a shot is removed from the center of the
Anyone who has ever seen one of the several adaptations of Dracula as a movie will know that it was intended to be a horror story. Stoker goes to great lengths in order to create an
The story of Nosferatu is a tale of xenophobia that used heavy expressionism to display its stances. Without all of the expressionist elements for it, it would just be a bunch of people fearing migrant citizens as they don’t want their culture to be taken over by them. The added expressionism in the makeup, cinematography, acting, and set design added a more fearful and anxious tone to the film. The people of yesterday and today fear everything that Orlok stood for such as madness, disease, and lust as they still believe foreigners will bring all of those things to their home countries. The imagery in the film warned us about the power of Nosferatu and that he was something not to be tampered with. All of these techniques formed Murnau’s masterpiece film and it set the standard for the horror films of yesterday and today.
Since the beginning of time vampires have been categorized into different "types” and are portrayed in different ways throughout several books. This paper will focus on three vampires from the following books: Dracula by Bram Stoker, and I am Legend by Richard Matheson. Dracula is considered to be the traditional vampire, where it all started, and the vampires in Matheson’s book, follow somewhat Stoker’s concept, but is more of a modern “type” of vampires. Certain vampire elements have been presented, but others have been completely removed or altered. In addition, elements along with appearances are used to infer if the vampire is a form of “the other”. There are two types of vampires; the traditional or modern vampire which can be distinguished based on the elements present in their storyline.
While Bram Stoker’s Dracula and Polidori’s The Vampyre share some minor details, mostly regarding the basics of vampires and the location and date in which the stories take place, the majority of the stories differ greatly. The Vampyre was published almost a hundred years earlier, so it is easy to see how some details of that story can be seen in Dracula. Bram Stoker no doubt must have used The Vampyre as an influence, but only as an influence, as his story has its own unique details regarding characters and plot. I will discuss how the stories of The Vampyre and Dracula begin in a similar fashion, and then explain how there are key differences in narration,
The 1992 movie adaptation of Dracula is quite loyal to the book. However it made quite an exaggeration in Dracula and Mina’s connection. Also there are fabricated parts in the movie, particularly the way it begins having the origin of Vlad the impaler that is not technically found in Stoker’s writing. Character of Dracula is not that scary as it was in the book than being projected visually in the screen. Perhaps to have a more impact in viewers’ emotions. Some scenes were also fractured in the movie, for instance is Mina’s and Lucy’s stay in Whitby which never occurred in the book. Even so, the film had interpreted the book well and it although some scenes were fractured, it did not depart much
Jonathan Harker and Van Helsing are arguably the most interesting characters in the story. Jonathan is the first character in the story to encounter Dracula, and Van Helsing is the professional who assembles the band of vampire hunters. Both men are important to Dracula’s inevitable downfall, although Jonathan has more to lose since his wife is also involved in this nasty work.
Bram Stoker’s Dracula is not only a classic story of men and monsters, but a dramatic reactionary work to the perceived threats to Victorian society in nineteenth century England. In modern times there have been many film adaptations of the novel, each developing a unique analysis or criticism of the literary text within the framework of the society and time period in which it was created. The 1972 film Blacula is one of the most culturally specific variations on the story of Dracula, and highlights many of the themes and messages found in Stoker’s original text. Among the primary similarities between the novel and the film is the portrayal of race, sexuality, nationality, and culture, and the characterization in each work speaks to the
FW Murnau’s 1921 film Nosferatu is an appropriation of Bram Stoker’s 1897 novel Dracula. Despite it being an appropriation, explicit gothic conventions remain evident, which explore societal fears and values. These fears and values differ from Dracula, due to distinct contextual influences of different time periods.
Bram Stoker’s Dracula is a story of horror, suspense, and repulsion. The main antagonist, Count Dracula, is depicted as an evil, repulsive creature that ends and perverts life to keep himself alive and youthful. To most onlookers that may be the case, but most people fail to see one crucial element to this character. Dracula is a character that, though it may be long gone, was once human, and thus has many human emotions and motives still within him. Let us delve into these emotions of a historically based monster.
Bela Lugosi is arguably the most classic example of an actor taking on a vampire role. However, during 1931 when the universal studio was casting the 1931’s Dracula, Lugosi could only barely speak English, and therefore almost lost his chance at playing the iconic part (“Dracula (1931 English-Language Film”). Nonetheless his accents and costumes, which has become the classic look of the vampire, he himself was so typecast in his role that he was actually buried after his death in his Dracula costume. Certainly, it is Lugosi’s performance that makes Tod Browning’s film such an influential Hollywood picture. Overall, I will give it a 3 star out of 5, compared with the older version film of Dracula, because of the dialogues and sounds, the plot is much easier for the audiences to understand, without any editing or background music the horror of the film is not inferior to
Comparing the 1931 version of Dracula, starring Bela Lugosi, with Frances Ford Coppola's Bram Stoker's Dracula 1993 version yields some similarities. Both films are of the same genre: Horror. Both films are set around the same time period. Also, both deal with a vampire coming to England and causing disruptions in people's lives. Beyond these few similarities are
Ever since Bram Stoker wrote his entrancing novel people have been adapting it, and the story is one of the most reproduced ideas in history. Each innovation of the novel influences the story for the creators own purpose, and in doing so generates another version of Dracula. Count Dracula has become an infamous character in history, and has been captured in many different mediums, such as the Japanese anime and manga series Vampire Hunter D, which follows Draculas son D in his adventures (Kikuchi). However, one of the adaptations that endures in modern minds is the 1992 film by Francis Ford Coppola, Bram Stoker's Dracula. This version of Dracula was meant to be loyal to the novel, but it diverged from the original in many ways.
The first inspiration that the Dracula novel has on horror movies is the use of
was nowhere to be seen. Then one day, as Van Helsing was eating a late
To be considered a monster the character must possess an appalling appearance or personality. Monsters have heavily been prevalent throughout human history, striking fear into the hearts of people for centuries. In Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein and Bram Stoker’s Dracula Frankenstein’s monster and Dracula possess appalling personalities and exterior that attributes to their own unique monstrosity. They are both iconic monsters that have terrified people around the world for ages. However, they are two very different creatures; for instance Frankenstein is a monster because he is shunned by society for his grotesque appearance. Dracula is a monster because he feasts upon the living for