"Nosferatu" - Directed by F.W Murnau featuring live music by the Auckland Philharmonia
It's not going to be possible to simply do a review of a movie for this one because this was an experience more than a simple movie screening.
Not only was the print of the classic 1922 silent German "Nosferatu" directly from the Munich Film Archives and looking amazing for a 90 year old film but the screening was accompanied by a full, orchestral score performed live by the Auckland Philharmonia Orchestra.
And it was at the grand old Civic- my absolute favourite cinema in the world.
I've been a fan of this movie for a long time because it is just out and out creepy.
The imagery from it is rightfully iconic and it looms large over any production of the Dracula story.
(Nosferatu is a blatant rip off of the novel Dracula and Bram Stoker's estate sued resulting in the ordering of all prints destroyed but thankfully this didn't happen)
This screening was the perfect fusion of sight, sound and location.
Sitting in the top tier of the Civic auditorium in a packed house with that amazing star and cloud effect on the ceiling and with the Auckland Philharmonia warming up I was completely aware that this was no mere movie.
The orchestra fired up properly with music from Heinrich Marschner's "Der Vampyr" and it was stunning.
I am not a huge classical music fan and have not been to an orchestra performance in years but I was struck by how perfectly each instrument rang out with its own unique 'voice'.
They played for a good ten minutes or so before the ornate Civic curtain rose to reveal the first frames from "Nosferatu".
Now this is a very old movie and things have advanced greatly in the almost ninety years since the movie was released but it still works superbly as a dark, creepy tale.
Max Schreck's rat-like Graf Orlok is far from the romantic figure from the Bela Lugosi, Frank Langella or even Gary Oldman portrayals of Dracula.
He is repulsive and everywhere he goes plague and death follow.
The whole thing plays out like a very demented Brothers Grimm fable.
Dracula's Jonathan Harker part is taken by a character called Hutter who leaves his wife Ellen to visit the count in Transylvania to pitch him a property.
Unfortunately the property is in Hutter's home town of Wisbourg. Orlok's true nature is discovered and he abandons Hutter to make the journey by river, cart and ship to the town where Ellen waits. She is bound to the Count and he has her throat on his mind.
All of this is conveyed extremely well considering that there is no sound and very little written dialogue.
It's amazing to see how talented film makers made up for these restrictions with clever use of shots. In fact audiences at the time of release were often baffled by "Nosferatu's" use of interwoven scenes across time and distance.
The orchestration did a great job of highlighting and enhancing the images on screen and really I just got caught up in the whole thing.
Sure there were some titters and giggles from some of those annoyingly superior festival types who want everyone to know that they are all over this type of thing but there is no denying the impact this movie still has.
It's the out and out creepiness of it that gets to you.
Even Knock the real estate agency owner who dispatches Hutter to Transylvania is effective.
By today's standards the part is over-acted and hammy but it is still a compellingly bizarre performance.
Special Effects are of course primitive to the modern audience and watching crude time lapse and sped up film are amusing but this must have been deeply effective back in 1922. This was probably the Jurassic Park of its day in its ability to wow viewers.
And this is the real value in watching old movies- the sense of histoy and progress that it gives.
It makes you realise what a huge debt other films owe to the likes of this and "Metropolis", "The Shapes Of Things To Come" and "The Cabinet of Dr Caligari".
I hope that future film festivals will have screenings of some or all of those and in the case of Caligari and Metropolis wih live orchestra's alongside.
I cannot recommend these events enough- it qualifies as a real night out and a real event.
"Nosferatu" is readily available on dvd in many different versions, usually for a ridiculously low price but there is no beating it shown in the manner that the film festival folk did this year.
Nice work guys- I loved every second of it.
Not only was the print of the classic 1922 silent German "Nosferatu" directly from the Munich Film Archives and looking amazing for a 90 year old film but the screening was accompanied by a full, orchestral score performed live by the Auckland Philharmonia Orchestra.
And it was at the grand old Civic- my absolute favourite cinema in the world.
I've been a fan of this movie for a long time because it is just out and out creepy.
The imagery from it is rightfully iconic and it looms large over any production of the Dracula story.
(Nosferatu is a blatant rip off of the novel Dracula and Bram Stoker's estate sued resulting in the ordering of all prints destroyed but thankfully this didn't happen)
Sitting in the top tier of the Civic auditorium in a packed house with that amazing star and cloud effect on the ceiling and with the Auckland Philharmonia warming up I was completely aware that this was no mere movie.
The orchestra fired up properly with music from Heinrich Marschner's "Der Vampyr" and it was stunning.
I am not a huge classical music fan and have not been to an orchestra performance in years but I was struck by how perfectly each instrument rang out with its own unique 'voice'.
They played for a good ten minutes or so before the ornate Civic curtain rose to reveal the first frames from "Nosferatu".
Now this is a very old movie and things have advanced greatly in the almost ninety years since the movie was released but it still works superbly as a dark, creepy tale.
Max Schreck's rat-like Graf Orlok is far from the romantic figure from the Bela Lugosi, Frank Langella or even Gary Oldman portrayals of Dracula.
He is repulsive and everywhere he goes plague and death follow.
Unfortunately the property is in Hutter's home town of Wisbourg. Orlok's true nature is discovered and he abandons Hutter to make the journey by river, cart and ship to the town where Ellen waits. She is bound to the Count and he has her throat on his mind.
All of this is conveyed extremely well considering that there is no sound and very little written dialogue.
It's amazing to see how talented film makers made up for these restrictions with clever use of shots. In fact audiences at the time of release were often baffled by "Nosferatu's" use of interwoven scenes across time and distance.
 |
| Ellen Hutter |
Sure there were some titters and giggles from some of those annoyingly superior festival types who want everyone to know that they are all over this type of thing but there is no denying the impact this movie still has.
It's the out and out creepiness of it that gets to you.
Even Knock the real estate agency owner who dispatches Hutter to Transylvania is effective.
By today's standards the part is over-acted and hammy but it is still a compellingly bizarre performance.
Special Effects are of course primitive to the modern audience and watching crude time lapse and sped up film are amusing but this must have been deeply effective back in 1922. This was probably the Jurassic Park of its day in its ability to wow viewers.
 |
| Knock |
It makes you realise what a huge debt other films owe to the likes of this and "Metropolis", "The Shapes Of Things To Come" and "The Cabinet of Dr Caligari".
I hope that future film festivals will have screenings of some or all of those and in the case of Caligari and Metropolis wih live orchestra's alongside.
I cannot recommend these events enough- it qualifies as a real night out and a real event.
"Nosferatu" is readily available on dvd in many different versions, usually for a ridiculously low price but there is no beating it shown in the manner that the film festival folk did this year.
Nice work guys- I loved every second of it.
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