Shadow of the Vampire (R) ★★★½
The making of 1922's ''Nosferatu,'' cinema's first vampire film, is chronicled in this finely detailed and highly amusing homage.
Story
Great German film director F.W. Murnau (John Malkovich) embarks on a journey to adapt Bram Stoker's ''Dracula'' to the screen on location in Eastern Europe. With an eccentric cast and crew under his wing, the consumed Murnau will stop at nothing to achieve his vision. He hires an unknown actor, Max Schreck (Willem Dafoe), to portray the title role. The ultimate method actor, Schreck will only work at night and arrive on set in complete make-up. As strange occurrences begin to plague the production, Murnau realizes he's bitten off more than he can chew when his crew dwindles and his vampire actor threatens to dishonor his end of their ''special'' arrangement to complete the picture.
Acting
Comprised of a rich cast who are clearly having loads of fun with their roles, the cherry on top of ''Vampire'' is Dafoe's devilishly creepy portrayal of Schreck. Clicking his fingernails and stiffly sniffing the human flesh around him, his dead-on recreation is the pinnacle reason to see this film. Malkovich's embodiment of the diva director who will sacrifice anything to get his picture made is delightful, and Cary Elwes as Fritz Wagner, Murnau's over-confident seasoned cinematographer, provides smart comic timing. Other players, including Morrissey staple Udo Kier (the sweating producer), ''Braveheart's'' Catherine McCormack (the morphine-addicted leading lady), and stand up comic Eddie Izzard (the straight man who can't act), round out the cast nicely.
Direction
Nicely replicating the exciting early days of cinema when cameras were cranked by hand, director E. Elias Merhige (''Begotten'') truly sinks his teeth into his source material. Employing a variety of techniques, from shrinking iris lenses to black and white flutter celluloid, Merhige effectively transports the viewer to another time period. Though not a very deep-thinking piece, he sucks as much blood as possible from screenwriter Steven Katz' (writer of an early draft of ''Interview with the Vampire'') clever premise.
Bottom Line
Hollywood.com rated this film 3 1/2 stars.
To get the full Quicklook Films experience, uncheck "Enable on this Site" from Adblock Plus
box office top 10
Challengers Released: April 26, 2024 Cast: Zendaya, Josh O'Connor 15M
Unsung Hero Released: April 26, 2024 Cast: Daisy Betts, Joel Smallbone 7.8M
Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire Released: March 29, 2024 Cast: Rebecca Hall, Brian Tyree Henry 7.2M
Civil War Released: April 12, 2024 Cast: Kirsten Dunst, Wagner Moura 7M
Abigail Released: April 19, 2024 Cast: Melissa Barrera, Dan Stevens 5.3M
The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare Released: April 19, 2024 Cast: Henry Cavill, Eiza Gonzalez 3.9M
Kung Fu Panda 4 Released: March 8, 2024 Cast: Jack Black, Viola Davis 3.6M
Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire Released: March 22, 2024 Cast: Paul Rudd, Carrie Coon 3.3M
Dune: Part Two Released: March 1, 2024 Cast: Timothée Chalamet, Rebecca Ferguson 2M
Boy Kills World Released: April 26, 2024 Cast: Bill Skarsgård, Famke Janssen 1.7M