by Erika Livingstone

Created on: September 14, 2009

Shadow of the Vampire was filmed in 2000, but was based on Nosferatu, the classic 1922 German horror film. Shadow of the Vampire follows the non-fictional crew of Nosferatu as they work to create one of the most widely recognized cult icons of all time. Willem Dafoe won the Supporting Actor Oscar award for his portrayal of Max Schreck, the actor originally chosen to play Nosferatu in the 1920s.

Historical Basis

Nosferatu was based on Bram Stoker's Dracula, but his estate would not grant the filming rights to the production company, so the company saw fit to change the name "Dracula" to "Nosferatu" and change the plot enough to go ahead with the film. The director, F.W. Murnau, directed films primarily in Germany from 1919 - 1931. He wanted to make Nosferatu his masterpiece film. He cast Max Schreck, (whose last name translates from German as "fright" or "scare") as Graf Orlok, the vampire of the story. The filming of the movie was subject to some investigation. Several people did in fact go missing, and there was some talk that Schreck was in fact a real vampire that fed on some of the crew members during the filming. However, there was drug use (especially heroin) on set, and Shreck was never implicated in the crimes, but the rumours were enough to give birth to Shadow of the Vampire.

Plot

Shadow of the Vampire follows F.W Murnau as he battles to finish his film. His greatest challenge is Graf Orlok, probably the ultimate character actor. Orlok demands several things, including live animals to eat, sudden location changes, the lives of several crew members, and the throat of Murnau's lead actress. Of course there would be no one better to play a vampire than a real vampire, but they are destructive creatures in nature, so the fate of the film is threatened by his presence.

Acting

Willem Dafoe is positively horrifying. The production won the academy award for best make-up as well, so you can imagine how much Dafoe resembles the iconic Nosferatu - which is to say that there is very little Dafoe visible to the eye. He acts primarily through his hands, long, clawed, and disfigured, hanging from his black robes. He speaks very little, save for an explanation of Dracula's emotions at the appearance of a living man in his house over a bottle of alcohol with the skeptical crew. He is often left to mime his emotions with body language and his eyes.

John Malkovich plays the lead as Murnau, a multi-layered professional who is at once hard, passionate, and sociopathic.

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