Nosferatu

In Robert Eggers’Nosferatu , Count Orlok kills his victim by sucking their blood , but rather than going for their necks , he feeds from their chest , and this difference really has a lot more signification than audience might recollect . Based on the 1922 movie , Nosferatu : A Symphony of Horror , which itself wasbased on Bram Stoker’sDracula , Eggers’Nosferatucenters onEllen , a youthful woman who suffers from horrific nightmaresas her husband goes to meet the mysterious and terrifying Count Orlok . presently enough , Ellen ’s night threat begin to have real - life effects on those she loves .

eggar has long been get it on for his dark , atmospheric filmmaking and his warmheartedness for folklore , so remakingNosferatuisn’t totally out of left field of operation for the director . As previously mentioned,2024’sNosferatufollows in the footsteps of several other , much old story . In this style , egger had to decide which elements ofthe originalNosferatustorythat he require to keep , and which details would have to be change so he could venture his own claim in the tale . at last , Count Orlok ’s descent - sucking habits are seemingly modest aspects of the film , but in reality have real significance .

Count Orlok’s Blood Drinking Method In Nosferatu Is A Reference To Old Folklore

How Orlok’s Blood Drinking Changes Nosferatu

According to Eggers , Count Orlok drinks blood from his dupe ' chestsrather than their neck because that was the belief in quondam folklore . In an interview withGamesRadar+,Eggers let on that " in folklore , when people are experiencing vampiric attacks it ’s similar to erstwhile hag syndrome [ a colloquial term for nap paralysis ] where you have pressure on your chest , so multitude interpreted it as lamia drinking blood from their breast . " In this agency , get for the thorax rather than the neck pass water Eggers ' Orlok parallel the vampire of folklorerather than the film freak audiences are familiar with .

Nosferatu seems to refer to Bill Skarsgard ’s villain Count Orlok as a devil and a lamia interchangeably , but which one is he and why does it matter ?

No matter where Orlok set on his victim , this detail does n’t sincerely change much forNosferatu , or at least not on a big scale . Either way , his victim are being abused and killed due to his actions . However , Orlok ’s use of the chest does roleplay as a tenuous dissonance from what witness might have been expecting from a Hollywood lamia , and this helps Eggers’Nosferatustand out . In reality , Orlok subverts prospect in countless ways . From his choice of chest over neck to his mustached face , Count Orlok makes himself profoundly memorable in all prospect .

Nosferatu (2024) Official Poster

Nosferatu Drinking Blood From The Chest Doesn’t Make Sense (& Robert Eggers Knows It)

Orlok’s Blood-Sucking Logic Doesn’t Really Matter

The only problem that really stands out about Count Orlok ’s roue - suction is that it would be impossible for someone to suck pedigree from a human ’s bureau . Even Eggers knows this and admits it in his interview . He says , " Now obviously you ca n’t thrust a sternum , so it does n’t really make sense . It makes much more sense to drink someone ’s blood from their neck . " Because of this , some could indicate that Orlok ’s preference for the chest is n’t realistic , and should have vary . Yet , a fancy horror movie likeNosferatu , does n’t really need accuracy to be good .

It is easy to jab hole in the logic ofNosferatu’sblood - sucking , but at the end of the twenty-four hours , this is not a movie that is go for pragmatism .

It is easy to jab yap in the logic ofNosferatu’sblood - suction , but at the end of the day , this is not a movie that is going for realism . Orlok is able to suck his victim ' blood from their chest because he is a being that is beyond the human world , and who has top executive that defy reality . He is n’t think to be authentic , but dismay . Arguably , countless other elements ofNosferatuaren’t entirely credible either , fromEllen ’s night terrorsto Dr. Von Franz ’s mysticism , but they kindle impregnable emotions , and that is the true full stop of the movie .

Ellen screams while being strangled by a creepy hand in a scene from Nosferatu 2024

Nosferatu Changing How Count Orlok Drinks Blood Is Tied To Robert Eggers' Approach

Eggers' Movies Are Better For His Attention To Detail

Ultimately , Eggers choosing to make Orlok drink blood from the chest is simply a testament to his filmmaking vogue . Eggers is profoundly interested with folklore , and he only makes these small , discreet choices in decree to be closer to the source material . Orlok ’s blood - suction is not just an arbitrary alteration to makeNosferatustand out , but is a thoughtful man of workthat add up to the character reference and the story as a whole . It might seem like a petite item , but it proves Eggers ' consignment to his own projection and their legitimacy .

In the remainder , this is only one way in whichEggers makes his moviesbetter . Nosferatuhas plenty of point that make the film find so much deeperand more reminiscent , by from the blood - sucking . For example , Bill Skarsgård ’s voice inflection for Count Orlok made him so much scarier , and the cast ’s catamenia - specific costumes helped define the tone for the rest of the moving-picture show . All in all , Robert Eggers come after at building a thought - provoking world inside ofNosferatu .

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Cast

Nicholas Hoult’s Thomas stares at Bill Skarsgard’s out of focus Orlok in Nosferatu

Thomas Hutter (Nicholas Hoult) bewildered, watches as Ellen Hutter (Lily-Rose Depp) laughs maniacally in Nosferatu

Lily-Rose Depp as Ellen sleepwalking in the dark in Nosferatu 2024

Headshot Of Bill Skarsgård In The New York Premiere Of ‘Boy Kills World’

Headshot aOf Lily-Rose Depp

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Nosferatu