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SHADOW OF THE VAMPIRE

REVIEWED BY CHARITY BISHOP

Our rating: 2 out of 5

Because of: nudity, language, thematic elements

Rated:

The first successful vampire film was Nosferatu, a silent production filmed in the 1920's. The director was unable to get agreement from the Bram Stoker estate to film Dracula, and so made minor changes to the plot and character names, and produced it anyway, filming mostly abroad. This tongue-in-cheek horror film is a "what if" built around the set, namely, "what if the main character really was a vampire?"

German Director F.W.' Murnau (John Malkovich) is being very secretive about his latest production, intended to be a loose adaptation of Dracula. With only a handful of cast and crew, and much insistence that the actress he wants be present for her scenes, he journeys into the remote regions of Czechoslovakia to film the exterior shots. His production designer is upset, because Murnau keeps finding locations without him. His leading camera man is starting to behave strangely, and no one has yet met the film's star, Max Schreck (Willem Dafoe). Murnau informs them that in order to remain as close as possible in character, Max will not be consorting with them. He will not answer to any name but Count Olaf. He will only appear at night, which is when most of the scenes will be shot.

Naturally, this causes some concern... but more alarming is when the crew starts disappearing. The camera man is so ill that another (Cary Elwes) is sent for. Little do they know that Murnau has found a real vampire, and is willing to sacrifice his leading lady (Catherine McCormack) for the film. While the movie is unique and sinister, much has been made of it as a slander against the real Max Schreck, who was a highly known silent actor and truly gentle man, despite his fearsome appearance on screen. It's more a sadistic comedy than anything, because as much as the audience is horrified by the director's blatant disinterest in the lives of his cast and crew, we are also somewhat amused by the lengths he goes to conceal his star's immortal identity. Its chills were sufficient, and some of the scenes were downright good, such as when drunken crew ask Max vampire-related questions.

There is not a great deal of violence, but people are killed (thrown off cliffs, fed on, and one man has his neck snapped). There's a fair amount of language, including several abuses of Jesus' name. It was disappointing that one shot of Greta drunk out of her mind involved breast nudity for seemingly no reason at all. The production design was very good, and I was enchanted by the film's attempts to represent the early film carefully, right down to sepia tones and fade-out shots. It was not a movie that grabbed me, but part of that can be owed to the unattractiveness of the production, and also Malkovich, who I have never liked. Viewers who like the original might find this an interesting watch, but most of the rest of us are content to stick with more classy vampires.