Shadow of the Vampire

Plot synopsis:
Bram Stoker's widow has refused to sell the film rights for Dracula
to F.W. Murnau, so Murnau [John Malkovich] decides to film it anyway, changing the names of
the characters, the title, and the locations. Thus, Dracula becomes
Nosferatu, Transylvania and England become Germany, Count Dracula
becomes Count Orlock, and Mina becomes Ellen. After filming the beginnings
of the movie on a soundstage in Berlin, Murnau is anxious to get cast and
crew to Czechloslovakia where they will be meeting up with Max Schreck [Willem Dafoe],
the vampire hired by Murnau to play an actor playing a vampire.Murnau introduces Max Schreck as a character actor from the Reinhold
Company and explains that Schreck will remain in character at all times.
Yet no one, not even producer Albin Grau [Udo Kier] knows anything about him. As a
vampire, Schreck is no Dracula. He is old and bald. He can't remember his
humanity; he knows only that his turning had to do with a woman, whose
face has long ago passed from his memory. He has lost most of his powers,
e.g., his strength and his ability to pass through locked doors. He hasn't
seen the light of the sun for centuries. He lives in the filth of an
abandoned abbey, keeping himself alive on the blood of the occasional rat
he can catch. He thinks the saddest part of Dracula, which he read after
Murnau gave him a copy, is when Dracula was forced cook for Harker because
he had no servants. He reads and angsts over Goethe's poem about Tithonus,
a mortal who wished for immortality but forgot to ask for external youth
and is now aged, powerless, and yet must endure...just like himself. He
has agreed to make this film only because Murnau has promised to provide
him with blood during the filming and, at the end of the movie, Murnau has
promised that Schreck can feed on Greta [Catherine McCormack], the actress who is playing Ellen
Harker.As the filming progresses, Schreck's performance is both inspiring
and creepy, inspiring in how he captures the essence of the vampire and
creepy in his own personality and mannerisms. To add to the creepiness,
the local villagers are extremely anxious about the nosferatu,
particularly after photographer Wolfgang Mueller [Ronan Vibert] is found weak and dazed.
While filming the scene where Jonathan Harker cuts his finger with a bread
knife, Schreck loses control and takes more blood from Wolfgang, forcing
Murnau to threaten Schreck with the admonition that he cannot harm his
people or there will be no Greta. Schreck is able to contain himself,
feeding on the blood of ferrets, rats, and bats and on the occasional
bottle of blood that Murnau supplies, but one thing Schreck refuses to do
is to film at sea. Consequently, Murnau is forced to build a replica of
the ship on dry ground for the sailing scenes. However, the final scenes
of the movie, where Orlock feeds from Ellen and is killed in the morning
sunlight, must be shot on the island of Heligoland, so Murnau agrees to
fly Orlock there. Unfortunately, Wolfgang is too far gone and must be
replaced by another photographer, Fritz Wagner [Cary Elwes].By now, Murnau's people are beginning to suspect that Schreck is a
real vampire. All the cast and crew members lock their bedroom doors at
night. Albin and Fritz have gone in search of his coffin but found
nothing. Their suspicions are confirmed when one night they come upon
Murnau in a laudanum stupor. While under the influence, Murnau blurts out
that there is no Max Schreck. He found him in a book about despotic
Slovakian rulers reputed to be vampires and then, while Murnau was
scouting out locations in Czechloslovakia, he came upon him living in the
old monastery. When Fritz asks Murnau what he promised Schreck in return
for acting in his movie, Murnau tells the truth: Greta. Albin and Fritz
are appalled but agree to go ahead that night with the filming of the
final scenes.Murnau has set up the final bedroom scene in an old warehouse that is
light-tight, but he has taken care to install a safeguard...a door to
allow daylight to come streaming into the room at the flick of a switch.
Greta, dressed in a nightgown, is positioned on the bed. Orlock is on the
set, his eyes filled with lust for Greta and following her every move.
Fritz is behind the camera, ready to shoot. Albin is standing by, and
Murnau begins barking out directions.
Just as the camera is about to roll, Greta notices that Schreck casts
no reflection in the mirror next to her bed. She begins to scream, so
Murnau shoots her with laudanum, which knocks her into a compliant stupor.
Schreck is almost beside herself. 'I vant her now,' he hisses, but Murnau
refuses until after he has shot the death scene. When those shots are
completed, Schreck can contain himself no longer and pounces at Greta's
neck. Amazingly, Murnau keeps the film rolling as Schreck drinks and
drinks. After drinking his fill, Schreck falls asleep, as evidenced by his
snores. Murnau, Albin, and Fritz wait.It is daybreak. Hoping to get a more realistic death scene, Murnau
orders that the door be opened to flood the room with sunlight.
Unbeknown to Murnau, however, Schreck has found the trap and dismantled
it. In releasing the lever, the noise awakens Schreck, who becomes irate
at being tricked. Fritz attempts to fire on him, but Schreck is impervious
to bullets and breaks Fritz's neck. Then he chokes Albin. Meanwhile,
Murnau has taken over the camera. He informs Schreck that this ending is
unworkable and requests that he return to his original mark. Amazingly,
Schreck complies, returning to Greta's neck for another sip of blood. Just
then, the outside crew breaks down the door, allowing the sunlight into
the chamber, and Schreck dies again...this time for real.
After ending the shot, Murnau looks up from the camera and says, 'I
think we have it.' [Original Synopsis by bj_kuehl.]

Tags: cult, satire, murder, gothic

Review:
The premise of "Shadow of a Vampire" is simple, what if Max Schreck was really a vampire posing as an actor playing a vampire in the Murnau's masterpiece, "Nosferatu?" Well, the result is both slightly scary and pretty funny.
Elias Merhige and writer Steven Katz create a fairly creepy mood, and inhabit the picture with some real interesting characters.John Malkovich plays famous silent film director F.W. Murnau.
And the fact is that it wears each of these hats quite well, although not necessarily at the same time.The movie asks us to imagine:  What if Max Schreck, the mysterious guy who gave what is still considered one of the best vampire performances ever, did so well because, well, he really was a vampire?
The story then follows as the crew makes the movie dealing with all sorts of difficulties, not the least of which is the star's habit of snacking on cameramen.Among the film's many virtues is its portrayal of filmmaking in what was really its dawn as a form of art and commerce.
People like me, who have trouble with silent movies may gain an additional appreciation for the work and craft that went in to them, and realize that while they may seem hokey and stylized to us now, they had a beauty and substance that was all their own, and still is.John Malkovich turns in a great performance as the visionary Murnau (who, while tortured, must be a genius because he always gets it in one take).
It is a characteristic Malkovich role, a rationalist given to bouts of fury, and it is as much fun to see him discourse pretentiously on the science and art of the moving image as it is to see him pitch a fit ("Albon, a NATIVE has wandered into my FRAME!").The core of this movie, however, and deservedly so, is Willem Dafoe's unforgettable portrayal of Schreck.
He and Malkovich have some great scenes together, including a sick, hilarious moment when Schreck and Murnau try to hammer out who on the crew may or may not be snacked upon (the cinematographer is necessary, it seems, but the script girl is negotiable).The movie functions best as a sendup of moviemaking, as the harried Murnau must deal with temperamental actors, unfriendly locals, blood-sucking undead, and other hazards of the movie trade.
Some of the best moments are those of the age-old creature of the night attempting to take direction and find his "motivation."  Everyone is afraid of Schreck, but admire the dedication that keeps him in character all the time (he's a Method actor, explains Murnau, he studied with Stanislavsky).
W. Murnau, 'Shadow of the Vampire' is an interesting yet creepy film, but above all, its Willem Dafoe's Magnificent Performance as Max Schreck, that makes this film unmissable!'Shadow of the Vampire' Synopsis: The filming of Nosferatu is hampered by the fact that the star is taking his role far more seriously than what seems humanly possible.'Shadow of the Vampire' is a fictionalized account, so you shouldn't take this one too seriously.
Catherine McCormack as Greta Schroeder, is worth a mention.On the whole, 'Shadow of the Vampire' is an interesting film, but Willem Dafoe's Performance is its greatest merit..
His choice to play the part of the vampire Nosferatu is Max Schreck (Willem Dafoe), a beastly, hideous man who will appear to the cast and crew only in character (an early example of Method acting, to be sure).
And as it progresses, he slips a little further into his own world, and Schrek - who, it has been said, played perhaps the ugliest vampire in film history - assumes more and more control over the direction of the movie (although not literally).
They have no problem accepting the fact that Orlok is an actual vampire once Malkovich tells them, but can't seem to figure it out on their own, despite seeing, among other things, Orlok pulling a bat out of the air and sucking the blood out of it.The film, in general, does not end well.
Shadow of the Vampire does not pretend to be a documentary; it is a highly stylized, fictional work that delves into its very own imaginative speculations about a filmmaker's creative process.Having assembled his crew, Murnau (John Malkovich) travels to a small town in Czechoslovakia, where he intends to recreate before his camera the story of Bram Stoker's "Dracula".
Set on creating the most realistic vampire film, Murnau secretly recruits a real vampire (Willem Dafoe), promising to recompense the creature with leading lady Greta (Catherine McCormack).
Murnau cautiously introduces the vampire to his producer Albin Grau (Udo Kier) and scriptwriter Henrick Galeen (John Gillet) as "Max Schreck", a truly professional "method actor" trained by Stanislavsky.
Soon, however, his blood thirst takes over and he fearlessly threatens to eliminate, one by one, Murnau's most dispensable crew members.Shadow of the Vampire stems from the premise that its protagonist, the fictional Murnau (Malkovich), must hire a real vampire in order to ensure a truly authentic representation of the vampire character, "Count Orlock", for his film Nosferatu.
At the same time, there's a lot of humor, as well as an intriguing glimpse of Berlin in the decadent 1920s.Dafoe is definitely an Oscar nominee with this performance (and the film should get an Oscar for his make-up, too): especially powerful scenes include his describing his reaction to reading the novel Dracula, by Bram Stoker; and a confrontation with Murnau near the end of the film, when Murnau finally is forced to recognize what he has done.
Anyone even remotely interested in suspense, film making, vampires, German Expressionism, or simply in being entertained should make it a point to see this challenging, evocative, thought-provoking and funny film.Reviewers I've read seemed outraged at the liberties the film took with the premise of Nosferatu.
It is the age of the silent movie, and German expressionist director F.W. Murnau (John Malkovich) is determined to film his version of the Dracula story, whatever the cost to his cast and crew.I've never really been a big fan of Nosferatu nor a particular admirer of Willem Dafoe, but this bizarre little movie has made me appreciate both much more.
A fictionalised account of the making of F.W. Murnau's 1922 silent horror classic, Shadow of the Vampire toys with the notion that Nosferatu's star Max Schreck (played here by Dafoe) was actually a bona fide member of the undead.This fanciful idea plays out a little too slowly, perhaps, but offers plenty of opportunity for dark humour, the cast delivering suitably offbeat performances that prove strangely intoxicating, with Dafoe's mesmerising turn as Shreck being the film's strongest suit, the actor's mannerisms and expressions played to perfection.Casual movie fans who haven't seen Murnau's classic will probably wonder what the hell is going on, so I recommend seeing Nosferatu beforehand, just so that one can fully appreciate the magic of certain scenes and the brilliance of Dafoe's performance..
this movie is about the director of the great movie nosferatu casting what is actually a vampire in the silent film.
F.W. Murnau, the obsessive director of "Nosferatu" doesn't feel he can make a realistic enough vampire movie with an actor in the title role.
An absolutely epic performance from Willem Dafoe and a hilarious depiction of Herr Doktor Murnau by Malkovich combine to make an unforgettable film.I did not have the pleasure of seeing this when it was released in the theaters.
For most enjoyment of this quirky send-off, see that Film first, not only for grounding, but it is truly a seminal work and is quite a capturing experience and Max Schreck's Vampire has become a Horror Movie symbol.This is a beautiful film with sumptuous cinematography, wardrobe, and sets.
One need not SUSPEND one's disbelief, with Dafoe in this role there is no question of anything BUT belief.It's an excellent movie, an "edge of the seater" the first time through, and providing plenty of depth to sustain several more viewings.John Malkovich as the Faustian hero is also all that could be desired.
It performs a time stretch since the duration of the movie is an hour and a half and in the end it feels like a three hour film.
the characters (IMHO)John Malkovich is F.W. Marnau, the great german director of the 20s and Willem Dafoe plays Max Schreck, the Nosferatu of Marnau's classic.
Malkovich, the director, has his movie set to go but nobody seems to know anything about the mysterious actor that will be playing the vampire.
John Malkovich ('Dangerous Liaisons') plays film director F.W. Murneau and Willem Dafoe ('Light Sleeper')  his bizarre leading man "Max Schreck".
John Malkovich plays F.W. Murnau, the obsessed director of the film, alongside Willem Dafoe (Max Screck), the vampire star of the classic.
Willem DaFoe is marvelous as the exhibitionist, horny (feeding on a beautiful woman is erotic for him), alternately menacing and petulant real vampire Schreck, who has agreed to star in Murnau's Nosferatu.
John Malkovich never ceases to please and Willem Dafoe makes an amazing transformation (with an outstanding makeup job) into the blood-sucking star of the F.W. Murnau classic "Nosferatu."  His performance is quite good, though I expected him to get more screen time.
I'm sure there are few--if any--directors in history who've shared the exact thirst for the art form as Murnau in "Shadow of the Vampire."  I don't know any directors who'd sacrifice their cast and crew for a movie.
Shadow brims with wit and class; a black comedy set in a behind-the-scenes look at the filming of Murnau's 1922 silent vampire film, Nosferatu, eine Symphonie des Grauens (Nosferatu, a Symphony of Horror).The film centres on the unusual relationship between Nosferatu's fanatical director F.W. Murnau (Malkovich) and it's lead actor Max Schreck (Dafoe), who plays the part of Count Orlok or Nosferatu, but who soon seems like he is taking his Stanislavski method acting a little too seriously!
Murnau continues despite and with Nazi diligence attempts to finish his vampire epic, whilst Merhige follows, brutalising the story with gothic imagery and posing supernatural questions over the mystery and fact that shrouded the making of this plagiarism of Bram Stoker's Dracula.The acting is superb, with an incredible performance from Dafoe, which is gaining him nominations and awards across the world, not to be shadowed however by Malkovich's passionate, raw emotion portrayal of the obsessive, ambitious director.
The film looks fantastic as well, blending black and white imagery in the frame of the silent movie to the brilliant colours of the set around them, with all the ease and beauty we'd expect from great directors of both eras.
E. Elias Mehrige's "Shadow of the Vampire" is a funny, beautiful, and scary yarn about the strange events that take place on the set of "Nosferatu", the first film that actually involved a vampire.John Malkovich portrays the German silent film director F.W. Murnau, who (was a legend in his own time) desperately wants to make the best vampire movie.
So Murnau changes a few things.First, he changes the film's title from "Dracula" to "Nosferatu" and the name of the vampire character from Count Dracula to Count Orlok.Second, Murnau hires Max Schreck (Willem Dafoe), a mysterious, eerie, and very unknown actor to play Orlok and Murnau tells his actors and the film crew that Schreck is "the ultimate method actor".
The point became very clear to me when some of the film crew begin to fall ill.Also, the movie has a real gloomy and gothic look and Lou Bogue, the cinematographer makes it appear very real.The film has a fairly reliable supporting cast to back Dafoe and Malkovich, who are both great here even though Dafoe is the standout and might have a good shot of earning a Best Supporting Oscar.
However, if you're just going to see a vampire flick or a cheesy horror movie along the lines of "Scream", or if you think silent films are a joke, then your $7 won't be wasted..
The movie centers the fastidious director Murnau -John Malkovich-who is shooting the famous film ¨Nosferatu¨ a classical silent German film.
Interpretation by main actors ,John Malkovich is excellent, Willem Dafoe is magnificent but gives an extreme gesticulation, the make-up on his face is awesome, he looks like the authentic Nosferatu.
I read a good few reviews/comments about this film on IMDb and although many of them were slightly negative, I disregarded them simply due to the score being 6.8/10 and having read the plot, it seemed highly interesting and entertaining.Having watched it, expecting this to be an excellent piece of filmography with the likes of Dafoe, Malkovich and Kier playing lead roles(and Nick Cage as producer in there for kicks) I was extremely disappointed.
Merhige tries to offset the emptiness of the script by suggesting that Shreck was an actual vampire, promised his pick of the film crew by Murnau just to get the movie completed.
The lighting was also very dull, which I suppose fits the tone of this movie as I shall demonstrate.The plot, if you can call it that, revolves around F.W. Murnau shooting the movie, NOSFERATU, and finding out that his lead actor, Max Shreck, is a real vampire.
It's about the making of a real horror classic film in 1921 based on the Dracula story, and so is spooky and mysterious.There are two standout performances.
What makes this movie is the very original story line and the superb acting of Willem Dafoe and John Malkovich.
All the members of the side cast did great and it was truly very creepy thanks to Willems performance.This movie is about the film crew while filming the famous classic horror film Nosferatu.
But the ace director gets more reality than he bargains for after hiring for the role of the vampire Count Orlak not the method acting "Stanislovski lunatic" seen by others to be so totally immersed in his character, but a genuine, bloodsucking child of the night who can't keep his teeth off the cast and crew.Students of pre-Vitaphone melodrama will remember Murnau's silent masterpiece as the earliest and arguably best adaptation of Bram Stoker's 'Dracula', but this sometimes amusing, sometimes startling behind-the-scenes speculation (was Max Schreck such a memorable vampire because he wasn't acting?) is more than just a one-joke novelty for literate film buffs.
And director Elias Merhige is able to achieve (on a modest budget, without any typically visceral creature-feature clichés) a nice sense of (sometimes comic) dread by the film's climactic scenes, when Murnau begins to seriously contemplate sacrificing his leading lady to the vampire's bloodlust just to get a convincing scene.John Malkovich portrays the German director with his trademark languid detachment and a mere hint of a Middle-European accent.
Shadow of the Vampire is based on the premise that Max Schrek, who played Count Orlock in real-life movie Nosferatu, actually WAS a vampire.
this fictionalized and embellished account of the filming of the 1922 classic vampire tale Nosferatu, eine Symphonie des Grauens,directed by Friedrich Wilhelm Murnau was certainly eerie and atmospheric.Willem Dafoe is unrecognizable as Max Schrek/Count Orlock underneath all the prosthetics and makeup,and pretty much inhabits the character.John Malkovich portrays Murnau as possibly insane.the scenes of interaction between Murnau and Orlock crackle with intensity.i also liked the opening sequence.i thought it really set the mood,although i could see how some people might think differently.it is a bit long,and at first glance doesn't appear to be relevant to the rest of the film.anyway,i liked it.for me,Shadow of the Vampire is a 7/10.
Directed by rock video exponent E ELIAS MERHIGE whose career has regrettably failed to kick on.Television writer STEVEN KATZ, obviously a lover of vampire films, has written a wonderfully quirky historical script that gives the term 'action in film-making' new meaning.Wonderfully acted by MALKOVICH as director MURNAU, an unrecognizable DAFOE is very good as method actor MAX SCHRECK.German co-star UNO KIER is amusing as the harried producer who feels that his reputation will be ruined..
Dracula,, instead he goes for Orlock, and he also cannot film in Transyvania either,, this story is basically about the making of that movie,, John Malcovich should have in my opinion gotten an Oscar for this role,, i thought that it depicted what it was like in the early 20's trying to make a silent horror film,, excellent work..
Dafoe is brilliant at making Max Schreck/Count Orlock his own while remaining true to the archetype.I strongly urge viewers to watch Nosferatu before they watch Shadow of the Vampire.
The actor (real name unknown) called Max Shreck (German for Terror) created a truly horrifying Vampire, liked so much by some that the film "Nosferatu was remade by Werner Herzog in the 1970's and the character of "Barlow" in Salem's Lot used a similar look.
Max Schreck (who plays the vampire, Count Orlock, and who is played in this movie by Willem Dafoe) is, as Murnau informs the cast before filming, a character actor who truly transforms into his character just to get the part right.
Except for the characters and the scenes from the original movie, Shadow Of The Vampire has little to do with historical facts and the whole thing doesn't make much sense.But who cares?
I thought "Shadow of the Vampire" was a pretty good movie and the best performances were those of Willem Dafoe and John Malkovich.
Darkly agreeable vampire plot set (highly originally), within the locational work of a real German horror-film-making team..
John Malkovich plays the self-possessed director Murnau, who alone understands that his leading vampire Max Shrek (Willem Dafoe) is, indeed, a real aristocratic vampire with an equally real need of human blood.
This film is the true story behind the making of NOSFERATU.John Malkovich, Willem Dafoe, Udo Kier, Cary Elwes and Eddie Izzard star in SHADOW OF THE VAMPIRE, one of the most compelling horror films in the last decade.
DaFoe is very good in the film, and it's fine movie making.
Murnau makes a sinister pact with Max Schreck (Willem Dafoe): a vampire, playing an actor playing a vampire.