A Symphony of German Expressionism

Nosferatu

S. Attaullah
N. Kazi

Abstract:
Nosferatu is a 1922 silent gothic horror film. It is one of the most influential horror films ever to be made
and is still considered an important piece of cinema. Directed by F.W Murnau and based on the widely
recognized novel Dracula by Bram Stroker, the story revolves around Thomas Hutter, a real estate agent
and his encounter with Count Orlock, a vampire who feeds on his blood and who later persecutes his
wife, Ellen whist spreading a plague caused by rats that kills countless people. One of the reasons for the
film’s immense success was the fact that there it was one of frontrunners of the horror genre as there
had not been a film like this before. Many critics still praise the experimental and Avant-garde method
of film making. This paper will discuss the many elements of the expressionist conceptions found within
this film that launched its success, and also how experimental filmmaking has influenced the horror
genre as a whole.

Introduction:
Nosferatu is one of the first German Expressionist films. This movement rejected the realistic portrayals
of people and circumstances and often distorts the figures and events. This often causes a significant
emotional response from the viewer. This film is one such example because it managed to cause an
unsettling feeling amongst the audience. The anti-realism aspects are what truly caught the attention of
the viewers. The color coding, stop motion and cinematography used in Nosferatu were unorthodox in
this silent film era. Expressionism aims on emphasizing ‘the absolute validity of the personal vision’ and
encourages the projection of inner emotional experiences rather than subjective realism. Mainstream
Cinema at the time mostly dealt with films that were confined within the limits of realism. However,
Nosferatu overcame the bounds associated with filmmaking at that time and unexpectedly, managed to
find success amongst the audience.
The effects of war:
The film was conceived a few years after the end of the First World War due to which the content of the
film is heavily influenced by the state of the society of that time. Owing to the adverse effects of the
World War of Germany, a large part of the respective cinema deals with emotions like angst, terror and
trauma. What make the film truly horrifying are the many unnerving scenes that cause a very unsettling
sensation that stays with the viewer long after finishing the film. The horror does not lie within the gory
scenes or the jump scares, in fact it is found the essence of the film itself. The fear slowly creeps up on
the viewers in a way that they do not completely realize that it are meant to scare them. That technique
of playing with the viewers subconscious and susceptibilities is what resemblances Nosferatu with the
psychological experience of war. The film completely encapsulates the feelings of the people of that
time. Count Orlock, is portrayed as a vampire that looks human but has inhuman qualities. Other scenes,
such the rats that cause the plague and spiders add to the feeling of revulsion, the vampire himself is a
personification of Death and the Plague used as metaphor for war- how is spreads and kills.Two of the
major elements that separate German Expressionist films from others of the time are that all of these
films deal with a heavy contrast between good and evil, and deals with brokenness and insanity of a
shattered psyche. It is almost ironic how an unrealistic film captures a very real sense of dread and
terror that was prevalent within the society of that time.

Film making techniques:

The shot of Orlok ascending the stairs after being invited in to Ellen’s room perfectly captures
Expressionist imagery. German Expressionism has been
referred to as “the world of light and shadow” by Ian
Roberts and this shot helps us understand why that is.
We only see Count Orlok’s, which makes the figure
stand out more and accentuates features such as his
long, claw-like fingers which make him look more
threatening.

Nosferatu’s expressionism brings to the screen the cold,

depressing world that Count Orlock lives in. hard stone castles and houses, sunlight constantly fighting
through a thick layer of fog, the forests resembling cemeteries stand intimidating and exceptionally
unusual. Such films unleashed a whole new creative potential for experimentation from unusual
storylines, to bold artistic styles, to acknowledging and showcasing “intellectual” time and environment
sensitive topics, to set design, location, and even character appearance. A post-war subtext can be
found flowing through the film, all of the characters in the story exhibit an extremely different style of
acting than what was used in the films of that era in cinema, which exemplifies the German
Expressionist setting. Each of the characters in the film, whether big or small showed distorted
performances ranging from loud screams, to the panicking townsfolk, the unnatural acting fashion
expresses their feelings in a direct and extreme fashion and works very well with the grotesque and the
moody setting. Marnau’s use of atmospheric lights, asymmetrical camera wide angles, high contrasting
background shadows, disoriented architecture combined with stop and fast motion along with topic of
madness and insanity multiplies the psychological disturbances, playing with the notion of having
something so terrible and unbelievable existing, very clearly, in a world that very much might be our
own human reality.

Influence on Mordern Cinema:

More than 80 years after its completion, Nosferatu’s famous image of hollow-cheeked, bald vampire
rising slowly from his coffin still has the ability to send shivers
through the most cynical viewers. Nosferatu can fairly be
called the forefather of countless other cinematic
expressions.

The 1992 movie Dracula by director Francis Ford Coppala

utilized the “Shadow technique” that is seen in in the film.
Nosferatu has influenced other Vampire films that follow a
similar storyline even decades after the initial film was made.
Dracula (Francis Ford Coppola, 1992)
Among the reasons the film remains so resonant to audiences
is its links between anatomy of physical and moral corruption, and the way it plays on the fear of the
"other". The film acted as an artistic way to convey social and political messages that could not be
conveyed through proper channels as at that time. Another one of the biggest successes of this film was
the normalization of different bizarre ideas turned into films and the self realization of the infinite
creative potential of storytelling. German expressionism influenced some of the most important
filmmakers of all time, including Alfred Hitchcock, encouraging them to bring to life art pieces of Avant-
Garde attributes.

Conclusion:
It is not wrong to conclude that films like Nosferatu play a vital role in inspiring many of the mainstream
films in popular culture as they grasp the unrealistic imagery of the creator and successfully reflects their
ideas on the viewers of all time periods. This specific genre was a much needed addition to cinema
because of its ability to touch upon the viewer’s sensibilities and exploit them instead of just serving as a
source of entertainment.
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Editor. Nosferatu: A Film Analysis. The Charlottesville Times, 2011

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Oursler, John. The Timeless Horror of Nosferatu's Slinking Shadow Climbing Across a Wall. Popmatters,
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Burns, William. From the Shadows: Nosferatu and the German Expressionist Aesthetic. The Journal of
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Darsa, Alissa. Art House: An Introduction to German Expressionist Films. Artnet 2013