Nosferatu (5 Stars)

If I were to close my blog, this would be a suitable final post. The very first film that I wrote about was "Metropolis" on September 14th 2010. I'd seen it in the cinema the previous day, and it was my inspiration to start this blog. That was a film made in 1927, in black and white, without sound, but its quality is outstanding even today. "Nosferatu" is an even older film, made in 1922. It was the first vampire film ever made, and one of the first horror films. Next to "Nosferatu" modern films like "Twilight" seem poor in comparison.

"Nosferatu" was shown for Halloween at Birmingham Town Hall. True to the spirit of original silent film presentations, the film was accompanied by Nigel Ogden, a BBC television host, playing organ. The music was improvised, not a fixed score. This was perfect. Luckily I was sitting upstairs in the gallery to watch the film, and the floor vibrated when deep notes were played.

The story is a simplified version of Bram Stoker's "Dracula", with different names. The vampire is Count Orlok, the real estate agent is called Hutter from Germany (not Jonathan Harker from England), the madman waiting for the Count to arrive is Knock (not Renfield), etc. The reason for these changes is that the director, Friedrich Wilhelm Murnau, was unable to secure the rights to film Bram Stoker's book. It was only a few years after the first world war, and Bram Stoker's family was polluted by anti-German prejudices. Unfortunately the film didn't deviate from the book enough to prevent Murnau being sued. It was ordered that all the copies of the film be burnt, but a few copies survived. Book burning, film burning, it's all the same. Bram Stoker's family were bigots, they were the ones who should have been burnt.

The audience reaction was interesting, especially in the first 15 minutes. It seems that very few of the people in attendance were acquainted with silent movies. A lot of people were laughing at the exaggerated over-acting that was typical for the era. They didn't get it. That was real acting. In the days before sound the actors had to express everything through gestures and facial expressions. That required real talent. Most of today's actors wouldn't have survived in that environment. Imagine Tom Cruise attempting to express his emotions in a silent film. The only thing he knows how to do is grin.

Greta Schröder
September 7, 1891 – April 13, 1967

Greta Schröder, who plays Hutter's wife Ellen, is so beautiful. Her face fascinates me. Her large eyes and her intense facial expressions are overpowering. If I had a time machine I'd travel back a hundred years and kidnap her. Or maybe not. It's much more likely that she would kidnap me.

I have a sentimental attachment to Birmingham Town Hall. When I was a teenager it was the main venue for music concerts in Birmingham. I went there countless times. That's where I went to see Tangerine Dream, Kraftwerk, Can and many other groups. The group I saw the most often was Gong, because they toured several times a year. It was the Birmingham Town Hall where Zappa Diermaier, Faust's drummer, lost his balance while talking to the fans after a concert and fell head first. I was one of the people who grabbed hold of his legs to stop him hitting the ground. He always removed his trousers on stage, so his legs were naked except for his underpants. Not a nice view!

The film has recently been restored. It was the older version that was shown today. I'll be sure to buy and review the restored version later this year, when the price has dropped.