Generally, horror films don’t really fare well with critics, but this year’s The Witch was a definite exception. This pleasant surprise of a film was praised for its directing, cinematography, atmosphere, its ability to be scary without cheap jump scares or gratuitous violence and its overall unique feel. It’s quite the accomplishment for the relatively inexperienced writer/director Robert Eggers. Fans of the genre might be happy to know that Eggers’ next film will be a remake of the classic 1922 horror film, Nosferatu, confirmed by the filmmaker on Indiewire’s Filmmaker Toolkit podcast.
Eggers skill isn’t the only thing that makes him great for the job. Apparently, he had been a fan of Nosferatu since childhood, losing his mind upon seeing a picture of Max Schreck as Count Orlok in a book at school. He was so interested that he made his mother drive to rural New Hampshire so that they could obtain a VHS copy of the film. Furthermore, Eggers directed Nosferatu as his senior play at the age of 17 and then re-staged the play professionally.
Based on this, it’s understandable that he’s hesitant to remake F.W. Murnau’s picture and hadn’t intended it to be his next film.
“[It’s shocking] to me,” Eggers said on the podcast. “It feels ugly and blasphemous and egomaniacal and disgusting for a filmmaker in my place to do Nosferatu next. I was really planning on waiting a while, but that’s how fate shook out.”
Eggers also explained how his obsession with history will help to guide the look and script of Nosferatu and hinted that he will change his approach to the film’s lead character.
“I can’t also do Max Schreck again either, so that’s fun, so it’s going back to the origins of the folk vampire,” Eggers said.
Nosferatu is in development for former Warner Bros. President Jeff Robinov’s Studio 8. If you want to see a dramatized account of the filming of Nosferatu, you can check out 2000’s Shadow of the Vampire starring John Malkovich and Willem Dafoe.
Via: Collider
from Nerd Reactor
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