Nosferatuskips over what could have been the most action-packed and potentially horrifying sequence of the entire movie.Nosferatuis the most recent of several adaptations of the 1922 silent film of the same name, which itself was an unofficial adaption ofBram Stoker’sDraculanovel. Therefore, even though the vampire inNosferatuis named Count Orlok, rather than Count Dracula, the film adapts the main story beats of the iconic horror novel. However,Nosferatulargely ignores one specific chapter in the novel, which was the basis for an entire movie which came out in 2023.
Instead of focusing on action, Robert Eggers’Nosferatufocuses on the dread that these characters feel as a result of the haunting relationship between Count Orlok and Ellen. Orlok’s evil pursuits lead to the death of manycharacters inNosferatu. However, characters like Ellen, Thomas, and Professor Albin Eberhart von Franz remain alive to eventually kill Orlok at theend ofNosferatu. Longbefore Orlok perishes in Ellen’s arms, he terrorizes the crew members working on a ship, which was depicted in detail in the 2023 filmThe Last Voyage of the Demeter.
Nosferatu Doesn’t Show Count Orlok Traveling By Boat To Wisburg
Count Orlok Travels From Transylvania To Wisburg In Nosferatu
After Thomas sells Count Orlok an estate in Wisburg, the city where he lives with his wife, Ellen, the evil vampire arranges for himself to be transported from his castle in Transylvania. In the middle of the film,Orlok is transported on a ship called the Empusa. This isNosferatu’sstand-in for the ship called the Demeter, which was featured in chapter 7 of Stoker’sDracula. The chapter titled “The Captain’s Log” tells the horrifying voyage of the Demeter from Varna, Bulgaria to Whitby, England.
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Nosferatu seems to refer to Bill Skarsgard’s villain Count Orlok as a demon and a vampire interchangeably, but which one is he and why does it matter?
In the chapter, the captain writes in his log as the Demeter’s crew members begin to go missing. Once he is the only person left on board, the captain ties himself to the ship’s wheel with a crucifix. Once the Demeter arrives in Whitby, the captain is found dead, and of course, Dracula is nowhere to be found. Instead of adapting this whole chapter,Nosferatuonly reveals what happened to the Empusa after Orlok already arrived in Wisburg. Furthermore, Orlok is only shown murdering one crew member of the Empusa in the film.
2023’s The Last Voyage Of The Demeter Is An Entire Movie Based Around This Dracula Story
The Last Voyage Of The Demeter Portrays Its Vampire Differently From Nosferatu
WhileNosferatumostly ignores thisDraculachapter,the 2023 filmThe Last Voyage of the Demeterdepicts “The Captain’s Log” in extreme detail.The Last Voyage of Demeterbegins with the Demeter washing ashore in England and the police finding the captain’s log, before jumping a month into the past. Since the entirety of the movie depicts the events of chapter 7 ofDracula,The Last Voyage of the Demetertakes the time to get to know the crew members of the ship, which makes it all the more tragic when they die.
In many ways,The Last Voyage of the Demeteris a great companion movie toNosferatu, since they have two distinct takes on the iconic vampire story.
WhileNosferatudoesn’t really include any action at all,The Last Voyage of the Demeteris meant to be an action-packed and utterly terrifying monster movie. Therefore, in many ways,The Last Voyage of the Demeteris a great companion movie toNosferatu, since they have two distinct takes on the iconic vampire story. However,The Last Voyage of the Demeterwas a critical and commercial failure. The film has an underwhelming 50% on Rotten Tomatoes (viaRotten Tomatoes) and only made $21.7 million at the box office on a budget of $45 million (viaBox Office Mojo).
Nosferatu Was Better Off Skipping The Voyage Of The Demeter Story
Nosferatu Is A Slow Burn Horror Movie
One year afterThe Last Voyage of the Demeterfailed to bring audiences to the theaters,Nosferatuwas a massive box office success.Nosferatugrossed $178 million at the box office, making it the highest-grossing movie of Eggers' career (viaBox Office Mojo). Additionally,Nosferatuhas been praised by critics, and has an impressive score of 84% on Rotten Tomatoes (viaRotten Tomatoes).IfNosferatudid adapt “The Captain’s Log” chapter, it would have drawn more comparisons toThe Last Voyage of the Demeter, which ultimately wouldn’t have been good for Eggers' film.
$21,786,275
50%
74%
$178,782,235
84%
73%
Adapting thisDraculachapter would have added more action and scares toNosferatu, but it would have felt out of place since Eggers was focused on telling a different kind of story. Instead of making a vampire movie with a lot of jump scares,Nosferatusuccessfully focuses on the dread and hopelessness caused by Orlok’s evil. Following the crew of the Empusa for a chunk of the movie, and shifting focus away from characters like Ellen and Thomas, ultimately would have madeNosferatua worse move. Therefore, it is good thatNosferatudidn’t properly adapt the voyage of the Demeter.
Nosferatu
Cast
Nosferatu is a remake of the 1922 silent film of the same name from director F. W. Murnau. Robert Eggers is crafting his own version of the story for the reboot as writer and director, with Bill Skarsgård stepping into the shoes of Count Orlok. Nosferatu tells the tale of a young woman who falls victim to a vampire utterly infatuated with her.
The Last Voyage of The Demeter
The Last Voyage of Demeter is a 2023 horror film directed by Andre Ovredal. The movie is adapted from Dracula and follows a ship that is marked by the vampire as it makes its way to London from Carpathia.
