Shadow of the Vampire (2000)
Average Rating: 7/10
Reviews Counted: 135
Fresh: 110 | Rotten: 25
Shadow of the Vampire is frightening, compelling, and funny, and features an excellent performance by Willem Dafoe.
Average Rating: 6.8/10
Critic Reviews: 35
Fresh: 29 | Rotten: 6
Shadow of the Vampire is frightening, compelling, and funny, and features an excellent performance by Willem Dafoe.
liked it
Average Rating: 3.4/5
User Ratings: 24,240
My Rating
Movie Info
The torturous production of the classic 1922 vampire film Nosferatu is recreated in this stylized account of director F.W. Murnau and his obsession with creating realistic horror by any means necessary -- even if those means include actual bloodletting. The film begins as Murnau (John Malkovich) is ready to take his unauthorized interpretation of the Bram Stoker tale on location in Czechoslovakia. There, the director has arranged for his cast and crew to live in the same castle in which they
Cast
-
John Malkovich
FW. Murnau -
Willem Dafoe
Max Schreck -
Cary Elwes
Fritz Wagner -
Eddie Izzard
Gustav Von Wangerheim -
Udo Kier
Albin Grau -
Catherine McCormack
Greta Schroeder -
Ronan Vibert
Wolfgang Muller
ADVERTISEMENT
All Critics (136) | Top Critics (35) | Fresh (115) | Rotten (25) | DVD (26)
The screenplay, by Steven Katz, suffers from arch, almost unspeakably theatrical dialogue, and, as Murnau, John Malkovich recites his lines as if monomania were synonymous with monotonic: He drains the drama of blood.
Wholly absorbing and inspired in parts, this carefully crafted curio dares to suggest that Murnau made a Faustian pact with an actual vampire to play the title role in exchange for the neck of the film's leading lady at production's end.
Intriguing, eccentric, sporadically entertaining tosh (but tosh all the same).
It's a marvelous, resonant joke that never quite succeeds: Stretches of the film resemble a Dario Argento horrorfest crossed with a Mel Brooks spoof.
Out of such dizzying layers of (un)reality, some sublime films have emerged. Nosferatu was one of them, and this is not -- but, c'mon, credit it with the old college try, a pretty decent effort.
This stupid and demeaning fantasy about the shooting of F.W. Murnau's 1922 masterpiece Nosferatu is a piece of postmodernist kitsch whose only redeeming quality is an enjoyably over-the-top, eye-rolling performance by Willem Dafoe.
Vampire satire has some creepy moments.
This strictly-for-the-cinéastes fantasy is wild, warped fun.
This is a dark, gothic, and creepy film with excellent performances from John Malkovich and Willem Dafoe.
... [I]f you like your horror thoughtful and provoking, this is your movie.
An imaginatively twisted lesson in film history and a glorious gothic comedy-drama.
At best, this is a dawdling, toothless riff on a vastly superior film. At worst, it's character assassination.
Shadow feels like a missed opportunity.
Through layers of makeup depicting the rat-faced, undead Schreck, a vampire who turns not into a bat but, worse, a demanding prima donna, Dafoe doesn't go over the top, though he does plant his flag at the summit.
This DVD's scene-by-scene commentary from director Merhige is occasionally erudite and thought-provoking, yet at times he's so full of himself that he comes across as a parody of auteur pretension.
Incredibly entertaining even without knowledge of Nosferatu.
In this cookie cutter movie world, it's nice to see the occasional move that doesn't quite fit into a specific genre or can't easily be classified.
What might have occurred during the filming of Nosferatu leaves one amused but confused about how much of Shadow is a spoof and how much is based in truth.
interesting and very good
shines forth as a true labor of love
Unusual and delightful.
A sinister delight for the black at heart.
Audience Reviews for Shadow of the Vampire
Super Reviewer
Super Reviewer
-
- FW. Murnau: Go ahead! Eat the writer! That will leave you explaining how your character gets to Bremen!
-
- FW. Murnau: If it's not in frame, it doesn't exist!
-
- FW. Murnau: Why him, you monster? Why not the... script girl?
- Max Schreck: Oh. The script girl. I'll eat her later.
Discussion Forum
There are no discussion threads for Shadow of the Vampire yet.
Latest News on Shadow of the Vampire
May 8, 2008:
Kim Newman on... HotelRT Obscura, the exclusive column by renowned critic Kim Newman, sees the writer plumbing the depths...
October 30, 2006:
RT Top 20 Halloween Movie Countdown, Part ThreeOnly a day to go in our countdown of the Top 20 Halloween movies on RT -- do you know which scary...
October 21, 2005:
Clooney Prepares for "Wind Chill"George Clooney's Section 8 shingle will produce a horror thriller entitled "Wind Chill,"...
What's Hot On RT
Bradley Cooper's Best Movies
Trailer for new Coen Bros movie
Fast & Furious cars gallery
Blockbusters ranked!
Featured on RT
- Total Recall: Bradley Cooper's Best Movies 22
- Parental Guidance: Epic and Beautiful Creatures 2
- Comic Book Movies You Can Watch Online 6
- In Pictures: The Cars of Fast & Furious 0
- Digital Multiplex: Warm Bodies and Aftershock 8
- Discover the Best-Reviewed Films in Summer Movie Scorecard 2013 0
- RT on DVD & Blu-Ray: The Last Stand and Side Effects 17
Top Headlines
-
Vin Diesel Says Fast & Furious 7 Will Take Place in L.A.
0
-
10 Things You (Probably) Don't Know About the Hangover Movies
1
-
Zack Snyder, Christopher Nolan, and David S. Goyer Talk Man of Steel
0
-
New Transporter Trilogy in the Works
0
-
Richard Linklater Plans "Spiritual Sequel" to Dazed and Confused
0
-
King of Kong Filmmaker Seeks Funding for Lost Limb Documentary
0
-
Which Film Franchise Has Been the Best for Female Characters?
6
Foreign Titles
- La sombra del vampiro (ES)


Top Critic