Shadow of the Vampire

Pros: Dafoe, Malkovich, fun look at "Nosferatu" that combines fact and fiction
Cons: May send wrong message about obsessed performers

Over the course of the last eighty years, many a person has come to regard the German silent classic "Nosferatu" as one of the best vampire films of all. Some give credit to director F.W. Murnau for giving his picture a documentary feel. Credit is also...

Pros: Didn't cost much. One nude scene.
Cons: Slow and plodding. Drags.Did nothing for me.

I’ll get right to the point. I like to sink my teeth into vampire movies, be they old , new , funny ,campy , scary , sexy , and even satirical . Bloody, violent, long, dark, spooky, humorous, quirky, low budget, extravagant, I‘ve liked...

Pros: Willem Dafoe and John Malkovich.
Cons: Difficulties with narrative cohesion. Heavy handed symbolism.

Today being the Fourth of July, Norman has a day off from shooting his new film, Waterworld II: The Gills Have Eyes. Therefore, I headed down to the San Diego location in order to spend a little quality time with him. We had a lovely little...

Pros: Willem Dafoe single-handedly elevates this movie with fantastic acting.
Cons: Disjointed, thematically jumbled -- the director cannot decide on truth or fantasy.

Shadow of the Vampire is an interesting experiment that never quite reaches its true potential. Instead, it comes off the screen as an uneven, flighty story with no distinct vision to sustain it.

This is a shame, really, because...

Pros: one great vampire!
Cons: none, refuse to acknowledge this section

This is creepingly great John Malkovich in a truly demented role as film maker F. W. Murnau.

Things I really liked about this movie: the stark black and white scenes; the use of the old camera and our ability to view thru the...

Pros: Good idea, and proof that Hollywood is capable of invention
Cons: Slow, and not sure of its own genre.

This here review is part of the I Love You Write-Off Write/Off, hosted by (who else?) Lynus. It's not actually supposed to be posted until May 24th, but I'll be in Dublin city centre by then, so it's best I post it early. The general gist is, we...

Pros: Truly original, enjoyable to watch.
Cons: The accents were a bit fake.

I'll admit, I've never seen Nosferatu, the silent German vampire film that Shadow of the Vampire portrays. I now want to see the film. This was one of the more original films I've seen in a while. (Really, since Being John...

Pros: John Malkovich and Catherine McCormack give lovely performances.
Cons: The rest of the picture.

Shadow Of The Vampire is a clever idea for a movie, but it doesn't pay off at all. So much more could have been done with this film. Instead, it comes off being nothing more than a cheap vampire film.

I knew I was in for a...

Pros: Manages to be terrifying, humorous, and provocative all at once
Cons: Implications about filmmaking are probably not true

"Shadow of the Vampire" was one of the last films I saw in 2000 before becoming a member of Epinions and not one which made a powerful impression on me at the time.  With time, however, it has grown and I think deserves to be acknowledged as a minor ...

Pros: the acting is generally very good, interesting idea and beautifully filmed
Cons: it's a little slow in places and there are things that aren't explained very well

I have to say I was quite intrigued by Shadow of the Vampire, even before I got my hands on an advance DVD. I like Willem Dafoe, John Malkovich, Eddie Izzard and Udo Kier so this film seemed like it would be heaven. While I did enjoy it, it moves a...

Pros: Willem Dafoe, great humor, interesting tale
Cons: none for me

You might find me odd for saying this, but Shadow of the Vampire is one of the most delightful and funny movies I’ve seen in a long time. Sure, it’s a definitely black humor, but the image of a vampire pretending to be an actor and really...

Pros: Malkovich and Izzard steal their scenes by injecting humor into the horror.
Cons: The ending was wrapped up so fast I almost missed it.

Ladies and gentlemen you might want to take note of this review, for I will now use the name Nicholas Cage and the words independent film in one sentence. Other than the sentence I just wrote.

"Shadow of the Vampire" pays pseudo homage to...

Pros: Good reconstructions of the original NOSFERATU; approximation of Expressionistic photography in color.
Cons: Poor writing and direction overwhelm the actors.

SHADOW OF A VAMPIRE has received considerable hype on the strength of Willem Dafoe's performance as Count Orlock, the unforgettable fiend in F.W. Murnau's classic 1922 *NOSFERATU. Ecstatic comparisons have also been made with Director Bill Condon's GODS...

Pros: Superb acting by Defoe and Malkovich!
Cons: Slightly stilted feel to the film and acting of some of the other cast members.

A kiss on the hand may be quite continental, but vampire fangs are a girl's best friend. Or, is it a case of beauty and the beast gone asunder? Perhaps Shadow of the Vampire is a tale of fantasy run amok; the what if's and how could's combined to create a ...

Pros: interesting technique; fine acting all around; glorious black and white
Cons: boring story; no suspense; no thrills; generally uninteresting

WHAT IT'S ABOUT: A quasi docudrama/quasi horror movie about the making of a classic vampire movie, "Nosferatu" in Germany in the 1920s. John Malkovich plays an obsessive director who goes for as much detail as you could possibly get out of ...