2000, UK/USA/Luxembourg
Adventure, Comedy, Fantasy, Horror
::Flick Quickie::
F.W. Murnau's Nosferatu is so frighteningly realistic, that many have wondered how such an early film could appear so genuine. Director E. Elias Merhige and writer Steven Katz have answered that question in Shadow of the Vampire: Murnau simply hired a real vampire, under the guise of unknown actor Max Schreck.
Merhige's movie carefully recreates exact scenes from the original vampire film, and then provides a glimpse into the stressful life surrounding the cast and crew. Murnau is portrayed passionately by John Malkovich as a director blindly consumed with achieving the perfect film, despite the risks to his crew. Willem Dafoe works his creepy magic to portray the undead title character, who is both miserably lonely and uncontrollably blood thirsty.
Plenty of DVD extras are included, complete with a featurette, director commentary, interviews with cast and crew including producer Nicolas Cage, make up photos, photo gallery, trailers, production notes, cast and crew biographies, and a list of recommended films.