Vampires have been a part of stories for many years. Whether it be stories written as a book, portrayed in a film, or even through costumes, vampires are all around. Even when we don’t realize it!
There are some people who’s style is centered around the gothic vampire style. And honestly, I find it super fascinating. For people who are able to pull it off and have the commitment to dress that way every day is so impressive.
There are many different renditions of vampires. There’s the older, more “ugly” looking vampires. Look at Petyr in What We Do In The Shadows. He’s wrinkly, very grey, and never really talks much. He’s also 8000 years old!
There’s Draculaura from Monster High too! She is the daughter of Dracula, and has a pink and black color scheme. She’s a vegan and can turn into a bat as well! She’s one of my favorite Monster High girls, actually!
Then there’s he ever popular Twilight. The book and film series are filled with vampires, werewolves, the aspect of getting transformed, the process of it, it explained a lot for its universe. The series helped grow the popularity of vampires a lot. They were already popular, but the series helped it grow a whole lot more.
Case in point, vampires have made their appearances in media all over. They are one of those creatures where you mention the name of it and probably someone can think of one piece of media they have consumed that has them in it or is about them.
One film that is known for its vampire rendition is the movie Nosferatu, The Vampyre. It’s a gothic vampire film that, I would say, is beautifully well shot. There are some sequences when Johnathan is travelling where the sequence is long, but the music that plays in the background is just so beautiful to hear. Kind of like 2001: A Space Odyssey! But hey, sometimes long travelling sequences are a fun addition to add, adds some minutes to the movie too!
About half an hour into the film, Johnathan is sitting in Transylvania finishing his food that he was given. As he is doing so, the clock strikes midnight. The camera stays on the clock the whole time. I thought it was interesting how it was done so. There was no need to, but they still did! I am not saying it’s a bad shot, in fact it’s one of my favorites. The shot of the entire clock is also set up in a very nice way. The clock sits in a dark room on the wall. However, there’s a glare of light that shines on the wall and the clock, making is visible in the darkness.
There was a shot in this film that is a kind of shot I see rarely of. The house where Johnathan resides after returning is shown, the darkness of the night engulfing the area around it. The shot lingers before a shadowy figure shows up in front of the house. It proceeds to go from the side to the front of the house, and gets larger. After a few moments, the darkness engulfs the front of the house.
The Count wanted to see what was happening, and he wanted to see the wife of Johnathan, Lucy. She is a pale woman, with dark black hair and soft makeup that makes her face look like a doll face.
The one particular shot of the front of the house as the Count gets closer is so fascinating to me. It’s such a creative way to show a character entering a scene.
Speaking of Lucy, I loved her character. No matter what, she was loyal to her husband. When the Count requested for her love, she stayed loyal. She mentioned how her love for her husband could never be touched or swayed by anyone.
And her fashion? She had such a beautiful style all throughout the film. When she was talking with Dr. Van Helsing about the vampire, she wore a beautiful green and purple dress. The top piece has the purple with a design covering it. It’s such a cute dress, and she wears it extremely well! All the outfits she wears extremely well!
One aspect of the film that I thought was interesting was how sad I felt for the town when seeing all the coffins. All these people in the town are dying because of the Count and no one can see it. Lucy suspects that it’s the vampire, and that’s why she’s talking with the doctor. To see if he would help her get rid of the Count.
Hearing Lucy yell out to the people that she knows what’s happening and why while they’re carrying lots of coffins is so heartbreaking. At one point, a dead horse can also be seen that the people carrying the coffins are walking over. It truly is heartbreaking.
Nosferatu is a gorgeous and definitely seems like the perfect film to be introduced to for gothic style movies. It’s such a peaceful movie, even with the chaos that consumed the town. All the death and mystery made it out to be a very good film to sit though and watch.
This rendition of vampires is probably one of the most iconic as well. It may not be as known as it used to be, but it still is very good to watch, even now. I will admit, those long sequences that I mentioned before were a bit hard to sit through, given that my attention span is very short, but it was still such an enjoyable watch. Vampires just know how to make good media!
Coley Rose's Corner 