The new horror movie Nosferatu is utterly chilling, especially when you know the backstory.

Robert Eggers's film Nosferatu is gruesome, haunting and utterly compelling, and these feelings only intensify once you know the lore behind this new offering.

Eggers's film is an homage to the silent German film Nosferatu: A Symphony of Horror which was released in 1922 and directed by F. W. Murnau. The movie, which is now revered as a groundbreaking horror classic, was clearly a retelling of Bram Stoker's 1897 novel Dracula yet was never officially granted permission to use the story.

Despite some locations and names being changed (Dracula was renamed to Count Orlok, for example) and some slight tweaks to the ending, Stoker's widow sued the creators of Nosferatu for copyright infringement and ultimately won. A judge ordered that all copies of Murnau's movie be destroyed, but at least three full prints of the movie survived, allowing future generations to enjoy the slow-burn horror of the original Nosferatu.

Despite both the stories of Nosferatu and Dracula being told many different ways through many different films over the years, the 2024 offering still manages to feel fresh and inventive, while very much coming across as a love letter to the original.

Take a look at the trailer for Robert Eggers's film Nosferatu.

In Eggers's Nosferatu, a filmmaker whose previous work includes The Witch and The Northman, Lily-Rose Depp plays Ellen, a young woman who spent her adolescence isolated and haunted by a dark presence that haunts both her dreams and her waking hours. Ellen has recently married a junior estate agent named Thomas Hutter (Nicholas Hoult) and the newlyweds are attempting to build a life together in the fictional German town of Wisborg.

In need of more money now that he is a married man, Thomas accepts an assignment to travel east of Bohemia to an isolated castle in Transylvania's Carpathian Mountains. All so he can meet with the mysterious and wealthy Count Orlok (Bill Skarsgård) and organise for him to purchase a mansion back in Wisborg.

A terrified Ellen begs Thomas not to go, saying that death will come to them all, yet he still makes the slightly perilous journey to Count Orlok's castle, where a terrifying scenario awaits him.

Skarsgård, an actor known for playing a demonic dancing clown in the It movies and a vampire in the TV series Hemlock Grove, is unrecognisable (in the best way possible) as the monstrous Count Orlok, whose decaying body and animalistic appearance is a far cry from the sexy 'creature of the night' persona that Dracula culture has cultivated over the years.

Leaving Thomas for dead in his castle, Orlock heads to Wisborg as his infatuation and psychic connection with Ellen grows, and his arrival in the German town plays out like a deadly plague (which makes sense as hundreds of rats disembark the ship with him and make their way through the town) as Orlock feeds on the innocent as he nears closer to Ellen.

Meanwhile, Ellen has been attempting to warn the friends she has been living with, Anna (Emma Corrin) and Friedrich Harding (Aaron Taylor-Johnson), of the danger that is coming for them. All as her connection to Orlock manifests in fits of screaming and contortion each night in scenes reminiscent of another horror classic, The Exorcist.

When a treatment plan designed by Dr. Sievers (Ralph Ineson) fails to help Ellen in any way (which is to be expected as not only does he not suspect vampire interference but he also recommends a tighter corset as the best medical intervention on offer for her), they bring in Prof. Albin Eberhart Von Franz (Willem Dafoe) whose fascination with the occult has led to him being discredited by the medical profession.

Yet he is the only one with the knowledge to fight against Count Orlok.

Lily-Rose Depp as Ellen Hutter and Emma Corrin as Anna Harding in Nosferatu. Image: Universal Pictures.

Nosferatu manages to deliver a series of truly horrifying scenes (if you were not disturbed by rats and blood prior to seeing this film, you certainly will be after viewing it) while also being a visually stunning piece of work. The film brilliantly blends practical sets and stunts with CGI in a way that creates a fully formed and eerie world and the masterful use of light and space will have you captivated for the duration of the film. So much so that as the horrors play out on screen you won't be able to help gazing up at the scenes before your eyes and thinking 'God that's beautiful'.

While Skarsgård's Orlok and Dafoe's Von Franz both have mesmerising turns in their respective roles, it is actually the leading ladies of the film who steal the show on this occasion. Emma Corrin offers up a quietly brilliant performance as Anna, a wife and mother whose concern for her friend Ellen's health and mental state leads her into one of the darkest storylines of the film. You can feel the fear and desperation seeping from Anna at every turn, thanks to Corrin's performance.

Of course, Lily-Rose Depp was always going to be the wildcard factor in Nosferatu. In the earliest days of her career, it felt very much like the child of actors Johnny Depp and Vanessa Paradis was leaning on her nepo baby roots to carry her through a series of roles and opportunities she didn't deserve. Yet from a completely lacklustre performance in 2021's Voyagers to a slightly more adept lead role in last year's controversial TV series The Idol, the 25-year-old actress appears to have finally found her acting feet with her role as Ellen Hutter.

Lily-Rose Depp as Ellen Hutter and Nicholas Hoult as Thomas Hutter in Nosferatu. Image: Universal Pictures.

Depp's performance in Nosferatu is fearless and captivating, she appears to effortlessly swing between portraying a woman who is weakened and victimised to a demonic force who is both terrified and captivated by the dark figure who is hunting her. So much of this film depended on Depp's ability to carry a story, which often hinged on movement over dialogue, and she manages to very much pull it off.

Despite its visual brilliance, Nosferatu is at times a heavy-handed film and also delivers a few moments of comedy that were not exactly intended to be funny.

Yet this atmospheric tale can be enjoyed by both fans of the original Nosferatu concept and people who are coming to this story for the first time.

Also, after years of vampires being slightly co-opted by the Young Adult Romance industry, it's nice to see them back on the screen as the terrifying and evil creatures they were always meant to be.

Nosferatu opens in cinemas Australia-wide on January 1.

Laura Brodnik is Mamamia's Head of Entertainment and host of The Spill podcast. You can follow her on Instagram here for more entertainment news and recommendations.Feature Image: Universal Pictures Australia.