Over 100 years since its release, Nosferatu: A Symphony of Horror remains a seemingly untouchable horror classic. HippFest’s 2024 Taste of Silents’ screened the film, elevating it with live musical accompaniment by musician Hugo Max.
Historically Nosferatu is known for one thing: its illegal production. Filmed as an adaptation of Bram Stoker’s Dracula, the film was made without the permission of Bram Stoker’s estate. Due to its illegal nature, most copies of the film were destroyed. Thankfully, a couple remained hidden, allowing Nosferatu to become something of a cult classic in the horror community.
Being a 1922 silent film, much of the horror that comes from a good soundtrack is lost. But due to Hugo Max’s eerie score and unsettling instrumentation, the film becomes a horrifying look at one of history’s most famous vampires.
Since the film is fundamentally a rip-off of Dracula, character names have been changed, but much of the story remains the same. Count Dracula becomes Count Orlok (Nosferatu), Mina Harker becomes Ellen Hutter, and Johnathan Harker becomes Thomas Hutter. The story follows Thomas Hutter venturing to meet the mysterious Count Orlok, since Orlok wishes to buy a home in Thomas’ hometown. After arriving at Orlok’s castle, Hutter is exposed to who Orlok truly is: a bloodthirsty vampire.
The film is split into five acts, similar in structure to a play. What made this structure such a joy was Hugo Max’s incredible soundtrack and his ability to change his playing to fit the different acts.
A majority of the soundscape was created by Max’s 100-year-old viola. The sound created by the instrument is something otherworldly. He began by playing a haunting, shrieking melody during the opening text scrawl before swiftly transitioning to a beautiful, warm verse that symbolised the blissful love the Hutters felt for each other.
The impact Max’s soundtrack had on the film cannot be understated. He found a way to elevate the terror and bring it to new heights, especially in the story’s darker moments. Scenes like Hutter hiding in his bed chambers and the entire boat journey are incredible, partly due to Max’s masterful use of his instruments.
Not only did Max score the entire film, but he even went out of his way to set up musical motifs for characters and change the musical style for each act of the film. Moving into Act two, Max employed a piano primarily to build the atmosphere. This change brings a different atmosphere to Hutter’s arrival at the castle. His journey is complete and the piano scoring his actions builds a mood that’s unparalleled.
The film wraps with Count Orlok finally encountering Ellen Hutter. He bites her in one of the most ominous shots of the film. After feeding Orlok quickly realises the day has broken. As he walks away from the bed, he burns away in front of the window. This ending is largely important for the popularisation of vampires being affected by sunlight since it was the first on-screen depiction of a vampire dying due to exposure to the sun.
After the curtains were drawn Hugo Max held a short Q&A for the audience. Brig was able to ask him a quick question about what inspired him to score Silent Horror:
“Particularly for a film like Nosferatu and the other films of German Expressionism like The Cabinet of Dr Caligari and Der Golem they’re not purely horror films and that’s what compels me to score them because they are using horror to do something far more symbolic… I just find it a really thrilling way to interact with a film, through improvisation, not trying to enforce anything onto the film itself. We’re all together in this space, this amazing space, and I think it’s a wonderful way to ask questions about the film and impacts the experience of seeing it together”
Nosferatu is a must-see for fans of Expressionist cinema and anyone looking to see what all the fuss is about. Plus, there’s no better time to give the original a watch since Robert Eggers remake is set to release in a few months.
Featured image credit: Film Arts Guild
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