Nosferatu From a Christian View
As I posted my new drawing of collaged scenes from the new Nosferatu movie among my other artwork about Jesus and Christianity, I wondered how many people would judge me or think it inconsistent. So, this is my explanation, or rather my thoughts. You can agree or disagree - that is the beauty of art!
Disclaimer: I am in no way trying to convince you to watch this movie or endorse anyone involved in its making. Each individual Christian should proceed with caution in dealing with any aspect of this world; we have different limits and different sensitivities, and this is a horror movie. But I also want to create a space for Christians to think critically about the world - we can’t avoid everything. This writing is simply my takeaways.
My initial praise of (and desire to see in the first place) Nosferatu is the stunning cinematography and visual design. I have always loved gothic and romantic imagery and themes, mostly because it is serious, and it acknowledges the darkness of the world and humanity. I have a very hard time participating in Christian culture that acts like life is perfect or can’t understand certain things when we have God. It’s true, He is sovereign, but life is still hard.
The color palette, intentional shots and subtle foreshadowing made this such a visual treat to watch. I could draw so much more of this movie! Everything was very well-thought out by director Robert Eggers, and you can really tell this movie was a work of passion, with hours of research and detail built into every aspect. But let’s get into the content of this movie, and the themes I took away from it.
Be warned, the rest of this article contains spoilers.
The first thing I really connected with in this movie was Ellen’s perspective. She is lonely and suffers from nightmares and melancholia. No one around her seems to understand it, and she is often dismissed. Her mental suffering is the reason she first calls out for a spirit to come to her in the beginning of the movie. Throughout the movie, many therapies are attempted on her, including bleeding, tightening and sleeping in a corset, and even being tied to the bed. The character of Friedreich is the biggest example of the way that Ellen feels unloved and misunderstood, possibly a foil for her father.
Horror is a genre that is often misunderstood; part of its popularity can be rendered to relatability to those that feel misunderstood or othered, and for creating a space for people to feel fear safely. Ellen’s issues are easy to identify with if you have ever suffered from depression, nightmares, or felt a sense of spiritual oppression. Eventually, her ongoing issues (resurfaced after her husband Thomas must go away on business) lead her to question the origin of evil.
“Does evil come from within us or from beyond?” -Ellen Hutter
While lying in bed, exhausted from hysterical episodes, Ellen contemplates evil. She is disturbed by an outside force but worries that it is part of her nature; in fact, that is exactly what the demon tells her: she is not meant for humankind, she is different. In the Bible, we find the answer to her question is: both - evil is within and without.
“I have seen things in this world that would’ve made Isaac Newton crawl back into his mother’s womb,” Franz says. “We have not become so much enlightened as we have been blinded by the gaseous light of science. I have wrestled with the devil as Jacob wrestled the angel in Peniel. And I tell you, if we are to tame darkness, we must first face that it exists.”
-Professor Franz
Others have commented on the impotence of religion in this film. One reddit user described the useless crosses before Orlock’s castle, the children that pray and then later are slaughtered in their sleep, and nuns that warn Thomas of leaving the monastery, but he does anyway. There is a serious acknowledgement of evil - in both humanity and in forces unseen - but holiness is ignored. Human achievement and will is seen as the salvation. At the same time, we can recognize this as the fact: these characters are acting on their own free will. We might wonder why this all was allowed to happen - who among us doesn’t wonder why bad things happen to good people? It is because God leaves us to our own devices.
Ellen must choose Nosferatu of her own free will; she resists his seductive pull until she sees she must save everyone else from the plague he has brought. The consequences of her calling the spirit to her is the death and plague upon everyone she loves.
Some have found a theme of romance within this narrative, but if it’s between Ellen and Orlock then they have severely missed the point. Ellen calls out for help, desperate to be loved. This is absolved in the beginning of her marriage but comes back as Orlock pursues her. But it is not a pursuit of love, he says himself that he is “only appetite.” It’s human nature to want to be loved desperately, eternally, and almost obsessively. But this is ultimately fulfilled in Jesus Christ’s love and sacrifice.
The salvation that Ellen brings to all suffering from the plague might be seen as a consequence to her originally calling out in her youth to any spirit to help her. It is also a type of sacrifice, how Ellen knows the only way to absolve the demon Nosferatu is to succumb; she called him, she must deal with him. Might have things been different if God was the one called out to instead, even after her first mistake? We’ll never know how that story goes. By telling the story of salvation through blood and death, it invokes the gospel but substitutes the truth for a humanism narrative.
I’ll end my thoughts with this segment from Plugged In’s review of the film:
“But even though the vampires of their imaginings are clearly creatures of supernatural evil, the filmmakers refuse to acknowledge the supernatural counterpoint. Often, faith (especially Christian faith) is shown as impotent in the face of such evils, leaving a sort of brave humanism to deal with the devil. And that robs the story of not only whatever truth it might have, but much of its power as well…
…The spirituality can be inconsistent here. Anyone looking to pull a sermon fully formed from this horrific bit of storytelling will be either sorely disappointed or woefully off mark. That said, it gets the broad brushstrokes right: Orlok is evil. And what is our hope against that evil? Prayer. Sacrifice. God. The darkness here is not expelled by the gumption of a secular hero, but by light—physical, spiritual, sacrificial light.” (PluggedIn.com, Paul Asay)
I encourage you to read the full review if you want more information on content warnings. What do you think about my observations? Do you agree or disagree? Let me know in the comments!
And let us remember that evil is indeed defeated by light, but that light is the light of Christ.
Drawing by Olivia Chapman, 2024
To inquire about this drawing, email me.