Robert Eggers is right about Count Orlok in ‘Nosferatu’
Count Orlok (Bill Skarsgård) in Nosferatu is an imposing figure. He’s looming, consuming, and terrifying. Oh, and he has a mustache which has become a thing on social media.
The Robert Eggers adaptation of the classic Dracula story was met with many online pretending to be Orlok. Whether it was imitating his voice or just dressing up like him, everyone was jumping on the Orlok train. Which included many talking about Count Orlok’s choice of facial hair. In the film, he rocks a mustache.
Yes, he rocks a stache in the film. And according to Eggers, he is standing by that decision with the character. In a new interview with Empire, the director and writer explained that while he does understand that the stache wasn’t for everyone, it felt like the right move. And the way he said it is kind of iconic.
“I get that,” Eggers told the outlet. “It’s a hard pill for some people to swallow.” Instead of making an excuse, Eggers then he went on to justify the choice. “But I also don’t care, because there’s just no f***ing way that this guy wouldn’t have a mustache,” he said. “I love the way Max Schreck looks too [in Murnau’s original], and it’s a change. So, fair play, as people say over here.”
And I mean think about it, men like Rasputin had staches and beards so why wouldn’t Count Orlok rock one as well?
There was too much shadow though
Eggers did admit that he took one note from people: There was too much shadow in the movie. He said that if a bunch of people were telling him it was to much, then maybe there was too much going on. But even if every audience member told him that the mustache was too much, he wasn’t budging on that one.
“When 85 per cent of the people say there’s too much shadow, I don’t know, maybe there’s too much shadow,” Eggers said. “On the other hand, when all the VFX are done and the music’s done and the pace is right, I think probably that shot could have been in there, but at the time, it did feel like I was going overboard with the shadow.”
So what we know about Eggers is that he’ll take your criticism over the shadows in Nosferatu but if you want to complain about Count Orlok with a mustache? Forget it.
(featured image: Focus Features)
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