Initial Review

Watched 09 October 2026, 4 stars

Everyone knows that Max Schreck played Count Orlok in F.W. Murnau's Nosferatu. What this movie presupposes is: Maybe he actually was Count Orlok?

I made a list of 13 Dracula/Nosferatu movies and put them in an order I thought would be fun to go through this month. I don't think I'll be able to get through all of them in the order I've prescribed for myself (I shared my idea with my wife who was quick to nope out), so I'm just watching what I can as I can instead.

Since, in the past two years, I've seen the main Nosferatus (Murnau, Herzog, Eggers), and the first two movies on my list were a rewatch of Murnau's Nossy and then a first-time watch of Shadow of the Vampire, I decided to skip the rewatch and go straight to this. I kinda loved it!

Shadow is a brisk and often funny 90 minutes that I absolutely think is worth someone's time if they think they'd be into such a thing. Seeing Murnau's Nosferatu first isn't necessarily a pre-requisite, but I think one's appreciation for Shadow would be greatly enhanced by going in that order.

Sure, Dafoe is incredible and Malkovich is good, but to me Suzy Eddie Izzard stole every scene they were in - what a joy! Udo Kier was also great.

I don't know, man...I just really clicked with it.