Nosferatu
Murnau's unauthorized adaptation
Nosferatu is a vampire, specifically the kind depicted in the influential 1922 German silent film of the same name.
The word has become synonymous with a gaunt, rat-like, monstrous vampire—distinct from the suave, aristocratic type later popularized by Dracula adaptations.
Though sometimes claimed to derive from Romanian folklore, the term's origins are murky and may have been invented or misremembered by Bram Stoker, who used it in his novel *Dracula*.
Deceased yet animate
- bloodsuckerOrganism feeding on plasma
- fangsSharp piercing teeth
- immortalCannot die
- nocturnalActive during darkness
creature · predator · folklore · supernatural · cursed · feeding · victim · infection
Person from Bucharest's country
- GreekOf Athenian origin
- undeadDeceased yet animate
- SerbianOf or from Serbia
- BulgarianOf or from Sofia's country
folklore · Slavic · supernatural · linguistic · disputed · origin · unclean · devil
Producing no sound
- 1922Early twenties year
- German ExpressionismDistorted, emotionally intense art movement
- shadowLight blocked by object
- unauthorizedNot officially permitted
Stoker · public domain · remake · cinematography · intertitles · chiaroscuro · Bremen · Ellen
Without hair on head
- pointed earsEars tapering to tips
- gauntLean from deprivation
- skeletalOf or like bones
- hunchedBent at spine
rodent-like · grotesque · shadow · silhouette · staircase · elongated · cadaverous · pale
undead
Deceased yet animate
- bloodsuckerOrganism feeding on plasma
- fangsSharp piercing teeth
- immortalCannot die
nocturnal · creature · predator · folklore · supernatural · cursed · feeding · victim · infection · plague
Romanian
Person from Bucharest's country
Bulgarian · folklore · Slavic · supernatural · linguistic · disputed · origin · unclean · devil · spirit
silent
Producing no sound
- 1922Early twenties year
- German ExpressionismDistorted, emotionally intense art movement
- shadowLight blocked by object
unauthorized · Stoker · public domain · remake · cinematography · intertitles · chiaroscuro · Bremen · Ellen · count
bald
Without hair on head
- pointed earsEars tapering to tips
- gauntLean from deprivation
- skeletalOf or like bones
hunched · rodent-like · grotesque · shadow · silhouette · staircase · elongated · cadaverous · pale · sunken eyes
- Horror FilmsThe Exorcist, Halloween, The Shining, Friday the 13th, Night of the Living Dead
- Silent Filmsilent films, silent era, silent comedy, Charlie Chaplin, Buster Keaton
- bloodsuckersmosquito, tick, flea, leech, bedbug
- Fictional VampiresLestat, Carmilla, Armand, Claudia, Edward Cullen
- Horror IconsFreddy Krueger, Jason Voorhees, Michael Myers, Leatherface, Chucky
- Movie MonstersGodzilla, King Kong, Frankenstein, werewolf, vampire
Nosferatumortal
Subject to death
life-giver · healer · human · the quick · life force
Nosferatuangel
Divine winged messenger
saint · Christ figure · guardian angel · holy spirit · seraph