Since Robert Eggers arrived on the scene with The Witch in 2015, it was obvious that we were in the presence of the young master of the genre. The Lighthouse and The Northman were also well-received by critics, but now, in 2024, a lifelong passion project is finally coming to fruition. Eggers' Nosferatu is, in my opinion, one of the best films of the year, regardless of genre. That is certainly the most terriblebut I'm afraid that being a major "Horror Movie" it will once again be shut out of major awards discussions. The Academy Awards, for example, notoriously overlooked horror filmsa real shame when you consider how many incredible performances and brilliant cinematic achievements can be found in the genre. I was recently given the opportunity to sit down one-on-one with Eggers, so I asked him, point-blank, what did he think they were so afraid of?

"I just think that because of the history of genre movies that were originally often relegated to B-movies, I think it's just something that people haven't fully grasped to see as something important," he explains. "We know it's important to explore the darkness in humanity, so there's great value in expressing what it's like to be human with other people by seeing the things we don't necessarily see, but that can be difficult." . This stigma is well-documented, and that's exactly why there was a push a few years ago "elevated horror" to be its own subgenre because the filmmakers knew that the general viewer perceives horror films as nothing more than blood and gore.

It's a shame, because that misconception may be why they, and many others, miss out on a film as lush and haunting as Nosferatu.

Vampires are such fascinating monsters to study because while the term "vampire" is colloquially used as an insult (so much so that What We Do in the Shadows introduces literally energy vampire in the form of Colin Robinson), if a person were asked what monster they would be if given the choice... you'd be hard-pressed to find someone who wasn't immediately drawn to being a vampire. "I think sometimes when vampires and witches and werewolves are involved ... for people with quote-unquote 'good taste,' it becomes trivial," Eggers tells me.

"Although these are the kind of archetypal stories that keep getting told over and over again because they resonate. I mean, it's the same reason why King Lear and Oedipus are told over and over again. Again, he's right. According to the Guinness Book of Records, Count Dracula is the most portrayed literary character in film. He's a key figure in the entertainment world, yet so many people can't seem to get past the "horror" stigma.

Immortality is already a tempting concept, but vampires are also undoubtedly the sexiest monsters. In the case of the classic lesbian vampire—as portrayed through directors like Jesus Franco, Harry Kummel, and Roger Vadim—it often involves gorgeous gowns, gorgeous jewelry, and a rotating roster of gorgeous wives. Sorry, werewolves and witches, but the fengbangers win again, and Eggers agrees.

"It's interesting because, as the cinematic vampire in particular has evolved over the course of the 20th and 21st centuries, the 'pictorial outsider' species has become the number one vampire," he explains. "And we went from scary vampires to vampires against heroes to Edward Cullen, but I like vampires who have to live in darkness and can't shine (laughs).” This love is well portrayed in Nosferatu, as Bill Skarsgård's Count Orlok spends much of the film cloaked in darkness, seducing his victims into submission from the shadows.

"I think the power of a vampire is in the demonic side and it's in the shadows," Eggers says, "and I've been into vampires since I was a kid." As he grew up, he found the language to explain his obsession. "There had to be something appealing about the taboo nature of sex and death that I wasn't allowed to talk about and didn't really understand as a kid, but there's something about that power of those two things together that I think makes a vampire very attractive, even in 'Twilight'.

Despite my open disdain for the Twilight franchise as a teenager, I've grown to be very defensive of those who love the seriesbecause after all, my preference for dark, brooding, hedonistic vampires should have no bearing on whether or not honest vampires popular with pre-teens can exist. But on a personal level, Eggers tells me, he doesn't want to live alongside the traditional vampires of Bram Stoker or Sheridan Le Fanu. "I don't think I'd want to live in any vampire movies," he jokes, "but I think some of Anne Rice's vampires seem to be having a good time for a while."

Nosferatu Awakens hits theaters on December 25, 2024.