By Greta Bjornson

Nosferatu dazzled us with its hauntingly tagic story late last year, but decades before, Shadow of the Vampire told a similar gothic tale. The two films share cast member Willem Dafoe and much of the same basic plotline, but Shadow of the Vampire has a key twist: It’s a movie about the making of a movie. John Malkovich stars as ruthless director F. W. Murnau, while Dafoe both delights and disgusts as Max Schreck, a mysterious method actor tapped to play vampire Count Orlock in the film Nosferatu, which Murnau and his team are adapting from Bram Stoker’s Dracula. At some points terrifying and others hilarious, Shadow of the Vampire strikes an odd tone, but seeing Dafoe hissing and clicking his horrifically long nails together will never fail to entertain.

Photo: Everett Collection