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Shadow of the Vampire |
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SCORE: 3½
Shadow of the Vampire contains an
extraordinary performance from Willem Dafoe. If members of the Motion
Picture Academy actually see Shadow of the Vampire, then Dafoe is
virtually assured a nomination for Best Actor or Best Supporting
Actor.
Dafoe plays actor Max Schreck. Schreck
played the vampire in F. W. Murnau's silent classic Nosferatu. But,
Shadow of the Vampire isn't interested in a factual account of the
making of Nosferatu. The twist here is that Schreck is a real
vampire. And, worse than that, director Murnau (John Malkovich) knew
it when he was cast.
It's an intriguing premise. How far will Malkovich
go to make his movie authentic? What is Dafoe's motivation to star in
a movie? The director and the vampire use each other for their own
personal goals.
It's hard to believe that anyone could
upstage John Malkovich, but Dafoe does. As Schreck, he is equal parts
revolting and funny. You see, only Malkovich knows Schreck's secret.
The crew thinks of Schreck as a mystery who refuses to get out of
character during filming. This leads to a fascinating scene where
members of the crew "play along" with Schreck and ask him questions
about being a vampire. The change that comes over Schreck is
intriguing. Ask him a straight question and you get a straight
answer. In the middle of the conversation, Dafoe grabs a bat out of
mid-air and begins to feed. The cast members are left shaking their
heads, muttering "what a great actor." Yes, indeed.
Even though Dafoe steals the show,
Malkovich is the central character. The movie is about his obsession
with creating Nosferatu. Shadow of the Vampire is a sly tale, and one
of the best movies of 2000.
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