Nosferatu: A Symphony of Horror
Technically my first "favorite film of the year" is a bit of a cheat because it wasn't released in the United States until 1929. It's German release was 1922 though and most movie websites list that as its year. In 2020 we are lucky to be able to see this film at all as it was ordered destroyed after the filmmaker lost a lawsuit with the family of Bram Stoker. It seems that changing the Vampire's name to Count Orlok (among other minor changes) wasn't enough to avoid a clear comparison to Stoker's opus Dracula.
Simply put, this movie is a treat. Murnau's masterful directing and Max Shreck's brilliant portrayal of the cursed count make this one of the few silent films I would recommend to even casual movie fans. Shreck is so convincing as the Count that many moviegoers of the day (and conspiracy theorists of modern times) believed he was actually a vampire. The 2000 film Shadow of the Vampire actually takes this theme and runs with it in its fictionalized retelling of the filming of Nosferatu.
This film is not "scary" in the same vein as modern horror films, but it is certainly haunting. Predating the cliches that we have come to expect with Dracula and vampires, this movie seems to genuinely believe in its story. This story of Count Orlok is much more docudrama than fairy tale. The title cards and dated effects only add to the feeling of being transported to another time and place where vampires are real.
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