So, here’s the deal: We’re in Germany, around 1838. Thomas Hutter, who’s just gotten hitched to his lovely wife Ellen, gets sent on this work trip by the real estate company he works for. His destination? A remote spot out in the Carpathians. Sounds cool, right? Well, not for long.

The moment Thomas sets foot there, nightmares start messing with him big time. The locals are kinda weird too—with their strange and brutal customs—and to make things even creepier, a driver-less carriage takes him off to Count Orlock’s castle.

Things get really sketchy when Count Orlock wants him to sign some contract written in an ancient language nobody understands. Thomas eventually figures out Count Orlock is no ordinary dude but an undead one! Freaked out but helpless, Thomas hides away in his room.

Meanwhile, Count Orlock isn’t hanging around—he’s off to Wisborg with plans of his own because he has this creepy obsession with Ellen and wants her bad. As if that wasn’t enough trouble already, our undead pal spreads a gnarly plague through Wisborg as his cover-up act!

It ends up being a race against time as Orlock gives Ellen three days to fall under his eerie spell. Twist alert: It all seems like Ellen might’ve somehow drawn this Dracula wannabe into town—that her deep desires sparked all this chaos we see today (according to good old Nosferatu).

But then again maybe she was dealing with society’s bottled-up stuff just breaking loose! Even when she clearly needs help—what do experts like Dr. Sievers say? Just wear a tighter corset; that’ll fix everything… or will it?
Okay, let’s break this down into something more relaxed and chatty:

So, there’s Ellen, who’s got a bit of an identity puzzle going on—she’s both a mermaid and a saint. This mix shows off a powerful kind of femininity that can take on monsters, but she’s dealing with a bunch of societal pressures that hold her back. It’s kinda like what Eggers explored in his first movie, The Witch. There, the story had a different ending, but it also focused on the idea of women’s struggles.

Now, onto Ellen’s story—she dreamt about this vampire during her teen years. Later on, she meets him for real. Her nightmares settled down until her husband ignored her and left her home alone. He’s actually a good guy who’s just trying to deal with society’s baggage himself. Still, that’s when the danger creeps back in.

The film’s take seems to be that desires get risky only when they’re hidden away in the dark. By letting them out into the open and embracing them, they lose their threat. Willem Dafoe’s character adds to all this mystery; he’s kind of like Van Helsing but more into mystical things. He tells Ellen that back in ancient times she would’ve been respected as someone wise instead of being stuck at home with kids.

Eggers does an amazing job putting all these elements together in his unique style!
This new take on Murnau’s original film vibe is pretty cool. The director loves frontal shots where actors look right into the camera. Sometimes, there are quick cuts to shake things up, while other times, they use fancy camera moves that really bring scenes to life. Eggers sticks with his usual director of photography, Jarin Blaschke, who’s all about playing with shadows and giving us washed-out but stunning images. The music? Oh boy! It’s wild and reminds you of the dramatic tunes in silent movies. That’s thanks to Robin Carolan.

Costumes and set design fit perfectly with this artistic vision. Actors really bring it to another level; like Lily-Rose Depp who got training from a Japanese Butoh dance choreographer for her role—talk about dedication! Then there’s Bill Skarsgård—he’s unrecognizable again but in a great way. Don’t expect fangs this time around; he looks more like a weathered corpse with battle scars but yep, still got that mustache.

Willem Dafoe is also here having a ton of fun with his role—a totally different character than what you’d expect from past films. His guy isn’t called Bulwer anymore; he’s Albin Eberhart von Franz, which nods to both Albin Grau from the original flick and Marie-Louise von Franz, a Jungian psychologist who was into fairy tales and alchemy stuff.

Overall, it’s quite an intriguing mix!
Lawless takes its time, going on longer than you’d expect. It doesn’t really mix things up like the original did, so don’t go in expecting a big twist. Once you get past the new prologue, it pretty much follows the predictable style you’d expect if you’re familiar with Eggers’ films.