“Nosferatu”

Robert Eggers is one of those directors that always puts out exactly the movie he wants. I’m not saying that as a comment on his professionalism or his attitude, I’m saying that because he clearly has the ability to shut down naysayers. If he didn’t, we’d never get the archaic dialogue of 2015’s “The Witch” or the grainy imagery of 2019’s “The Lighthouse.” Here’s another idea that must have sounded ludicrous to his financial backers: a remake of a groundbreaking vampire film from over 100 years ago, a film whose legendary status makes it practically untouchable. The original came out five years before groundbreaking talkie “The Jazz Singer,” and there must have been a fear that Eggers’ take on the material would be about as well-received as the 1980 Neil Diamond version of that film (which is to say not well). But because Eggers puts out only what he wants, we have this sexually-tinged horror movie competing with Christmas blockbusters at the box office, and admirably holding its own.