Director Robert Eggers’s horror filmNosferatuhas captivated the world with its spellbinding journey into the world of vampires, magic, and the dark arts. Lily-Rose Depp’s character, Ellen Hutter, has received especially great attention in thisremake of 1922’sNosferatu. As the story makes her a much more prominent character, it puts a greater emphasis on her supernatural abilities and her relationship withNosferatu’svillainous Count Orlok.
Like the original film, this remake depicts Ellen with mystical powers that make her a figure of great interest toNosferatu’s bloodsucking Orlok. Such powers are depicted differently from the versions of Ellen found in Bram Stoker’sDraculaand the many other adaptations of it. Nevertheless,Ellen’s abilities make her a crucial part of the story, especially in Eggers’s adaptation, as they help the heroes defeat the evil vampire terrorizingNosferatu’s charactersonce and for all.
Ellen Grew Up With Ability To See The Future
In her first meeting with Willem Dafoe’s character, Professor Von Franz,Ellen revealed that she had the ability to see the future for several years. She claimed to have known what her Christmas presents would be before she opened them as a child. She even knew exactly when her mother would die. Her psychic gift isn’t outright stated until later in the film, but Ellen displays it in the first act ofNosferatu, stating that Thomas already had the job at Knock’s agency before he arrived there.
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Ellen’s powers remain a source of great mystery inNosferatu. However, as an expert in the mystical field,Von Franz claimed that somnambulists like Ellen often possess this psychic ability, which he describes as"second sight into the borderland.“He knows that as Ellen sleeps, her mind travels through the astral plane and connects with supernatural entities. Von Franz even hypothesized that Ellen has"always been highly conductive to these cosmic forces"that have surrounded her throughout her life, including Count Orlok.
How Ellen Has A Psychic Connection To Count Orlok
Ellen’s Psychic Gifts Drew Orlok To Her, Beginning Their Relationship
2024’sNosferatuopens with a depressed young Ellen praying for an angel or spirit to rid her of her loneliness. Thanks to her powers,Ellen establishes a psychic connection with the demon Count Orlok from across the continent,waking him from his slumber. After Ellen pledges herself to him, Orlok binds his spirit to hers in aviolent and shocking scene inNosferatu. Their spiritual union causes Ellen to live in deep"melancholy"for several years until she marries Thomas and breaks her dark pact with the vampire.
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But as Orlok returns to take Ellen back for himself in the present day, the latter senses him from afar as he travels from Transylvania to Wisborg. He also uses their psychic bond to stalk Ellen in her dreams,making her sleepwalk at night and experience violent seizures. Orlok even made her watch through his eyes as he sucked Thomas’s blood while they were still in his castle in Transylvania. As Orlok casts his shadow over Ellen’s mind, he outright possesses her body multiple times in the film, speaking to Von Franz during Ellen’s exorcism and taunting Thomas after he returns home to Wisborg.
Orlok’s Greatest Desire Was Also His Greatest Weakness
Image via Focus Features
After reading through Knock’s mystical book about the Nosferatu,Von Franz learned that a vampire like Orlok could be destroyed by a"maiden fair"that he finds so attractive.The villagers Thomas encountered in his travels clearly knew this as they offered a young woman to a local vampire that they killed in the middle of the night. The Professor knew Ellen could offer herself to Orlok and keep him in her embrace"until the first cockcrow,“ending the villain’s life in the rising sun and saving Wisborg from his wrath.
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As a result,Ellen used her psychic bond with Orlok to call him to her bedchamberfrom across Wisborg. Even when Orlok saw the sun rising, he couldn’t resist Ellen or her blood. As Ellen beckoned his gaze to her, Orlok remained with her until they died inNosferatu’sfinal scene. This is how Ellen succeeded in destroying Orlok in previous versions ofNosferatu, making the remake a faithful reimagining of the classic horror movie.
How Ellen’s Powers In Nosferatu Compare To Other Dracula Movies
Ellen’s Character Has Many Similarities And Differences In Other Dracula Movies
In 1922’sNosferatu,Ellen first develops her psychic connection to Orlok midway through the film. The Count isn’t even aware of Ellen’s existence until Thomas shows him a picture of her. As the evil vampire sucks Thomas’s blood, Ellen senses this and calls out to her husband, catching Orlok’s attention. The original movie doesn’t explain how Ellen has psychic powers. However, in 1979’sNosferatu the Vampyre, Lucy (as Ellen is called in the film) has prophetic nightmares of Dracula at the start of the film, establishing her supernatural powers before she senses him attacking her husband in Transylvania later on.
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In more faithful adaptations of Bram Stoker’sDracula, such as the 1992 film by Francis Ford Coppola, Ellen’s counterpart, Mina Harker,only develops a psychic link to the villainous vampire after he sucks her blood multiple times. Like Ellen, Mina is put into a trance-like state due to Dracula’s influence on her mind. However, the other protagonists hypnotize Mina and use her telepathic connection to Dracula to track the vampire’s movements back to his castle and destroy him.
The way Ellen overcomes Orlok’s spell and the torment he inflicts upon her and uses her gifts to destroy him proves that she is the true protagonist ofNosferatu.
In the end, 2024’sNosferatushows how great a character Ellen really is. Robert Eggers’s remake explores her extraordinary psychic gift in greater detail and shows it connecting her to Orlok even more. Though Lily-Rose Depp’s Ellen differs from iterations in previous films, including the originalNosferatu,her experiences with the paranormal add greater depth to her character in the remake. The way Ellen overcomes Orlok’s spell and the torment he inflicts upon her and uses her gifts to destroy him proves that she is the true protagonist ofNosferatu.
Nosferatu
Cast
Nosferatu is a remake of the 1922 silent film of the same name from director F. W. Murnau. Robert Eggers is crafting his own version of the story for the reboot as writer and director, with Bill Skarsgård stepping into the shoes of Count Orlok. Nosferatu tells the tale of a young woman who falls victim to a vampire utterly infatuated with her.
