Brainwashed Minion Knock is the secondary antagonist of the 1922 horror film Nosferatu: A Symphony of Horror. He is an estate agent, Thomas Hutter's boss, and Count Orlok 's minion after being brainwashed by the latter.
Full Answer
Who is knock in Nosferatu?
Knock is a particularly fascinating figure in the framework of Nosferatu. The audience first comes to know Knock as the real estate agent who employs Thomas Hutter to finalize the deal with Count Orlok. Later, we learn that Knock is Orlok's minion, and has sent Hutter to retrieve him as part of a ploy.
What happened to the original Nosferatu?
The German courts ordered all prints and negatives of Nosferatu to be burned, in one of the first cases of capital punishment being waged against a film. However, by then, copies of the movie had been distributed throughout the world, and as one can guess, the fact that Nosferatu is such an iconic film means that it was not entirely lost.
Is a new Nosferatu movie in the works?
Also, Willem Dafoe played the secretly vampiric Schreck in 2000's Shadow of the Vampire, while an especially terrifying 1993 episode of Nickelodeon's Are You Afraid Of The Dark? depicted Nosferatu leaping off the screen and haunting an old marquee theater. However, it appears as though a new version of Nosferatu is in the works.
What is the best scene in Nosferatu?
Best scene is the vampire rising from Ellen's neck after realizing the cock has crowed. As the sun slowly advances on the houses across the street (visible from the window), the Nosferatu attempts to escape. In doing so, he passes the window and is trapped by the sunlight.
Why did Nosferatu lose forever?
But the original Nosferatu almost vanished into celluloid history, because its screenplay was an unauthorized blatant rip of Bram Stoker's Dracula. That author's estate successfully sued for copyright infringement, with the result that the producers declared bankruptcy.
What happened at the end of Nosferatu?
At the end of the film Nosferatu, Count Orlok is burned up by the sunlight after spending the entire evening with Ellen. In Stoker's Dracula, The sunlight was pretty much harmless to vampires. The idea of vampires being killed by sunlight has become very popular in the Vampire-verse.
Is Count Orlok a Dracule?
Count Orlok (German: Graf Orlok), commonly but erroneously known as Nosferatu, is the main antagonist and title character portrayed by German actor Max Schreck (1879–1936) in the silent film Nosferatu, eine Symphonie des Grauens (1922). He was based on Bram Stoker's character Count Dracula....Count OrlokGenderMale7 more rows
Why was Nosferatu almost destroyed?
Why the changes? It turns out that Prana Film, the production company, did not secure the rights to use Dracula. Despite their changes, Bram Stoker's widow, Florence Balcombe, was not happy about their little project. In fact, she waged a successful lawsuit wherein the Judge ordered all copies of the film destroyed.
Why did SpongeBob use Nosferatu?
And for those wondering: SpongeBob's switch-flicking vampire is called “Nosferatu” and not Count Orlok because Lender thought the film title was more recognizable, and more importantly, that it sounded better in the sing-songy tone we hear it in at the episode's end.
What animal is the werewolf in Nosferatu?
striped hyenaThe creature that they say is a werewolf, during the scene at the Inn, is actually a striped hyena.
Who is older Dracula vs Nosferatu?
Dracula, though written in the 1890s by Bram Stoker, is apparently set in a contemporary time period due to the appearance of modern amenities in London. Nosferatu, on the other hand, is set in a small German village in the 1830s.
Why is it called Nosferatu?
The name "Nosferatu" has been presented as an archaic Romanian word, synonymous with "vampire". However, it was largely popularized in the late 19th and early 20th centuries by Western fiction such as Dracula (1897), and the film Nosferatu (1922).
Can Nosferatu Shapeshift?
Powers & Abilities Shapeshifting: Biological. Orlok is capable of shifting his form to that of a wolf. In fact, the peasants he preys on even refer to him as a werewolf, not a vampire.
What kind of vampire is Nosferatu?
Nosferatu: A Symphony of Horror (German: Nosferatu – Eine Symphonie des Grauens) is a 1922 silent German Expressionist horror film directed by F. W. Murnau and starring Max Schreck as Count Orlok, a vampire who preys on the wife (Greta Schröder) of his estate agent (Gustav von Wangenheim) and brings the plague to their ...
How did the film Nosferatu survive being destroyed completely?
1922's Nosferatu is today regarded as a classic of the horror genre, and of silent film, but it was almost lost forever thanks to a lawsuit. 1922's Nosferatu is today regarded as a classic of the horror genre, and of silent film, but it was almost lost forever thanks to a lawsuit.
Is Nosferatu based on Dracula?
Nosferatu, F. W. Murnau's 1922 silent vampire film, begins with a declaration that it is adapted from Stoker's Dracula. But while Murnau borrowed the bones of Stoker's plot, he also made major changes. He gave all of the characters new names.
Why was Nosferatu destroyed?
^ "All copies of the cult classic "Nosferatu" were ordered to be destroyed after Bram Stoker's widow had sued the makers of the film for copyright infringement". 5 April 2017.
Who played Orlok in Nosferatu?
W. Murnau and starring Max Schreck as Count Orlok, a vampire with an interest in both a new residence and the wife ( Greta Schröder) of his estate agent ( Gustav von Wangenheim ).
What song is Nosferatu based on?
The 2018 album Thunderbolt by Saxon contains the song Nosferatu (The Vampire's Waltz) based on the film. The television miniseries adaptation of Stephen King 's Salem's Lot (1979) took inspiration from "Nosferatu" for the appearance of its villain, Kurt Barlow.
What is the theme of Nosferatu?
Nosferatu has been noted for its themes regarding fear of the Other, as well as for possible anti-Semitic undertones, both of which may have been partially derived from the Bram Stoker novel Dracula, upon which the film was based. The physical appearance of Count Orlok, with his hooked nose, long claw-like fingernails, and large bald head, has been compared to stereotypical caricatures of Jewish people from the time in which Nosferatu was produced. His features have also been compared to those of a rat or a mouse, the former of which Jews were often equated with. Orlok's interest in acquiring property in the German town of Wisborg, a shift in locale from the Stoker novel's London, has also been analyzed as preying on the fears and anxieties of the German public at the time. Writer Tony Magistrale wrote that the film's depiction of an "invasion of the German homeland by an outside force [...] poses disquieting parallels to the anti-Semitic atmosphere festering in Northern Europe in 1922."
When was Nosferatu premiered?
Nosferatu' s preview premiered on 4 March 1922 in the Marmorsaal of the Berlin Zoological Garden. This was planned as a large society evening entitled Das Fest des Nosferatu (Festival of Nosferatu), and guests were asked to arrive dressed in Biedermeier costume. The cinema premiere itself took place on 15 March 1922 at Berlin's Primus-Palast.
Where was Nosferatu's new Wisborg house?
In Lübeck, the abandoned Salzspeicher served as Nosferatu's new Wisborg house, the one of the churchyard of the Aegidienkirche served as Hutter's, and down the Depenau a procession of coffin bearers bore coffins of supposed plague victims.
Does Nosferatu have music?
^ While Nosferatu was intended to be shown with music like most other silent films of the era, most of the original score has been lost . As such, this version of the film does not have any audio.
Who is knock in Nosferatu?
The audience first comes to know Knock as the real estate agent who employs Thomas Hutter to finalize the deal with Count Orlok. Later, we learn that Knock is Orlok's minion, and has sent Hutter to retrieve him as part of a ploy. Knock turns out to be this film's stand-in for the fly-eating, lunatic asylum inmate Renfield.
What is the prison guard in Knock?
The prison guard is mainly presented as an ineffective representative of the government. He's incapable of containing Knock and therefore incapable of protecting his city from the evil that Knock's master will rain upon it.
What does Count Orlok stand for in Dracula?
Since Nosferatu 's producers did not bother obtaining permission from Bram Stroker's widow to adapt Dracula, they made some changes in a failed attempt to skirt potential copyright claims. Count Orlok, of course, stands in for Count Dracula. Orlok doesn't have a particularly aristocratic air, as direct F.W. Murnau clearly reveled in the opportunity to create a brand new, grotesque villain with terrible social skills, terrifyingly elongated physical features, and two rat-like teeth.
Who discovers the outbreak of the plague on his own ship?
We mainly know the ship's captain as the man who discovers the outbreak of the plague on his own ship. Knowing that even he will die, he ties himself to the ship's steering wheel as a final act.
Who is the stand in for Professor Van Helsing?
Bulwer is the stand-in for Professor Van Helsing here. Bulwer has none of Van Helsing’s extensive knowledge of vampirism and plays no part in the tracking down and dispatching of Count Orlok. Yet, he is the one that first realizes what evil is plaguing the city. His lecture on parasitism in the middle of the film does help flesh out one of the main themes of the film—the tension between the modern and the ancient—as his contemporary understanding of science uses the new biological worldview to shed light on an ancient physical impulse.
How to defeat a vampire in the book?
The book claims that the way to defeat a vampire is for a woman, who is pure in heart, to distract the vampire with her beauty, all though the night. Ellen opens her window to invite him in, but faints. When Hutter revives her, she sends him to fetch Professor Bulwer. After he leaves, Orlok comes in.
What does Orlok do when he accidentally cuts his thumb?
When hutter is eating dinner and accidentally cuts his thumb, Orlok tries to suck the blood out, but his repulsed guest pulls his hand away. Hutter wakes up to a deserted castle the morning after and notices fresh punctures on his neck, which he attributes to moesquitoes or spiders.
What does the last scene of Orlok mean?
Ellen lives just log enough to be embraced by her grief-stricken husband. The last scene shows Count Orlok's ruined castle in the Carpathian Mountains, symbolizing the end of Count Orlok.
How does Knock escape?
Knock, who had been committed to a psychatric ward, escapes after murdering the warden. The townpeople give chase, but he eludes them by climbing a roof, then using a scarecrow. Meanwhile, Orlok stares from his window at the sleeping Ellen. Against her husband's wishes, Ellen has read the book he found.
What happens to Orlok when he ties himself to the boat wheel?
Unaware of his danger, the captain becomes Orlok's next victim after he ties himself to the boats wheel. When the ship arrives in Wisbourg, Orlok leaves unobserved, carrying one of his coffins, and moves into the house he puchased. The next morning, when the ship is inspected, the captain is found dead.
Where does Hutter find the coffin in which Orlok is resting?
In its crypt, he finds the coffin in which Orlok is resting dormant. Hutter becomes horrified and dashes back to his room. Hours later, from the window he sees Orlok pilling coffins onto a coach then climbling into the last one before the coach departs.
Where does Hutter stop?
Nearing his destination in the Carpathian mountains, Hutter stops at an inn for dinner. The locals become frightned by the mere mention of Orlok's name and discourage him from traveling to his castle at night, warning of a werwolf on the prowl.
What is the plague in Nosferatu?
In Nosferatu, the plague is an evil that can destroy an entire population. It is portrayed as a reprisal of the bubonic plague that killed millions in the medieval times, but it also stands as a meditation on a different force that wreaked havoc in Europe much more recently.
Why does Orlock slurp blood from Hutter's hand?
The way he slurps blood from the cut on Hutter's hand seems to disturb Hutter mostly on account of the action's sensuality. At the end of the film, Orlock approaches Ellen in her bed, and while we know that he wants her blood, Murnau's direction suggests he seeks something else too.
What is Murnau's take on expressionism?
Murnau's take on German expressionism is not one based on set design and strange geometries, but one that portrays the world around the film as reflective of the film's genre. This take on expressionism plays out on a narrative level, with a constant tension between the late night and the early morning. The morning scenes are often ones focused on Ellen, from the opening, where she plays with the kitten in the garden, to the very end, when she keeps the vampire awake until daybreak. late-night scenes are the domain of the vampire, as that is when he preys on his victims and undertakes his travels. Hutter lives out this tension between night and morning, exhausted as the film goes from his own sleeplessness.
Why did Prana Films go bankrupt?
Prana Films was a short-lived production company, declaring bankruptcy right after Nosferatu was released, in order to avoid paying out a settlement to Bram Stoker's wife for copyright infringement. But the enterprise was developed with the intention of making occult films, and that theme is explored exquisitely in this one. Murnau developed that otherworldliness through special effects, such as the vampire levitating and vanishing. He also revels in the idea that an occult world is one just out of sight: creeping below the deck of a ship, inhabiting some castle seen from the distance, lurking in the abandoned building across the river.
What is Murnau's otherworldly idea?
He also revels in the idea that an occult world is one just out of sight: creeping below the deck of a ship, inhabiting some castle seen from the distance, lurking in the abandoned building across the river.
What are some of the most affecting shots in The Non-Human?
The Non-Human. Some of the most affecting shots in the film are Murnau's nature photography: shots the looming mountains and sprawling fields, of the horses running in fields and Hutter struggling to pass through a rocky river, or the choppy seas the ship traverses.
Is knock a sane character?
Knock is really only portrayed as somewhat sane while playing the role of realtor, but that veneer crumbles the second he is removed from his office. We come to see this business person as a raving lunatic, eating flies and ready to kill. Of course his master, the vampire Count Orlok, is a wealthy man.
Why was Nosferatu changed?
Nosferatu was a direct adaptation of Bram Stoker's novel Dracula, with names and references changed to avoid a copyright infringement lawsuit. Unfortunately, the makers of the film weren't ready for the sheer tenacity of the enemy they had made: Florence Balcombe, Stoker's widow.
Why was Nosferatu not widely viewed after its release?
The Medium piece does make a good point, though: Nosferatu wasn't widely viewed after its release due to it being destroyed via court order.
What does the name Prana mean in Nosferatu?
When Grau started the production company which made the film (named Prana Film after the Buddhist concept of "prana," meaning "breath" or "life force"), it was meant to focus on films solely of a spiritual or supernatural nature.
Which is better, Nosferatu or Dracula?
Renowned critics consider Nosferatu better than any official Dracula film. At the end of the day, the most iconic depiction of Dracula will always be Bela Lugosi in Todd Browning's 1931 film by Universal — the cape, the widow's peak, the thick Eastern European accent.
Where was Nosferatu premiered?
Nosferatu's premiere involved an elaborate costume party at the Berlin Zoo. For a work of art as atmospheric and macabre as Nosferatu, Grau and Murnau couldn't simply host the world premiere in a movie theater. Instead, the film was premiered with the kind of event one wishes more horror movies launched with — an epic costume party at a zoo.
Was Nosferatu a risky venture?
Though Nosferatu is considered a cinematic milestone today, at the time, it was a risky moneymaking venture that had cost a ton to promote. When Bram Stoker's widow decided to take legal action against Prana Film, producer Albin Grau had only a few options when it came to avoiding lawsuits.
Is Nosferatu a rip off of Dracula?
Many critics will point out that Nosferatu is a rip-off of Dracula. And to be fair, that's exactly what it is. Before the widespread popularity of Bram Stoker's novel, vampires were folk legends rather than part of pop culture. But apparently, while Albin Grau wanted to film Dracula, he had become interested in vampires even before reading the novel, when he was stationed in Serbia during World War I.
Overview
- Knock is the secondary antagonist of the 1922 horror film Nosferatu: A Symphony of Horror. He is an estate agent, Thomas Hutter's boss, and Count Orlok's minion after being brainwashed by the latter. He was based on Renfield from the original Dracula novel, which the film is an unofficial adaptation of. He was portrayed by the late Alexander Granac...
Plot
Cast
Themes
Production
In 1838, in the fictional German town of Wisborg, Thomas Hutter is sent to Transylvania by his employer, estate agent Herr Knock, to visit a new client named Count Orlok who plans to buy a house across from Hutter's own home. While embarking on his journey, Hutter stops at an inn where the locals become frightened by the mere mention of Orlok's name.
Music
• Max Schreck as Count Orlok
• Gustav von Wangenheim as Thomas Hutter
• Greta Schröder as Ellen Hutter
• Alexander Granach as Knock
Deviations from the novel
Nosferatu has been noted for its themes regarding fear of the Other, as well as for possible anti-Semitic undertones, both of which may have been partially derived from the Bram Stoker novel Dracula, upon which the film was based. The physical appearance of Count Orlok, with his hooked nose, long claw-like fingernails, and large bald head, has been compared to stereotypical caricatures of Jewish people from the time in which Nosferatu was produced. His features have …
Release
The studio behind Nosferatu, Prana Film, was a short-lived silent-era German film studio founded in 1921 by Enrico Dieckmann and occultist artist Albin Grau, named for the Hindu concept of prana. Although the studio's intent was to produce occult- and supernatural-themed films, Nosferatu was its only production, as it declared bankruptcy shortly after the film's release.