Universal Pictures
Warning spoilers ahead for the ending of "Nosferatu."
"Nosferatu," the 2024 remake of the classic 1922 horror movie, ends with a sensual act of self-sacrifice — which some viewers may find confusing.
The film tells the story of Thomas Hutter (Nicholas Hoult), an estate agent who must travel to a castle in the Carpathian mountains to complete the sale of a mansion in Germany for the mysterious Count Orlok (Bill Skarsgård).
Thomas soon discovers Orlok is a vampire who is obsessed with his wife, Ellen Hutter (Lily-Rose Depp).
While her husband is trapped in the castle miles away from home, Ellen is haunted at night by visions of Orlok, which send her into strange convulsions as if he's possessed her.
After Orlok makes his way to Germany, Ellen's situation worsens as he starts hunting her closest friends, and demands that she give herself to him as a lover. He even spreads a plague that decimates the city of Wisborg.
The film's dramatic ending reveals an older, deeper connection between Ellen and the Count, with the self-sacrifice as the crescendo.
Here's what it means.
Universal Pictures
The film starts with an ominous scene where a young Ellen calls to "a guardian angel, a spirit of comfort, a spirit of any celestial sphere, anything" to come end her deep loneliness that has sent her into a depression.
A monstrous version of Orlok appears, and Ellen convulses on the ground. A title card reads "years later…" and the story continues.
Ellen later tells her friend, professor Von Franz (Willem Dafoe), that she has always been able to tap into the supernatural and has clairvoyant abilities that allow her to predict future events, such as her parents' death.
This power enabled her to call out to Orlok and start their psychic, sexual relationship.
It emerges that Orlok requested Thomas to complete the sale of the mansion in person in order to trick him into signing divorce papers written in an unidentifiable language.
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Von Franz discovers an ancient book in the office of Orlok's servant, Herr Knock (Simon McBurney), which explains the only way to kill Orlok and end the plague is for a woman to sacrifice herself at night and distract the vampire from the sunrise.
Ellen agrees to sacrifice herself, but knows that her husband would not agree to the plan. Instead, Von Franz lies to Thomas that burning Orlok's coffin will kill him, and they head to the mansion.
While Thomas is away, Ellen leaves her window open for Orlok and welcomes him into her bed. They have sex while Orlok feasts on her blood, slowly killing her.
Her sacrifice might be confusing to viewers, but she does it to repent for starting the relationship and being indirectly responsible for the plague that Orlok unleashed on the city of Wisborg.
In doing so, she takes back her agency by refusing to be his victim any longer. She manipulates his obsession by giving him what he wants, knowing he won't be able to resist her.
Orlok is so distracted by feeding on Ellen that he doesn't realize the sun is starting to glare through the window. He lets out a chilling scream while blood pours from his eyes and mouth, and his body transforms into a hideous, shriveled corpse.
