A nod to Murnau, who'd be 132 today

 By Steve Evans

Remembering F. W. Murnau, German expressionist director born on this day in 1888. He is perhaps most famous for directing Nosferatu (1922), the original Dracula film. For my money, Faust (1926), pictured here, is his masterpiece. It is an adaptation of Goethe’s famous tale of a kindly man who sells his soul to the devil in exchange for curing his village of plague. Except nothing ever works out the way it’s supposed to. Stunning chiaroscuro cinematography, wild set designs and innovative special effects combine to create an eerie and irresistible film experience. Walt Disney shamelessly lifted several sequences for the Night on Bald Mountain climax of Fantasia (1940).

Murnau later immigrated to America and made three films before dying in Los Angeles in a car accident. His driver, a 14-year-old servant, crashed into a utility pole. Murnau was 42. More than a third of his cinematic output is lost to the ravages of time, but you can still see Nosferatu and Faust. And you should.

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