F.W. Murnau’s unauthorized adaptation of Dracula created the visual language of vampire cinema. By moving horror out of gothic castles and into the real world, he made the supernatural feel terrifyingly plausible. Max Schreck’s rat-like Count Orlok is an icon of pestilence, far removed from later romanticized vampires. The film’s use of shadows, location shooting, and negative film effects established an eerie atmosphere that defined the genre. It remains a masterpiece of German Expressionism, embodying the pure, primal fear of the unknown.