Review of Vampire in Venice

I have very fond memories of Hertzog's Nosferatu from last year's Spooky Season, a film that I have now come to prefer over the silent original. Unfortunately, Nosferatu in Venice is an unholy mess, it's a monumental muddle with flashes of brilliance, but it's rendered bereft of any coherency. Despite the script's ambitions, the dialogue is often poor if not ridiculous but often benefits from the delivery and halfway decent performances from Christopher Plummer and Donald Pleasance. Other areas of notability include the brisk pace of the film, Augusto Caminito's direction and Tonino Nardi's cinematography which captures the canals and Gothic architecture to great effect and a passable score from Luigi Ceccarelli, although the use of Vangelis' mask is what really stands out. As for Kinski, he completely sinks the film, certifying that he is indeed genuine scum. Just some of his antics in this film include: causing multiple directors to quit, refusing to wear his makeup or the fangs and sexually assaulting multiple people, footage of which is included in the film... Jesus Christ. Nosferatu in Venice is anything if not ambitious. Confusing and scattershot, with some awkwardly constructed scenes and goofy editing choices, though the atmosphere of Gothic dread certainly helps somewhat leaving it as an oddly poetic, if completely nonsensical, take on vampirism.