Count Orlok, as depicted by Robert Eggers, and a photo of my late father, Richard Anstedt.

My father’s official cause of death was respiratory failure as a result of his condition.

If Count Orlok is immortal, how can he be dying? How are all of these humans so sure he is close to death unless they are brining him near it? He may be old or ancient, but nothing should have implied death–he merely said retirement. But, as an aristocrat, retirement from what? And why would he want to leave the area if he is a nobleman?

Due to his medical condition, my father could also not eat. The last I spoke with him, he figured he had about two weeks until he starved. That made this scene particularly disturbing.

Other depictions of Count Orlok.