The Critiscm Behind the Cabinet of Dr.Caligari

As I read the New York Times articles, The Screen, A Cubistic Shocker, and Brought Into Focus, I began to notice the cultural impact that this movie has on the rest of the world. Since the articles were dated around the 20's, the genre of horror was relatively new to the world. The articles depicted that German cinema focused on moving pictures rather than in America, were it was growing out of silent films. In German films such as Caligari, you didn't need that much subtitles due to the acting potrayed in the films which instantly grabs you in the story. The Cabinet of Dr.Calagari is an example of a film that is so terrifying, so surreal, so interesting that you can't resist being glued to the screen watching it. The film does an excellent job of expressing the thoughts and visuals that came out of the German Expressionism movement at that time. Like how the Journeymen have stated, during this time German cinema was headed towards the advancement of moving pictures as an art form and because of this, it influenced many directors in America to film in a similar style. In my experience watching the film, I was still a little spooked even by today's standards with the horror films that have been produced. This theme of a madman's devotion to his creation (Cesare) has duplicated too many times to count making this film way ahead of it's time. One thing that i liked is that you didn't know what was gonna happen next and when you did, it made the experience even more thrilling. You could notice how the focus shots where it would show one person in front followed by another person behind him followed by another person behind him all in one shot was elaborately used in Citizen Kane. I wished they shined more light on Cesare for example when he was about to kill the woman when he suddenly stops himself from doing it. To me, Cesare just wants to be accepted, monster or not. I can go on and on about how this film influenced other films but if there's one thing this film is, it's without a doubt a film you must see.