The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari

Hi! Our first film we watched in class this semester was The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari. This film was definitely different and not like anything I have watched before. While watching  this film I could see the limitations of technology that filmmakers had during this time. In this film there was no talking, there were only words on a screen that you would have to read. It was a challenge for myself to keep engaged in the film because even though there were words on the screen, they would first show the scene and the characters mouthing words to each other and then it would take several seconds for the words to pop up on the screen to see what they were saying to each other. Even though there was no talking in the film, the filmmakers did include music which at times helped keep me engaged because the music was well synced up to what was going on in the film. I thought the filmmakers did a good job on using what they had to create certain scenes throughout the film to make it look like a town, a fair, and also an asylum. I would not probably watch this film again but I am glad I watched this because this film gave me an opportunity to see how movies were made back in the 1920s with the little technology and opportunities they had to make films.

1. What is the essential story? The essential story is about when Francis and his friend

Alan meet Dr. Caligari at a carnival.  Dr. Caligari knows a somnambulist named Cesare who

predicts Alan's death. Alan was found dead the next morning while the main suspect of his death was

Cesare. 

2. How does the film tell its story? The film begins in the present time of Francis telling his story of how he met Mr. Caligari in the form of a flashback. Then the film ends in the present time of Francis being in the insane asylum. 

3. What conventions of cinematic storytelling did it use? In this film they used music to help with some of the storytelling by the music getting louder and faster when something thrilling was about to happen. Since there was no talking in the film the actors had to be dramatic with their fascial expressions to convey the message to the audience how they were feeling when telling the story through words on the screen. 

4. Explain the final "plot twist". The final plot twist was actually just a delusion Francis have had. He is actually in an insane asylum along with Jane and Cesare. 

5. How does the final plot twist comment upon cinematic storytelling?The final plot that came up in cinematic storytelling was the music which made you wonder what was really going on until you ended up back to the present of Francis actually being in the asylum and just having a delusion. 

6. What do the set designs say about early filmmaking? The set design tells us that our films today are much more advanced than what they had then.  

7. What do the set design imply about stories and storytelling? The set design is important for many films being that it helps keep the audience attention andalso helps entertain them . In this film since there was no talking it was crucial to have a good set design to help keep the audience engaged and also be able to have a visual description of wherecertain scenes took place. 

8. How do the answers to questions 6 and 7 move us to contemplate the cultural relevance of this film? Watching this film helped me become more aware of how much filmmaking has grown over the time.This film also makes me appreciate the films that are made now because of how much technological advancements have grown over time. 

9. If you had to think about a more modern, 20th century film with traces to Caligari, what would they be? Why? A film that has some traces to Caligari is the film Smile, being that it had a plot twist at the end and was also a horror movie.

10. How do questions about the reliability of a narrator suggest meaning, cultural relevance, and the nature of film?

Questions help the narrator take a deeper dive into their film and bring up questions on how this will

relate to the audience that they are aiming to reach.