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Das Cabinet des Dr. Caligari. (1920)
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Overview
User Rating:
Director:
Writers:
Release Date:
19 March 1921 (USA)
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Tagline:
You must become Caligari. more
Plot:
Dr. Caligari's somnambulist, Cesare, and his deadly predictions. full summary | full synopsis
Plot Keywords:
Somnambulist
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Asylum
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Murder
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Fair
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Diabolical
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NewsDesk:
(10 articles)
Blu-ray Review: The General
(From Rope Of Silicon. 15 December 2009, 2:09 AM, PST)
Nicolas Cage: The Hollywood Interview
(From The Hollywood Interview. 19 November 2009, 11:43 PM, PST)
(From Rope Of Silicon. 15 December 2009, 2:09 AM, PST)
Nicolas Cage: The Hollywood Interview
(From The Hollywood Interview. 19 November 2009, 11:43 PM, PST)
User Comments:
Discovering Silent Film...
more (137 total)
Cast
(Complete credited cast)| Werner Krauss | ... | Dr. Caligari | |
| Conrad Veidt | ... | Cesare | |
| Friedrich Feher | ... | Francis (as Friedrich Fehér) | |
| Lil Dagover | ... | Jane Olsen | |
| Hans Heinrich von Twardowski | ... | Alan (as Hans Heinrich v. Twardowski) | |
| Rudolf Lettinger | ... | Dr. Olsen |
Additional Details
Also Known As:
Das Kabinett des Doktor Caligari (Germany) (alternative spelling)
The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari (USA)
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The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari (USA)
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Parents Guide:
Runtime:
71 min | France:78 min | Spain:50 min | USA:67 min | USA:51 min (video version)
Country:
Color:
Black and White (tinted)
Aspect Ratio:
1.33 : 1 more
Sound Mix:
Certification:
Germany:18 (1920) |
Finland:K-15 (new rating: 2001) |
Finland:K-16 |
France:U |
Australia:PG |
Germany:12 (bw) (1964, 1995) |
Spain:7 |
Sweden:15 |
USA:Unrated |
Canada:14 (Nova Scotia) |
Canada:G (Quebec) |
Canada:PG (Alberta/Manitoba/Ontario) |
UK:U (video rating) (1993) |
UK:A (original rating)
Filming Locations:
Company:
Fun Stuff
Trivia:
Finnish censorship certificate T-11308 (video) delivered on 9-9-1993.
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Goofs:
Miscellaneous: In most prints, many of the shots have a bar across the top of the frame resembling the bottom edge of the same frame. This flaw may have been present in the original version.
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Quotes:
[first lines]
Man in garden: Spirits surround us on every side... they have driven me from hearth and home, from wife and child.
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Man in garden: Spirits surround us on every side... they have driven me from hearth and home, from wife and child.
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Movie Connections:
Edited into People Who Die Mysteriously in Their Sleep (2004) (V)
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FAQ
Could this movie be considered the first zombie movie?A Note Regarding Spoilers
How much sex, violence, and profanity are in this movie?
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more (137 total)
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It struck me last night that I've never seen a serious silent film. Everyone's seen a silent comedy: Charlie Chaplin, Buster Keaton, the Keystone Cops... They've all been immortalized in the minds of every film viewer, and I enjoy them as much as anyone. But it seems a strange and almost disrespectful lack to never have seen anything but comedy; so many silent films were created, and the only ones I've seen starred waddling tramps.
It was partially for that reason that I rented this movie. I had read about it on a film review site (the name of which escapes my memory) and decided it was worth the half-hour drive to the video store. The basic premise is that of a man relating a story that happened to him and his friends - their unnerving discovery of a crazed mountebank, Dr. Caligari, and his prophetic sleepwalker. It follows a series of murders and growing madness, keeping you in constant suspense and confusion until the very last scene.
There's a period of adjustment when watching it - unfortunately necessary for a modern audience. The titles seem too slow. The camera seems to hold on scenes too long. The makeup on the actors' faces seem ghostly and horrible - even on the hero.
But before long, the movie has you in its grip. You spend time staring at the architecture - buildings, doors, and windows that would have been funny in a Dr. Seuss book. In the film, they make you uneasy. The whole atmosphere is of a world gone wrong; like a dream worthy of Salvador Dalí. Nothing is square or straight. The buildings loom in on you; windows sweep upward, slanted or curved; doors are obscenely angled holes beckoning you to enter and be trapped inside.
Throughout, the story defies expectations. Small plot twists confuse and mislead you until the final surprise, completely tearing down everything you thought the movie was about. Strange shadows and shots from inside alleys paint the film's world as something terrible, never allowing you a normal look at the village, never allowing you to enjoy the quaintness of it. Through it all, the grinning, hunched figure of Dr. Caligari hangs in your mind, pushing out rational thought.
The movie is well worth your time; there's a certain pleasure in trying to capture the feeling of terror an early audience, unaccustomed to the visual effects we see every day, would have had the first time they saw this movie. It's an intellectual terror in the grand old style, giving you the same thrill you get from reading Frankenstein or Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. At the risk of sounding cliché: two thumbs up!