Essay Instructions: Here is an example of your paper which received a solid A. I would like to have a paper of this quality, preferably focusing on various film techniques for the movie "Run Lola Run" again.
Germany?s Golden Age in film and cinematography was short-lived, lasting from about 1919 to 1933 when Hitler took over the German film industry. The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari rose to prominence during this period and continued to be an influential and seminal work of the German Expressionist era. Upon cursory examination, one might argue that it is just one of the mediocre silent, horror genres, which is unworthy of watching. However, it is truly an exemplary and representative film during the Golden age of German Expressionism. It is important to notice that various film techniques are used to depict an insane world. Through the use of narrative, mise-en-scene, and lighting and filming techniques and surprising twist at the end, The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari successfully depicts a world of madness, murder, and deceit.
To give a bit of overview, German artists, including filmmakers, believed that the ?world might look crazy because someone sees it that way or because it is that way, burdened with wordless meaning? (Mast & Kawin, 149). This concept and the techniques that were created to express these artists? thoughts and beliefs were soon dubbed Expressionism. German Expressionism employed several experimental, innovative techniques that helped to create a distinctive cinematic style and genre. These techniques and approaches include the use of chiaroscuro, or light and dark element; rahmenhandlung, or framing the narrative; expressionismus und film in which set design is meant to reflect the metaphysical and psychological state of characters; using depth to describe both the character and setting; the use of latent physiognomy; using animating objects; using abstractism to create distortion; using character styling and costuming; and the introduction and use of a doppelganger (Lindsey). A few of these top film techniques will be examined in depth to illustrate how these reflect the psychic of German people and historical background during 1920?s.
The first film technique that conveys the sense of insanity is chiaroscuro. It can be defined as ?the artistic arrangement of light and dark elements in a shot or in any pictorial composition? (Mast & Kawin, 679). In The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari, the use of chiaroscuro is exemplified through the use of abnormally extended shadows. In addition, lighting is used to create an uneasy feeling. It is interesting to note that this film was shot entirely indoors and was devoid of any natural light; because the film is devoid of sunlight, shadows that would normally be created by the sun have been painted onto the set pieces (Mast & Kawin, 151). Chiaroscuro is also used as in order to advance the film?s narrative. For example, when Alan is killed by Dr. Caligari and Cesare, his actual murder is not described directly, but rather the film implies that he was murdered by casting shadows against the wall that shows the altercation. Furthermore, chiaroscuro is an effective technique that is used because the play between lightness and darkness, which symbolizes the antagonism between good and evil, reality and fantasy, and sanity and insanity. This contrasting effect of chiaroscuro is useful in depicting a world of insanity.
Rahmenhandlung is another method in which the narrative is told and how it is framed within the film. This is especially important as the story has to be told without the aid of sound. In silent movies, framing is easier to understand than that in sound movies due to the use of title cards between scenes. The title cards also help to separate the narratives within the film. The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari?s narrative is told from the perspective of an insane asylum patient who fantasized that the entire story actually occurred. However, the end of the film reveals that it is just a figment of his imagination and that he is, in fact, not a reliable source of information (The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari). Since it is a silent movie, set design and caption are two important elements of narrating the story. The film shows the psychological state of Caligari with specific caption and set design as shown by strangely distorted walls and doors, fearful make-up of actors, maze-like streets, unevenly spaced stairs, and tall, tilted buildings of steeples. The film emphasizes such distortion of reality and insane world in one particular scene, when Alan reads the murder announcement on the wall, where Francis reads the placard on the wall of the insane asylum. It is interesting to note that Robert Wiene, the director of the film, inserted the caption ?DO MUSST CALIGARI WERDE? which means ?must become Caligari?. This unique caption is essentially a tool for showing the story is purely coming from Francis? delusion.
Another important film concept is the inspiration for the mise-en-scene in the film. The manner in which the set is constructed with its slanted lines and abstract art contribute to the feeling of uneasy and uncanny. Furthermore, because many elements are forced into a single shot or scene, the film creates a claustrophobic feeling. These elements help to create an aura of anxiety to the viewer. The latent physiognomy within the film is a product of Francis? imagination. The entire world where the events of his narrative take place is being depicted as distorted and abstract because of his false imagination. The film?s unnatural d?cor extends to the ?painted shadows on streets and stairs; the irregular, nonperpendicular chimneys, doors, and windows; the exaggerated heights of the furniture; and the boldly painted make-up? (Mast & Kawin, 151). It is worth pointing out that Dr. Caligari and Cesare are the only characters who have their faces covered with make-ups to indicate that they are sinister. These characters? make-up and costume help to separate them from the other characters within the film, which imply that they are behind all the chaos that has been afflicting the town. In addition, Expressionistic production set design plays a tremendous role in depicting the mood of 1920?s in Germany - the skepticism and hopelessness immediately after the World War I. For instance, the fact that police officers and other authority figures sit in unusually high chair in the film shows the historical consensus of how little respect the Germans have toward the authority and high class members in the Weimar Republic after the doomed ending of the war.
Last technique is the use of doppelgangers, which is any double or look-alike of a person. Doppelganger is possibly the most important element in the film?s narrative. In The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari there are two distinct worlds that can be analyzed; each world has the same characters, yet they behave in completely different ways. For example, in Francis? narrative, he is a protagonist and victim of Dr. Caligari. He believes Dr. Caligari is an evil force who manipulates Cesare to murder people, including his friend Alan, and the object of his affections, Jane. In reality, Dr. Caligari is not an evil man, but instead the director of the insane asylum where Francis is a patient. The characters in Francis? tale, with the exception of Dr. Caligari, are fellow patients. Also paralleled in Francis? tale is how he sees the world. While everything depicted in his tale is reflected in an abstract, distorted, and slanted world, the ?real? world is calm, structured, and devoid of dark shadows and the dangers that may be lurking behind each corner. The use of doppelganger is a perfect strategy since it contrasts sanity and insanity effectively.
German Expressionism was not only a major influence on Germany?s Golden Age of film, but also helped to inspire and define French and American film noir, which comes decade later. Film noir took many of the expressionist techniques and tropes to create feelings of anxiety and uncertainty. The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari is a definitive work of the German Golden Age of film, as well as a landmark German Expressionism. Furthermore, German Expressionist film does more than just convey a story ? it reflects the psychic of the contemporary people and the mood of post World War I period. Of course, there were many extreme skeptics of cinema at this time. For one, Wilhelm Stapel, who published Homo Cinematicus in 1919, warns those who watch this film. He might argue that there is an enormous danger in cinema as it distorts psychic of growing people. However, his argument is not persuasive enough if someone considers The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari. It is not an exaggeration to state the films that are made in this style are true works of art due to their elaborate sets, lighting techniques, and cinematographical effects.
