Dr. Caligari

I was thoroughly impressed by the cinematography and editing found in Dr. Caligari due to the level of technological advancement at the time. Without the ability to pan of zoom in, the creators simply used iris shots or cut to close ups. The iris shot in particular was of interest to me because the way the shot faded to black around the edges was often like the blinking of an eye. I felt like this technique contributed to the narrative aspect of the film as if it were Francis’ eye blinking before his next memory. I was thoroughly impressed by the acting as well. Without dialogue the actors had to convey a lot of emotion through there actions and I felt like they did an excellent job. The acting was definitely an exaggerated style but only as exaggerated as was necessary with cameras not as able to pick up on subtle emotions. After the movie, I was left slightly confused by the framing device. It was hard to tell at what point in time everything was happening. After reading Kracauer’s essay, however, I understood the purpose and plot much better. After reading about the decisions behind the framing device I am still undecided as to my feelings about it. I do not like that it seems to alter the original intentions of the writers but I do believe it makes the film more horrific as it presents the idea that this story that is so real to one person could have been all in his head. As a person who has not seen very much early cinema I really enjoyed learning about the process behind the film.