German Expressionism; The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari & Robert Weine

As we continue our curriculum, please access both this blog and your Google Classroom for important information and assignments while our district is closed.

Watch the following Crash Course video on German Expressionism. Take notes. Please watch this video before you view The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari.

Expressionism

“Why should an artist duplicate the real world when it already exists for everyone to see?”

• Expressionism begins in Europe around 1906 in painting and theatre
• Style is unrealistic, stylized
• Attention is often given to angles
• Depicts distorted perspectives
• Narrow, tall streets and buildings, odd angles (set pieces)
• Lighting is “dramatic”; Use of shadows
• Actors are grotesque, exaggerated make-up
• Dark, nightmarish tones & moods suggest horror
• Attempt to show the interior lives of characters through exteriors
• Expressionism influences Futurism (and Modernism)
• Expressionism influences Film Noir in the 1930’s (more on that later...)

Robert Weine's bio

• The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari – Robert Weine (director) 1919; You can find a full version of the restored film in our GOOGLE CLASSROOM.

Other films by Robert Weine include:

• Hands of Orlac (1924, trailer); Hands of Orlac (1924, fan review)
• Hands of Orlac (1924, full film--extra credit option)

Along with Robert Weine, other German filmmakers were making their mark during this time. This includes F.W. Murnau and Fritz Lang (but more on him later...)

Contemporary films that use expressionism in part or whole:

• The Abominable Dr. Phibes (1972, trailer & full film)
• David Lynch's Eraserhead (1977, trailer); David Lynch: Surrealist of Americana (short documentary)
• Guy Maddin's Careful (1992, Trailer); Guy Maddin documentary
• Francis Ford Coppola's Dracula (1992, trailer); the making of Dracula (Francis Ford Coppola)
• Shadow of the Vampire (2000, trailer)
• The Call of Cthulhu (2005, trailer)
• Pan's Labyrinth (2006, trailer), interview with Guillermo Del Toro

HOMEWORK: See our Google Classroom for assignments during MP3.