Class Minutes: GERM 3160

September 01, 2004

Meghan Greenslit

-Received handouts to accompany the two films listed below.

-Watched movie clips from “Das Cabinet des Dr. Caligari” (Wiene, 1920) and “Nosferatu, eine Sinfonie des Grauens” (Murnau, 1922).

-The Expressionistic and Formalistic movements of the times are reflected in both films, though in different ways.

-Both films reflect the pessimistic attitude of the times caused by the widespread human suffering following World War I.

“Das Cabinet des Dr. Caligari” (Wiene)

** This film is considered a horror film that would influence numerous horror films in the years to come, including “Nosferatu” and “Metropolis.”

Plot

Dr. Caligari is a psychiatrist in control of a “monster” (Cesare), whom Dr. Caligari uses to do his “dirty work;” i.e. to go on murderous rampages.  Cesare spares one victim, Jane, and kidnaps her rather than killing her. At the conclusion of the film, we learn that everything we have just watched was merely a hallucination of the narrator, Francis.  Everyone whom we thought was dead is actually alive, and Dr. Caligari is in actuality a good character.

-The film’s expressionism is exhibited through the exaggerated sets, costumes, and distorted point of views of the characters.

-The film contains multiple scenes that would become cliché’s that would be used again and again throughout the history of film, such as the “monster” being unable to kill the beautiful woman (Jane) while her father and brother hear nothing, enabling the monster to get away just in time.

-The original story wanted us to question authority…But then a frame was added and the one telling the story turned out to be the crazy one…thus, a tale warning us about authority becomers one which supports authority, the doctor.

-A major theme of the film is insanity, which can be paralled to the insanity of war.

“Nosferatu” (Murnau)

Plot

This is a variation of the vampire story commonly known as “Dracula.”  Thomas Hutter travels to Transylvania and encounters Count Orlock.  Hutter escapes an attack from the Count. The Count’s presence coincides with deadly outbreaks of disease, which kill people simultaneously along with the Count.  Hutter’s wife Nina discovers that only a woman pure of heart can kill the vampire, and she sacrifices herself for the sake of the greater good of saving many lives.

-Expressionism is displayed in this film through the recurring shadows of Nosferatu that we see on screen.

-The film contains a seductive element, but is not about sexuality as many of the traditional Dracula tales and their spin-off movies are (i.e. Interview With the Vampire, Dracula).  Its themes include the battle between good and evil, disease, the power of love, etc.

-The element of disease in the film can be related to the devastating influenza outbreak that killed twenty million people worldwide, including thousands of Germans during that time.

-One of the first films to make extensive use of location shooting, while also using location to reflect some of the film’s themes.

-Watched a movie clip from “Metropolis” (Fritz Lang, 1927)

This movie was made when Germany’s economy was beginning to pick up after the many years of unrest following World War I.  The film reflects the emerging social statuses present during the time…the “have’s” who lived on top of the city, and the “have-not’s” who lived on the bottom of the city.  Multiple versions of the movie have been released, most recently in 1980, all containing different musical scores.  The different musical scores illustrate how a film’s music can invoke different feelings and add/ease tension in the viewer.

***All three films are considered silent films, yet only because musical scores were not worked into the films.  Instead, when these films were originally released, music was often played at the theatre, and each theatre could potentially play different music (i.e. live piano, a taped recording, etc). The film’s directors didn’t add sound as to create characterization.  Today, film director’s know the importance of the psychology of fear or other emotions evoked through sound, and understand the need for all of the viewer’s senses to be stimulated, avoiding shiftiness and short attention spans of the typical movie watchers of today.

One of the reasons for adding music to silent era films was to relieve the tedium and eeriness of watching action taking place entirely in silence.

**Remember that we have no class on Monday, September 06…Wednesday, September 08, Writing Assignment #1 is due…Monday, September 13 have a topic for the paper.