Expressionism: The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari

 

My favorite scene from the movie is when Dr. Calagari says that Cesare can predict the future. Then, Alan asks how long he will live and Cesare answers, “You will die at dawn”.  Alan was terrified. In other words, Alan’s eyes grew twice its size in less than 5 seconds, his entire body was paralyzed and his face was totally perplexed. In the same way, the simultaneous shock between his face and his body was the best example of expressionism that I saw in the entire movie. My interpretation of the scene is the absolute power that Dr. Calagari has over Cesare. In other words, Calagari's power over Cesare is strong enough that Cesare killed Alan just to show to the public that his sleepwalker's predictions are totally accurate. In like manner, I chose that scene because I love Alan’s expression and at the same time I fully understand his reaction. I think that scene goes along pretty well with the topic (expressionism) and the power of German military force.