The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari
1920 · Movie · NR · 77 min · ★ 7.9 · 91% critics
In a frame of mind that turns into dread, a young man remembers the terrifying ordeal he and his fiancée faced. He and a friend visit a strange exhibit where a mysterious doctor puts a somnambulist into a death-like state, leading to unsettling moments and lingering fear.
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Details
- Original title
- Das Cabinet des Dr. Caligari
- Years
- 1920
- Release date
- 1920-02-27
- Language
- German
- Rated
- NR
- Runtime
- 77 min
- Max quality
- SD
- Critic score
- 91/100
- TMDB rating
- 7.9/10 (1,773 votes)
- Budget
- $12,371
About
You’ll likely enjoy this if you want an influential silent horror with unsettling, angular visuals and a creeping carnival-fair vibe; Not for you if you dislike slow pacing in early films or prefer scares that feel more modern, like Nosferatu.
Pros: eerie, off-putting atmosphere; bold expressionist visuals; influential horror classic | Cons: slow pacing at times; dated storytelling; some dislike the acting
Themes
- insane asylum
- black and white
- silent film
- unreliable narrator
- expressionism
- somnambulist
- megalomania
- madman
- somnambulism
- german expressionism
- ominous
Cast & crew
Werner Krauss
as Dr. Caligari
Conrad Veidt
as Cesare
Friedrich Fehér
as Francis
Lil Dagover
as Jane
Hans Heinrich von Twardowski
as Alan
Rudolf Lettinger
as Dr. Olsen
Henri Peters-Arnolds
as Young Doctor (uncredited)
Rudolf Klein-Rogge
as Criminal (uncredited)
- HL
Hans Lanser-Rudolf
as Old Man (uncredited)
- LR
Ludwig Rex
as Murderer (uncredited)
Directed by Robert Wiene