Line #3 YMMV/TheCabinetOfDrCaligari

Context YMMV / TheCabinetOfDrCaligari

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1	* AlternativeCharacterInterpretation:
2	** Rather than [[spoiler:Francis imagining the whole story]], it was all an elaborate [[spoiler:role-play by the Director to try and understand Francis's delusions]]. Similar in vein to Film/ShutterIsland.
3	** [[spoiler: Why does Francis see Dr. Caligari as the villain? Does he simply hate the doctor for trying to understand his mind, or is the doctor truly cruel to him, making Francis's fantasies a way to cope with the doctor's abuse? After all, [[BedlamHouse insane asylums]] didn't exactly have the best track record when it came to humane treatment of their patients back in those days.]]
4	* EnsembleDarkhorse: Cesare surprisingly isn't on screen for very long, despite arguably being the most memorable character in the movie.
5	* EveryoneIsJesusInPurgatory: Siegfried Kracauer's influential study, ''[[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/From_Caligari_to_Hitler From Caligari to Hitler: A Psychological History of the German Film]]'', argues that ''Caligari'' is a metaphor for the creeping authoritarianism in post-World War I Germany, and that the "escapist" film genres ''Caligari'' influenced, such as horror, science fiction, and crime, cultivated a political apathy that allowed the fascists to seize power. Most critics of the book feel that Kracauer overstated his case.
6	* OnceOriginalNowCommon: This may not come as a surprise given that the film is not only ''a hundred years old'', but is generally considered the [[TropeCodifier first true horror movie]]. Many of the tropes and aesthetics associated with horror media started with this film, with the most notable being the TwistEnding, which today has become so common in horror movies that [[Creator/MNightShyamalan some directors]] have made it their [[CreatorThumbprint thumbprint]]. Modern audiences might find this movie's twist ending [[CaptainObviousReveal a tad easy to figure out if one is paying enough attention]].
7	* ItWasHisSled: [[spoiler:The events of the movie are just ramblings of a madman]].
8	* SignatureScene: Cesare kidnapping Jane while being chased by an angry mob.
9	** TheReveal that [[spoiler:Francis is an inmate in an insane asylum who made up the entire story of Caligari.]] Not only is it one of the first [[TwistEnding Twist Endings]] in the history of film, but it's also one of the most controversial and talked about aspects of the movie. If the number of trope entries about it are any indication.
10	* TheUntwist: It's obvious that the murders are conducted by Cesare, under Dr. Caligari's orders. [[spoiler:It's actually a RedHerring for the ''real'' twist, that the entire scenario was AllJustADream.]]

Context YMMV / TheCabinetOfDrCaligari