This is widely considered one of the greatest German expressionist movies ever; and it did some intersting things with perspective and backdroping. But I just didn't dig it too much. The story was a little too strange for me, about a hypnotist who comes into town with a man who has been asleep for decades and cn read your future. Then the zombie like man starts commiting crimes all over the city. Exactly why and what the good doctor are trying to accomplish is lost on me. Maybe it will becoame clearer on subsequent viewings. And what was the deal with the book the town officials find at the end; what is it trying to say, and who wrote it? The background, as I have mentioned, is sharply escewed showing the distorted world the men live in. I can see where David Lynch got his ideas for flicks like "Dune" or "Blue Velvet". Another complaint is in the repackaging. The film is tented in colors like yellow and blue, and that I have no problem with. The music they have accompanying it is something else entirely. It is loud, jarring, and it got on my nerves. It is too intrusive.

There's not much to say about THE CABINET OF DR. CALIGARI that hasn't already been said, in depth and available at your local bookstore. An internet search will yield a rich harvest of scholarly discussion on this film, as well.
CABINET demands a bit of adjustment from its 21st century audience. We don't make silent movies much anymore, nor do we wrap Conrad Veidt in leotards and black eye makeup, tell him to creep about the sets like Baryshnikov, call him the Sonambulist and hail him as the first horror creature in cinematic history (or one of the first, anyway). We don't dress our sets in wild and weird angles, have characters walk through rhomboid doors and peer through windows that seem to have started as square before lying on their sides and taking a nap. If time has robbed CABINET of its ability to horrify, it has fully retained its ability to creep out. The cumulative effect of watching this movie is a definite feeling of unease, of a sane world violated and displaced.
Beyond its place in cinematic history (it sits at the first table) and artistic merit, CABINET remains an eminently watchable movie. Of course it's silent, the sets are outrageous and the acting is highly stylized, but it all works to a rewarding end. I watched this one twice in the span of three days - once without and the next time with the commentary track, and I will probably put it into the rotation of movies that I watch again simply for the pleasure of it. The print is in good to very good condition and the commentary by film scholar Mike Budd is scholarly and interesting.

World War One sent a shockwave through the arts and one of the results was expressionism. The term is difficult to define; in a general sense, however, it refers to a type of art that makes a statement about internal emotion and psychology. Often linked to surrealism and cubism, in the 1920s expressionism became one of the dominate styles in visual and performing arts and was particularly associated with Germany.

The 1919 THE CABINET OF DR. CALIGARI is perhaps the only film made in a purely expressionist style. As directed by Robert Wiene and designed by Herman Warm, Walter Reimann, and Walter Rohrig, everything about the film is exaggerated, off-center, and disorienting. The sets are strange, deliberately artificial constructions of flat surfaces in odd angles and broad strokes of paint; the make-up and costumes are equally exaggerated. The result is a unique look that has the paranoid essence of nightmare, and the story links with the visuals to remarkable effect.

A carnival has come to a small German town, and among its attractions is Dr. Caligari (Werner Krauss) and "sonambulist" Cesare (Conrad Veidt). When awakened from his sleep, Cesarea makes predictions of the future--predictions of death! And through his power over the sleepwalker, Caligari ensures that the predictions come true. It is frequently described as the first true horror film. But while the story was shocking by 1919 standards, it was really the visual style of the film that outraged critics and the public alike; many described it as "degenerate," and it proved extremely controversial where ever shown.

It also proved incredibly influential--so much so that it is virtually impossible for any one serious about film as art to avoid it. But there are quite a few releases that you should avoid: the film is in public domain, and the result has been a series of DVD and VHS "budget" releases that are dire to the nth degree. It is a matter of getting what you pay for, and while the KINO release is the most expensive print available, it is also the only one worth having. The picture quality is as good as it can be short of digital restoration and the film has been restored to its original tints as well.

The KINO release offers a choice of soundtracks, a 43 minute version of director Robert Wiene's GENUINE: THE TALE OF A VAMPIRE, and archival footage of Wiene on the set of I.N.R.I. While these are interesting, it is a pity that KINO did delve a little deeper; this is a film truly worthy of a double disk treatment crammed to overflowing with additional information. But the film itself is the important thing, and where that is concerned you have the best possible. Strongly recommended.

GFT, Amazon Reviewer

Amazon does NOT differentiate its reviews of titles (be it book/DVD's/vhs etc) by this or that edition by any of the many companies that release them....so your review of the cheapy public domain Alpha dvd(to name just one of the several CRAP distributors of old movies)and the words you write about the restored fine print Kino International(to name one of the very excellent distributors of old movies)will be all on the same page, WHATEVER version you have selected!!

Having said that , my review is of the KINO dvd release , a very fine one as this company does not distribute anything less(you pay more, but if you know anything about silent and classic movies it will be no secret to you that if you pay peanuts that is exactly what you will get....)...it is however disconserting to see that even the best available dvd release still hasn't been cleaned up to the degree that other classic silent masterpieces have..surely with todays technology a digital "hoovering" of this film is not too much to ask.

Wonderful film of course, but you know that otherwise you wouldn't even be reading these reviews, and the KINO version is , so far, the best you can get for your money.

I am at a loss why some are reviewing the Image Entertainment version when the KINO INTERNATIONAL VERSION is the one listed above. The Kino print is wonderfully clear and very sharp with excellent detail...there are some specks left here and there but this in no way detracts from the enjoyment. The intertitles are a bit on the slow side, but at last you can read them.

I really have little to say that hasn't gone on before except this is a superb silent film with an incredibly delicious plot twist at the end...Very dark cinema and excellent soundtrack as well!

Bravo KINO!!!