German Expressionism

German Expressionism

  • Depiction of reality that is widely distorted for emotional effect
  • One of the most popular German expressionism films is The Cabinet of Mr. Calgary, directed by Robert Wiene who hired Expressionist painters like Walter Reinmann and Hermann Warm to actually paint his sets
Conventions
  • Twisted landscapes, insane or evil characters, more morbid plot-lines
  •  External representation of internal emotion – this means that if the main character is in a “dark place” emotionally, then the setting must reflect that 
  • Insanity/Obsession
  • Evil/Insane/Obsessive characters
  • Crime or the criminal underworld
  • Urban settings
  • Jagged lines and banding – often created by painting designs on the set
  • Twisted architecture – such as spiral staircases and ominous arches
  • Chiaroscuro – extreme lighting that incorporates dark shadows and bright patches of light, typically associated with Film Noir
  • Silent – intertitles are used to fill in important dialogue. However, dialogue is secondary to behaviour of figure and the mise-en-scene
  • Shot purely within a studio – no expensive location shoots
  • less on story and editing, unlike Hollywood. “The film image must become graphic art” (Hermann Warm). 
  • Photography (unexpected camera angles, little camera movement) 
  • Totally artificial, stylized sets (“paintings come to life”), stripped of all realistic details and psychology—sets that become symbolic diagrams of emotional states 
  • Overtly theatrical (anti-naturalist) acting style (actors move in jerky, slow, sinuous patterns) and heavy make-up 
  • Evoke mystery, alienation, disharmony, hallucination, dreams, extreme emotional states, destabilization 

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