The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari is a 1920 silent film directed by Robert Wiene. The movie stars with a flashback with a man named Francis, who is the narrator, and his friend Alan. They visit a carnival in a mountain village in Germany where they see Dr. Caligari, a somewhat deranged man, and the somnambulist Cesare. The doctor is displaying Cesare as an attraction, bragging that Cesare can answer any question he is asked. When Alan asks Cesare how long he has to live, Cesare tells Alan that he will die before dawn tomorrow. The prophecy comes true; Alan is murdered before dawn tomorrow. Dr. Caligari and Cesare become prime suspects for the murder. Francis and Jane, is soon to be wife, investigate Caligari and Cesare. Jane, however, eventually gets kidnapped by Cesare. Meanwhile Francis discovers that Caligari is actually the director of the local insane asylum. He also discovers that Caligari is obsessed with the story of a monk called Caligari. The monk, in 1093, used a somnambulist to murder people as a traveling act throughout northern Italy. After being confronted with the dead Cesare, Caligari reveals his mania and is imprisoned in his asylum. Although a twisted ending reveals that the flashback Francis had is actually his fantasy. Francis, Jane, and Cesare are all inmates of the insane asylum, and the man he says is Caligari is his asylum doctor.
The movie The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari fits in quite well with what we have learned in chapter 4. Cesare was the man hypnotized by Dr. Caligari. Hypnotism is discussed in chapter 4 of our books, stating that hypnosis is a state of consciousness in which the person is especially susceptible to suggestions. The cases presented in the writing of Psychology in the News: Murder While Sleepwalking, also relate to Cesare. Cesare murdered Alan when Cesare was asleep and being controlled by Dr. Caligari. Also with the twisted ending and Francis’s flashback all being just a false memory and only his fantasy, it could relate to the false memory syndrome discussed in chapter 6 of our books. Also another possibility of Francis's flashback could be that he has schizophrenia (talked about in chapter 14) because he shows the inability to distinguish between fantasy and reality.
The movie The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari fits in quite well with what we have learned in chapter 4. Cesare was the man hypnotized by Dr. Caligari. Hypnotism is discussed in chapter 4 of our books, stating that hypnosis is a state of consciousness in which the person is especially susceptible to suggestions. The cases presented in the writing of Psychology in the News: Murder While Sleepwalking, also relate to Cesare. Cesare murdered Alan when Cesare was asleep and being controlled by Dr. Caligari. Also with the twisted ending and Francis’s flashback all being just a false memory and only his fantasy, it could relate to the false memory syndrome discussed in chapter 6 of our books. Also another possibility of Francis's flashback could be that he has schizophrenia (talked about in chapter 14) because he shows the inability to distinguish between fantasy and reality.
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