In the Cabinet of Doctor Caligari (1920 , directed by Robert Wiene ) there were many innovations that helped to change the medium of film.
Firstly , the mise en scene is used to create a distorted reality – all of the sets are distorted , for example , the protagonists home town is tilted at an impossible angle and all of the buildings are twisted -this sends a clear message to the audience that things are not as they seem and it may unnerve them and make them uncomfortable . In addition, the characters costumes and makeup reflects the broken mentality that was the norm in Germany in the early 1920’s and this is particularly evident when it comes to Cesare , his dark makeup reflects the dark mood that was present at the time and in the narrative , the costumes and the makeup can signify the morality of the characters and this is a helpful shorthand for the audience as it tells them who to oppose and who to root for. Everything around the characters is distorted and this all makes sense at the end when it is revealed that the main character is insane and that he made everything up.
The cinematography in the film is innovative because the cinematographer , Willy Hameister , was able to make the film visually interesting without using color and the cinematography helps to build the verisimilitude and makes the film seem like it could happen in reality. The cinematography in this film can be regarded as innovative because it helps to reinforce the theme of mental deterioration and it communicates this to the audience in a tasteful and subtle manner so when they discover that the narrator is actually insane , the audience will not be that surprised because they would have been visually primed to expect that everything is not as it seems.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2_Pk1bIiCaI
Finally, the editing in this film is innovative because it makes the audience uncomfortable in a subtle manner and it makes them excited for what will come next. For example , this film famously uses iris shots when there is a transition between different scenes and this makes the film slightly disjointed and the audience feels anticipation for what comes next because they won’t know what to expect. In addition , when Cesare awakens , the camera focuses on Caesar’s face and it then cuts to the amazed audience – this tells the audience that Cesare is considered to be a spectacle for their amusement and this is an example of the Kuleshov effect and it tells the audience what is happening without the need for sound and this film helps to develop cinema as a storytelling medium that is distinct from all other forms of visual media.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UEEOEnAmGl8