The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari and Early Film

    An insight I had into the film, The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari, was the film moved slowly for the storyline. There were many facial shots of Dr. Caligari or Francis or Cesare, which took up time. This slowed down the film so that early watchers could catch the plot details. 

Now that we have an expansive library of films in the 21st century, we watch movies differently. In 2022, we have a shorter attention span than most people did in 1920. The difference is, we have such a large amount of information at our disposal, so we take in that information more quickly. That makes films like The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari seem slow, but an action film such as The Batman by Matt Reeves seem quicker, even though the run time is three times longer. 

We need a constant flow of movement, or else we freeze or lose our attention on the plot. Dr. Caligari's slow moving elements and silent film text, slows the plot so it is harder to follow. Nosferatu and other 20s and 30s silent films have this same problem.