German Expressionalism and Tim Burton

• German Expressionism is the artistic movement in Germany after World War I. It embodied the mental and physical wounds inflicted after the war was lost.
• The German Expressionist movement carries a legacy that still holds to this day, especially with film makers like Tim Burton. 
• The Expressionist movement as a whole began in the late 19th century through various artistic media. The movement picked up in Germany and heightened with a new medium of art -film.

• Above: A still from The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari, 1920. The movement is often characterized with dark, stylized sets, with characters whose movements reflect their environment. 
• In the above movie still, both characters shown are twisted and contorted, almost identical to their surroundings. 
• The entire scene (mise en scène) appears chaotic, possibly representing the feelings of the German people at that time.

• Edward Scissorhands was one of Tim Burton’s first major films. 
• His fan base became much of what it is today because of this movie. 
• Burton’s films have always come with the expectation of a unique experience. 
• Burton’s films also often quietly attack social normalcies and question his viewers of what they believe is acceptable, by creating loveable characters. 
• Most of Burton’s movies and productions involve a socially awkward lead who is able to find love or acceptance from someone in society or society itself.
• Using dark humor and unusual examples, Burton tells his stories in a way that only he can. 
• Burton pays homage to The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari in Edward Scissorhands by essentially recreating the 1920s film.

In Edward Scissorhands, Johnny Depp plays a character (Edward Scissorhands) who looks similar to Conrad Veidt (Cesare). Both characters are rather awkward and manipulated throughout both films. Edward by society, Cesare by an evil hypnotist.

When Tim Burton had massive commercial success with his 1992 Batman Returns, it was obvious that Danny DeVito’s Penguin character derived direct inspiration from Dr. Caligari himself, as more of a dark, homicidal, and mentally unstable character as opposed to the intelligent, calculating, and wealthy renditions of the Penguin character in the Batman comics.

SOURCE: https://storify.com/StrangeMixtie/the-influence-of-german-expressionalism-in-tim-bur