From Morn to Midnight (1920)
Experimental Beginnings
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1h 12m
Cashier tempts fate, steals fortune, finds emptiness in city's dark underbelly.
From Morn to Midnight (1920), a silent film directed by Karlheinz Martin, is a radical adaptation of Georg Kaiser's play and plunges viewers into a world distorted by the protagonist's desires.
The film's expressionist roots are evident in its set design. Gone are the realistic settings of mainstream films. Instead, twisted landscapes and skewed perspectives reflect the cashier's growing alienation and desperation. The actors themselves adopt a heightened, theatrical style, further emphasizing the film's artificiality and emotional core.
From Morn to Midnight broke boundaries in its narrative structure as well. The film abandons traditional cause-and-effect storytelling, opting for a series of fragmented scenes that depict the protagonist's search for fulfillment in fleeting pleasures. This fragmented approach reflects the societal turmoil of post-WWI Germany and the disillusionment with traditional values.
By embracing distortion, fragmentation, and a subjective view of reality, From Morn to Midnight helped pave the way for a new era of cinematic expression. The film's influence can be seen in countless experimental works that continue to push the boundaries of the medium.
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The Hasher's Delirium, a short animation by Émile Cohl released in 1910, rejects realism in favor of a wild and expressive style. The film depicts the fantastical dreams of a café waiter, where objects morph and characters ...
