A-Z Blogging Challenge: C is for Count von Count

Count von Count

First appearing in 1972, Count von Count has been a regular puppet character on Sesame Street for over 40 years, voiced by the late Jerry Nelson until 2012. He is a vampire - though he doesn't drink blood and isn't effected by sunlight - who hails from Transylvania and loves to count anything and everything he can; The more he counts, the happier / more excited he becomes. (Vampires in folklore can often be distracted by throwing grains of salt, rice, etc. on the ground, as they have to count them all before they can pass).  During an "in character" interview with BBC Radio 4 (which you can read about & listen to on the BBC website), the Count stated that his favourite number was 34,969 saying that it was "a square number thing". 

Initially, the Count was more of an ominous presence; manically laughing during loud thunder storms and becoming angry when he couldn't count things. His accent and appearance are often said to have been inspired by Bela Lugosi in Dracula, though, in the 1931 movie, Lugosi didn't have fangs, a monocle, or goatee, but he also has pointed ears like Count Orlok in Nosferatu. However, after complaints from parents that he was too scary, his character was toned down and made somewhat friendlier. Although he does still appear during (quieter) thunder storms, the "scary" laughter has instead been replaced with his distinctive laugh "ah...ah...ah!" and he is much friendlier.

C could also be for Cookie Monster...

This post is part of the A-Z Blogging Challenge, 2013.

A-Z Challenge: C is for...Caligari!

C is for...The Cabinet of Dr Caligari
Image Source: Light Keeps Me Company

I'll be honest, this entry has been backdated because I missed 3 days of the challenge due to my poor planning (heh...), but better a little late than never I guess? So today, C is for...Caligari! Or more specifically, German director Robert Weine's stylish silent, 'Das Cabinet Des Dr. Caligari' ('The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari', 1920). I could write a whole essay on this movie, as it's one of my favourites, but I'll spare you all the boredom this time and keep it fairly short!

 Dr. Caligari and Cesare the Somnambulist

Cast:

Dr. Caligari - Werner Krauss

Cesare - Conrad Veidt

Francis - Friedrich Feher

Jane Olsen - Lil Dagover

Alan - Hans Heinrich von Twardowski

Dr. Olsen - Rudolf Lettinger

Genres:
Silent
Classic horror
Psychological horror

German Expressionist

Plot:
A young man, Francis, recounts a story to a man seated next to him about his fiancee, Jane, and the strange events that they both experienced. The film then continues in an extended flashback, beginning with Francis and his friend, Alan, visiting a fair in their home town. Dr. Caligari is there with Cesare, a somnambulist. Caligari claims that Cesare has been asleep for 25 years and, waking under Caligari's hypnotic control, is now able to see into the future. Alan asks Cesare how long his life will be, to which Cesare replies: "The time is short. You die at dawn!". This prediction comes true, as Alan is murdered that night and Francis is convinced that Cesare was responsible. This leads Francis to begin following Cesare and Dr. Caligari.

Cesare fleeing, carrying Jane

The next night, Cesare goes into Jane's bedroom, intending to kill her, but cannot bring himself to murder such a beautiful woman and kidnaps her instead. The townspeople go after him, and after running from them for some time, Cesare passes out and dies of exhaustion. At the same time the police discover that Dr. Caligari has fled and Francis follows him to an insane asylum, where he attempts to find out the truth about the doctor.

Is it any good?:

In a word: yes! But just to elaborate a little...

If you don't like black & white, silent horrors or aesthetically unrealistic films, and aren't at all interested in film history, then you probably won't like 'The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari' much. However, as one of the first films of the horror genre and with the concept of a twist ending - still used today - to boot, this is an excellent example of early cinema, with a bit of depth. What's more, the film manages to create eerie abduction and murder scenes without a drop of blood anywhere. Through a clever use of lighting, the killing is depicted predominantly in shadow and silhouette. Of course, by today's standards, the acting may be seen as ridiculously exaggerated, but then again, all the battling, slow-motion epics and screaming, gory slasher movies of late are pretty damn exaggerated too, don't you think?

Scary?: 

I wouldn't say it's "scary" as such, but there's definitely a creepy feel throughout. It's unmistakably a horror. 

This post is part of the A-Z Blogging Challenge.