TSPDT

Key Production Country: Germany
Key Genres: Horror, Thriller, Crime, Drama, Psychological Drama, Fantasy
Key Collaborators: Hans Heinrich von Twardowski (Leading Character Actor), Gregori Chmara (Leading Actor), Conrad Veidt (Leading Actor), Werner Krauss (Leading Actor), Carl Mayer (Screenwriter), Hans Neumann (Producer), Erich Pommer (Producer), Willy Hameister (Cinematographer)

"Although he is credited with directing Das Cabinett des Dr. Caligari (19), a key film in the history of the cinema, he was only a second-rate director and the success of this masterpiece is more due to an exceptional team of scriptwriters, designers, and actors than to him. His other expressionist films, Genuine (20), Raskolnikov (23), I.N.R.I. (23), and Orlacs Hände (24), were still of some interest, but he completely lost his remaining stature in the sound period." - Georges Sadoul (Dictionary of Film Makers, 1972)

"Robert Wiene's name will ever be associated with Das Kabinett des Dr. Caligari (The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari), his most famous film, although there are critics who would minimize his responsibility for this masterpiece of the cinema. His work is uneven and often blatantly commercial, but in spite of this many of his films show some originality of theme and distinguished performances by actors who worked under him… While he covered a wide range of material in his films he never developed a personal style. His merit lay in encouraging many diverse talents and his ability to securing often outstanding contributions from them. He controlled his productions, in most cases writing the scripts himself. Wiene lived in a great period of cinema, which he served in his fashion." - Liam O'Leary (Film Reference)

"German expressionist who began his career in the theater, entered films as a scenarist and is best known for the expressionist classic, The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari (1919). Wiene was the second choice to direct the film (producer Erich Pommer originally offered the job to Fritz Lang), which was scripted by Carl Mayer and Hans Janowitz; his subsequent work casts doubt on the extent of his contribution to the project… He moved to France when the Nazis took power and his final film, Ultimatum (1938), was completed by Robert Siodmak." - The Virgin International Encyclopedia of Film, 1992

"While The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari became an international film classic, its director, Robert Wiene, was disparaged and even forgotten. Wiene's oeuvre, however, exhibits a surprising versatility and quality, featuring Raskolnikov, an expressionist adaptation of Dostoevsky's novel, INRI, a monumental Bible epic, Orlac's Hands, a psychological thriller, and Der Rosenkavalier, an ambitious opera film. His last film, Ultimatum (1938), is a vehement warning of approaching war, which remains relevant today." - Beyond Caligari: The Films of Robert Wiene (Berghahn Books, 1999)

"Wiene's masterpiece is The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari (19). He had the misfortune to begin his career with a classic and never duplicated its quality again. He did lense several atmospheric productions in the twenties. (Raskolnikov, 23; The Hands of Orlac, 24)." - William R. Meyer (The Film Buff's Catalog, 1978)