Das Cabinet des Dr. Caligari remains the source and essence of German Expressionist cinema. It centers on the haunting, sexually ambivalent presence of Conrad Veidt, as a somnambulist exploited as an instrument of murder by the sinister Dr. Caligari. David Robinson challenges long accepted versions of the history and reception of Das Cabinet des Dr. Caligari. He reassesses contributions of the director and writers, as he investigates the status and significance of the recently discovered scenario for Caligari.