7tavern: M (1931)

M (1931)

Sound (2)
2.8
Plot (2)
3.3
Cast (2)
3.5
Special Effects (2)
3.3
Length & Pace (2)
3.5
Cinematography (2)
3.8

Directors: Fritz Lang

Writers: Thea von Harbou (script), Fritz Lang (script)

Release: 31 August 1931 (Sweden)

Plot: When the police in a German city are unable to catch a child-murderer, other criminals join in the manhunt.

Cast:   Peter Lorre - Hans Beckert, Ellen Widmann - Frau Beckmann, Inge Landgut - Elsie Beckmann, Otto Wernicke - Inspector Karl Lohmann, Theodor Loos - Inspector Groeber, Gustaf Gr�ndgens - Schr�nker, Friedrich Gna� - Franz, the burglar, Fritz Odemar - The cheater, Paul Kemp - Pickpocket with six watches, Theo Lingen - Bauernf�nger, Rudolf Bl�mner - Beckert's defender, Georg John - Blind panhandler, Franz Stein - Minister, Ernst Stahl-Nachbaur - Police chief, Gerhard Bienert - Criminal secretary

Runtime: 117 min  | 110 min (2004 Criterion DVD edition) | France:118 min  | Germany:105 min (2000 restored version) | Germany:108 min (re-release) | USA:99 min

Country: Germany

Language: German

Company: Nero-Film AG

Links: IMDb Profile

Categories: Crime, Thriller

Main

Trailer

Squish
Reviews: 740
Points: 0 (Level 1)
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2.5

M (1931) * Hidden Gem *

Hoo yeah

Genre: Crime Noir Thriller (Germany)

Starring: Peter Lorre (The Maltese Falcon • The Man Who Knew Too Much), Gustaf Gründgens

Directed By: Fritz Lang (Hangmen Also Die! • The Woman in the Window)

Overview: As a child-murderer's death-toll grows, the police hit the streets in a fury. In order to stave off their losses from the crippling nightly raids on their turf, the underworld joins in the hunt to capture the man causing such an uproar.

Peter Lorre, a near-staple of Film Noir villainy, especially as it pertains to Bogart, got his first starring film role in Fritz Lang's M. Talk about kicking a career into high gear.

Frankly, I'm a little overwhelmed. I mean, when a cinephile hears the title of this film spoken out loud, most of them get as excited as an 18-year-old at pervert's row. Acclaim and praise abounds for the frequently top-listed M, a thrilling, beautifully-written exploration of the worst kind of criminal predator that exists in society.

"There are more police on the street tonight than whores."

What makes M such a perfect film is not that it was one of the first to use the musical theme known as Leitmotif, where music is associated with a character, in this case the creepily whistled "In the Hall Of The Mountain King", neither is it perfect because it's streaked with German expressionistic visuals, which as we all know is very effective at conveying fear through shadowed darkness. M is so perfect because unlike the cinematographic style, we are made to see the issue not in black-and-white but with care and nuance. The atrocious crime of child murder as seen through each explored perspective leads us to understanding the psychology and the societal impact of the crimes. The greatest surprise is how, even with all this, M manages to stay in the realm of exciting thriller, even streaked with moments of humour.

Classic symbols include a ball rolling solitary out of a bush and a balloon drifting in the sky, caught in wires. Police trawl the streets in waves hoping to find any possible lead to the crime that is quickly growing to hysterical proportions. Old friends turn on each other accusingly.

Criminals suffering from police raid after raid decide to take it upon themselves to solve the city's problem and catch the man in hopes of getting back to business as usual. From this point on, the thrill is in the chase, as they say and as we follow the searchers, the questions of privacy, Justice versus The Greater Good and punishment for the insane are all approached in Lang's script without any sort of preached excuses or spiteful condemnation.

It's an observation into wickedness as told in a dynamic storytelling style. What more could you ask for?

No, actually, it's the BALLOONS that are creepy, ick!

Performance: 9 Cinematography: 8 Script: 9 Plot: 9 Mood: 9

Overall Rating: 88% (Mmmmm!)

Aftertaste:

The only problem I have with M is in the occasional definition I run into that it's Film Noir. German expressionism? Check. Anti-Heros? Definitely. Is this one of the cornerstone foundation blocks to create a film genre that would later be called Noir?

Without a doubt. But the era screws up the whole works, it's not quite the post-war phenomenon that Noir is really about.

You know, I wouldn't have a problem calling it Noir if it had just one scene where someone got a good bitchslap.

I'm not asking for much.

For a deeper exploration into M's societal surveillance theme, check out Film of the Year's article. And for those of you who aren't interested in going out and renting the Criterion version I saw, it's public domain.

Recommendations: Inglourious Basterds (Quentin Tarantino, 2009), Requiem for a Dream, Dawn of the Dead

Last updated: 2010-05-14 11:27:02 by user07

2010-05-14 11:25:44

AlexDelarge
Reviews: 71
Points: 0 (Level 1)
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4.5

M: Vigilante Restitution

Fritz Lang’s 1931 morality tale about impartial democratic justice versus vigilante restitution remains frighteningly prescient in our modern world. A child rapist and murderer is on the loose, terrorizing Berlin, every parent’s worst nightmare incarnate in flesh and bone…and the blood of innocent victims.

The narrative is structured as a police procedural rather than a criminal psychological dissection; focusing on the investigation and the burgeoning frustration of law enforcement. Lang’s expressionist style suggests the crimes rather than showing the grotesqueries. As a little girl plays with a ball, an innocuous whistling stranger befriends her and buys her a balloon thus gaining her limited trust. We know what happens because Lang shows us the ball rolling slowly through the grass, coming to a dead stop. We then see an image of the balloon floating helplessly into the overhead wires.

Lang’s cinematic genius is obvious in another scene as the killer looks through a shop window spying the reflection of a lonely little girl: all sound stops, his eyes widen, his feature contort into madness. And we fear for the little child. He also moves his camera in one continuous shot around a deli, stopping to observe minor details, and up and through a glass partition: surely this influenced a young Hitchcock!

As the death toll mounts, the police aren’t any closer to solving the crimes and they begin to arrest the usual suspects looking for clues. The criminal underworld begins their own search because the constant raids are bad for their business. They enlist the help of the poor and destitute and it’s the blind beggar who recognizes the killer’s signature tune that leads to his capture.

The criminals pass their own judgment upon this killer; this is truly a trial by peers! But without the Rule of Law then society will plunge into anarchy: self-rule works well as a philosophy but it’s the powerful that abuse the weak in reality. Even a child molester has the right to Due Process. And yes, he’s guilty regardless of his own assessment: his premeditation is legal proof of intent, and his writing to the newspaper and covering up his actions shows he understood the concept of right and wrong at the time he committed the crime. Now it’s the government’s duty to pass judgment upon his acts, to punish this murderer with all jurisprudence. Final Grade: (A+)

(Read Less...)

Recommendations: The Birds, Breathless (Jean-Luc Godard, 1960), Funny Games

All reviews copyright Korova, Ltd. Visit Alex at his Home Theatre Blog, http://korovatheatrepresents.blogspot.com/

2010-02-27 10:17:40

Squish
Reviews: 740
Points: 0 (Level 1)
Reviewer

M (1931) * Hidden Gem *

Hoo yeah Genre: Crime Noir Thriller (Germany) Starring: Peter Lorre ( The Maltese Falcon • The Man Who Knew Too Much ), Gustaf Gründgens Directed By: Fritz Lang (Hangmen Also Die! • The Woman in the Window) Overview: As a child-murderer's death-toll grows, the police hit the streets in a fury. In order to stave off their losses from the crippling nightly raids on their turf, the underworld joins in the hunt to capture the man causing such an uproar. Peter Lorre, a near-staple of Film Noir villainy, especially as it pertains to Bogart, got his first starring film role in Fritz Lang's M. Talk about kicking a career into high gear. Frankly, I'm a little overwhelmed. I mean, when a cinephile hears the title of this film spoken out loud, most of them get as excited as an 18-year-old at pervert's row . Acclaim and praise abounds for the frequently top-listed M, a thrilling, beautifully-written exploration of the worst kind of criminal predator that...

(Read More...)

2010-05-14 11:25:44

AlexDelarge
Reviews: 71
Points: 0 (Level 1)
Reviewer

M: Vigilante Restitution

(Read More...)

2010-02-27 10:17:40

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