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M 1931 |
Review by Jonathan Cornwell |
Directed by Fritz Lang
NR, 99 min. |
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Starring: Peter Lorre, Gustaf Gründgens, Ellen Widmann, Inge Landgut, Otto Wernicke, Theodor Loos, Friedrich Gnaß, Fritz Odemar, Theo Lingen, Georg John, Paul Kemp
Producer: Seymour Nebenzal
Screenplay: Fritz Lang, Thea von Harbou
Cinematography: Fritz Arno Wagner
Distributor: Foremco Pictures, Paramount Pictures
Released: 1933
(In German with subtitles) |
Rating:
 (out of ) |
Fritz Lang's timeless masterpiece, M, has been called a perfect film, and I would tend to agree with that assessment. There
are few films that can match M's imagery, power, and haunting realism that eats at the soul. The film was made at a critical
juncture between the end of the silent era and the beginning of the "talkies," and is widely accepted as the first true masterpiece
of the new generation of filmmaking. Lang, one of the greatest directors in cinema history, fashioned M with one eye on
the current climate in pre-Nazi Germany and another on the degradation of society around him. The film is based on the
story of a serial killer in the town of Dusseldorf, when fear and helplessness gripped the community. Lang explores the
serial killer genre while portraying the story through the eyes of both the police and the underworld, leading up to an
unforgettable conclusion that questions humanity's right for revenge regardless of special circumstances.
storyline
lang's background/departure from Germany
technical details of film
performances
comparisons of M and Citizen Kane and others
conclusion
© 2003 Jonathan Cornwell
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 |
 | Masterpiece - Film perfection |
 | Excellent - A Must See |
| Good - Highly Recommended |
| Fair - Worth seeing |
| Average - Viewable, but not recommended |
| Below average - View at own risk |
| Poor - Avoid at all costs |
| Very poor - An embarassment to the film industry |
| Zero | Awful - One of the worst films ever made |
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