Movies

M Criterion 1931 Dir Fritz Lang Peter Lorre Dvd5 Darkool

• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• Rate this torrent +  |  -

Torrent info

Torrent Files List

Torrent description

M -- 1931

Criterion Edition -- DVD5



I have included the very interesting and informative commentary track featuring German film scholars Anton Kaes and Eric Rentschler. There's a second disc which I may upload later if enough people ask for it. Meanwhile, enjoy this masterpiece of cinema and please also seed when you finish your download!



"M" was voted by 500 German film experts as the greatest German film of all time, and it's easy to see why. This was director Fritz Lang's first "talkie," although you would not guess that on first viewing, as both audio and video are touched with genius.



The plot is simple: the city is being terrorized by a child murderer, or "morder" in German, which is where the title "M" is derived. The killer is eerily portrayed by Peter Lorre in one of his first acting roles. He is creepy-looking and -sounding, and inhabits the role with alarming perfection. The police are baffled, the citizens are outraged, and "the usual suspects" -- that is, the regular criminals, are getting very fed-up with being continually hounded and raided by the cops searching for the murderer. The outlaw gangs band together to find the killer who is cramping their style, just as the police find some telling clues to the murderer's identity. Who will find him first? And what will they do with him when he's found? It is the answer to this question which really elevates "M" above the usual.



In the end, Hans Beckert, the killer played by Lorre, is revealed to be evil... but not the kind of almost supernatural evil which we assign to killers of this ilk nowadays. Finally unmasked, we see him as a pitiful creature, tortured as well as torturer, hunted and haunted by his own demons, just as he hunts and haunts his victims and their families. Yet the film does not act as an apologia for child-murderers, by any means. It's just not given the overly-simplified "black-and-white" treatment in vogue today.



Peter Lorre is one of my favorite actors, and IMO he's one of the most underrated in movie history. If he were just 3" taller, he would have made a smooth leading man... yes, I truly believe that to be the case, despite his voice. In fact, I'll go so far as to assert that his voice can actually be characterized as sexy and seductive! (But maybe that's just me... any other gals (or guys) who swoon over Peter Lorre out there?)



Here's the Criterion Collection web page on this DVD release:

http://www.criterion.com/films/558



Here's the dope from IMDB:

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0022100/



User Rating:8.6/10 33,583 votes



Top 250: ---------------> #46 <---------------



Director:Fritz Lang

Writers: Thea von Harbou (script) and Fritz Lang (script) (Egon Jacobson (article) uncredited )

Run Time: 110 minutes

Release Date: 31 August 1931 (Sweden)

Genre: Crime | Film-Noir | Thriller

Country:Germany

Language:German

Color:Black and White

Aspect Ratio:1.19 : 1 (YES... 1.19:1)



Cast (Cast overview, first billed only)



Peter Lorre ... Hans Beckert

Ellen Widmann ... Frau Beckmann

Inge Landgut ... Elsie Beckmann

Otto Wernicke ... Inspector Karl Lohmann

Theodor Loos ... Inspector Groeber

Gustaf Gründgens ... Schränker

Friedrich Gnaß ... Franz, the burglar

Fritz Odemar ... The cheater

Paul Kemp ... Pickpocket with six watches

Theo Lingen ... Bauernfänger

Rudolf Blümner ... Beckert's defender

Georg John ... Blind panhandler

Franz Stein ... Minister

Ernst Stahl-Nachbaur ... Police chief

Gerhard Bienert ... Criminal secretary



IMDB User Review:

"M" is a cinematic masterpiece of visual drama. The stunning performances define the careers of exceptional actors such as Peter Lorre and Gustaf Grundgens. Director Fritz Lang gives depth and dimension to his production by distinctly capturing the ecstasy of the film's many characters and focusing accurately on individual situations. This is an intriguing journey into the mind of a psychotic child murderer, blending terror, complexity, and malignity in one amazing motion picture.



Screenwriters Thea von Harbou and Fritz Lang construct the characters in "M" with distinctive personalities and three-dimensional emotions. Many lesser filmmakers give their characters no backstory outside the confines of the script. In this movie each individual character has a mind of his own; s/he is free to roam the streets of this dirty city landscape.



Fabricating such an impressive atmosphere is some of the best cinematography and lighting effects that I can remember watching. This resplendent component creates the film's terrific moody ambiance. Suspense is one thing "M" contains in full measure. The movie's third act is sheer high-peak tension.



Shot in black and white, "M" stars Peter Lorre as Peter-Hans Beckert, an extremely disturbed child-murderer in the process of wreaking havoc on a neighborhood. Parents everywhere are living in fear of their children being kidnapped and abruptly annihilated.



This picture contains a brilliantly crafted setup. The visual setting creates a strongly developed opening. Every scene works to either complicate the initial problem or propels the story through a firm narrative through line.



The film captures the chaos of the town in terror perfectly. "M" is more about the results of a serial killer than an actual serial killer. Never do we directly witness a murder; the violent encounters are implied. This method of filmmaking perhaps makes the movie's impact even greater. With a creative perspective through a third person point of view, the filmmakers repeatedly give us examples of a solid structure through characters and occurrences.



"M" offers a unforgettable performance by Peter Lorre. This extraordinary actor is tormenting and disturbing without engaging in extreme violent conduct onscreen. He perspires with both terror and rapture. This closing scenes are so deeply penetrating they entirely captivate the viewer.



Isn't this what movies are supposed to do? **** out of ****