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| Peter
Lorre, Ellen Widmann, Inge Landgut, Ottor Wernicke, Theodor
Loos |
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Anamorphic
widescreen |
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Dolby Digital
5.1 |
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DTS |
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Trailer(s) |
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Featurette(s) |
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Documentary |
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Audio commentary
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Deleted scenes
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Concept art
/ storyboards |
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Multi-angle
feature |
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Hans Beckert
(Peter Lorre): I can't
help what I do! I can't help it, I can't...
Criminal: The old story! We never can help it in court!
Hans Beckert: What do you know about it? Who are you anyway? Who
are you? Criminals? Are you proud of yourselves? Proud of breaking
safes or cheating at cards? Things you could just as well keep
your fingers off. You wouldn't need to do all that if you'd learn
a proper trade or if you'd work. If you weren't a bunch of lazy
bastards. But I... I can't help myself! I have no control over
this, this evil thing inside of me, the fire, the voices, the torment!
When the police in a German city
are unable to catch a child-murderer, other criminals join in the
manhunt.
 A
film that belies its age upon each new viewing, Fritz Lang's M is
the kind of cinema masterpiece that will continue to enthrall viewers
for generations to come. Revolutionary in its use of on- and offscreen
sound, the film was also groundbreaking in its portrayal of a criminal
as the victim of his own psychosis. As portrayed by Peter Lorre,
the infamous child murderer Hans Beckert is as pathetic as he is
reprehensible, leading to a celebrated climax that opens up a moral
debate in which the preceding narrative is questioned and discussed.
It's an extraordinary achievement, as fresh, exciting and unpredictable
today as it ever was, and an absolutely essential addition to any
film collection. |
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M was first released
as a movie-only release by the Criterion Collection bearing
spine number 30, with a mediocre transfer that was improved
upon greatly by the Region 2 double-platter release from
Eureka. Criterion has more recently however released the
best DVD edition yet by re-issuing the film as a two-disc
release (retaining its original spine number) with a wealth
of supplements and a gloriously restored film transfer. The
Criterion double-disc reissue served as the basis for this
review.
The image is 'pillarboxed'
at its original aspect ratio of approx. 1.19:1. This ancient,
almost square screen shape results in vertical bars to the
left and right of the frame on a regular 4:3 display. The
restoration effort presented here verges on the miraculous,
outperforming by quite a distance the already impressive
Eureka DVD release in sharpness and detail.
The original mono sound mix has also been impressively restored,
and although this early sound film does sound fairly tinny,
most pops and scratches on the soundtrack have been successfully
removed.
 Re-released
by The Criterion Collection as a thoroughly packed two-disc
edition, which now replaces Criterion's original single-disc
release, M now also boasts the level of supplements
one has come to expect from the powerhouse distributor of
DVD classics. The feature is accompanied by a scholarly commentary
track from German film scholar Eric Rentschler and author
Anton Kaes. It's not wildly entertaining, but the track is
packed with information on the film's production and background,
offering invaluable material for students of the film.
On the second disc we find an astonishing interview with Fritz Lang, conduced
and filmed by William Friedkin a mere year before Lang's death, in which the
aristocratic director reminisces (and - apparently - fantasizes) about his early
years as a filmmaker and the production of M. Claude Chabrol's short
film M Le Maudit, which was inspired by Lang's film, is another valuable
inclusion, as are the classroom video tapes of M's editor Paul Falkenberg
discussing the film in some detail before a group of film students. Other extras
include an interview with the film's producer, a 'physical history' that covers
the many restoration efforts and rescue operations that have ultimately saved
the film from oblivion, and a still gallery with behind-the-scenes photos and
rare production sketches.
Dan
Hassler-Forest
Reviewed:
2003
Click
here for IMDB info on M.
Click here
to return to the front page.
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