Cheap M - Criterion Collection (Special Edition) (DVD) (Peter Lorre) (Fritz Lang) Price

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Customer Reviews of M - Criterion Collection (Special Edition)

A Haunting Masterpiece, Frightening and Harrowing!
Extremely effective for an early talkie. Master Fritz Lang did a terrific job with the moody atmosphere of the movie, everything seems so dirty and obscure. As you see the movie, you sense a kind of hostility but you can't figure out who it's directed at. Well, Lang was not a nazi sympathizer, and when they heard he was making a picture about a murderer, they thought it would be a thinly veiled individual representing nazism, but when they knew that he was dealing with a mere child murderer, they said go ahead Mr. Lang. But multi-layered meanings put aside, this is the film that influenced almost every suspense and horror movie to come, not to mention it single-handedly created the serial murder genre. Long before we were haunted by the likes of Hannibal Lecter, plump little Hans Beckert populated our nightmares. And Peter Loore is nothing short than brilliant in his film debut, his last monologue in front of the kangaroo court is unforgettable. While the film aches for a musical score, it makes great use of sound, somehow the 'Peer Gynt' tune will never seem the same. The story of a serial murder who cannot be found, and is ultimately brought to justice by the Berlin underworld is frightently contemporary. Haunting, frightening and unforgettable. The final scenes in the kangaroo court are truly breathtaking, Loore's plea that 'he can't help what he does' makes us almost understand the despicable character. A one-of-a-kind masterpiece that continues to frighten us after all this years. From a scale of 1-10 I give this film a 10!

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Did Alfred Hitchcock have a mentor?
If he did it could have been Fritz Lang & his seminal talkie, M, made in 1931 & released in 1933. A deranged child murderer is loose in the city (played broadly & wonderfully by "newcomer," Peter Lorre).
The movie has scenes pitting citizen v. citizen, in accusations & counter accusations, near lynchings & mob hysteria. The police seem helpless & bereft of clues. Organized crimes seeks to find the murderer also. He's bad for business.
Crowd mentality is examined. It is a theme Lang returns to in later movies. His first American movie, Fury , (1936) deals with vigilantism & mob rule. This version, a poor print by the way, has English subtitles so your forced to pay attention. It was Lang's favorite film. It is a prototype, if you will, of the murder mystery genre. Kind of a precursor to Hitchcock's thrillers of the 40's & 50's.

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Murderous Molester Meets Mob Mentality...
While watching this story unfold, I found myself on quite a rollercoaster ride of emotion. First, I hated Beckert (Peter Lorre's character) for luring innocent little girls to their hideous deaths. Beckert is scary due to his ordinariness, his gentle face and small stature. He's the opposite of what we tend to expect (even today) a child molester / killer to look like. I really wanted this guy caught! I cheered for the cops to nail this maniac at all cost. Then, I wanted the underworld types to nab him and dole out their version of justice (regardless of their selfish, criminal motives). The scenes of the crooks surrounding / hunting Beckert in a deserted office building are paranoic and intensely claustrophobic. I could feel the terror in Beckert's head. No longer the predator, he was now the prey. Once caught, he is taken to a deserted brewery and put on "trial" by the crime bosses. Beckert must plead for his life before a mob that's not all that interested in his side of the story. He delivers one of the most desperate pleas for mercy in movie history to an audience concerned only with his destruction. Just as the mob leaps at him to tear him apart, the cops arrive, becoming Beckert's (temporary) salvation. In the end, we are left with the words of one of the victims' mother. She sadly states that while Beckert may die for his crimes, this will not bring her baby back to her. Such is the great paradox of justice. Fritz Lang gives us quite a lot to think about in this legendary tale. Buy it and see what I mean...