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starring: Peter Lorre, Ellen Widmann, Inge Landgut, Otto Wernicke, Theodor Loosdirected by: Fritz Lang
Audience Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Binding: VHS Tape
EAN: 5060000400328
Format: PAL
Label: Paramount Pictures
Manufacturer: Paramount Pictures
Number Of Discs: 1
Publisher: Paramount Pictures
Running Time: 99 minutes
Studio: Paramount Pictures
Theatrical Release Date: May 11, 1931
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Editorial Review:
Amazon.com essential video:
Peter Lorre made film history with his startling performance as a psychotic murderer of children. Too elusive for the Berlin police, the killer is sought and marked by underworld criminals who are feeling the official fallout for his crimes. This riveting, 1931 German drama by Fritz Lang--an early talkie--unfolds against a breathtakingly expressionistic backdrop of shadows and clutter, an atmosphere of predestination that seems to be closing in on Lorre's terrified villain. M is an important piece of cinema's past along with a number of Lang's early German works, including Metropolis and Spies. (Lang eventually brought his influence directly to the American cinema in such films as Fury, They Clash by Night, and The Big Heat.) M shouldn't be missed. This original 111-minute version is a little different from what most people have seen in theaters. --Tom Keogh
Customer Reviews
Average Rating: 
Rating:  - A Brilliant Classic
What an incredible movie. I'm sure I can add nothing to what other reviewers have said, but everything fascinates me about this film. The complexity of its politics, the way the tension grows and fades and grows again (and never lies in the expected), the creativity of composition and angle in the camera work. It is easy to see how foundational it has been for every noir film that came after it, while itself building on the tradition of German cinema. It was Fritz Lang's first talkie film, and he ... Read More
Rating: - A "must have" for any serious film collector
Fritz Lang's great 1931 film M is an important film, and for anyone who collects classic films, a necessary addition. Criterion's 2 CD set is simply wonderful, with the complete 110 minute Lang approved version of M on disc 1, and a William Friedkin interview with Fritz Lang made a year before his death, among other goodies on disc 2.
M was Fritz Lang's 1st movie made with sound, although a few sequences were actually silent. This film is one of the last great examples of German Expressionism, ... Read More
Rating: - M is Fritz Lang's Masterpiece
This movie is the perfect example of what Fritz Lang is capable of. His technique is extrodinary.
Purchase Scarlett Street also. It is another fantastic Fritz Lang Film Noir title.
Rating: - Hall of the Mountain King; Lorre Covers Grieg
Of course, Edvard Grieg was the composer of the "Peer Gynt Suite" which included "Hall of the Mountain King". In this film, Peter Lorre's character whistles this little ditty whenever he gets a "Jones" for murder; so much for my title. As far as "M" goes; if you haven't heard, it's an incredibly good film. I could go on and on about its historical significance, its artistic merit or Fritz Lang, but you've all heard that before. All I have to say is that I highly recommend this movie to anyone who likes ... Read More
Rating: - Ahead of its time
This is a very interesting film on so many levels, and very well presented by Criterion. The commentary is well-done and stays on topic, and the video is so crisp and clear you can't believe it was filmed in 1931. It's interesting to see just how far ahead German cinema was of its American counterpart at this point in time. Although there is not that much talking in this early German talking picture - Fritz Lang resisted going to sound in the first place - what conversation that does take place is well done ... Read More
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