M

BFI Film Classics

by Anton Kaes

This text reconnects M to its significance as an event in 1931 Germany, recapturing the film's extraordinary social and symbolic energy. Interweaving close reading with cultural history, Anton Kaes reconstitutes M as a modernist artwork. He also analyzes Joseph Losey's 1951 film noir remake.

Genres: Film, Germany, Media Tie In, Nonfiction, Criticism, Art, School

96 pages, Paperback

First published February 26, 2000

About the author

Anton Kaes is Professor of German and Film & Media at the University of California, Berkeley. He has written and edited numerous books, including Shell Shock Cinema and The Weimar Republic Sourcebook, and is coeditor of the Weimar and Now series.

Reviews

[Jonfaith · Rating 4 out of 5]

Bits of Mabuse and Doblin percolate in the Weimar of our imagination. Red Rosa is tossed into the Landwehr while Sally Bowles sings for lost love, placating her daddy issues until the burning of the Reichstag.

I read half before viewing the film and then the second half after pausing midway through Lang's masterpiece. This is a meticulous analysis of 1931 Berlin and the Brechtian daimon of Peter Lorre. There is considerable context on the recent phenomenon of serial killing in this mass society, the role of popular press and radio on reinforcing a nascent surveillance state == one both official/efficient and the murky one of the neighbor qua lynch mob.

Well worth anyone's time

[Jon · Rating 4 out of 5]

Anton Kaes's little book on M is a really fantastic book. A lot has been written about M and I haven't read much of it, so I don't know how this book compares to others. But it's a really accessible and easy approach to the film that picks the scenes apart really well. Kaes is looking at the film as a reflection of the time, addressing Fascism and the idea of total mobilization, among other things. Super interesting analysis of one of Fritz Lang's finest films.

[Jeff Miller · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fritz Lang's 'M' is, in my opinion, one of the greatest films ever made. The craft and artistry that is on display at such an early stage of film (1931) is bewildering and as fresh now as 88 years ago; but to think is wasn't that well received at first (isn't that always the way Orson?)

I'm loving these BFI books, but this one is of a higher standard - the research and academic understanding and appreciation of this film, where and when it came from, is of the highest order, whilst maintaining it's accessibility for the reader. It uncovers and presents a 'lost' scene and also looks at the lesser known American remake of 1951, from which, when referring to the original, we get the superb quote:

"It is a picture which I do not believe could, under any circumstances, have been made in Hollywood...Nevertheless, Hollywood will make better pictures seeing this one".

[S. Wilson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Anton Kaes provides an extremely valuable in-depth examination of Fritz Lang's M, exploring this classic German film not only based on cinematic craft, but the historical, social, and political contexts that informed and are reflected by Lang's masterful directorial craft. Kaes devotes large sections of the book to the historical climate in Germany at the time that are alluded to in the film and/or inspired it, including the repercussions of World War I and the real-life serial killer that captured the attention and imagination of the German people at the time, and explores how M is not just a crime thriller or police procedural, but an exhaustive portrayal of how society reacts - both positively and negatively - to the almost mythological nature that such crimes invoke in the popular culture. A must read for any serious film enthusiast.

[Russio · Rating 4 out of 5]

Spends much time placing itself in the context of interbellum Germany with its spate of serial murders. M is a seminal work of moralism, cast against the least promising background of a Germany corrupted by criminals and weak police. Asking difficult questions, such as how guilty can the insane be, this is a movie with relevance baked into it for future generations. Notably, the writer connects Kafka's The Trial of 1925, with M. That M's situation resembles that of K, would seem to be very significant as a guide to reading this nightmare text.

[Jessica Fitzner · Rating 4 out of 5]

Easy and illuminating

[Marva · Rating 5 out of 5]

Interesting read and analysis

[alice mabel · Rating 4 out of 5]

For uni

[Patrick McCoy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was aware of the reputation of Fritz Lang's M, when I saw Jean-Luc Goddard's Contempt, in which Lang had a role. This inspired me to finally see the film and I found it to be a powerful, classic film. Anton Kaes, a Chancellor's Professor of German and Film Studies at the University of California Berkeley, looks at the film in the context of its cultural history and analyzes the books social and symbolic energy. The book is divided into six sections. The first is "Berlin, 1931" gives the cultural and societal context of the film made in the Wiemar Republic. a short time before the Nazis take over the government and a time of social upheaval and economic depression. Chapter Two "Serial Murder, Serial Culture" discusses the importance and/or popularity of serial murders in society. In Chapter Three "Total Mobilization" the author discuses the different society organizations that are searching out for the child murderer: police, criminals, beggars, etc. In Chapter Four "Before the Law" the finals acts and conclusion of the film are discussed in context of things that were going on at the time. The last chapter, ""Los Angles, 1951" discuses the 1951 Joseph Losey film noir based on this film. There is also an appendix that publishes for the first time M's missing scene. It is another well written and researched BFI film analysis of a classic.

[Andrew Bishop · Rating 4 out of 5]

A superb analysis of Lang's film and its Weimar era German context. You have to be familiar with the film or Lang's work to really appreciate the close read that Kaes employs to discuss the film's strengths but it also works to show the depth of Lang's social commentary. The historical context for the film that's the book's other concern is equally valuable. I'm more keen on the Mabuse films but Kaes does such a good job here it reveals the strengths in Lang's cinema generally. But read this book if you want to know more about one of Germany's best films and a historically important one at that.

[Marva · Rating 5 out of 5]

As riveting as the film

Very interesting analysis of M which takes you down some less obvious paths into the thoughts behind the story and making.