Review of M (1931) by Riley H — 21 May 2010
This is a tough one. It is a mostly great movie. The direction is spectacular. There are so many neat shots I don't even know where to begin. It seems that something like 85% of thriller cliches emanated with this film.
There are so many scenes that we have seen in so many subsequent films. It is an absolute landmark. On the other hand, it is a ridiculously naive view of the underworld. And the ending is beyond contrived.
I think its historical importance and the quality of film-making outweigh the story defects. I give it a ten but a qualified ten if that's possible. This is one of the most important films of the 30s, one of the most important pre-WWII films, even though it isn't as great as it could have been.
This review of M (1931) was written by Riley H on 21 May 2010.
M has generally received very positive reviews.
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