The Bottom Line
A classic expressionist suspense thriller, impeccably packaged by the Criterion Collection.
Pros
- Thrilling 1933 mystery about an evil mastermind
- From the director of "Metropolis" and "M"
- Two-DVD set with lots of extras
Cons
- None
Description
- Fritz Lang, Germany, 1933. 121 minutes.
- Splendidly restored image and sound.
- Informative audio commentary by David Kalat, author of "The Strange Case of Dr. Mabuse"
- Complete French-language version of the film, filmed simultaneously by Lang with French actors
- Excerpts from a 1964 interview with Fritz Lang
- "Mabuse in Mind," a 1984 film by Thomas Honickel featuring an interview with actor Rudolf Schundler
- Comparison between three different versions of the film
- Interview with German Mabuse expert Michael Farin about the inventor of the series, Norbert Jacques
- Rare production design drawings by art director Emil Hasler, memorabilia and still gallery
- New essay by Tom Gunning, author of "The Films of Fritz Lang"
Guide Review - The Testament of Dr. Mabuse - Criterion Collection DVD
Before James Bond's Blofeld and Austin Powers' Dr. Evil, there was Dr. Mabuse. The classic German villain, mysterious and all-powerful, first appeared in Fritz Lang's silent classic "Dr. Mabuse, the Gambler" (1922.) This film, Lang's second with sound, finds Mabuse in an insane asylum--but somehow, he still controls crimes all over Berlin. With vivid images and tight storytelling, we follow Inspector Lohmann (Otto Wernicke) on his investigations into the Weimar underworld. The Nazis, perhaps uncomfortably reminded of their power-mad leader, banned "The Testament of Dr. Mabuse," and the film was not shown in Germany until after the war.
