M (1931 film)

M
M
	Theatrical release poster
Directed by	Fritz Lang
Written by	Fritz Lang ; Thea von Harbou
Produced by	Seymour Nebenzal
Starring	Peter Lorre ; Otto Wernicke ; Gustaf Gründgens
Cinematography	Fritz Arno Wagner
Edited by	Paul Falkenberg
Production; company	Nero-Film A.G.
Distributed by	Vereinigte Star-Film GmbH
Release date	11 May 1931;
Running time	111 minutes
Country	Germany
Language	German

M is a 1931 German mystery suspense thriller film directed by Fritz Lang and starring Peter Lorre (in his third screen role) as Hans Beckert, a serial killer who targets children. An early example of a procedural drama, the film centers on the manhunt for Lorre's character, conducted by both the police and the criminal underworld.^[2]

The film's screenplay was written by Lang and his wife Thea von Harbou, and it was Lang's first sound film.^[3] It features many cinematic innovations, including the use of long, fluid tracking shots, and a musical leitmotif in the form of "In the Hall of the Mountain King" whistled by Lorre's character. Now considered classic, Lang regarded the film as his magnum opus.^[4] It is widely considered one of the greatest films of all time, and an indispensable influence on modern crime and thriller fiction.^[5]^[6]^[7]

A remake under the same title, directed by Joseph Losey, came out in 1951.

^ "M (A)". British Board of Film Classification. 24 May 1932. Archived from the original on 29 May 2014. Retrieved 30 July 2013.
^ Monsters of Weimar pp. 296–98
^ "Now I Lay Me Down To Sleep: A Brief History of Child Murder in Cinema". Bloody Disgusting!. 22 April 2010. Retrieved 19 April 2016.
^ Kauffman, Stanley. "The Mark of M". The Criterion Collection. Retrieved 27 April 2012.
^ "M: In Context". The Cinessential. Retrieved 28 September 2020.
^ "The long shadow of M". The Dissolve. Archived from the original on 27 January 2021. Retrieved 28 September 2020.
^ "A Peerless Classic". @GI_weltweit. Retrieved 28 September 2020.