Empire Magazine (2008) Greatest Movies List - #212: M

I recently found out most movies about serial killers and police procedural owe a lot to a black and white German movie from 1931. M, directed by iconic director Fritz Lang, has all the classic elements to be found in modern-day thrillers. There is the sinister killer lurking in the shadows, the question as to whether the killer is insane, panic in the streets, the hunt for vital pieces of evidence, and politicians breathing down the necks of investigators because results are not happening fast enough. As old as the movie may be, it remains a superb piece of film making that is sadly still very relevant today.

This movie is available online completely free, and I don't mean free as in on pirate bay or other piracy websites. It is a piece of cultural history, so the Open Culture website has a 109-minute restored version available for viewing along with information about the film's history. Most of it was unknown to me, although I was familiar with the director Fritz Lang and Hungarian actor Peter Lorre who portrays the killer. That role led him to a Hollywood career playing many supporting characters, including in another classic, The Maltese Falcon. This is yet another old tradition: a European actor finds fame portraying a villain and then Hollywood offer them long-term work. For other examples, see the early work of Alan Rickman or Mads Mikkelsen. 

Peter Lorre deserves a lot of admiration for portraying not just a villain, but a villain who commits one of the worst crimes imaginable. While whistling Edvard Grieg's "In the Hall of the Mountain King", his seemingly ordinary character approaches children in the streets of Berlin to kill them at knife point. Naturally these horrible actions send waves of fear throughout the city. Mothers do not want their children to be late for supper even for just a minute and men are attacked in the streets merely for telling children the time.

The police are of course combing the streets looking for a suspect but unfortunately this killer is good at leaving no traces. Forensic science even today is sometimes not an exact science so whatever fingerprints are found at the scenes of the horrific crimes are not much help. Witness accounts are no help either, since two witnesses cannot even agree on the colour of a hat without getting into a shouting match. While one investigator is explaining this dire situation to an impatient politician, there is a montage showing cops working around the clock as the populace grows tired of their presence.

Things go off the beaten path when organized crime get involved. We are reminded gangsters have children too and killing for some sick pleasure goes against their rules. The heavy police presence and the frequent raids on their establishments is also beginning to be bad for business, so the gangsters decide that if the law won't catch the killer then they will do their job for them. By enlisting the city's homeless population (which apparently is unionized in 1930s Berlin) they add extra eyes on the streets to guard the children. 

The "M" of the movie's title comes from the mark left on the killer's coat when one lookout finally spots him as he approaches a child. “M” for murderer you see. Once he is tagged, the killer is hunted in the streets and eventually caught by what is essentially a hunting party. You hear the words "child killer" and you probably think Freddy Krueger with his fedora and knives for hands. Yet Peter Lorre portrays this killer as an ordinary as average man until the sight of a child sets him off. When the hunting party comes looking for him, he expresses fear just like anyone else.  

Once he is caught, interesting moral questions arise. The gangsters set up a kangaroo court with the intention of executing him, to the joy of an angry mob. Yet the pathetic lawyer they give him does raise the important issue of the killer's sanity. If this murderer is mentally ill, as he claims during a plea for his life, is he responsible for his actions? Is he not as much a victim as the children he has killed, and should he not be treated as such? The gangsters point out there is always the chance he could escape from a mental institution and cause more harm. However, it is rather hypocritical for the gangsters to talk about justice since they themselves have killed people because of their line of work. 

If I have one complaint about the movie is that it ends rather suddenly. I honestly wanted more debates, but I am still very impressed with what happens before the discussions come to an end. Mental illness, the death penalty, vigilante justice and regular justice. These are topics that could be debated for hours by everyone from law experts to average people in bars after a few drinks. Sadly, there are no easy answers to the questions raised by the screenwriters, which is probably why M doesn't have any. It is however that rare movie that can make you think weeks after seeing it.