Creepy Stuff ...

Honestly, I'm still kind of surprised that a film like this actually existed back in 1931. Because of the extremely dark subject matter, even today the project would have plenty of difficulty getting off the ground. But the important thing is that it DOES exist, and even back then it's clear that at least somebody out there knew how innovative and brilliant cinema can be, which leaves no excuse for all those bloody awful films the studios churned out at the time.

Fritz Lang as usual allows things to unfold at a leisurely pace, which is fine although he does linger too long on some aspects particularly in the middle section of the film, which means that it very nearly suffers from that age-old disease whereby a film has a great opening and a great ending, but is ruined by the fact that it lags heavily in the middle. But there are enough to great scenes and original ideas in there to ensure that this is among the greatest films of all the time.

I'm sure today's directors must envy Fritz Lang in that back then he had pretty much a blank slate, and so was free to experiment without fear of borrowing from other places, so ultimately you have to admit that this is not a film about other films -- it's a film about life, inspired by real life and shot in a way that truly tries to memorably capture everyday life.

The highlight of the film as far as the acting is concerned is of course Peter Lorre's haunting, creepy little performance as the child murderer himself. There is one point in the film where the killer is standing in front of a shop window, and his reflection in the glass is dark and murky except for his eyes when he looks over at a little girl, which glow like those of a demon -- almost certainly an accident, but a great-looking accident nonetheless.