The Testament of Dr. Mabuse (Das Testament des Dr. Mabuse)
BBB.5
(out of 5)
A ring of jewel robbers confound a city as murders pile up and a police detective is driven crazy trying to figure out the source of all the crime. The wise gumshoe never manages to grab a hold of any clues that lead to anything substantial except the ones that point to Dr. Mabuse, a catatonic man locked up in an insane asylum. There are rumours that the doctor controls people through hypnosis, but there is no reason to believe this bosh; unfortunately, the search for hard answers sends everyone in circles and it’s the only possible explanation. This deliciously strange procedural by Fritz Lang is a grab-bag of the delightful and the dull, highlighted by superb visual motifs that are unforgettable (including some very nifty special effects), but also hampered by an overly convoluted plot that is frustrating to follow. What makes it memorable, other than its historical interest as a Hitler allegory that got it banned in Germany for twenty years, is Lang’s expertise itself, a man who in the burgeoning years of sound could make something so smooth and brisk at a time when other films were held back by stilted scenes of dialogue and awkward pacing.
Directed by Fritz Lang
Screenplay by Fritz Lang, Thea von Harbou, based on characters created by Norbert Jacques
Cinematography by Karoly Vass, Fritz Arno Wagner
Produced by Fritz Lang, Seymour Nebenzal
Music by Hans Erdmann
Production Design by Emil Hasler, Karl Vollbrecht
Costume Design by Hans Kothe
Film Editing by Conrad von Molo, Lothar Wolff
Cast Tags: Adolf E. Licho,Anna Goltz, Bruno Ziener,Camilla Spira, Eduard Wesener, Franz Stein, Georg John,Gerhard Bienert, Gustav Diessl, Hadrian Maria Netto, Heinrich Gotho, Heinrich Gretler,Henry Pleß, Josef Dahmen, Karl Meixner,Karl Platen, Klaus Pohl, Ludwig Stössel, Michael von Newlinsky, Oscar Beregi Sr.,Oskar Höcker, Otto Wernicke, Paul Bernd,Paul Henckels, Paul Rehkopf, Rudolf Klein-Rogge, Rudolf Schündler, Theo Lingen,Theodor Loos, Wera Liessem
