M
Since we will not be having our traditional film discussion on Friday, use this blog entry to discuss our movie from Thursday, M.
posted by cmartin at 3/23/2006 11:16:00 AM
Class blog for the ENG 2300 University of Florida film analysis class of spring 2006.
posted by cmartin at 3/23/2006 11:16:00 AM
32 Comments:
Besides my buttocks falling asleep, i thought that M was a great movie. Im sure some people will think im crazy, but i thought that the film captured something that ive never seen before. I noticed a few things about the film tonight. For example the sudden change from sound to complete silence. This happened a few times during the film and it seemed awkward to me at first because im used to having at least background noise in films (i.e. the clip that Ray showed from Vanilla Sky when Tom Cruise is in the bar). I also noticed the "sound effects" of the bells and cars honking. I thought that naming the film 'M' was pretty cool in that it drew my attention more towards the importance of the branding scene. If the title was something else, i dont think me as a viewer would have thought that scene was as crucial; i remember sitting and feeling that "ah-ha!" moment when the man drew an M in chalk on his hand...like in the back of my mind i was always searching for the reason why the movie was called M, and now AH-HA! i understand. one last thing...these are the exact words i wrote down while taking notes on the film:
"note to self--never do a crotch shot of a 40-something man"
Sam,
I agree with you on the very disturbing crotch shot. What purpose did that serve? I can honestly say I have never seen a camera angle like that in any movie. Very weird and uncomfortable!
So,I thought this was one of the more enjoyable black and white movies i've seen. Once i got used to the subtitles, the story drew me in. I was a little confused at the end though, because I couldn't tell if the real court found the man guilty or not. I thought the common beggars trying him was kind of a cool commment on society. It's true that alot of crimes are committed by people who have already been convicted of one thing or another. But, because of loopholes in the system, they get out and commit more. This is especially true with child molesters in the U.S. I think it's interesting how a movie made so long ago, can still have a true message. What does that say about our justice system? Does it really get better over time?
Overall I think M was a great movie, but I think my viewing experience on Thursday night wasn’t as good as it could have been (i.e. I was really tired and the seats were definitely uncomfortable). It seemed to me that the movie was really long and progressed very slowly. I guess I was expecting the film to show more of the murderer and less of the citizens’ search for him. It seemed like most of the film was focused on the businessmen talking about the murderer. Lang, in my opinion, definitely develops some interesting/powerful scenes. I think it’s interesting how the film opens with the children singing that “awful song” and how it foreshadows the murders. Also, I think the murderer’s breakdown at the trial was really powerful, in terms of the acting. It was cool to watch.
Sam - Yeah, I really liked the scene with the "M" branding. At first I was wondering why the guy was writing it on his hand. And like you said, there is definitely an "Ah-ha" moment. It's neat how Fritz Lang plays with the viewers' expectations. (Also cool was the scene where the murderer pulls out the knife on the little girl, but then you find out he was just going to cut the fruit).
I had already seen M, but I enjoyed seeing it again. It’s a really good movie, and I absolutely love how Lang really incorporates sound in his early talkie, considering that sound in movies (other than background music and sound effects) really hadn’t been around for a very long. The killer’s whistling and that it leads to his capture is really cool. Nobody had really done anything like this before. I also really enjoyed the scenes where it switched back and forth between the criminal and the police meetings. In one instance, Lang switches and matches perfectly with the person talking at each doing the same ridiculous hand gesture. I thought that was kind of cool. My favorite shot in the movie, though, is when the camera pans up to show the poster about the murderer, and then his shadow appears on the poster as he begins to talk to the little girl. What a great shot.
Sam- The title is really cool. The original title was Murderer Among Us but I think M works much better. You don't see many one letter movie titles, much less good ones. The title slide with the M in the palm is pretty cool.
Laura- It is pretty amazing that an issue from a film made more than 70 years ago is still as much of an issue today. I think that may be why this movie is so powerful.
The movie M was, in my opinion, mediocre. I guess I’m not used to watching a movie with subtitles, because that was very distracting. I also thought that the movie was a little too long. It seemed to drag on at parts that maybe could’ve been shortened. I did enjoy the mysterious plot involving the child-napping murderer. I also liked the blind man’s discovery of the man by the whistling of that tune. That was definitely a cool twist which I didn’t see coming. My favorite part was the parallel between the title, and the “M” marked on the murderer with chalk. Lang makes this obvious connection with the Murderer and why the film is titled as such.
ray,
I totally forgot about the song at the beginning. That is a definite use of forshadowing.
I liked M for the most part. It seemed to drag on a bit to me, also took quite a while to really get moving. The end was awesome though, the murder's eyes were enough to tell his whole story, words were not even needed. German expressionism is a bit well different from what we are used to I guess but I wouldn't be overly upset if we had to watch more of it. I must say I prefer modern film style to this though. It was kind of cool thought to see the first real serial killer movie, definitely inspired the things we see made today.
Ray- The seats are really starting to get to mee too.
Watching the movie M was definitely a different experience for me. I have only seen a few black and white movies and M was the first movie with subtitles that I have ever seen. I would have to say that M was not a style that I really like, but it was interesting to watch anyways. One thing I have to admit was that I was really creeped out by the whistling. Every time the murderer whistled it just made me feel uneasy. I was also expecting the movie to show more scenes with the murderer and the children – like what you would see on television shows like CSI and Law & Order.
Sam and Laura -
I totally agree with you about the crotch shot...That was disgusting!!!
Unfortunately or maybe fortunately I did not see the film on thursday. From what I have read from classmates blogs is that many people had trouble focusing on the film because it was black and white and there were subtitles. What I have learned from watching movies like this, you have to sorta foget that movies of today are much different. You have to accept that the focus of movies are different from what they use to be. While movies of today focus a lot on what you are seeing, (ie. high quality film, special effects, ect.) movies made during the time of this one, the focus seems to be more on the plot. Unfortunately I have nothing to comment on the movie.
Hey, If anyone wants to see a movie with subtitles that is freaking amazing you should go out and rent City of God. my fav movie of the month
I thought M was a pretty interesting movie. I like watching older movies occasionally just because they are so different from movies today, but sometimes I have a hard time staying focused on them the whole time. I liked M because it managed to keep my attention throughout the entire film. I'm not a huge fan of subtitles because they can tend to distract from the rest of the visual if you are too busy reading. Other than that, I liked the movie a lot. The use of sound in the movie really stood out to me, probably because of this week's class discussion. I thought the contrast of complete silence with loud noises was really cool and I don't think I've ever seen a movie that had no music in it at all.
Sam,
I agree with you about the title of the movie. I think "M" was a great choice. It really ties in with the turning point of the plot.
Betsy:
I LOVE LAW AND ORDER AND CSI!!!!!
whewww now that that is out of the way...i too thought the whistling was pretty creepy. but then again im the girl who thinks that children laughing is creepy so hey what do i know
Thursday's viewing was very interesting. I had to get used to some of the silent scenes in the film. I thought those scenes created an awkward atmosphere, I think the director was trying to emphasize on the mystery of the characters whenever they were presented. I also noticed the camera movements taking effect during climatic scenes. For example,close-ups of the killer where taken during the "court" scene emphasising the killer's guilt. Tracking shots of the detectives on the search for the killer serve as another example of camera movements. I also liked the poster shot of the murderer's silhouette. The film was pretty interesting but I found it mediocre. However, I do enjoy foreign films.
M is the earliest foreign film I have seen. Most early films that I have been exposed to are American films, so I found it interesting to get a glimpse of what life was like in Germany, 1931. At times it was a bit dragging when there wouldn’t be any sound at all, but I remind myself that sound production was at an early stage. I loved how Lang would show perspectives of both the police and the criminals and how they reacted to the child murder that was terrorizing their streets. Peter Lorre, the man who played the serial killer, did an amazing job at taking you into the mind of a psychopath who doesn’t seem to have control over his sick tendencies. Great psychological thriller.
Laura,
I also agree with you on the message the movie sends. It is kinda awkard to watch something so relative to today. Has society ever really changed?
Ryan,
I also liked the poster shot of the murderer, I thought that was really creative. I commented it on my blog.
I had heard good things about M and Fritz Lang movies in general. I wouldn't say I was disappointed but it wasn't exactly what I expected. Don't get me wrong, I enjoyed it very much. It just wasn't what I was expecting. It seemed like the story was very basic. That’s not necessarily a bad thing, it just seemed basic. I liked the use of whistling throughout the movie. I thought that was a neat tie that brought the story in somewhat of a full circle. Reading subtitles does get a little tedious but it’s a necessary evil. I’m still perfecting my German. (Joke)
M, in my opinion, was a good story and the point they were trying to get across was very interesting. I enjoyed the eeriness of the beginning with the children singing their song. I once heard somewhere that the whole 'ring around the rosies' thing was about the black death (plague) and that posies were what people kept in their pockets to smell because the stench of rotting flesh was so terrible. and obviously ashes from having to burn the dead. so thats what i thought of when i saw the scene with the children playing their little game about the man in black coming to get them. anywho, i thought the beginning of the movie was cool.. then i lost interest in the middle, and then i regained interest again towards the end. I liked how the beggars tried him although im not really sure about how it ends. the crotch shot was fun!
I also liked the title of the movie. I thought it was very appropriate. I read it was originally supposed to be called "The Murderers are Among Us". "M" is a lot better, in my opinion. The chairs are really starting to get to me too.
I also liked the title of the movie. I thought it was very appropriate. I read it was originally supposed to be called "The Murderers are Among Us". "M" is a lot better, in my opinion. The chairs are really starting to get to me too.
tyler- i really liked how he whistled the hungarian rhapsody and that it was one of the things that led to his arrest. it was creepy and usually whistling in movies is creepy. but i whistle a lot a lot a lot! hopefully its not creepy. and also yes to everyone else who commented on it, i wouldnt have gotten the title if it werent for the branding scene, and vice versa.
John- Brians right, City of God is great so watch it. Also, Ray showed a clip from another awesome German film, Run Lola Run. Other foreign films worth watching are Das Boot(German WWII movie) and The Devils Backbone (Spanish horror movie)
Unfortunately, I wasn't at the screening on Thursday, so I missed this film (I was covering a speech by an EXTREMELY inarticulate actress and would have preferred to have been at the screening). Anyway, I have read the information on the GreenCine Web site, and I will be watching a film as soon as I can find one to rent. German expressionism is something that seems very interesting to me because of its exploration into the juxtaposition of light and dark. I am red-green color blind, so contrast is very important to me. I was really into b&w photography in middle and high school, and pictures and films like this have always interested me. The one thing I don’t think I would really enjoy about this genre is the political undertones. I am very interested in current events and politics, but I find myself confused with references to foreign and antiquidated political references.
John G, I have to disagree with your view on black & white movies. There are a few still being made and some that just wouldn't be the same if they were in color (Clerks). As for subtitles, I completely agree. I know many people enjoy them, but when I watch a movie, I want to watch the entire screen and not have to focus on subtitles. I just feel like it's really easy to miss out on something important when you focus on subtitles.
I thoroughly enjoyed M. I'm pretty sure it was my first viewing of a german expressionist film. Very dark and dreary. There were only about two instances where a character smiled, and that was when it contrasted with the face he made next or if it it served to show his gluttony. On the other hand, there wasn't that much crying, except for the mother's losing their children. All in all, this movie was almost totally emotionless, besides fear and paranoia. My favorite part of the movie was the murderer's creepy whistle, and how it served to characterize him and identify him in the end by the blind man. What's even creepier is that I was whistling the same song earlier on in the day.
City of God is definately one my favorite films. I love the concept of cyclical nature of violence as the younger generation falls into the same rudeboy lifestyle as the older thugs.
Feel free to bring a pillow on Thursdays. Sorry, but I can't do anything about the chairs. At least the sound is better, which is, as many of you have pointed out, very important in this movie.
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