Rating: 
Summary: Superb film, some reservations about the DVD
Review: There is no need to repeat that this is a superb film. It is, for me, the best silent film currently available on DVD. And the quality of the picture is very good. It is not, however, perfect, and I will admit to being a bit disappointed. No doubt there are no longer any 'perfect' prints of Dr Mabuse in existence, but I was disappointed that the print quality was not a little better. It is nowhere near as good as 1000 Eyes of Dr Mabuse as far as print quality goes (of course, its an older film, but it is also more important and did receive a theatrical release in the 60s). Moreover, although the package promises that it is shown at the 'correct speed' I think it was too fast. It definitely has that speeded up 'silent movie' look that you get when you project a silent film at sound film speeds. I would have slowed it down by a couple more frames per second. Nonetheless, do not hesitate to buy this DVD -- perhaps one day there will be a better one but this is WELL worth the cost.The commentary is terrific.
Rating: 
Summary: DR. MABUSE And The Noir Moment
Review: WARNING: POSSIBLE SPOILERS AHEAD What separates film noir from the standard crime or gangster film? Psychology. Where the common criminal is simply interested in money, the film noir villain has a profound understanding of human nature and enjoys playing with the lives of others as much for pleasure as for gain. The year is 1922. The place is post WW I Germany. It was a time of inflation so great and so accelerated that a loaf of bread costing a mere 20 thousand marks in the morning could be priced at 5 million marks by evening. Restaurant prices skyrocketed while diners were eating. Businesses paid their workers twice a day so their money would have some buying power. By November of 1923, it took 4.2 trillion German marks to buy a single American dollar. Moral chaos ensued. To set the amoral mood of DR. MABUSE, people are shown climbing the ladder of success by exploiting the vices of others. But no value judgments are made. We see only that vice is profitable, not that it is wrong or right. The economic instability of the period gives rise to extraordinary moral decadence: a dancer performs a stage show with blatant sexual imagery; drug addicts are everyday characters, and prostitute children are openly soliciting in the streets. It's indicative of this film's milieu that even the good characters are allowed to enjoy Schadenfreude-----------pleasure at the misfortunes of others. The Countess Tolst, for instance, enjoys watching the faces of gamblers when they lose at cards------showing that even angels become devils when they live in the hell of social chaos. The German people of 1922 needed a savior to believe in. But he didn't have to have wings and a halo. He could be a criminal mastermind. Dr. Mabuse is such a man. He has no compassion, no mercy, no friends------------no equals-------only servants. He's professor Moriarty and the insidious Dr. Fu Manchu rolled into one. He isn't simply a mastermind who sits in a sterile room directing his criminal activities; he's also a master of disguise who enjoys becoming a different person to commit his crimes. His cohorts are so dedicated to him that they willingly sacrifice their lives--------some by suicide----------so that he can continue his great work. He is convinced of his mental and psychic gifts and lesser humans are only toys for the various games he plays. But like a child, he's unaware that any harm can come to him and is unprepared for police commissioner Von Wenk to be as ruthless and as merciless as he is. The film is filled with noir moments: One of the crisises of the film comes during the card game between Mabuse and Commissioner Von Wenk, when both men are heavily disguised. Mabuse tries to psychically overpower Wenk's mind and in a highly cinematic noir moment, the room totally darkens, obscuring everyone but them to emphasize the contest of wills. Another highly symbolic noir moment comes when Count Tolst-------who is socially disgraced because Mabuse hypnotized him into cheating at cards------------walks from the shadows, a defeated man, toward Mabuse, standing in a bright beam of light, symbolic of the German people's yearning for a savior. Still another is when Countess Tolst pretends to be arrested and is thrown into the same prison cell as Cara Carrozza, to get information on the man Von Wenk calls "The Great Unknown." Cara tells her of Mabuse's greatness and of her love for him, causing the Countess to admire her for protecting the man she loves. The noir moment comes when Cara sits alone in her cell---------wondering if Mabuse has betrayed her-----------the shadow of the prison bars shine on her face and we realize she is not only in a physical prison, but an emotional prison of Mabuse's making. It's not difficult to see DR. MABUSE as the first film noir, and one of the finest films of the German silent period. Definitely a film of its time, it could have predicted the rise of Adolph Hitler had anyone been paying attention. The message of the film is that theft and murder in pursuit of a great cause are permissible, but that cheating is dishonorable and will be punished by fate. Mabuse is a gambler who played with life. He lost because he committed a gambler's only sin. He cheated, and his punishment is to be haunted by the ghosts of his own misdeeds. Originally, a two part film running nearly three and a half hours, but mostly seen in a highly edited version of half that length. While I haven't seen the upcoming Image DVD and can't comment on its picture and sound quality, it restores the film back to its original length and adds a music track. It's a film every student of cinema should see, especially if you enjoy film noir. Jay F.
| 
