Rating: 
Summary: five star film but horrible print quality,
Review: ...A wonderful and thought provoking film but what was Criterion doing by releasing this print? The last third of of the film was ruined by a white line across the top of the TV destroying the mood of the film and making it practically unwatchable. Buy at your own risk. At Criterion's high prices print quality should be outstanding.
Rating: 
Summary: Powerful and thought provoking
Review: Ok... in my book, you can't miss any film that has the great Peter Lorre in a key role. While this film was most likely intended to make a statement about society, it translates nicely as a finely crafted story of a manhunt for a despicable murderer of children. The Criterion dvd features a very nice print, and considering this is in the early day of sound film, maintains a clean soundtrack. Like the best of post WWI German films, M makes people look at themselves and question the power that leads, or misleads. The gray area is surprisingly broad when presented in such a skilled way. This film merits re-watching as the arguement proposed in M leaves further questions, rather than answers. The sharp editing and stark imagery make the technical execution of this film a classic and paints society itself as ugly as its own nightmares.
Rating:
Summary: Masterpiece
Review: There is no better German film since. Some notes about some reviews:
- Any mention of Nazis is just plain wrong. For the historically challenged: The Nazis came to power 1933, two years after the film's first release. (They were, however, annoyed by Lang's 1933 'Das Testament des Dr. Mabuse', and verboted it; Lang subsequently left Germany.) - The UFA was (nearly) ruined by Lang's 1927 Anti-Blockbuster 'Metropolis'; in addition, they disputed over the dubbing of 1929 'Die Frau im Mond'. They split; 'M' was no UFA film (Tobis, IIRC). - Lang did indeed invent the sound bridge. - The film is probably based on multiple real cases, but most prominent is Fritz Haarmann, 'The Butcher of Hannover'. 'Der Totmacher' (1995) is a very good movie about Haarmann's questionings; Götz George as Haarmann is brilliant.
Rating:
Summary: Ein Serienmörder wird in Berlin der 30-er gejagt
Review: Fritz Lang hatte bereits eine lange Karriere hinter sich undwar in den 20-ern der erfolgreichste Regisseur Deutschlands und imAusland geehrt. Seine Werke wurden mit "Metropolis" und "Siegfried" sehr bombastisch und z.T. schwerverständlich. Da dreht er einen Film, dem ihm kaum jemand zugetraut hatte, das Publikum und Kritik sahen wie gefesselt die Premiere, der Applaus nach den ersten Aufführungen dauerte manchmal 10 Minuten. Für einen kurzen wunderbaren Augenblick waren 1930 noch die Ästhetik des Stummfilms mit dem neuen Ton vermählt. Fritz Lang setzte den Ton sparsam und expressiv ein, z.B. auf den Straßen ist in der Regel kein Autogeräusch zu hören. Die Zeit war gut gewählt, gerade war der Prozeß um den Massenmörder Kürten in der Presse. Die Ganoven werden mit Theo Lingen sympathisch und volkstümlich dargestellt, Gustyv Gründgens brilliert als autoritärer Unterweltboß, der aber ein Herz für kleine Kinder hat. Parallelen zur damaligen politischen Entwicklung? Peter Lorre gibt ein beeindruckendes Dokument seiner Seelenlandschaft wieder, das Lang genau mit Psychologen studiert hatte. Als surrealer Höhepunkt wird der "Prozeß" gegen den gefangenen Lorre in einer Fabrikruine gezeigt. Der Film ist so spannend, die Zeit vergeht im Nu. Cineasten haben den Film häufiger als bestes deutsches Werk des 20. Jahrhunderts gewählt, mit "Emil und die Detektive" soll er die beste Visitenkarte dieser riesengroßen deutschen Stadt wiedergegeben haben, die später so anders wurde. Meiner Ansicht war Fritz Lang mit Friedrich Murnau der beste Regisseur, den Deutschland bis zum heutigen Tag hatte. Es ist schön, daß sich offenbar mit diesen Reviews viele Zuschauer der USA sich noch für das europäische Kino dieser Zeit interessieren, mehr als in Deutschland, wo M nur 3 Reviews hat. Vielen Dank. MFG Thomas Richter Frankfurt-Riederwald
Rating:
Summary: Remarkably fresh
Review: Here in the states, most of us know Peter Lorre as a quasi-comic villain with bulging eyes and a voice and accent that lends itself to mimicry. In his best-known roles he's a character we can't quite take seriously. But once you see him in "M" your view of him will be changed forever. His work here is a revelation. No longer comic in any respect, he becomes terrifying in his blandness because it reminds us that evil doesn't wear the face of monsters or even gods, but that of the man down the street or the woman at the office. Lorre isn't the only reason to watch "M" but he's one of the most compelling. Nothing about "M," except perhaps the physical quality of the film itself, is at all dated. The themes of serial murder, the abduction and murder of children, the fear that will grip a community being victimized by these crimes, and the mob mentality that can grow out of that fear are all issues we deal with daily. The look of the film is actually surprisingly fresh, with its stark angles and play of light and shadow. It's a look that informed film noir in Hollywood a decade or two later. "M" is fascinating and frightening on many levels, recommended highly for students of film, film buffs and anyone who enjoys a good, thought-provoking movie. Not recommended for anyone disturbed by the subject matter or looking for some mind candy.
Rating:
Summary: I'm not responsible!
Review: An excellent piece of German Expressionism. No wonder the director Lanf made a name for himself. The plot, acting, and setting all hold up well. As a special bonus you get to watch Peter Lorre in a main role before he was steroetyped into villian henchman roles. Add color and the gruesome details and this could run in modern theaters with no problems.
Rating:
Summary: Great version of a great film! Thanks Criterion!
Review: I have this DVD and must object to the claim that the Criterion version is somehow faulty. It is crisp and clear in both sound and picture, about as good as we could seriously expect from a film of this vintage.
Rating: 
Summary: Wonderful Movie _ A Criterion Transfer Failure!
Review: I have seen this movie once on a german video-edition and there was no annoying thick white line in the upper part of the picture for nearly 2/3 of the movie, which distracts you a lot while viewing. I don't know what happened thtrough Criterion Collection's transfer work, but something must have gone wrong. As I know and appreciate their craftsmanship, proven with the restauration of films like "The Third Man" and "The Seven Samurai" (to name a few) wich is perfect through out. So my amazement when I bought this DVD was to the negativ, since I expected a miracle work again. My advice: Don't buy this DVD-Edition now. Wait for a new edition to come out, since Criterion is able to do a better work. I hope they will.
Rating: 
Summary: neue sachlichkeit on film?
Review: Dark, disturbingly satirical, humorous exactly where you wouldn't expect it to be, and populated by strange-looking people, this would be the result if George Grosz had been a film director.
Rating: 
Summary: Very strong, but not best German film
Review: In 1933 the Nazis offered Fritz Lang the leadership of the German film industry. Being half-Jewish and a liberal he refused and fled to America. His wife, Thea von Harbou (who would become an ardent Nazi) wrote the well-crafted script for "M", a 1930 film about a child murderer and his tormented mind. This film is eerily steeped in the German expressionist tradition so prevalent during the Weimar period with its gloom and horror and the hairsplitting explorations of the darkest sides of the human soul. But where "Caligari" (1918), the trendsetter, was horror within the ambiguous realm of reality and fantasy, "M" is a real crime story with a thought-provoking end. However, this film is clearly a statement of the crisis of German society at the brink of the ultimate horror of war. The theme music of Grieg's "Peer Gynt" melody nicely ties this masterfully edited film together (Lang used Griffith's montage methods).
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