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46 reviews in total

53 out of 61 people found the following review useful:
Excellent Lang Crime Drama, 1 April 2004
Author: FilmFlaneur from London

Lang's last film in Germany before he hurriedly left the country (the director claimed that he had lately been offered a key position in the Nazi-controlled film industry), The Testament Of Dr Mabuse (aka: Das Testament des Dr Mabuse) is best seen as a warning by a departing talent, as well as a continuation of many of the themes of the director's previous work. Dr Mabuse, The Gambler (1922) had been a great success, and his new film, his second made in sound, capitalises on the reputation both of the earlier film and the grand social malevolence of its central character. Mabuse is another of Lang's evil, all-controlling masterminds - he was to reappear again in the director's last film, The 1,000 Eyes Of Dr Mabuse (1960) - the representation of whose hypnotic presence and malign influence was to find disfavour with the followers of Hitler. The Nazis gained power during the post-production period of the film and, while recognising the great director's talent; Testament was promptly banned by Goebbels who found the political portrait implicit in Mabuse too close to home. In later years Lang was to suggest that the film was intended as a political parable, although this might have been exaggerated.

As the present film opens, Inspector Lohmann (a splendidly grouchy Otto Wernicke) receives a message from a former criminal associate who has stumbled onto a massive criminal conspiracy. Before the details can be spelt out, the crook is hunted down and killed. Investigating his disappearance Lohmann discovers the name Mabuse scratched on a windowpane (a clue echoed in Lang's M, in which Lohmann also appears.) Mabuse is discovered in an asylum in the charge of Dr Baum (Oscar Beregi). The criminal genius, insane but with his remaining magnetic attraction intact, is feverishly writing detailed notes on prospective crimes. When Mabuse dies, a visiting Dr Kramm finds the brilliant criminal notes of Dr Mabuse on the floor, compares a news report of a jewellery robbery to what he is now reading and tells Baum that he is going to report it to the police. He is promptly killed by Mabuse's elite Section 2B hitmen on orders from the unseen leader - a scene set in traffic that found an echo over 30 years later in The Ipcress File (1965). Meanwhile a romance develops between Kent (Gustav Diessel), one of the henchmen of Mabuse's gang, still apparently controlled by remote control instructions, and the woman Lilly (Vera Liessem) who helped him when he was down and out. Mabuse's 'testament' thus lies in both the meticulously planned crimes, which make up his posthumous papers as well as his hypnotic and malign influence on those who are controlled by him.

Critics have compared the visual style of this film with those of others from the same period, notably Spione (aka: Spies, 1928), Lang's most recent comparable social thriller. Testament is far more cluttered, its visual confusion suggesting moral complexity as well as the closing in of threatening events - both as far as the characters are concerned and, as it unfortunately turned out, for German society in general. In M, evil was detected in the presence of a murderous outsider, one eventually brought to book by a benign conspiracy of the underworld. Here there is a web of criminal activity and corruption from which no one is entirely immune, and in which many are driven by a murderous compulsion to obey an evil power. At the same time, Lang is happy enough to introduce into this world of social corruption elements of thrills and suspense, which spring from a much simpler world of serials and adventure stories. The near documentary feel of a lot of the film is interspersed with explosions, floods, chases and close escapes. In this way the sombre, far reaching criminalities of Mabuse's schemes, rooted in current socio-political unrest are counter-pointed with time honoured pleasures brought by crime melodrama. Lang had a weakness for this sort of drama: The Spiders Part II: The Diamond Ship (1920) contains a somewhat similar but much shorter, scene, where the hero is also trapped in a water filling room from which he escapes. It has been noted just how much of the action of Testament plays out like a dream, and in this sense it anticipates the disorientating mood which would characterise much of noir cinema of a few years later - of which the newly Americanised Lang would be a major exponent. Certainly the arch criminal mastermind of Mabuse has something in common with such later characters as, say Mike Lagana in The Big Heat (1953) although such figures in Lang's American period are far less omniscient. Once Hitler was out of the way, Lang increasingly saw the manipulation of human life as the province of fate rather than men, a view that had made its first ongoing appearance as far back as Der Müde Tod (Destiny, 1923). In Testament, some indeed appear pre-doomed by a nemesis stalking them, although this is largely placed in the human realm. Events play out like an unstoppable nightmare - a feeling reinforced by Mabuse's somnambulistic appearance as he constructs evil from his bed, the presence of ghosts, the unreality of the mysterious drama which unfolds and such scenes as the weird opening, its surreal use of factory sound anticipating the dark sound-scapes of Eraserhead (1978). By the end of Lang's film there is a sense that all have been involved in some grand combine of evil, and that the disorder and social chaos it presages has only just been forestalled - not by justice, but madness.

Modern viewers coming to Lang's film will find much to enjoy, even if some of the incidental elements have necessarily become a little dated. The editing and camerawork are excellent, and Rudolf Klein-Rogge's piercingly intense Mabuse is a memorable creation. Lohmann and the supporting cast are memorable characters, although the romantic interest between Kent and Lilly looks a little faded after all these years. It's a film in which special effects go hand in hand with suspense and the staging is still impressive. Amongst the most memorable scenes are those are the end with the destruction of the chemical factory and the expressionistic car chase back to the asylum. Most importantly, while the morally debilitating effects of the post-war German depression as well as the impending rise of adulatory Nazism have now passed into history, Lang's dramatisation of cause and effect remains as electric as ever in one of the finest films of his early sound career.

25 out of 32 people found the following review useful:
Two crowded hours, 17 January 2006

Author: rpowell-4 from Finland

This film's a thriller, a detective story, a ghost story; it has romantic and comic sub-plots, a striking array of sets, some of the first convincing special effects ever used, echoes of other films; and it is not hard to find in it political relevance to today. It's a lot to cram into two hours, and one has to work to follow every twist of the plot, but it is both a rewarding and entertaining experience.

The film draws on an exceptionally wide variety of cinematic styles. There are expressionist moments, and these are particularly striking, but they account for only two or three minutes out of a running time of 120. There are moments when one could almost be in a screwball comedy. And there are moments which come close to social realism – it would be interesting to know whether the patients at the mental hospital played themselves. The dominant mode, though, is an anticipation of film noir.

I would, though, counsel against investing too much historical hindsight in this film – yes, Fritz Lang did go into exile from the Nazis – but it is more the shadow of Weimar than the shadow of Hitler that hovers in the background here.

Not perfect; not an absolute masterpiece: but an occasionally stunning and always stimulating film, which deserves 9 out of 10.

23 out of 32 people found the following review useful:
Fantastic start: perhaps things get a little out of hand somewhere during the latter half, though., 29 April 2003

Author: Per Klingberg from Sweden

One of Fritz Lang's most wellknown works, and a classic piece of German expressionism. A sequel to the silent film 'Dr. Mabuse, der spieler', archcriminal Mabuse has now been driven way beyond sanity and has spent the last eleven years in an asylum.

Our dear doctor spent the first few years in a catatonic state, totally unreachable. Then one day something akin to progress was made. The patient started to scribble down what seemed like gibberish on the walls. The patient was given paper to write on, and since then Mabuse has been writing nonstop, line after line, paper after paper. Acknowledged doctor Baum has ever since taken a great deal of interest both in his patient and in this "work" of his. If one momentarily could just step inside Mabuse's sick and twisted mind, then a cure might be possible...

And then it happens. Baum manages to decipher the text, and realizes that what he has in his hand might very well be a political essay of the same importance and power as Machiavelli's 'The Prince'. Throw mankind in the deepest abyss of despair, Mabuse says, using any means possible. Through random acts of violence, through organized terrorism, whatever will lead mankind to the brink of destruction. And then claim power.

Soon after this discovery strange crimes are being committed, and rumors of an organized criminal movement mobilizing underground are spread. It does not take long until Berlin is a city in terror.

This is where commissioner Lohmann comes in, doing his best to trace down the roots of the terrorist groups. Strangely enough, the evidence seems to point towards - the asylum and Dr. Mabuse!

The first half of this film is classic horror - through a visit to the asylum and a lecture by Baum we learn of Mabuse's work. And when we, together with Lohmann, is introduced to Mabuse (locked up in his cell) and meet his maddened gaze...well, it's a truly CHILLING moment!

We also learn of how a young man with good intentions through poverty is forced to seek work in organized crime. While trying to leave the group he realizes there is only one way out: death. Another claustrophobic and suspenseful moment in the movie.

Somewhere in the latter half of the movie things get a little out of hand. When the mystery with Mabuse's influence on the outside world finally has been solved, some of the incredible dark atmosphere is lost. Instead we get more of a traditional crime/suspense-kind of film, and the high amount of plots makes the film drag on just a little too long.

The eery atmosphere in the earlier parts of the movie, the fantastic expressionist style and many original and innovative moments makes this a 'must-see' for those with an interest for early German Cinema, or those looking for the roots to genres as horror and film noir. While the early parts of this movie is a definite masterpiece, the latter half feels somewhat flawed though.

7/10

17 out of 22 people found the following review useful:
Just for one short scene…, 24 April 2005

Author: ironside (robertfrangie@hotmail.com) from Mexico

*** This review may contain spoilers ***

For all its excitement, action, fantasy, this film would for me live in the history of the cinema just for one short scene…

It deals with a killing at traffic lights as a driver is shot from a car that has pulled alongside his, the sound of the shot obliterated by the sound of the horns of the other impatient drivers… But Lang never takes us right 'into' the incident…

At the payoff we look down from an overhead angle on the cars packed together at the signals: then they all pull away – all but one, which remains motionless and alone in the middle of the road after the lights have changed… No violence, no blood, is needed for us to be eerily aware that a man who was alive when the lights were at red is dead now they are at green…

13 out of 16 people found the following review useful:
The prototype thriller, 16 February 2006

Author: denmans from england

The film reads like a trainer for all the thrillers that came thereafter: The staring face reminiscent of 'Alien', the scary opening scene, which deserves to be better known, the tough but lovable cop, the haunted (literally) master criminal, the asylum, the heroine with an excuse to get her dress all wet and clingy, the Mae West look-alike, the spooky special effects, the explosions and the fires (real ones not your computer generated rubbish), the shoot out, the chase through the woods, the car chase, the high tech gadgets (using 78 vinyl!). There's even what looks like a placement add (Mercedes, during the car chase). Yes, all the thriller clichés are there but way back in 1933 they weren't clichés. Unfortunately some rather wooden acting by the heroine, Wera Liessem, who seems to be stuck in silent film mode, mars the film.

As for the political overtones, I'm not sure if these were deliberate. Lang's stories about himself were as fantastical as his films, especially the one about being offered the head of the Reich films.

18 out of 26 people found the following review useful:
Enthralling picture, 11 February 2001

Author: vostf (vik@noos.fr) from Paris, Fr

Fritz Lang brings in the visual artistry he developed in his silent movies. The first Dr Mabuse movie (the Gambler) was a series of portrait of that evil genius. He would direct crimes like Fritz Lang directs his movies. He is successful and as we get closer to that astounding character we see him want even more than all the money his crimes can draw. That is love. And that's the hinge factor. With the end of his crime empire the genius has become a lunatic with a fixed stare.

So Dr. Mabuse has been in a lunatic asylum for 10 years and everybody forgot him as they thought there would be nothing to fear any more. It is where The Testament of Dr Mabuse starts. The very beginning is like a silent movie: Lang uses an old factory as the haunt of criminals (the Gambler's haunt was already fantastic). The only sound comes from the oppressing machines. An ambiance you felt with the workers of Metropolis. That is only the beginning of a masterful suspense overture.

Hence Lang goes through different story lines, one too much maybe but everything revolves around the lunatic asylum. On the other hand the story may lack the overwhelming presence of Rudolf Kleine-Rogge in the Gambler. Anyway I think Lang understood he could not rely on the pictures as much as what he did with silent movies. The converging stories reach a fantastic climax and to get there much of the visual quality gets you in the movie, either wanting to know more or fearing what may come out.

Goebbels feared what may come out. The movie about a crime master writing crime recipes in his cell may have been too close to the story of Hitler writing Mein Kampf while in jail. A vision strengthened by the criminal's last words. Called by Goebbels to be explained the reasons why the movie would not be released, Fritz Lang listened the propaganda minister -a great fan of Metropolis- putting his name forward for the head of the Reich cinema department. Lang objected his mother was jewish. "WE will decide who's jewish and who's not!" answered Goebbels. The same evening Lang had gathered all the cash he could and took the train to Paris.

13 out of 18 people found the following review useful:
Herr Lang's German SwanSong, 10 October 2005

Author: Bucs1960 from West Virginia

Fritz Lang, the greatest of directors, finished this film and fled Germany as the Third Reich was raising it's ugly head. And what a film it is!!!! Although it may be too stylized for some, it speaks volumes of what was to come in noir film making. The story is a little over the top but that only adds to the appeal.

With only limited screen time, Rudolf Klein-Rogge is just magnificent. What a face!!! I became familiar with him as Rotwang in Metropolis and have tried to view any film in which he appears. Unhappily, his presence in this film is more felt than seen but still worth the effort. He reprises the Mabuse character from the earlier "Dr. Mabuse, der Spieler" which ended with him being incarcerated in an mental hospital. This film picks up where the other left off and the scenes in the hospital with Klein-Rogge are mesmerizing.

The opening scene as a fugitive is trapped beneath the factory gives the story a kick start as the pounding of the machinery drives him (and viewers) to distraction. No dialogue is necessary.

The love story is a little weak but does not detract from the overall film. There is also a scene which fascinates.....it involves the shooting of a character at a traffic light.....fantastic.

I would recommend this films to anyone unfamiliar with Herr Lang's work. You will become a lifelong fanatic!

15 out of 22 people found the following review useful:
Enthralling picture, 11 February 2001

Author: vostf (vik@noos.fr) from Paris, Fr

19 out of 30 people found the following review useful:
The End of an Era, 11 January 2001
Author: eibon04 from New York City, NY

This classic thriller is an allegory of the nazis early rise to power in Germany and their future intentions. Censored by the Nazis government and not seen in its full form until many years later. The Testament of Dr. Mabuse(1933) deals with the themes of free will, genius, madness, and power. The Dr. Mabuse character foreshadows the great James Bond villains of Dr. No, Goldfinger, and Ernest Blofeld. Would be the final film that director Fritz Lang would do in Germany for many years until 1960 for his final film, The 1000 Eyes of Dr. Mabuse.

12 out of 17 people found the following review useful:
Brilliant and exciting, 9 September 1999

Author: Rosabel from Ottawa, Canada

*** This review may contain spoilers ***

This spellbinding work was Fritz Lang's last film to be made in Germany. The negative reaction of the Nazi government to this story of a criminal mastermind destabilizing society through terror crimes prompted Lang to leave the country for his own safety. The parallels between the film, with its plot of a hidden criminal psychopath issuing orders to his followers to carry out acts of industrial sabotage, currency forging and other attacks on the public safety, and the Nazis' thuggish tactics in seizing power in Germany, make for an interesting subtext. Though coming at the end of the expressionist era in filmmaking, "Testament" contains many fascinating images and themes consistent with this rich movement in German film. The chase scene near the end, where Dr. Baum flees from the police in his car down a tree-lined road at night, is a perfect visual realization of his increasing mania, as the white tree-trunks spin madly past at ever-accelerating speed. As is often the case in German expressionist films, much of the plot revolves around insanity and takes place in an insane asylum, where the mad Dr. Mabuse of the title is incarcerated. The forces of order and stability are represented by Inspector Lohmann, a stout, shrewd policeman, whose no-nonsense approach contrasts sharply with that of the sensitive, imaginative intellectual, Dr. Baum. But despite Lohmann's virtues, the conclusion of the film is a slightly ambiguous one, as evil is not overcome by good, but instead collapses under the weight of its own insanity. The final scene, with the asylum door shutting upon the broken criminal mastermind, does not provide a solution to the problem of evil, but only leaves us feeling relieved that this time, at least, we have escaped intact from its clutches.

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