Le testament du Dr. Mabuse (1933)

Directors:

Fritz Lang
René Sti

Writers:

Fritz Lang (scenario)
René Sti (French adaptation)

Release Date:

19 March 1943 (USA)

Genre:

Crime | Horror | Mystery | Thriller

Plot Keywords:

Good Versus Evil | Megalomanical | Megalomaniac | Character Name In Title

Cast

  (Credited cast)

Rudolf Klein-Rogge	...	Docteur Mabuse
Thomy Bourdelle	...	Professeur Baum
Karl Meixner	...	Hofmeister
Jim Gérald	...	Commissaire Lohmann
Monique Rolland	...	Lilli
Maurice Maillot	...	Thomas Kent
Ginette Gaubert	...	Anna
René Ferté	...	Hardy
Raymond Cordy	...	Koretsky
Daniel Mendaille	...	Bredow
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Jacques Ehrem
Georges Koudria
Marcel Merminod
Georges Paulais
Sylvie de Pedrillo
Lilly Rezillot
Georges Tourreil

Also Known As:

The Last Will of Dr. Mabuse (USA)

Runtime:

France:95 min

Country:

Germany

Language:

French

Color:

Black and White

Sound Mix:

Mono

Company:

Nero-Film AG

Trivia:

This film is featured on the 2-disc Criterion Collection DVD for Das Testament des Dr. Mabuse (1933), as a bonus feature.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Le roi des Champs-Élysées (1934)

French version of celebrated crime movie.

Fritz Lang's Das TESTAMENT des Dr.MABUSE is a mesmerising, master-crafted entertainment which no serious movie freak will have missed. The largely forgotten, parallel French version, filmed simultaneously with a French speaking cast, is like most of these foreign versions, a poor relation. I'm glad I saw the German one first - twice in a week as it happens.

Shorter than the German film, it truncates the lovers subplot and plays it with colourless juveniles, omits the giant eye make up shots of Klein Rogge, which re-call Dr. Baum's art collection and, worse, attempts to up the pace by chopping off the fade out scene transitions - giving correctly, the impression that there is something missing.

The German cast is uniformly superior, with the possible exception of the jolly, frankfurter-cooking henchman, who does manage to make an impression. Jim Gerald was a comedian - effectively so in CHAPEAU de PAILEE d'ITALIE and FRENCH WITHOUT TEARS - and he lacks the monolith menace that Wernike provides. Thommy Bordelle is normally an unimposing performer and, giving it his best shot, he's still no fair swap for the the great Oscar Beregei, in the one circulating film where we get to hear Beregei's voice. The French Dr. Kramm (who is he?), in particular, is out classed by Theodore Loos (the secretary from METROPOLIS among other stand-out performances).

Well it's still Lang's Mabuse film and remains intermittently effective - Hoffmeister's vision of Lohman's entry into his see through cell is still a grabber - and it is another piece of the jig saw and another, if minor, Lang movie. So nice to get to see it after all these years.