M (1951)

In this Americanization of the 1931 German thriller, both the police and the criminal underworld stalk a mysterious killer who preys on small children.

Director:

Joseph Losey

Writers:

Leo Katcher (scenario revisions), Norman Reilly Raine (scenario revisions),

Stars:

David Wayne, Howard Da Silva, Martin Gabel

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
David Wayne	...	Martin W. Harrow
Howard Da Silva	...	Inspector Carney
Martin Gabel	...	Charlie Marshall, crime boss
Luther Adler	...	Dan Langley
Steve Brodie	...	Lt. Becker
Raymond Burr	...	Pottsy
Glenn Anders	...	Riggert
Norman Lloyd	...	Sutro
Walter Burke	...	MacMahan
John Miljan	...	Blind Baloon Vendor
Roy Engel	...	Police Chief Regan
Janine Perreau	...	The Last Little Girl
Leonard Bremen	...	Lemke, thug left behind in Bradbury Bldg. (as Lennie Bremen)
Benny Burt	...	Jansen, drunk thug outside Bradbury Bldg.
Bernard Szold	...	Bradbury Bldg. Watchman

Storyline

Remake of the 1931 original. Someone is murdering children in a German city. The Police search is so intense, it is disturbing the 'normal' criminals, and the local hoods decide to help find the murderer as quickly as possible.

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Plot Keywords:

underworld | remake | disbarred lawyer | crime detection | clay model | 

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Genres:

Drama | Film-Noir | Thriller

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Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

March 1951 (USA)

Also Known As:

M le maudit

Filming Locations:

Alta Vista Apartments - 255 S. Bunker Hill Avenue, Bunker Hill, Downtown, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Superior Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

88 min 86 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound System)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Connections

Referenced in Henri Langlois: The Phantom of the Cinémathèque (2004)

User Reviews

not quite as bad as its reputation

Fritz Lang's classic 'M' back in the 1930s is a well-regarded classic, which brought Peter Lorre to prominence and a career in Hollywood.

This film, made twenty years later by Joseph Losey, starred light comedian David Wayne as the child-killer, and has much of the same storyline and set-pieces as its predecessor. But is it any good? It has its chilling moments - notably the ones involving the plasticine figure and the bird at the cafe - and Wayne, in a largely silent part, is surprisingly good. But much of the film is a copy of the original, and this lessens its impact. Also, the character of the lawyer who has gone to drink is too prominent, and the underworld search for the murderer who threatens their operation doesn't quite fit on the mean streets of LA, where it did in Germany.

Not as bad as I'd heard, in fact this film is really quite good, but some bad editing decisions (acknowledged at the time of its release by Losey) have done damage. It deserves a nod for unusual casting though.