What an amazing film to watch, utilizing the young – 27 years old – talents of Peter Lorre (born László Löwenstein) a Hungarian Jew (eventually coming to America). “M” was his second film, so he was just beginning to craft himself into the great actor he would become and you can see it, most especially toward the end in his final scenes. I would like to add, for some people who aren’t aware, that he was posthumously made famous for being a huge part of the song “The Friends of Mr. Cairo,” on the Vangelis soundtrack of the same name. He was an enigma, a unique character actor. A legend.

In this movie, he is unfortunately a child abductor and murderer. For a 1931 film, this was quite a difficult topic to create and certainly hugely emotional even in that time period. The director is Fritz Lang, who is notable for many great movies including the silent film “Metropolis,” which can be understood even now for its theme of corporate hierarchy. What Mr. Lang created, he did so using a lot of dialogue but to keep it “show don’t tell” juxtaposed the scenes while they were talking. This must have been quite difficult to do in those days, overlapping scenes without the modern technology of today. While the dialogue was long in these middle parts, it was necessary to really have a sense of the frustrations of early policing.

Peter Lorre has very limited scenes, until more of the end and this is because at first, the director does not want us to be sure who the murderer is. He is shot from behind in some scenes before they allow us to examine what happens. We also know that two sets of siblings have been killed in the first ten minutes of the film, starting with a little girl singing a song while playing a game with children – a form of tag.

When they allow us to know the next victim and how she is groomed by the perpetrator, we only see key symbolic items, so that when they are discarded, we understand what has happened. Later, they tease us again with another little girl, but by this time the suspense is ended by the team of “beggars,” whom the police hire temporarily to support them in nabbing the killer. These beggars, I must say, you feel immensely proud of as you see how passionate the whole village has become toward the little victims. You see the dedication of these beggars, happy to have something to do besides being a detriment to society. Even the blind man does his part in effectively using his stronger and more intimate senses to identify who the killer is.

It is the moment of judgement, when the entire underworld of this town addresses the culprit that we really see Peter Lorre for who he is, as an actor. Psychologically, he was spot on in his dialogue about what plagues him emotionally – being forced to act in ways he is not comfortable with. Here he is comparing himself to them – other shady characters, who probably take pride in their accomplishments, and yet he is suffering in silence. While I am not an expert forensic psychologist, I toyed with the diagnosis of schizophrenia, though I think it could be explained much better by someone better qualified than I.

The ending was not accomplished by such great artistry as Peter Lorre, though it was managed well enough to make one think. There is no court room scene, instead, it is two mothers talking about justice being irrelevant as it will not bring their children back to them. This hit me very deeply as I grew up with two boys who were killed in car accidents as teens. With the first situation, the son was killed by a Sears and Roebuck van, in the late 70’s and these women’s comments were exactly what the family stated at the funeral. For me, a young 15 year old, it stuck with me. The family did not sue the company as it would not bring him back.

The life of a child is so precious and when it is taken away from a family, creates an emotional burden they carry for life. Fritz Lang managed to approach this issue quite well, giving us a “happy” ending for the townsfolk and the future of their children but the harsh reality for the survivors of these little victims.