A detective turned wreck warns the police about a huge crime plot, then loses his mind. A criminal genius locked in an asylum keeps writing plans that a gang carries out. Worth watching for how Lang uses early sound to build dread.
At a glance
The Testament of Dr. Mabuse is a 1933 crime, thriller and mystery film directed by Fritz Lang. This breakdown covers 4 techniques (2 sound, 1 narrative and 1 psychology), each with the scene where you can see it. If you like how it is made, Uncut Gems uses several of the same techniques.
Using sounds the characters themselves can hear, like footsteps, radios or traffic, to build tension or show how someone feels. The sound does more than make the scene realistic.
How this film uses it
Lang mixes silence, music and real noise, much as he did in M. The roar of machines can drown out a warning, and sudden quiet can make you jump.
Where to see it
The print shop: Hofmeister flees into a noisy print shop and phones Inspector Lohmann before shots ring out.
Making a sound, voice or call drive the story itself. A phone line, a mimicked noise or a spliced recording changes what characters do or believe.
How this film uses it
Mabuse's plans reach his gang through a hidden channel. A voice, a loudspeaker or a note changes what people do.
Where to see it
The curtain room: Kent and Lilli are locked in a room where a curtain hides a loudspeaker and a time bomb.
Building the story around a clear deadline the hero must beat. The time pressure and the obstacles grow with each scene until the climax.
How this film uses it
A time bomb sits in the locked room with Kent and Lilli. The wait and the flooding water make the escape tense.
Where to see it
The flood: they flood the room to soften the blast and break free when the bomb goes off.
Pairing the main character with a second character who mirrors them. The double shows what the hero wants, fears or secretly is.
How this film uses it
Professor Baum becomes obsessed with the dead criminal Mabuse. The doctor ends up taking on the madman's role, so the two become one mind.
Where to see it
The asylum finale: a car chase through dark woods ends at the asylum, where Baum is driven insane.
Questions
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