This film, which was released in 1931, demonstrated many shooting concepts that transcended the era, first showing many characteristics of the era of transition from silent films to sound films. The second is the bold choice of the subject of perverted criminals who tortured young girls, the simultaneous interpretation of multiple clues, and the gorgeous use of montage techniques. The positioning of the film is also very interesting. In terms of theoretical classification, this film should be classified as shocking and suspenseful. But it was a horror. The director didn't show us many horror scenes. The audience didn't even know how the little girl died in the film. It was said to be suspenseful, but there was no suspense in the film. The criminals were shown positively shortly after the start of the film. If he wanted to categorize it as a detective subject, the director did not incorporate the slightest detection concept into it. In fact, this film is more about telling a story in a straightforward manner, but this does not prevent the story from being wonderful.
The film has the typical characteristics of the film after the end of the silent film era. The characters in it have been talking non-stop, the lines are a little unnatural, and the processing of the background sound is also at the primitive stage, which often affects the development of the film's plot. The first innovation of "M is the Murderer" is the use of a multi-clue model. The killing of a little girl is just a clue to the story. Then the three-line structure of the police, the underground underworld and the perverted murderer spread out. The director showed a strong ability to control the plot, and the three clues switched to each other and developed in parallel, without any abruptness. However, the investigation process of the two groups of people is step by step. Compared with the subsequent expression of horror and suspense, it is simple and almost straightforward, but the director still handles it with extreme coolness.
The use of montage techniques is even more brilliant, and the parallel montage in which the police and the underworld have a meeting at the same time is even more excellent. It is hard to imagine that this was actually the film and television expression method of the early 1930s. The scenes of the smoke and the cards were switched repeatedly when the gangsters were planning, which was amazing. The climax of the building's encirclement and suppression was naturally brilliant, and the director surprisingly incorporated black humor in the film, which in turn was madly inspired and flooded. Accompanied by the wonderful light, shadow and rhythm of the film, it creates an atmosphere of unreasonable tension.
From the point of view of technique, the director has a stern look from beginning to end, and the logic of each link is clear. Even the rigid description of many shots is simply unbearable, but at the same time, he constantly surprises the audience. The ending of the film is beyond everyone's expectations, and a very lengthy trial can't help but make people doubt the director's intentions. Quite a few film critics believe that it is unnecessary to spend such a large amount of pen and ink to describe the murderer on trial, and deleting can be more concise and powerful, but the director has his own purpose in this arrangement. In fact, this plot shows that the theme of the film has returned to the crime of human nature. Discussion. Uncontrollable mental illness and crime for profit, the grief of losing children and hatred for bad people.
