Rating summary
| Movie |  | 4.5 |
| Video |  | 2.5 |
| Audio |  | 4.0 |
| Extras | | 2.5 |
| Overall | | 2.5 |
Spies Blu-ray Movie Review
Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov February 9, 2016
Fritz Lang's "Spione" a.k.a. "Spies" (1928) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy Kino Video. The supplemental features on the disc include an original German trailer for the film and a wonderful documentary film produced by the Friedrich-Wilhelm-Murnau-Stiftung in Wiesbaden. With German intertitles and optional English subtitles for the main feature. Region-A "locked".
In action
The film follows closely two men with multiple identities. The first is Haghi (Rudolf Klein-Rogge,
Dr. Mabuse: The Gambler), a brilliant wheel-bound criminal operating an impressive network of highly skilled spies who has built a massive library of compromising files that allows him to manipulate many of the city’s wealthiest and most powerful residents. The second man is the young and handsome Agent 326 (Willy Fritsch,
Woman in the Moon), who has been sent by the government to infiltrate Haghi’s network and bring him to justice.
Agent 326 begins following a few of Haghi’s informers and soon after meets Sonya Baranilkowa (Gerda Maurus,
Daphne and the Diplomat), a stunningly beautiful Russian spy who has been ordered to neutralize him. Sonya seduces Agent 326, but in the process also falls madly in love with him. When Haghi discovers that Sonya has compromised her mission, he threatens to destroy her with Agent 326.
Around the same time, Agent 326 is asked to monitor closely Doctor Masimoto (Lupu Pick), an influential Japanese diplomat who has been secretly seeing a young woman (Lien Deyers,
Carnival of Love) on Haghi’s payroll. Doctor Masimoto is expected to sign a very important treaty with the leaders of the Weimar Republic that could change the balance of power in Europe and Asia.
Fritz Lang once described
Spione as "a small film, but with a lot of action", but only the second part of his description is actually accurate. Completed a year after the legendary
Metropolis,
Spione is about as big and ambitious as an early silent action thriller can be.
The film is quite long (it is a little over 150 minutes long) and it is loosely divided into four uneven sections, each with multiple subplots that constantly expand the narrative. In the first two sections the focus of attention is on Haghi and Agent 326’s working methods -- both are very much masters of disguise who always manage to be a few steps ahead of their opponents; both are also well aware of each other’s existence and fully realize that it is only a matter of time before one of them dies. (For a long period of time, however, Agent 326 does not know what Haghi looks like). The third and fourth sections of the film focus on Haghi and Agent 326’s different plans to neutralize each other and the events that lead to their decisive clash.
The film’s visual style and atmosphere are fantastic. There is a massive train-wreck, for example, that is shot with such precision that even today it looks quite remarkable. (Considering the size of the camera during the late 1920s, the special effects and some of the interior shots with the massive debris must have required numerous takes to get right). The large panoramic shots from decadent Berlin also look astonishing.
The film’s one and only weakness is the introduction of a couple of subplots that create some rather odd loopholes that are difficult to ignore, but the stylish action more than makes up for them.
Lang shot
Spione with cinematographer Fritz Arno Wagner, whose credits also include such masterpieces of silent German cinema as Lang’s
M, F.W. Murnau’s
Nosferatu, and Georg Wilhelm Pabst’s
Diary of a Lost Girl.
Spies Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality
Presented in an aspect ratio of 1.28:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, Fritz Lang's Spies arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Kino Video.
The release is sourced from the 2K restoration of the Spies by the Friedrich-Wilhelm-Murnau-Stiftung in Wiesbaden. The restoration work was carried out at L'immagine Ritrovata and was completed in 2004.
As it was the case with the release of Georg Wilhelm Pabst's Diary of a Lost Girl there is some minor stretching, but I am unsure why. We reviewed Eureka Entertainment's Blu-ray release of Spies in 2014 and on it the film is properly framed in 1.33:1; here the film is framed in approximately 1.28:1. You can see the stretching if you compare screencapture #10 and screencapture #8 from our review of the Region-B release. Furthermore, there are light chroma-like effects that pop up throughout the entire film. Most of these effects can be seen during footage with plenty of light, but even during footage where light is restricted small traces occasionally pop up. (You can see the chroma-like effects all over the black leather jacket in screencapture #10). These are very unfortunate technical anomalies because the actual restoration is very good and a lot of the basics we typically address in our reviews are in fact solid. (Note: This is a Region-A "locked" Blu-ray release. Therefore, you must have a native Region-A or Region-Free player in order to access its content).
Spies Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality
There is only one audio track on this Blu-ray release: Music Dolby Digital 2.0. Optional English subtitles are provided for the German subtitles.
The only score on this release comes from Neil Brand and it is the one that I prefer. (On the Region-B release of Spies there is a second score from Donald Sosin). Despite the fact that there isn't a lossless track, depth and clarity are very good. Dynamic movement is also very good, though I would give the edge to the lossless track. There are no pops, audio dropouts, or distortions to report.
Spies Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras
- Spies: Small Film with Lost of Action - this excellent documentary film takes a closer look at the production history of Spione as well as the socio-political climate in Germany at the time when it was produced, some of the key differences between the German and English versions of the film, and the evolution of Fritz Lang's directing style. Included in it are interviews with writer/director Guido Altendorf and writer/director Anke Wilkening. The documentary was produced by the Friedrich-Wilhelm-Murnau-Stiftung in Wiesbaden. In German, with optional English subtitles. (72 min, 1080p).
- Trailer - original German for Spies. The trailer comes courtesy of the Austrian Film Museum, Vienna. With music German intertitles, and imposed English subtitles. (6 min, 1080p).
Spies Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation
Kino Video's upcoming Blu-ray release of Fritz Lang's Spies is sourced from the very good 2K restoration of the film by the Friedrich-Wilhelm-Murnau-Stiftung in Wiesbaden. Unfortunately, the release comes with the same issue that plagued the recent release of Georg Wilhelm Pabst's Diary of a Lost Girl -- there is some unusual stretching that is present throughout the entire film. I don't want to speculate why, but I would like to point out that both of these releases have the films framed in 1.28:1 as opposed to 1.33:1. (Eureka Entertainment's Region-B releases of the same films offer proper presentations in 1.33:1).
