6.6 | / 10 |
Users | 3.5 | |
Reviewer | 4.0 | |
Overall | 3.5 |
A reporter is killed in his car on his way to work. Inspector Kras gets a call from his informant Peter Cornelius, a blind fortune-teller, who had a vision of the crime but not the perpetrator. Meanwhile, Henry Travers, a rich American industrialist, checks into the Luxor Hotel, which has been outfitted by the Nazis during World War II to spy on people in every room. He becomes involved with Marian Menil who is being threatened by her evil clubfooted husband. Hieronymus B. Mistelzweig, purportedly a salesman, who is also a guest in the hotel always seems to be lurking about. These disparate characters eventually get together to solve what appears to be the re-emergence of the long-dead Dr. Mabuse.
Starring: Dawn Addams, Peter van Eyck, Gert Fröbe, Wolfgang Preiss, Werner PetersForeign | 100% |
Mystery | 1% |
Crime | Insignificant |
Thriller | Insignificant |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 1.66:1
Original aspect ratio: 1.66:1
English: LPCM 2.0
German: LPCM 2.0
English
Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Slipcover in original pressing
Region B (locked)
Movie | 4.0 | |
Video | 4.0 | |
Audio | 4.0 | |
Extras | 2.5 | |
Overall | 4.0 |
Fritz Lang's "The Thousand Eyes of Dr. Mabuse" (1960) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Eureka Entertainment. The supplemental features on the disc include vintage interview with actor Wolfgang Preiss; archival audio commentary by critic David Kalat; an alternate ending. In German or English, with optional English subtitles for the main feature. Region-B "locked".
The clairvoyant
Presented in an aspect ratio of 1.66:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, The Thousand Eyes of Dr. Mabuse arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Eureka Entertainment.
There are a couple of important things that I would like to highlight. First, the release is sourced from a remaster that was probably prepared by someone that wanted to have the most complete version of the film. Why? Because the current presentation is a reconstruction -- there is footage that comes from different sources (see screencaptures #19 and 20) and German audio that fills a couple of tiny gaps in the English audio. I also noticed traces of digital work that was almost certainly done to rebalance the visuals in this complete version. The good news is that this work is very carefully done and a lot of fine nuances are preserved, plus the dynamic range of the visuals is unaffected, which makes quite a big difference if the film is viewed on a larger screen. In some darker areas the blacks are flattened/expanded a bit, but I can assure you that in motion the effect is virtually impossible to spot. Density levels are very good, so the fluidity of the visuals is quite nice as well. There are no traces of compromising sharpening adjustments. A few blemishes and specks remain, but there are no big and distracting age-related imperfections that might spoil your viewing experience. Overall image stability is good. So, while it would have been best not to have the rebalancing work that is mentioned above, I think that the current technical presentation of the film is still very convincing. (Note: This is a Region-B "locked" Blu-ray release. Therefore, you must have a native Region-B or Region-Free player in order to access its content).
There are two standard audio tracks on this Blu-ray release: German LPCM 2.0 and English LPCM 2.0. Optional English subtitles are provided for the main feature.
The release sets the German track as the default option to view the film, but I think that the English track is just as effective. The vast majority of the actors very clearly utter their lines in English, and while it appears that some overdubbing was done as well, I think that the quality of the English track is quite nice. The German track is slightly healthier, plus it appears that it was mixed a tad better. The English track has good clarity and balance, but there is some extremely light background hiss. It is never distracting, even when the volume is turned up quite a lot, but its presence is felt.
I find it quite hilarious how some people try really hard to explain Fritz Lang's The Thousand Eyes of Dr. Mabuse while viewing it through a socio-political prism that is completely incompatible with the misdirection plays and action in it that actually make it attractive. It is not an eye-opener of any kind, and it was never intended to be one. If anything, it is something of a genre trend-setter whose influence can be quite easily recognized in the James Bond films and especially the various cool exotic Eurospy thrillers that started emerging during the late '60s. Eureka Entertainment's new release of Lang's third and final film about the vicious Dr. Mabuse is sourced from a good remaster and features an interesting archival interview with the late actor Wolfgang Preiss. If you decide to pick it up, keep in mind that it is Region-B "locked". HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.
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