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Spies M
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by Whirlwind Media
Sales Rank: 75581
Price: $19.95
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While perhaps not quite in the same league as M and Metropolis, Spies (Spione) is really great in its own right, and a testament to the diverse film making skills of its director, Fritz Lang.
Spies is like the 'Bond' of silent films. Indeed, watching the film its hard to believe Albert Broccoli did not use Spies as his prototype for all the James Bond films he produced.
The story opens with the assassination of a diplomat for some documents. Chaos reigns but then we are introduced to the hero, No. 326. 326 is the master spy who must retrieve the documents, and save the world from the evil banker Haghi (wheelchair bound). In between there's a woman sent to spy on 326, who in fact falls in love with him. sure, you've seen this before but this film is the original, the real thing, filmed almost 35 years before Bond et al ever made it to the screen.
Spies is simply great fun!
This disk also includes a very scratchy Fritz the Cat cartoon, which I quite enjoyed despite its age and condition, and Lang's classic `M.' The transfer of M is not bad, but cannot compare with Criterion's version. If you buy this disk, well, you get M but the real treat is Spies.
Regarding the print of Spies, quality is not bad but hardly a great restoration either. Still, the film is quite watchable: impressive for a 75+-year-old print. Like Metropolis, there's a little controversy as to the run time of Spies. This version is 90 minutes, but I've seen listings showing a German version of 178 minutes at a very slow frame rate of 16fps. I don't know if this version has been cut, or if the 178 figure is even correct but its worth mentioning.
Also, for true Lang fans, Kino is supposed to release a fully restored version of Spies (to match Metropolis???) sometime in Fall, so perhaps the mystery will be solved then.
In any case, for now this is the best you will see of this film, and its worth buying and watching even in its present condition. A gem of filmmaking is still a gem despite some scratches on the print!
Viewer Reviews
Both very fine films, and 'M' is indeed the 100-minute version, not the 75-minute version listed on the case, so that's a bonus - and the film quality is fine, too. As for the cartoon, is it there ecause of the name Fritz, or to replicate some old-fashioned double-feature-with-cartoon experience? I don't know, but the films are wonderful. Peter Lorre is amazing.
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