The Testament of Dr. Mabuse (1933) on Netflix
NR19332h 2mCrimeHorrorMysteryThriller
Chased by criminals, disgraced detective Hofmeister phones Inspector Lohmann about a conspiracy before madness takes him. The case leads Lohmann to an asylum where Dr. Mabuse writes crime plans.
- Netflix3.7/5
- IMDb7.9/1014,793 votes
- Rotten Tomatoes86%
Trailer
Plot summary
Hofmeister, a disgraced former police detective, is chased by criminals into a print shop, where he telephones Inspector Karl Lohmann about a huge criminal conspiracy. Before he can name its mastermind, the lights fail and shots ring out; Hofmeister loses his mind and is placed in the asylum run by Professor Baum. There Baum presents the case of Dr. Mabuse, the hypnotist and criminal genius who went mad ten years earlier and now fills his days writing detailed plans for crimes. A gang carries out those crimes, conferring with the Doctor only from behind a curtain, and Baum's colleague Dr. Kramm finds the recent offenses match the writings. Lohmann turns up a clue at Hofmeister's crime scene that points to Mabuse.
Cast
- Karl Meixneras Hofmeister
Did you know?!Facts and trivia about The Testament of Dr. Mabuse (1933)
Can contain spoilers, watch the movie first.
- Joseph Goebbels's Ministry of Propaganda banned The Testament of Dr. Mabuse on March 30, 1933, as a menace to public health and safety; Goebbels said he would not accept a film showing an extremely dedicated group of people could overthrow any state with violence.
- Fritz Lang said Joseph Goebbels admired his 1927 film Metropolis and offered him work making films for the Nazis, and that this offer made him leave Germany for France that same night; Goebbels's diary never records such a meeting and Lang's passport shows he did not leave until June 1933.
- Fritz Lang used real weapons whenever his film called for gunplay, fires or explosions, and cinematographer Fritz Arno Wagner said he spent most of the production in a state of panic because of how Lang endangered his crew; a stunt actor did the gunplay in the opening power outage.
- Christopher Nolan's 2008 film The Dark Knight features a version of the Joker inspired by Dr. Mabuse, reciting monologues promoting chaos that borrow heavily from Mabuse's in the 1933 film; Nolan said he made his brother Jonah watch Fritz Lang's Dr. Mabuse before writing the Joker.
- The factory explosion in The Testament of Dr. Mabuse was shot on location at night and was the first scene filmed; the crew had three weeks to clear trees and bring in artificial ones to match Lang's idea, and Lang triggered the explosion himself.
- Producer Seymour Nebenzal reused scenes from the car chase in The Testament of Dr. Mabuse for his own production Le roi des Champs-Élysées (1934), which featured Buster Keaton.
- The Testament of Dr. Mabuse was the first film for which Fritz Lang commissioned a composer: Hans Erdmann created the opening theme and the music played during Professor Baum's madness.
