What Is The Mise-En-Scene Of M Film Analysis
On top of the hysteria surroundingof the mass murderer Kürten, Germany in 1931 was a fragmented country that was starting to lose control over itself. The recovering economy established through bustling industrialization in the late 1920’s slowly crashed as the world markets failedtanked. Unemployment peaked at around 33 percent33% and industrial output decreased 40 percent% in 3 years. The liberal, enlightened social climate slowly gave way to hatred and bigotry as citizens looked for people to blame for their problems. Demonstrations against Jews and Communists increased and the cabaret cultureCabaret Culture began to decline. The rational, thoughtful, and democratic Weimar republic Republic slowly lost its grips on the government, giving way to the delusional, fascist Nazi Party. In the film M, Fritz Lang uses mise-en-scene, editing, cinematography, and sound to embodyin order to manifest Hans Beckert’s mental illness,
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while in turn also creating a social commentary that diagnoses many of his real-life society’s ills.
The mise-en-scene of the film gives the viewers a sense that Beckert has two different sides of his personality. Throughout the movie there are various mirrors and reflective surfaces that Beckert looks into, suggesting this dichotomous personality. The first time the viewer sees Beckert’s face he is looking at a reflection of himself. It seems like an ordinary interaction, but as time progresses his eyes grow wider and his face takes the form of a menacing scowl (Appendix A). This scene is coupled with a J-cut of a psychologist’s analysis of Beckert’s handwriting in his letter sent to the newspaper. The psychologist says how the person who wrote the letter must have sadistic qualities and be a psychopathic madman. Beckert’s change in emotion and facial expression in this scene justifies the analysis of the psychologist and shows how although he may seem like an average citizen on the
exterior, he has a darker side to him. The mirror motif is seen again when through a window of a cutlery shop Beckert sees a little girl alone on the sidewalk. Theis scene is set up so Beckert’s face is surrounded by knives, (Appendix B). This possibly suggests possibly suggesting a psychological entrapment of his mind (Appendix B). His body is still his its normal self, but upon seeing a lonely little girl his head and thoughts begin to align with his darker, murderous persona. This scene is set up similarly to the previous mirror scene in that at first he is acting normal. Once he sees the girl in the reflection, however, his mood completely shifts and his hand begins playing with his face again changing his facial expression. The fact that the store he is looking into has knives is also worthy of note because the knife is his tool of choice for his murders. Since the knives have reflected surfaces, they could represent the psychopathic side of his personality attempting to kill off or get rid of its normal counterpart.
while in turn also creating a social commentary that diagnoses many of his real-life society’s ills.
The mise-en-scene of the film gives the viewers a sense that Beckert has two different sides of his personality. Throughout the movie there are various mirrors and reflective surfaces that Beckert looks into, suggesting this dichotomous personality. The first time the viewer sees Beckert’s face he is looking at a reflection of himself. It seems like an ordinary interaction, but as time progresses his eyes grow wider and his face takes the form of a menacing scowl (Appendix A). This scene is coupled with a J-cut of a psychologist’s analysis of Beckert’s handwriting in his letter sent to the newspaper. The psychologist says how the person who wrote the letter must have sadistic qualities and be a psychopathic madman. Beckert’s change in emotion and facial expression in this scene justifies the analysis of the psychologist and shows how although he may seem like an average citizen on the
exterior, he has a darker side to him. The mirror motif is seen again when through a window of a cutlery shop Beckert sees a little girl alone on the sidewalk. Theis scene is set up so Beckert’s face is surrounded by knives, (Appendix B). This possibly suggests possibly suggesting a psychological entrapment of his mind (Appendix B). His body is still his its normal self, but upon seeing a lonely little girl his head and thoughts begin to align with his darker, murderous persona. This scene is set up similarly to the previous mirror scene in that at first he is acting normal. Once he sees the girl in the reflection, however, his mood completely shifts and his hand begins playing with his face again changing his facial expression. The fact that the store he is looking into has knives is also worthy of note because the knife is his tool of choice for his murders. Since the knives have reflected surfaces, they could represent the psychopathic side of his personality attempting to kill off or get rid of its normal counterpart.