The Testament of Dr. Mabuse

1933

2h 2m

Mystery & Thriller

Crime

Drama

List

86%

Tomatometer

21 Reviews

90%

Audience Score

5,000+ Ratings

After a detective is assaulted by thugs and placed in an asylum run by Professor Baum (Oscar Beregi), he observes the professor's preoccupation with another patient, the criminal genius Dr. Mabuse the hypnotist (Rudolf Klein-Rogge). When Mabuse's notes are found to be connected with a rash of recent crimes, Commissioner Lohmann (Otto Wernicke) must determine how Mabuse is communicating with the criminals, despite conflicting reports on the doctor's whereabouts, and capture him for good.

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Variety Staff

Variety

The story is very long-winded and even an ingenious director like Fritz Lang could not prevent its being rather slow-moving in places.

Mar 26, 2009

Full Review

Time Out

By 1932, the character had become rather more than just king villain of the serials: Testament finds him mouthing undisguised Nazi slogans from his asylum prison.

Feb 9, 2006

Full Review

Herbert L. Matthews

New York Times

It is a hallucinating and horrifying story, depicted with great power and the extraordinary beauty of photography that Lang has led his admirers to expect.

Rated: 4.5/5

May 9, 2005

Full Review

Ernesto Diezmartinez

Cine Vértigo

Did you know that some of Dr. Mabuse's monologues were taken from actual Hitler speeches?

Rated: 3.5/4

Nov 10, 2021

Full Review

Paul Rotha

Cinema Quarterly

What a pity that Lang is so superficial! You feel he has a flair for sensational incident and a knowledge of melodrama which might be useful in cinema if only he had some foundation on which to base his work.

Feb 2, 2021

Full Review

Richard Propes

TheIndependentCritic.com

The film so beautifully blends reality with the supernatural that it's difficult to not get swept up into its vision.

Rated: 3.0/4.0

Sep 26, 2020

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Christopher S

Ah, Fritz Lang. Hardboiled. Fast paced. Complicated. Fun. This psychological thriller centers around numerous characters-- the inspector, the professor, Mabuse, Hofmeister, Kent. Mabuse is insane, or maybe he is faking it. Somehow he is also running a criminal ring from an insane assylum, or maybe he is not. His henchmen do not understand why they are doing what they are doing, until Mabuse finally gives each of them a task to launch what he calls the "Empire of Crime." To do so, they must unleash horrible atrocities. Some balk, and murder becomes the name of the game. It is a dark tale, and the ending leaves you wondering if justice had prevailed, or if his plan may have, at least in part, worked. And you still wonder-- exactly who is Dr Mabuse.

Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars

09/30/23

Full Review

Logan D

The criminal genius Doctor Mabuse spends his days in an insane asylum, constantly writing. Yet somehow his directions for crime are being followed. How is he influencing others when he never leaves his room? I haven't viewed enough of either's films to judge, but Lang and Bergman run neck in neck as far as favorite classic directors. And maybe Wells is in the mix as well. This is an visionary work of paranoia, dread, and tension. My one complaint would be I thought some parts distracted from the tale. Highly recommended

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

09/24/23

Full Review

william d

The film looks great. Fritz Lang's eye for black and white cinematography is outstanding. Unfortunately, the story is just too weak to earn a recommendation.

Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars

03/31/23

Full Review

Tony S

Despite the main premise being, the mystery behind Dr. Mabuse's criminal enterprise and it's inner workings. It's barely explored or gives comprehensive or satisfying answers. A lot of time is relegated to other plot lines, such as Inspector Lohmann's attempt to track Dr. Mabuse accomplices and Thomas Kent's disillusionment in working for Mabuse. Thanks to nudging by Lilli, played by Monique Rolland whose dialogue and performance is horrible. All this to say, that there is not a lot of Dr. Mabuse in this Dr. Mabuse picture, compared to Gambler. However, set pieces and effects are incredible for the time and coupled with sound, really give movie that sense of terror, the man behind the curtain was giving to his goons. Then there is, of course, a famous ban on film by Goebbels, making Lang flee Germany and go to Hollywood. The allusions are so thin, it's actaully quite mindboggling as to what kind of offense Nazis took with it. But then again, I guess if you weren't making explicitly pro-Nazi films, you were automatically anti-Hitler.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

11/08/21

Full Review

pierluigi p

Lang soberly shoots a mesmerising police procedural with a ghostly breath, which also served as an allegory for the fall of the Weimar Republic at the hands of a notoriously insane fanatic and his credulous followers. Mabuse is practically writing "mein kampf" from a madhouse.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

03/31/23

Full Review

william k

Top-notch action thriller of its time with some madcap sequences revealing Fritz Lang's obvious brilliance, but - despite some claims to the contrary - it's less political warning and rather just simple entertainment.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

03/31/23

Full Review

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Fritz Lang

Director

Rudolf Klein-Rogge

Dr. Mabuse

Oscar Beregi

Prof. Dr. Baum

Otto Wernicke

Kriminalkomissar Lohmann

Gustav Diessl

Thomas Kent

Rudolf Schündler

Hardy

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Dr. Mabuse, the Gambler

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Revanche

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The Departed

TRAILER

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52%

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Synopsis

After a detective is assaulted by thugs and placed in an asylum run by Professor Baum (Oscar Beregi), he observes the professor's preoccupation with another patient, the criminal genius Dr. Mabuse the hypnotist (Rudolf Klein-Rogge). When Mabuse's notes are found to be connected with a rash of recent crimes, Commissioner Lohmann (Otto Wernicke) must determine how Mabuse is communicating with the criminals, despite conflicting reports on the doctor's whereabouts, and capture him for good.

Director: Fritz Lang
Screenwriter: Fritz Lang, Thea von Harbou
Production Co: Nero-Film AG
Genre: Mystery & Thriller, Crime, Drama
Original Language: German
Release Date (Streaming): Sep 9, 2016
Runtime: 2h 2m

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