Tag Archives: M.

4 Shots From 4 Films: Special Fritz Lang Edition

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

4 Or More Shots From 4 Or More Films is just what it says it is, 4 shots from 4 of our favorite films. As opposed to the reviews and recaps that we usually post, 4 Shots From 4 Films lets the visuals do the talking!

Today, we celebrate the birth and the legacy of the great Austrian director Fritz Lang.  Starting his career during the silent era in Germany, Lang was both a proponent of expressionism and an early critic of the Nazis and Adolf Hitler.  Despite this and the fact that Lang’s mother was Jewish, Josef Goebbels attempted to recruit Lang to run Germany’s largest film studio, UFA.  Lang responded to Goebbels offer by moving to Paris and divorcing his wife, who was an ardent Nazi.  Lang eventually found his way to Hollywood, where he worked for the next twenty years.  With films like Metropolis, M, Fury, Hangmen Also Die, Scarlet Street, and The Testament of Dr. Mabuse, Lang proved himself to be a master of every genre and his influence is still felt to this day.

In honor of the man and his legacy, here are….

4 Shots From 4 Fritz Lang Films

Metropolis (1927, dir by Fritz Lang, DP: Karl Freund and Gunther Rittau)

 

M (1931, dir by Fritz Lang, DP: Fritz Arno Wagner)

 

The Testament of Dr. Mabuse (1933, dir by Fritz Lang, DP: Karl Vash and Fritz Arno Wagner)

 

Fury (1936, dir by Fritz Lang, DP: Joseph Ruttenberg)

4 Shots From 4 Films: Special Fritz Lang Edition

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

4 Or More Shots From 4 Or More Films is just what it says it is, 4 shots from 4 of our favorite films. As opposed to the reviews and recaps that we usually post, 4 Shots From 4 Films lets the visuals do the talking!

Today, we celebrate the birth and the legacy of the great Austrian director Fritz Lang.  Starting his career during the silent era in Germany, Lang was both a proponent of expressionism and an early critic of the Nazis and Adolf Hitler.  Despite this and the fact that Lang’s mother was Jewish, Josef Goebbels attempted to recruit Lang to run Germany’s largest film studio, UFA.  Lang responded to Goebbels offer by moving to Paris and divorcing his wife, who was an ardent Nazi.  Lang eventually found his way to Hollywood, where he worked for the next twenty years.  With films like Metropolis, M, Fury, Hangmen Also Die, Scarlet Street, and The Testament of Dr. Mabuse, Lang proved himself to be a master of every genre and his influence is still felt to this day.

In honor of the man and his legacy, here are….

4 Shots From 4 Fritz Lang Films

Metropolis (1927, dir by Fritz Lang, DP: Karl Freund and Gunther Rittau)

M (1931, dir by Fritz Lang, DP: Fritz Arno Wagner)

The Testament of Dr. Mabuse (1933, dir by Fritz Lang, DP: Karl Vash and Fritz Arno Wagner)

Fury (1936, dir by Fritz Lang, DP: Joseph Ruttenberg)

Music Video Of The Day: Pop Muzik by M. (1979, directed by Brian Grant)

Posted on by Jedadiah Leland

“I was looking to make a fusion of various styles which somehow would summarise the last 25 years of pop music. It was a deliberate point I was trying to make. Whereas rock and roll had created a generation gap, disco was bringing people together on an enormous scale. That’s why I really wanted to make a simple, bland statement, which was, ‘All we’re talking about basically (is) pop music.”

— Robin Scott, on Pop Muzik

Before adapting the persona of M., Robin Scott attended Croydon College with Malcolm McLaren (who would later manage the Sex Pistols) and released a folk album called Woman From The Warm Grass.  Scott eventually walked away from his folk roots, turning instead to electronic music.  Pop Muzik, which was written from the perspective of a DJ, was arguably the first new wave hit and this music video was extremely popular during the early years of MTV.

The video was the first to be directed by Brian Grant, who was a BBC producer at the time.  Working with a £2000 budget, Grant created a video that was revolutionary for the time.  (In the late 70s, music videos were mostly just straight performance clips.)  The success of Pop Muzik led to Grant becoming one of the busiest music video directors around.  Grant went on to direct videos for The Human League, The Fixx, Squeeze, Duran Duran, and many others.  If you were a New Wave group, Brian Grant probably directed at least one video for you.

I searched but I could not find the names of the two models who appeared in this video.  Does anyone reading this know?

Enjoy!