The Return of Dr. Mabuse

1961 1h 25m DE

😐

6.1

MID

★6.1TMDB · 19

CrimeThrillerScience FictionMystery

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

The supposedly dead and buried Mabuse returns to his criminal activities, as his longtime foe Police Inspector Lohmann, a dauntless girl reporter, and an American - who may be an FBI agent, or maybe a Chicago mobster - investigate a series of gruesome murders connected to a maximum security prison and involving a minister who has written a book called "The Anatomy Of The Devil".

“Some stories are better left unspoiled.”

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Cast

Gert Fröbe
Lohmann
Lex Barker
Joe Como
Daliah Lavi
Maria Sabrehm
Werner Peters
Böhmler
Fausto Tozzi
Warden Wolf
Joachim Mock
Detective Voss
Rudolf Forster
Julius Sabrehm
Rudolf Fernau
Reverend Brietenstein

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Harald Reinl
Writers: Marc Behm, Ladislas Fodor
Languages: German
Countries: Italy, Germany, France

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

RUNTIME

Did you know

85 minutes exactly — the "classic feature" runtime most directors aim for.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

ERA

Did you know

65 years old — a genuine piece of film history.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

WORLD

Did you know

International production across 3 countries: Italy, Germany, France.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

CINEMA

Did you know

Part of the "Dr. Mabuse Collection" — so the characters or world continue elsewhere.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Harald Reinl, shot by Karl Löb. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by Peter Sandloff. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Hermann Haller shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

CAST

Did you know

Gert Fröbe and Lex Barker and Daliah Lavi carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Harald Reinl directs. Karl Löb behind the camera. Peter Sandloff scores. Hermann Haller cuts. Runs lean at under 100 minutes. Produced in Italy, Germany, France. Dialogue in German.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

185 minutes exactly — the "classic feature" runtime most directors aim for.
265 years old — a genuine piece of film history.
3International production across 3 countries: Italy, Germany, France.
4Part of the "Dr. Mabuse Collection" — so the characters or world continue elsewhere.
5Directed by Harald Reinl, shot by Karl Löb. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
6Original score by Peter Sandloff. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
7Editor Hermann Haller shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
8Gert Fröbe and Lex Barker and Daliah Lavi carry the top of the cast.
9IMDB entry: tt0055008 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
10Only 19 TMDB ratings — you're getting ahead of the curve on this one.

The technical file

Cinematography: Karl Löb
Original score: Peter Sandloff
Editing: Hermann Haller
Production design: Otto Erdmann
Costume design: Gisela Nixdorf
Makeup / hair: Charlotte Kersten
Runtime: 85 min · 1h 25m
Status: Released
Original language: DE
IMDB: The Return of Dr. Mabuse (1961)

Part of

Dr. Mabuse Collection

Dr. Mabuse the Gambler (German: Dr. Mabuse, der Spieler) is the first film in the Dr. Mabuse series about the character Doctor Mabuse who featured in the novels of Norbert Jacques. It was directed by Fritz Lang and released in 1922. The film is silent and would be followed by the sound sequels The Testament of Dr. Mabuse (1933) and The Thousand Eyes of Dr. Mabuse (1960). It is four and a half hours long and divided into two parts, originally released a month apart. The title, Dr. Mabuse, der Spieler, makes use of three meanings of the German Der Spieler which can mean gambler, puppeteer, or actor. The character Dr. Mabuse, who disguises himself, manipulates people, and is a notorious gambler, embodies all senses of the word. Therefore, the Player might be a more appropriate translation of the title. The film is included in the book 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die, being the first of five Lang films to be entered.

Also by

Harald Reinl

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Community reviews

What people are saying

talisencrw2016-04-09
★ 8/10
As I generally greatly detest sequels, reboots and the like, especially of great filmic franchises created and led by outstanding filmmakers (ie., the Mabuse character and Fritz Lang) I initially had quite guarded reservations about seeing Reinl's version here. But it had significant strengths that made me quickly realize my fears were undeserved and that I, in fact, was in for a treat. The pace is whipcrack, the plot is intense and in Commissioner Lohmann, the villainous 'Goldfinger' (an excellent Gert Fröbe) pulls off a gritty cross between an Ed Asner and a Popeye Doyle-era Gene Hackman. I love how one of the ways Mabuse resorts to do away with pests pays homage to Lang's 'The Testament of Dr. Mabuse' from three decades prior. It certainly made me wary of churches, one-legged men and even laundry workers, for crying out loud, and part of the fear the film brings across is because in the back of our minds, we know this is precisely how the Nazis operated, studying fluoride as a mind-control agent. If there is any negative I got from the film, the Berlin police department (good ol' Lohmann notwithstanding) seemed the most unintelligent and incompetent sleuthing force this side of Inspector Clouseau. Definitely recommended for fans of thrillers and spy films.

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