Lang: The Man Behind the Monocle
“Each picture has to have a definite point of view, Jerry,” said Fritz Lang, playing the character “Fritz Lang” in the film Contempt (1963) by Jean-Luc Godard. Taking on the role of a European director who is incredibly persistent in carrying out his cinematic vision is not a far-reaching characterization compared to the actual Lang. As one of the pioneers of German Expressionism and Film Noir, Lang is often dubbed as “The Master of Darkness”, Reflecting on the uniqueness of his film’s form and style, which explores the extremities of human darkness.
In the late 10s, triggered by the end of World War I, Germany was enjoying a tremendous cathartic era. After the war ended, contemporary movements that promote self-confidence, tolerance, liberalism in politics, and the rise of arts and science emerged. Lang’s career as a director was born at the same time as this catharsis. Along with several other filmmakers, he pioneered the Expressionism Cinema movement, characterized by dark shadows, disorienting angles, and distorted realities. Frequent themes such as hysteria and duality reflected the incredibly complex mindset of German artists after World War I.
However, despite his work’s notability being preceded by other expressionist filmmakers such as Murnau with Nosferatu (1922) and Wiene with The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari (1920), it didn’t take long for Lang to catch up with the Dr. Mabuse trilogy (1922–1933) and Woman in the Moon (1929). Above all, however, his film Metropolis (1927) was the film that became a monumental masterpiece of German Expressionism as a whole.
Although considered a financial failure and far exceeded the production budget, Metropolis is regarded as one of the most influential films in cinema history. It is challenging for people to find a modern film that seeks to encompass the social commentary’s complexity and ambition that Metropolis did so well. The film comments on many aspects of great concern of its time, from the immense power of the socio-political revolution, the extremity of social class disparities, to the dangers of mass industrialization, which sees humans as lifeless machines.
The magic of Metropolis stems from its success in using images to give the impression of mystical oddities. By also applying visual influences apart from the expressionism movement, such as Bauhaus, Art-deco, and Gothic. A futuristic city with horizons of gigantic buildings makes the monochromatic image feel alive and dynamic. The majestic and colossal production designs also play a big part in creating a nightmarishly dystopian atmosphere.
Lang sees the mythology of the future as a complex and ambiguous metropolis. He kept away from the utopian and optimistic perceptions of the future that often seemed cliche. His vision of the future was far from flying cars and other bombastic technology discoveries. He created a world that was full of oppression and injustice. However, behind this pessimism, a glimmer of hope arises and then dominates. Lang expressed that whenever there’s evil, there will always be love and goodness that grows.
Three years after the release of Metropolis, Lang released the film M (1931) that tells the story of a child murderer being chased by the police and Berlin’s criminal syndicate. This film is used as the beginning of his transition from silent film to sound.
The sound design in M is phenomenal. When sound films of that day only made use of the technology for dialogue, Lang took the lead in designing an entirely sound-centered film. A melodic whistle was used as a leitmotif or an auditory signal to refer to the antagonist. Every time the whistle emerges, the killer is always near or in the act of killing. Inspired by M, modern films such as Jaws (1975) often adopt a leitmotif associated with the film’s antagonist.
M’s sound design excellence can be heard even before the visuals emerge; the audience listens to a group of children singing a folk song about a “villain in black” who murders children. This opening song indirectly refers to the killer who will later appear in the film. in this unique way, Lang can successfully establish the film’s plot while also convincing the audience to concentrate on the film’s sound.
Throughout his career, Lang developed into a well-known film director who was highly respected in Germany and around the world. His films, which were often large-scaled, were appreciated by fellow filmmakers and audiences alike. However, a gigantic entity that is no less than Metropolis’s splendor emphatically denied the message embedded in Lang’s filmography. That entity was no other than Nazi Germany.
The third film of Dr. Mabuse entitled The Testament of Dr. Mabuse (1933) was banned from broadcast by Joseph Goebbels, Nazi Germany’s Minister of Propaganda. Goebbels thought the film would destroy the public trust of the state. He disliked the fact that the film “showed that a group of very dedicated people is capable of overthrowing a country by force.” Goebbels was indeed ironic.
At a one-on-one Goebbels meeting with Lang, Goebbels offered him a government job in the Nazi Party. Goebbels expressed that Hitler recognized Lang’s potential as a director and is ready to give the state’s responsibility for producing Nazi propaganda films entirely to Lang.
Lang, whose mother is Jewish, politely thanked them for the offer. However, when the meeting ended, he returned to his house, asked his servant to pack a suitcase, and left Germany that very night. He never returned.
Together with several other European filmmakers, he fled German fascism towards the sunny and liberal land of Hollywood. In the process of emigration, Lang divorced his wife and co-screenwriter, who began to be a Nazi sympathizer. During this Hollywood period, Lang’s characteristics began to fuse into a unique style that could be more commonly known as Film Noir.
Like his German Expressionist films, Lang’s Film Noir films are full of pessimism and a dark view of human nature. Visually, both styles use dramatic high contrast lighting to play with light and shadow. This element was exhibited in his films in the mid-1940s.
Entering the Hollywood lifestyle, Lang worked at MGM Studios and directed the legendary crime drama Fury (1936), starring Spencer Tracy and dozens of other films over several years. His most iconic Film Noir work, however, is The Big Heat (1953). That became a perfect example of Lang’s striking and fundamental style in Film Noir.
Narratively, Lang loves to play God with his protagonists. He liked to trap protagonists in the web of their own destiny that forced them to try to free themselves from their mess of a problem. A perfect example is the film Human Desire (1964), where the protagonist stabs and kills a man who is having an affair with his wife. That simple premise sparked a line of narrative fire that continues to grow as the story progresses. Lang always succeeds in playing suspense as the game of anticipation itself has been entirely mastered by him.
Lang is a symbol of every director’s aspiration for total creative freedom. He was willing to sacrifice everything to protect his freedom to tell stories. In leaving Nazi Germany, the thing he was trying to save was not his pride as a Jew; it’s his desire to continue to work without hindrance he was so eager to protect. From Nazi Germany to sunny Hollywood, his distinctive style has paved the way for many new directors to be daring in expressing every side of humanity.
Nearly 95 years after its release, Metropolis continues to be regarded as one of the highest pillars of cinema as a whole. The film M continues to be the perfect example of excellent sound design. Through his immensely impactful and immortal films, the man behind the monocle, Fritz Lang, will always have a special place in the history of modern cinema.
