"Die 1000 Augen des Dr. Mabuse" or "The Thousand Eyes of Dr. Mabuse" is a 100-minute black-and-white film from Germany from 1960. And since the creation of Mabuse decades ago, there have been so many films about him (including some that are wrongly considered classics), and also many followed after 1960, even today. This one here has the advantage of the name Fritz Lang attached to it, the German silent film legend. But this one here is of course not a silent film anymore. For Lang, it was a bit of a return back to the roots with making another Mabuse movie and here we have one of his final works. The cast is decent with Peter van Eyck, Gert Fröbe ("Goldfinger", a personal favorite), Werner Peters and Wolfgang Preiss. It needed a better-written and acted character than Addams' though. Unfortunately, overall the script did not do too much for me. I have to say without mentioning Mabuse by name, this could have been a completely random film about another villain character. The significance attached to its name does not only come from saying the name all the time.It is not a failure by any means, but I thought with the cast Lang had he could have made a better film here. Maybe Thea von Harbou's creative touch was missing. Still the movie has a couple solid scenes that were tense and interesting to watch like the one outside the window for example, but overall it just felt like all the killing and drama was included to be shocking and mysterious, not as ingredients of a meal, of an edge-of-seat story that had me and other audiences captivated and genuinely caring about what will happen to the characters, who will live and who will die. Best thing about the film is clearly the acting, but even with how good it was, it was not enough to elevate the mediocre script to a level where I could recommend this movie. Thumbs down from me. Don't see it.

Lang comes full circle: Mabuse made his name forty years earlier, and here Mabuse closes out his directorial career. Made on a shoestring budget with pretty obviously cardboard-quality sets, this is nonetheless nearly up to the level of the director's finest work, the fatalism and paranoia, the distrust of government and big business every bit as potent if not more so in the era of TV and jet aircraft as it was in the years before Hitler came to power.The plot is so complex and takes so many quick turns that, less than 2 weeks after seeing it, I'm already at a loss to readily describe it. Suffice it to say that a TV reporter dies in his car in traffic; at first, no foul play is suspected but soon it's found that he has a needle embedded in his brain, fired from some experimental weapon. Meanwhile a young woman connected with the anchorman tries to commit suicide -- she is saved by an American businessman, who soon becomes embroiled in the intrigue which in addition to an SF weapon involves 1-way mirrors, cameras watching nearly everyone's every move, a seer/magician and exploding telephones. Really, describing the plot would ruin much of the fun.Gert Frobe is really excellent as the police inspector in charge of the case; like a great many Americans I know him only as "Goldfinger" but he shows great ability here as a world-weary but still committed, intelligent and canny cop. The rest of the cast is solid, the crisp B/W photography and music all work to establish a claustrophobic, dangerous atmosphere....the VHS tape I watched was of surprisingly high quality. Not quite as engaging or exciting as the first two in the series, but still a more than fitting end to one of the greatest directorial careers in cinema.

The 1,000 Eyes of Dr. Mabuse represents my first venture into the world of Dr. Mabuse. Pigeon-holing this movie into a single genre is difficult. It's one part traditional krimi, one part spy movie, and one part thriller. Combined, these elements create, at least for me, a one of a kind experience that I really can't compare with much of anything I've seen before. I refuse to give the normal plot synopsis. Any plot details or other information would ruin the many twists and surprises found in The 1,000 Eyes of Dr. Mabuse. Fortunately for me, I went into the movie completely blind, knowing very little of what to expect. I would suggest not even looking over the IMDb page as vital information is presented on Mabuse's identity. The acting is good from a cast that, even if I didn't know all of the names, I recognized from years of watching WWII movies. Actors like Gert Forbe, Werner Peters, and Peter van Eyck give sold performances. Fritz Lang's direction is as competent as ever. The 1,000 Eyes of Dr. Mabuse has style to burn. Considering the movie was made more than 45 years ago, it still feels remarkably fresh. The mystery of who Dr. Mabuse is and what his fiendish plan is all about are wonderfully compelling and really pull you into the movie. The jazzy score is impossible to get out of your mind and fits well within the film. In short, it's movie like this that keeps me excited about exploring "new" cinema. If all of my first time viewings could be this entertaining, I would be very happy indeed.If The 1,000 Eyes of Dr. Mabuse has one weakness, it's the slow pace of the second act. The pace grinds to a crawl as the police begin their investigation into the events taking place. While it's fairly interesting and Gert Forbe is a good enough actor, there's not enough action in this portion of the film when compared with what came before and what comes afterward. A little more pep in the middle third of the film would have made it a real winner with me. It's a minor issue I have with the film, but it's an issue nonetheless.As I wrote previously, The 1,000 Eyes of Dr. Mabuse is the first Mabuse movie I've seen. After my wonderful experience with the movie, it won't be the last.

The last film that Lang directed, this was to be his triumphant return to Germany after having fled the Nazis in the late 1930's. Unfortunately, it was brutally cut and re-edited when it was released here, so it never gained the popularity and acclaim that it deserved. It's the story of an American businessman in Berlin who is drawn into a secretive world of conspiracies, spies, and murder. Everyone in this movie is lying to him, with the single exception of the police inspector, played by a pre-"Goldfinger" Gert Frobe. But it's also the movie that effectively laid down the basic rules of the modern spy thriller: the handsome and well-dressed leading man who is equally at home with a gun, a girl, or a drink in his hand, the megalomaniacal and shadowy villain with plans for world domination, the gadgetry and surveillance, the hidden lair, etc. Don't be put off by the fact that it's a foreign, black and white movie – this is an exciting story told by a master director who has been unforgivably forgotten.