Editing M (1931 film) (section)

==Critical reception==

===Initial response===
A ''Variety'' review said that the film was "a little too long. Without spoiling the effect—even bettering it—cutting could be done. There are a few repetitions and a few slow scenes."<ref name="Jensen. p. 93"/> [[Graham Greene]] compared the film to "looking through the eye-piece of a microscope, through which the tangled mind is exposed, laid flat on the slide: love and lust; nobility and perversity, hatred of itself and despair jumping at you from the jelly".<ref name="Wakeman. p. 615"/>

===Reassessment===
In later years, the film received widespread critical praise and holds [[List of films with a 100% rating on Rotten Tomatoes|an approval rating of 100%]] on [[Rotten Tomatoes]] based on 65 reviews, with an average rating of 9.30/10. The site's critics consensus reads: "A landmark psychological thriller with arresting images, deep thoughts on modern society, and Peter Lorre in his finest performance."<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/1012928_m |title=M (1931) |website=[[Rotten Tomatoes]] |publisher=[[Fandango Media]] |access-date=22 August 2019 }}</ref>

Marc Savlov of ''[[Austin Chronicle]]'' awarded the film five out of five stars, calling it, "One of the greatest of all German Expressionistic films". Savlov praised the film's cinematography, the use of sound and Lorre's performance.<ref name="savov97">{{cite web |last=Savlov |first=Marc |title=M. Austin Chronicle. 12-08-97 |url=http://www.filmvault.com/filmvault/austin/m/m1.html |website=Austin Chronicle.cm |publisher=Marc Savlov |access-date=9 September 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191018215435/http://www.filmvault.com/filmvault/austin/m/m1.html |archive-date=18 October 2019 |url-status=dead }}</ref> In 1997, critic [[Roger Ebert]] added ''M'' to his "Great Movies" list. He proposed Lang's limited use of dialogue was a critical factor in the film's success, in contrast with many early sound films which "felt they had to talk all the time". Ebert also argued the film's characters, nearly all [[grotesques]], embodied Lang's distaste for his adopted homeland: "What I sense is that Lang hated the people around him, hated Nazism, and hated Germany for permitting it."<ref>{{cite web |date=August 3, 1997 |last=Ebert |first=Roger |author-link=Roger Ebert |title=M movie review (1931) |url=https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/great-movie-m-1931 |website=RogerEbert.com }}</ref>

In 2015, Taste of Cinema ranked the film 18th among the "30 Great [[Psychopathy|Psychopath]] Movies That Are Worth Your Time", and in 2024 [[Paste (magazine)|Paste Magazine]] ranked the character 1st among "the best portrayals of cinematic sociopaths".<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |title=5 of the Best Portrayals of Cinematic Sociopaths |url=https://www.pastemagazine.com/movies/horror-movies/movie-sociopaths-best-portrayals-psychopath-mental-illness-empathy-actors-roles |access-date=2025-03-09 |website=Paste Magazine |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Turer |first=Jason |date=2015-04-09 |title=30 Great Psychopath Movies That Are Worth Your Time |url=https://www.tasteofcinema.com/2015/30-great-psychopath-movies-that-are-worth-your-time/ |access-date=2025-03-08 |website=Taste of Cinema - Movie Reviews and Classic Movie Lists |language=en-US}}</ref>