Fritz Lang is one of the most influential directors of all time. Not only was he a world renowned director while he was alive, but film history classes all over the world make his films mandatory in their curriculum. This isn't for nothing.
Not only was he extremely innovative as a director through his visuals, but one of the most innovative things that he did was his use of sound in the movie 'M.' M is one of my favorite movies of all time. It has an incredibly chilling script about the mystery of a serial killer, and the last scene is something that will stick with an audience member for life. The thing that really makes it great though is the sound design.
This film had one of the first ever moments of connecting two spaces through sound. Lang used the sound of children to connect the idea that a courtyard was below a balcony, to the scene that we were actually seeing. This way the audience could look at one image, but think about another event entirely. This is something that seems like common knowledge now, but at the time was extremely innovative.
Another way that Lang was innovative in his use of sound, was his ability to further the plot with it. Sound often times in film is an after thought. People simply use it to fill the gaps, but Lang was able to use it as a specific story telling device. The identity of the murderer is revealed almost exclusively through sound. It is also how the other characters in the film are able to find out who he is. Having sound be such a crucial part of film so early on was almost unheard of, and it is incredibly inspiring to watch a film that was able to use every aspect of filmmaking to further the plot and tell the story.
[SPOILER ALERT]
Incredible last scene of Fritz Lang's 'M.'
Peter Lorre plays a child murderer throughout the movie, and in this scene he has been captured by the mobsters of the city, and is put on an unofficial trial.
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