Featuring one of the most memorable musical themes in cinematic history (Grieg’s “In the Hall of the Mountain King”), M is a cat-and-mouse movie from the eyes of the serial killer rather than the detective – and what eyes they are. Peter Lorre, the Hungarian American actor most famous for portraying queer-coded villains in some of the biggest films of the 20th century, whistles his way through 1930s Germany in M, preying on children and being pursued by both the formal police and a vigilante force of other seedy types who think he’s taken it a bridge too far. Metropolis’ Fritz Lang, master of German Expressionism, directs what is lauded as one of the first serial killer flicks. – Lina Fisher
