​Fritz Lang silent classics on Blu-ray

Austrian-born director Fritz Lang is best known for his massive silent science-fiction epic “Metropolis” (1927) and his moody, influential crime thriller “M” (1931), both made in Germany.

He started writing films as early as 1916 and directed over 40 features in various genres between 1919 and 1960. Among Lang’s finest work are his last two silent features, which made their U.S. Blu-ray debuts this February from Kino, filling in the gap between his legendary “Metropolis” and his first talkie, “M.”

“Spies” (1928) concentrates on the villain, the hero, and the love interest who starts as a villain but falls for the hero.

Rudolf Klein-Rogge stars as a suave and cultured but cold and ruthless criminal mastermind believed by the public to be a respectable banker named Haghi. He is also a master of disguise, showing up at various times as different characters to carry out his nefarious schemes.

Co-starring is Willy Fritsch as secret agent 326, also a master of disguise and sort of a precursor to James Bond, assigned by the German Secret Service to find Haghi and foil his wide-reaching plans for world domination.

Gerda Maurus stars as Sonja, a beautiful Russian spy Haghi orders to neutralize 326. When she unexpectedly falls in love with him in the process and refuses to work against him, Haghi imprisons her, giving 326 another reason for tracking him down. Along the way there are a number of other espionage plot threads, as well as various attacks and escapes and an exciting train wreck.

Kino’s Blu-ray has outstanding HD picture quality. The piano score by Neil Brand is very good and very well-recorded. Bonus features include the original trailer and a very good 72-minute documentary about the film (although it’s standard-definition). The old DVD’s bonus feature of stills and advertising is not on the Blu-ray.

SPIES on Blu-ray – Movie: A / Video: A / Audio: A / Extras: B+

For his second film after “Metropolis,” Lang returned to science-fiction with “Woman in the Moon” (1929), this time based heavily upon actual scientific research instead of speculative fantasy. In fact in several basic details it’s surprisingly close to the actual Apollo moon shot some 40 years later.

A lot of melodrama, intrigue, and a romantic subplot take up much of the screen time leading up to the rocket launch and moon voyage, but it still has some interest as an implicit portrait of Weimar Germany.

The film begins at the rundown apartment of an impoverished eccentric old professor (Klaus Pohl), who back in the 1890s (about 30 years before the main story) met with both academic and public ridicule for his theories of gold on the moon’s surface, waiting to be picked up as soon as space travel is developed. His only friend is a wealthy young man named Helius (Willy Fritsch), whose name ironically refers to the sun, who has been planning and financing a trip to the moon.

About this same time a cartel of ruthless businessmen with gold interests scheme to become part of the exploration or they will destroy it, sending a smarmy man called Turner (Fritz Rasp) to steal the plans and deliver their ultimatum that either he will accompany them on the trip or it will not happen at all.

Meanwhile Helius’ partner and best friend Windegger (Gustav von Wangenheim) announces his engagement to his other assistant Frieda (Gerda Maurus), with whom Helius has secretly been in love but never declared himself.

Action picks up considerably during the final segment dramatizing the events and conflicts arising during the trip and exploration of the moon.

Once they reach their goal, the painstaking scientific accuracy gives way to pulp speculative sci-fi fantasy-adventure.

The picture quality, for the most part, is extremely sharp on Kino’s Blu-ray. The new music score by Javier Pérez de Azpeitia is also quite good. The only bonus on the Blu-ray is an interesting and all-too-short 15-minute documentary (in standard-definition) on the film’s production.

WOMAN IN THE MOON on Blu-ray – Movie: A- / Video: A / Audio: A / Extras: C