User Reviews

Unlike A&E's 1996 biography of Peter Lorre, this equally short 2016 documentary focuses more on the actor's most indelible screen portrayals, kicking off with 1931's "M," Fritz Lang's psychological thriller about a compulsive child murderer who must explain himself to the Berlin underworld or be subjected to vigilante justice. There would be two roles for Alfred Hitchcock ("The Man Who Knew Too Much" and "Secret Agent"), before Hollywood stardom as globetrotting Japanese detective Mr. Moto, moving on to his most prolific period during World War 2, a frequent costar with Humphrey Bogart in such classics as "The Maltese Falcon," "Casablanca," and "Passage to Marseilles." His comeback, spurred on by Bogart's "Beat the Devil," would feature smaller yet unforgettable performances in "20,000 Leagues Under the Sea" and "Around the World in Eighty Days," climaxed by Vincent Price vehicles "Tales of Terror" and "The Raven," grateful to be doing comedy again. No mention is made of his three marriages, and only a brief discussion of his morphine addiction following a botched appendectomy. Clearly an actor who deserves more in depth coverage than a 44 minute dissertation.