Boba_Fett1138 It's obvious that this movie was supposed to be the German answer to the popular James Bond franchise. In the '60's, actually quite an handful of these sort of spy/detective movies got made but most of them are forgotten now days, including the British and American ones, while in fact they actually were some quite amusing movies to watch. And this movie is also definitely an enjoyable one but not really the best to be based off Edgar Wallace's work.It remains a bit weird to see all of these German movies, based on Edgar Wallace his novels, which are set in London and features some all-British characters, with all-British names. But no, this all seems to matter very little when watching this movie, since it's quite hard to take it all very seriously. It's a movie made purely for entertainment and it's being a quite silly one with its story and somewhat quirky characters (just like a James Bond movie).But the series of movies based on the Edgar Wallace novels definitely have some better movies to offer than this one. This isn't really the most exciting watch and at times I wished more would be happening in the story. It all remains quite simplistic, which does certainly go at the expense of its entertainment value at times.Other than that, it still remains a well made movie. It obviously didn't cost an awful lot of money to make but they did a more than decent job with its resources. It's actually also being a quite creative movie to watch at times, with it directing and cinematography. Perhaps you could say that the movie also benefits from the fact that it's shot in black & white, since somehow I think the movie would had been a far more silly one to watch had it been done in full color.Not the greatest but still a enjoyable enough, short watch.6/10http://bobafett1138.blogspot.com/

The_Void The best Krimi films are based on a novel by English crime writer Edgar Wallace and directed by prolific German director Alfred Vohrer; and Der Hexer boasts the inclusion of both. Thanks to a thrilling narrative and some interesting lead characters - this film is clearly one of the best of the genre. Der Hexer roughly translates into English as 'The Magician' and the title alludes to the central character - a highly cunning criminal with the ability to baffle police through the use of trickery and disguises. The film begins with the murder of a young girl; whom we later discover is the sister of the aforementioned master criminal. When this comes to the attention of the police, naturally they expect 'The Magician' to return to London for revenge and so begin an investigation in order to catch the criminal. The Magician is indeed plotting to kill off those responsible for the death of his sister and comes to London with this agenda; facing the murderers themselves and the best detectives of Scotland Yard.What really makes this film great is the plot line; which is as cunning and clever as the lead character. Alfred Vohrer deftly handles the story, which is streamlined and features no filler, and ensures that the film is exciting and interesting at all times. There are several twists and turns throughout the plot (the mostly unseen lead character providing most of the entertainment) and the film never dries up or becomes boring. As is usually the case, the story takes place in London and the director does well at establishing the atmosphere of the city, which bodes well with the plot line. The plot works in such a way that eventually everyone comes under suspicion of being the murderer and this helps a lot when it comes to generating the suspense. Naturally all these twists and turns need a good twisted ending to wrap everything up; and Der Hexer certainly does not disappoint in that respect. The ending is very well done and provides some surprises. Overall, this is an excellent entry in the Krimi genre and comes recommended.

dbborroughs German version of the often filmed Edgar Wallace story called the Ringer. I saw another version of this story a few months back titled The Gaunt Stranger, which was a nifty little film. Here we have the story redone as part of the cycle of Wallace films and its been updated to the 1960's.The plot has the criminal known as the Ringer returning to London to get revenge for the death of his sister. the police want the Ringer for long ago crimes and know that he is not one to be trifled with. As the Ringer zeroes in on his target, the police attempt to figure out who the ringer is, he's been too long from London and no one knows who he is, except his wife and she isn't saying.A good version of the story it pales in comparison to the Gaunt Stranger which was so good that even when you figured out what was going on you doubted that you were right. Here things are more amusing than anything else and you're only hope to know who the Ringer is was to see an earlier version. Recommended if you run across it, but not something to search out.

Liedzeit During the sixties and early seventies dozens of Edgar Wallace films were made in Germany, all of them highly popular. Most of them black and white, most of them with Eddi Aren't and Siegfried Schürenberg two of the unknown geniuses of German cinema. This one is the best of the lot. The sister of a famous retired criminal, Arthur Milton, aka der Hexer, (literally the Magician but I think called the Ringer in the Wallace book) is murdered. Scottland Yard thinks that Milton will return to revenge her. Inspector Higgins (Joachim Fuchsberger in typical role) with the help of Warren (Siefried Löwitz) is trying to get him. There is also a mysterious Australian writer called Wesby (Heinz Drache). Is he the Hexer? One by one of the murderers is killed by the Hexer. Very questionable ethics, of course. But our sympathies are with him. You never see him until the very end, but you see his wife, played by the most elegant of German actresses, Margot Trooger. And a man with a wife like that cannot be really bad. There is wonderful innocent sixties charm all the way through, suspense and humour which make this film a true highlite. Siegfried Schürenberg as Sir John has one of the best running gags in movie history there. "Das hätten Sie doch berücksichtigen müssen." (You should have thought of that). Nice twist ending. The only post war German movie that ranks among the best films ever made.