German Popular Cinema and the Rialto Krimi Phenomenon: Dark Eyes of London
Published by Lexinton Books, 2022. 211 pages.
By Nicholas G. Schlegel

I had this author’s previous book, Sex, Sadism, Spain, and Cinema, which is on the Spanish genre and really enjoyed it. I loved that he was putting a nice spotlight on a sub-genre that tends to get overlooked. So, when I heard his next book was going to be on the German Krimi films, I was actually even more excited. I had already been a big fan of the Spanish horror film, but knew very little of the Krimi, which means this was going to be a great learning experience for me. It was, as well as expensive, since it has sent me down another sub-genre of films to try and add to my collection! So be warned!

Before we get into the book, there are two quotes at the beginning of it that I just loved, and it really shows the difference about what some critics consider “good” and what the public thinks about them. Author Edgar Wallace had said, “I do not write good books, I write bestsellers.” So, no matter what the critics thought, they sold, which means people enjoyed them. And when it comes to the films based on his work, film scholar Olaf Möller wrote, “Nobody really seems to have liked this cinema other than the public.” Again, critics may have torn the films apart or just didn’t like them, but that didn’t stop people from going to the cinemas to see them. There have been several times in my lifetime that a film was overly criticized upon its release, but yet still made a ton of money at the box office. Or decades later it is now a fan favorite. I guess that shows that opinion is just that. And a critic’s opinion could mean just as much as your neighbor.