While I adore foreign films and don't at all mind reading the subtitles, I must say that you lose quite a bit when you watch a musical in another language. So, while I score it with a very respectable 7, someone watching it in their own language would probably like it a lot more and might score it higher. This isn't a criticism--more just a fact about watching most foreign language musicals--particularly one with rather old fashioned styles of songs.

If you aren't familiar with Berthold Brecht's "Three Penny Opera", it's a musical set in the worst parts of London and is all about the low-lifes living there at the time of the Coronation (1901). The 'star' is the dangerous Mack the Knife--a cut-throat who has a reputation for the ladies and for his enemies somehow disappearing...for good. However, this toughie makes the mistake of thinking he can marry the daughter of the King of the Beggars--a very powerful foe who has decided that Mack's temerity deserves death. Will Mackie manage to survive or will the King manage to get rid of his new son-in-law? Tune in if you are interested.

Apparently the Nazis did not appreciate the play nor the playwright nor the guy who orchestrated the play/film (Kurt Weill). While the film makes the British look pretty bad (considering they all seem to either be cops on the take, pimps, thieves and the like),Brecht was a leftist and these leanings are occasionally obvious in the film (such as when the beggars approach the new queen). As for Weill, he was a Jew--and that alone was reason for the film being banned.

As for me, I appreciated the look of the film most of all. Veteran director G. W. Pabst did a nice job at the helm and the film looked very nice--with lovely sets and nice cinematography. The acting was also good, though I am not sure if the thin singing was due to the actors or just primitive sound technology. As for the songs, they are most likely an acquired taste. For me, they seemed too short and lacked the nice harmony of, say a Rogers & Hammerstein musical. This isn't to say the songs are bad--just a style that threw me a little--much of it because it was like a musical with very, very little music. All in all, entertaining and worth seeing.

By the way, the character Jennny (Lotte Lenya) was played by the same lady who three decades later played the incredibly scary agent Klebb in "From Russia With Love". Also, Vladimir Sokoloff (a familiar face in Hollywood) played the jailer just before he fled the new Nazi regime.

Also, by the way, because I am a history teacher, I was confused a bit by the coronation aspect of the film. They never talked about the King (Edward VII) but talked about the Queen being crowned. This didn't make sense to me, as Alexandra was not their sovereign--just the reigning King's wife. In other words, the person being crowned was Edward, not his Queen.

And finally, if you find the Criterion DVD, it has a great special feature--the French language version made simultaneously by Pabst--using a different cast but it's essentially the same film. This may seem strange, but at the time they didn't know how to dub films in multiple languages and even Hollywood was making alternate language versions of its films. A few examples include a Spanish version of "Dracula" (1931) with the exact same sets but Mexican actors. Also, Laurel & Hardy were such huge international stars that Hal Roach Studios made French, German, Italian and Spanish films--with Stan and Ollie phonetically delivering their lines to speakers of that language (as well as some appearances by American supporting actors like James Finlayson).

GW Pabst was a master director of German cinema, especially excelling at his direction of actresses and developing their acting skills (i.e. Louise Brooks being a primary example). Bertholt Brecht's play is a classic and have always hugely appreciated the music of Kurt Weill (i.e. 'Street Scene'). Lotte Lenya left a huge impression on me when introduced to her as one of the great Bond villains in 'From Russia With Love' and she was every bit as talented a singer. So there was so much potential for 'The Threepenny Opera' to work.

And it mostly does work, quite well. 'The Threepenny Opera' may not be for those that prefer their stage to film adaptations to be one hundred percent faithful, which they seldom are in general. The anti-capitalist content is toned down, which left Brecht incensed, and it is a shame that several of the songs are cut and the order of the songs intact is at times re-arranged. It is not one of Pabst's best films, it's no 'Diary of a Lost Girl' for example, but his not so masterful films still always had interest value and so does 'The Threepenny Opera'. A film most notable for its incredible visuals and Lenya.

'The Threepenny Opera' has a lot of great things. Visually, the film is an absolute triumph. Not just the very evocative and at times elaborate sets and the at times eerie lighting, but especially the absolutely superb cinematography (some of the very best of that year, the best of it making the jaw drop). While some of the placement was questionable, the songs included are wonderful. "Mack the Knife" is considered a classic for very good reason and one can understand how today it is a big band favourite.

Dialogue is emotionally complex and while wordy it doesn't ramble. The story may be toned down politically, but is mostly compelling and the bold mood of the play is intact. Complete with some greatly executed scenes. The ending still astounds. The message still resonates and while it makes its point it doesn't overdo it in my view. Pabst's direction at its best is masterly, especially visually. Lenya re-creates the role that she portrayed on stage to legendary effect and her performance is utterly bewitching, her major solo is unforgettably performed and staged. Rudolf Forster makes Mackie a hard to dislike rogue. Carola Neher is a charming Polly and Fritz Rasp is formidable as Peachum.

Not everything works though. There are pacing problems where the film does at times badly lag. A primary example being the wedding scene, which goes on for far too long and feels very drawn out. The slapstick is not particularly amusing this time and comes over as clownish and not always merging with the atmosphere.

Some of the story is slightly disorganised too and the re-ordering of the songs doesn't always come off. "The Cannon Song" for instance feels very out of place and makes very little sense being placed at that point in the drama.

Overall though, impressive but to be taken on its own terms. 7/10

"Die 3 Groschen-Oper" or "The 3 Penny Opera" is a German movie from 1931, so 85 years old now, that is obviously still in black-and-white, but has sound already. And that is also the crucial thing as this film lives a lot through its music. Director is Georg Wilhelm Pabst, writer is Bertolt Brecht and composer is Kurt Weill. All three of them are still known today, at least here in Germany because of their many contributions to art and the latter was also the husband of Lotte Lenya who plays one of the major characters in here. It is interesting to see her at a younger age because so far I have only come across her as an enemy to James Bond in her probably career-defining villain performance as Rosa Klebb.

The rest of the cast I have to say I am not familiar with unfortunately although many of them were prolific back then in terms of acting. And I also was not too impressed by what they did here. To me it seemed as if the story is not suited for a movie that crosses the 110-minute mark. It dragged a lot I have to say and I'd have preferred to run this one for 90 minutes max, which also would have been the usual runtime back around that era. Films weren't that long really often. The music is still the best thing about the film I guess, especially the theme song about "Mack the Knife". I knew this one already before watching the film and it certainly stayed in mind. Such a catchy tune. However, 2 or 3 good songs cannot make up for all the boredom I felt throughout watching this drama. I never was at the edge of my seat, so I did not feel this was a dramatic watch at all. Cannot recommend. Thumbs down.