Fritz Lang (1890-1976) represents one of the more controversial Austrian-German-American directors, screenwriters and producers. He was a master at using melodramatic elements of conflict and ambiguity in his works and was considered to have one of the great German expressionist minds of his time.

Two of his most well-known and groundbreaking masterpieces were "Metropolis" and "M." Considered by some to be simply melodramatic, his work was instrumental in developing the characteristics of the American genre 'film noir' with its recurring themes of moral ambiguity, paranoia, and psychological conflict.

Friedrich Christian Anton "Fritz" Lang was born on December 5, 1890 in Vienna, Austria to Anton Lang (1860-1940), and Pauline Schlesinger (1864-1920).

Fritz studied civil engineering at the Technical University of Vienna before deciding to switch his interest to art. In 1910 he took his passion for art studies on the road, traveling through Europe, Africa, and Asia. 1913 took him to Paris, France, where he studied painting. A year later, during World War I, Fritz Lang joined the Austrian army and was wounded three times during the War.

It was while recovering from his injuries that he began to create and write scenarios for film. Discharged in 1918, with the rank of lieutenant, Lang spent a brief time acting before being hired as a writer for Berlin based production company Decla. His time as a writer was also brief as he was soon to be directing for German studio Ufa. Throughout this time, he studied the controversial theories of Sigmund Freud and Friedrich Nietzsche, extracting ideas for use in his later movie screenplays.

During his life, Lang married three times. His first wife, Lisa Rosenthal, committed suicide in 1921 after finding Fritz in a very compromising situation with his soon-to-be second wife Thea Von Harbou. Thea Von Harbou was a German actress who worked with Fritz on several films including "Metropolis" and "M." The couple divorced in 1933 when Lang chose to leave Germany for Paris and eventually the United States and his wife Thea, who had become sympathetic with the Nazis. chose to remain in Germany after learning of her husbands possible infidelities with his contact in Paris Lily Latte'. Fritz married Lily Latte' in 1971.

Fritz Lang was both recognized and respected throughout his career as one of the most meticulous of film directors. His works were indeed melodramatic; packed with elements of paranoia, fate, conflict, and confusion. Lang had a distinctively harsh directing style that has seen him compared to a German tyrant. He certainly looked the part with his constant wearing of a monocle. In spite of being disliked by some other directors and having some actors refuse to work with him, Fritz Lang was voted by Entertainment Weekly as the 30th Greatest Director of all time.

His first American film, for MGM Studios in 1936, was the crime drama "Fury." In 1939 Fritz Lang became a naturalized US citizen. His impact on American film noir is clearly evident in the noir classics "The Big Heat," "While the City Sleeps," and "Beyond a Reasonable Doubt."

Fritz Lang died in 1976 and is buried in Forrest Lawn Cemetery in Los Angeles.