in 1938, goebbels wrote that on looking at the film that he was "struck by the dullness of its portrayal, the coarseness of its construction, and the inadequacy of its acting." despite goebbels' statement, he would present the film uncensored from time to time in private screening rooms for close personal friends. on the french release, "the new york times" wrote that "it is the french version of fritz lang's production, "le testament du dr. mabuse" ("dr. mabuse's will"). it is a hallucinating and horrifying story, depicted with great power and the extraordinary beauty of photography that lang has led his admirers to expect." at the hungarian premiere of the german-language print in 1933, "variety" wrote that the film "...certainly shows the influence of american mystery pictures. the story is very long-winded and even an ingenious director like fritz lang could not prevent its being rather slow-moving in places."