German Directors - Fritz Lang

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German Directors - Fritz Lang

German Language Films

Fritz Lang Epic Collection Fritz Lang A truly impressive collection showcasing four masterworks from one of cinema's pioneers. The epic fantasy, Die Nibelungen (1924, 291 mins.), based on the same 13th century Norse legend that inspired Wagner's Ring Cycle, presented in two separate features: Siegfried (143 mins.) and Kriemhild's Revenge (148 mins.). On 2 DVDs. Lang's masterpiece Metropolis (1926, 124 mins.) is a visionary feat of science fiction. In an expansive futuristic city controlled by an authoritarian industrialist who lives in a paradise-like garden, a women in the subterranean sections of the city rises up to lead the workers. Spies (1928, 143 mins.) continues the director's fascination with futuristic technology, expressionistic design and sweeping adventure as it follows a secret agent out to destroy a criminal mastermind with plans for world domination. This is the restored, complete version. Woman in the Moon (1929, 169 mins.) concerns the conflicts amongst the crew of a rocket on its way to the Moon. But the real stars are the imaginative sets, special effects and expressive photography, which incorporates work by the pioneer animator Oskar Fischinger, with such prophetic details as multi-stage rockets, weightlessness and the first countdown! Five-DVD set. Includes galleries of rare production photos. Germany, 1924-29, 143 mins. DVD $129

Dr. Mabuse: The Gambler (Der Spieler) Fritz Lang The first screen incarnation of one of the great villains in movie history: Dr. Mabuse. The mad criminal genius, psychologist, counterfeiter, card shark, master of disguise, thief, and murderer rules a sinister empire through various Machiavellian plots, as the police attempt to stop his wicked ways. One of director Fritz Lang's early triumphs, an allegory of post-war German decadence and a major influence on film noir, crime and horror films. Silent with musical score. 2-DVD set. Includes 270 min. cut restored in 2000 by the F.W. Murnau Foundation, The Story Behind Dr. Mabuse featurette in German with English subtitles, stills gallery, Lang biography and Filmography, and film notes. Germany, 1922, 213 mins./270 mins. DVD $59.95

Fritz Lang's Indian Epic: The Tiger of Eschnapur/The Indian Tomb Fritz Lang After more than two decades in Hollywood, Fritz Lang returned for a time to his native Germany, where his film work included this two-part adventure (originally released as separate features) based on a script written by Lang and Thea von Harbou for Joe May's 1921 twin-film presentation, The Indian Tomb. In The Tiger of Eschnapur (101 mins.), a young engineer falls desperately in love with Seetha, a beautiful temple dancer coveted by the Maharaja, forcing them to attempt an escape. In The Indian Tomb (100 mins.), the couple flees from the Maharaja's palace only to be betrayed and captured. This is a two-DVD set, and includes English and German soundtracks, a gallery of poster art and stills, and liner notes by author Tom Gunning. In German with English subtitles. West Germany, 1959, 201 mins. DVD $54.95

Liliom Fritz Lang Fritz Lang, in his first film in exile from Nazi Germany, teamed up with composer Franz Waxman to create this rare fantasy, the story of a lowlife, wife-beating carnival barker (Charles Boyer) who is given a second chance to help his family after his own death. This film forms the basis for the story of Rodgers and Hammerstein's classic musical, Carousel. A pristine, newly remastered print. In French with English subtitles. France, 1935, 120 mins. DVD $44.95

M Fritz Lang Behind every great suspense thriller lurks the shadow of M. In this, Fritz Lang's first sound film, Peter Lorre delivers a haunting performance as the cinema's first serial killer, a whistling pedophile who terrorizes a large city when he murders a series of schoolgirls, and is hunted by the police and brought to trial by the forces of the Berlin underworld through a network of beggars. Inspired by the real-life "vampire of Dusseldorf," Fritz Lang's film is one of the key achievements of German Expressionism, and became one of the main influences on the aesthetics of film noir. Peter Lorre's performance as the murderer is one of the great screen performances of all time, in one of the greatest films of the century. Grieg's "Peer Gynt Suite" will never sound the same! German with English subtitles. Germany, 1931, 111 mins. DVD $59.95

Metropolis Fritz Lang Fritz Lang's visionary masterpiece of silent film is the first classic of the science fiction genre. His depiction of a giant city controlled by an authoritarian industrialist, who lives in a paradise-like garden while the workers live and struggle in subterranean sections of the city, was as important for its vision of man in the service of those who control technology as for its implicit and moving social message. "A brilliant piece of expressionist design, with moments of almost incredible beauty and power" (Pauline Kael). Newly restored with original orchestral score. The DVD includes 43 minute documentary by Enno Patalas, multilingual audio commentary, cast & crew biographies, photo galleries and a bonus featurette. Germany, 1926, 124 mins. DVD $44.95

The Testament of Dr. Mabuse Fritz Lang Although confined to a mental institution, the arch-criminal Dr. Mabuse uses his hypnotic powers to operate his plan for world domination. He is finally defeated by Inspector Lohmann (who hunted Peter Lorre in M just the year before). Mabuse's mouthing of Nazi platitudes and Lang's depiction of him were too close for comfort, and Joseph Goebbels asked him to change the last reel, offering him leadership of the German film industry. Instead, Lang left his wife (Thea von Harbou, who had by then joined the Nazi party) and fled Germany overnight. This Criterion Collection edition is a 2 DVD set, and includes a commentary by author David Kalat (The Strange Case of Dr. Mabuse; the complete French-language version of the film, Le Testament du Dr. Mabuse, filmed simultaneously by Lang with French actors; excerpts from For Example Fritz Lang, a 1964 interview with Lang, directed by Erwin Leiser; the 1984 film, Mabuse in Mind (Mabuse Im Gedchtnis) (Thomas Honickel), featuring an interview with actor Rudolf Schndler; comparisons between the 1933 German version, the French version, and The Crimes of Dr. Mabuse, the edited and dubbed American version; an interview with German Mabuse expert Michael Farin; production design drawings by art director Emil Hasler; a collection of memorabilia, press books, stills, and posters; liner notes by author Tom Gunning; and more. With optional English subtitles. In German with English subtitles. Germany, 1933, 120 mins. DVD $59.95

English Language Films

The Big Heat Fritz Lang Classic film noir from Fritz Lang. Ruthless criminals, an honest cop, sultry women and a gripping plot are the elements that make up The Big Heat. Glenn Ford stars in Lang's best postwar film, with Lee Marvin as a nasty bad guy and a fine performance by Gloria Grahame as his shallow but wily moll. "The low-key lighting, off-angle compositions, and night-for-night photography that distinguishes the visual style of noir films is used sparingly in The Big Heat, further blurring the boundary between the criminal elements and the rest of society" (Jans B. Wager, Bright Lights Film Journal). USA, 1953, 90 mins. DVD $44.95

The Blue Gardenia Fritz Lang This entertaining blend of film noir and melodrama, directed with the expected skill and style by Fritz Lang, stars Anne Baxter as a woman who wakes up to realize she may have committed murder. Unexpectedly jilted by her overseas boyfriend, she impulsively accepts an invitation to dinner by a notorious ladies' man (a wonderfully lecherous Raymond Burr). He gets her drunk and tries to force himself upon her, but she strikes him with a fireplace poker and escapes. She awakens to read that the pick-up artist has died...but did she really kill him? With Richard Conte, Ann Sothern and, in a winning performance as a the chief police investigator, TV's "Superman," George Reeves. USA, 1953, 90 mins. DVD $37.95

Clash by Night Fritz Lang Barbara Stanwyck and Paul Douglas head a stellar cast consisting of Robert Ryan, Marilyn Monroe and Keith Andes in the screen version of the Clifford Odets play. Stanwyck returns to the love of a simple fisherman, but it's clear she isn't satisfied with her lot in life, a fact of which the cynical Robert Ryan takes advantage. The resulting melodrama offers competing romantic attractions and tragic results. DVD includes commentary by Peter Bogdanovich with archival contributions by director Fritz Lang, trailer, and English, French, and Spanish subtitle options. USA 1952 105 mins. DVD $37.95

Cloak and Dagger Fritz Lang Fritz Lang directs Gary Cooper in this tense WWII drama. Cooper delivers a great performance as an American physicist who confronts a maze of intrigue behind enemy lines in Nazi Germany. Also stars Lilli Palmer. USA, 1946, 106 mins. DVD $37.95

Fury Fritz Lang Fritz Lang's first Hollywood film after fleeing Nazi Germany is a powerful indictment of mob violence in America. Lang includes some real footage of a 1934 lynching, making Fury a frightening document as well as a compelling melodrama. Spencer Tracy portrays a gas station owner who, by a series of coincidences, is accused of a kidnapping and becomes the target of an angry mob which attempts to lynch him and eventually burns down the jailhouse. With Sylvia Sidney and Walter Brennan. USA, 1936, 89 mins. DVD $37.95

Hangmen Also Die Fritz Lang A great American film by Fritz Lang. Brian Donlevy is the assassin who murders Heydrich, the Nazi ruler of Czechoslovakia, in this deeply-felt, anti-Nazi, Hollywood film. The script was co-written by Lang with Bertolt Brecht, the cinematography is by the great James Wong Howe, music by Hans Eisler. USA, 1943, 131 mins. DVD $44.95

House by the River Fritz Lang One of Lang's favorite themes was the ruinous effect of a man's lust for a woman. In House by the River, a man kills his maid and implicates his own brother in the crime. With Louis Hayward and Lee Bowman. USA, 1950, 88 mins. DVD $44.95

Scarlet Street Fritz Lang A great film noir thriller. Edward G. Robinson is the little store cashier who becomes infatuated with and eventually kills a whore (Joan Bennett) and then allows her pimp boyfriend (Dan Duryea) to be executed for the crime. Based on Jean Renoir's La Chienne (1931); one of Lang's best works, with brilliant cinematography of New York at night by Milton Krasner. USA, 1945, 105 mins. DVD $44.95

The Woman in the Window Fritz Lang Edward G. Robinson stars as a naive college professor whose research into criminal behavior leads him to a chance acquaintance with a beautiful woman, Joan Bennett, which, in turn, leads to murder and blackmail. This tense melodrama has a sinister feel nicely offset with intriguing psychological motifs and is often seen as a companion piece to Lang's Scarlet Street. Raymond Massey is also featured. USA, 1944, 99 mins. DVD $37.95

You Only Live Once Fritz Lang Fritz Lang's gripping drama features Henry Fonda as an innocent man on the lam with his girlfriend (Sylvia Sidney). Caught in an intense cat-and-mouse game, he eventually transforms into the man the law believes him to be. "A beautiful, sensitive film...superb direction (Leonard Maltin). USA, 1937, 90 mins. DVD $37.95