IF ORDERED IN PLASTIC CASES, THE ENTIRE COLLECTION COMES IN TWO CASES, WHICH HOLDS MULTIPLE DVDs:
This 11-DVD collection, brought to you courtesy of a customer suggestion, represents the UfA films we have in stock, which are in color. They are presented to you at a discounted price:
GROSSE FREIHEIT NR. 7 (1943) * with switchable English subtitles *
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The former sailor, Hannes, is a solo-entertainer in the "Hippodrom" in Hamburg, which belongs to his love Anita and is located on the "Grosse Freiheit", a red-light district in the city. Shortly after a reunion party with three old acquaintances, Hannes has to visit his brother in the hospital, who is dying. His brother begs him on his death bed to seek out Gisa, a woman he once let get away, and marry her. Hannes finds her in southern Germany and returns to Hamburg with her, where they are to get married. On the night, on which he is to be engaged to her, Gisa comes home and informs Hannes that she has chosen someone else. Hannes understandably leaves Gisa and abandoning his real love Anita and the Hippodrom, returns to sea with his friends.
Directed by Helmut Kaeutner in 1943/44, this film enjoyed enormous postwar popularity in both East and West Germany. Kaeutner makes stunning use of the new Agfacolor material, and Hamburg never looked more mystical. The film was shot on location and in Berlin, but after massive air raids on both cities, was completed in Prague. Goebbels didn't particularly like this film and forbade it to be shown in Greater Germany. Therefore, German audiences only got to see this movie after 1945. Hans Albers is brilliant, and for fans of his work, this movie is an absolute must. The movie also features a couple of good songs, sung by Hans Albers. "La Paloma" is probably the most remembered tune of this film. 109 minutes long. Excellent digital quality.
Region Free (can play in any DVD player).
IN GERMAN WITH OPTIONAL ENGLISH SUBTITLES.
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FRAUEN SIND DOCH BESSERE DIPLOMATEN (1941)
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Mr. Lambert is the director of the traditional Homburg gaming casino ... and will probably soon be unemployed! For the Frankfurt National Assembly has decreed that gaming houses should be closed. In order to convince the politicians otherwise, Lambert sends his hot niece, the dancer Marie-Luise, to Frankfurt. But on her way there, she falls into the arms of the soldiers, who have been sent to stop the gaming operation in Homburg. Marie-Luise is taken prison and promptly falls in love with the commander, Captain von Karstein.
Herr Lambert ist Direktor des traditionsreichen Homburger Spielkasinos – und wohl schon bald arbeitslos! Denn auf Beschluss der Frankfurter Nationalversammlung soll der Spielbetrieb geschlossen werden. Um die Politiker umzustimmen, schickt Lambert seine reizende Nichte, die Tänzerin Marie-Luise, nach Frankfurt. Unterwegs läuft sie jedoch der Truppe in die Arme, die entsandt wurde, um den Spielbetrieb in Homburg zu unterbinden. Marie-Luise wird gefangen genommen, verliebt sich aber in den Befehlshaber Rittmeister von Karstein.
THERE IS A NEWSREEL ALONG WITH THE FILM, JUST AS GERMAN AUDIENCES MIGHT HAVE SEEN WHEN THE MOVIE WAS FIRST SHOWN (except this newsreel may not be contemporary to when the film was released).
DVD-R IS IN GERMAN WITH NO SUBTITLES (except for the Newsreel).
QUALITY (of feature film only):
· Sharpness of picture? - Overall, excellent, digital quality with some minor softness due to the original film's color transfer
LENGTH OF FEATURE FILM: 92 mins
LENGTH OF NEWSREEL: 25 mins
Anna Jobst is the daughter of a rich, conservative farmer. Living on the bank of the Moldau, she wishes nothing more than to follow the river to Prague, the "Golden City". When her father makes a journey, she actually breaks away against his declared will. In Prague, she stays with her aunt, soon to be seduced by her degenerate cousin. This cousin, however, loses interest in her, when news reaches the city that her father has disinherited her. Pregnant and desperate, Anna decides to return home, but is turned away.
IN GERMAN WITH NO SUBTITLES. APPROX. 100 MINS. EXCELLENT QUALITY.
DAS BAD AUF DER TENNE (1943)
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In this moral farce, "The bathroom on the Threshing Floor", which takes place during the 18th Century in a Flemish village and merchant milieu, Paul Henckels plays the trader Ule Sleeks and carries on with the mayor's wife (Heli Finkenzeller). Goebbels labelled this first color film from Tobis Studios an "ordinary peasant film". And while the costume drama was a colorful success, the director Volker von Collande "completely screwed up", according to the Propaganda Minister in his diaries. Von Collande's work, which premiered in Berlin on 30 July 1943, nevertheless received the designation of being "cuturally valuable" ... and was promptly restricted to adult audiences. The Catholic Church had a fit about two of the bath scenes, where two girls could be seen naked from behind (but, ironically, had little to say about the "bath scenes" taking place at the same time in extermination camps to the East).
In dem Sittenschwank "Das Bad auf der Tenne", das im flandrischen Dorf- und Kaufmannsmilieu im 18. Jahrhundert spielt, sorgt Paul Henckels als Handelsmann Ule Sleeks für die Späße, hier kaspert er gerade mit der Bürgermeistersfrau (Heli Finkenzeller). Goebbels kanzelte den ersten Farbfilm aus dem Hause der Tobis-Studios als "ordinären Bauernfilm" ab. Zwar sei der Kostümfilm farblich gelungen, aber Regisseur Volker von Collande habe "völlig versagt", schrieb der Propagandaminister in sein Tagebuch. Von Collandes Werk, das am 30. Juli 1943 in Berlin Premiere feierte, erhielt dennoch das Prädikat "Volkstümlich wertvoll" - und Jugendverbot. Die katholische Kirche störte sich an zwei Badeszenen, in denen zwei Mädchen nackt von hinten zu sehen waren.
THERE IS A NEWSREEL ALONG WITH THE FILM, JUST AS GERMAN AUDIENCES MIGHT HAVE SEEN WHEN THE MOVIE WAS FIRST SHOWN (except this newsreel may not be contemporary to when the film was released).
DVD-R IS IN GERMAN WITH NO SUBTITLES (except for the Newsreel). APPROX. 105 MINS. COMBINED TOTAL. VERY GOOD FILM QUALITY OVERALL. SOMEWHAT UNSHARP; BUT THAT AND THE PASTEL COLORS GIVE THE FILM A "CHARMINGLY RUSTIC" LOOK
Filmed in the closing days of the Second World War, this 1945 treatment of Johann Strauss' Die Fledermaus is nothing less than a tribute to the technical and innovative genius of the German film industry. While the film is doubtless entertaining, I do not speak of the genius of its director or the actors, but the actual quality of the film: the colors are incredibly vibrant and spectacular; and that is no mean feat for an industry, which -- though often given preferential treatment by Goebbels' Ministry of Propaganda -- was just as much subject to wartime shortages of material as anyone else. Fans of this operetta will not at all be disappointed by the transfer of this story onto film; but even if you're not a fan, the sharpness, clarity and vividness of the production's color photography will satisfy you for sure.
DVD-R IS IN GERMAN WITH NO SUBTITLES. APPROX. 95 MINS. EXCELLENT DIGITAL QUALITY.
MUNCHHAUSEN (1943) *with hard-encoded English subtitles*
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Germany's answer to the Wizard of Oz, this 1943 production was put together at lavish expense (and equally lavish color) in the middle of the Second World War. As the fortunes of war turned against Germany, the public wanted to be able to see something in the cinemas besides newsreels and stale propaganda. What better way could there be to forget the depressing defeat at Stalingrad, the clearing of Africa by the Anglo-Americans and the collapse of their allies in Italy than to watch an upbeat fantasy film starring such great actors as Ferdinand Marion and Hans Albers in rich AGFA colors? Entertaining and positively wonderous considering all Germany had to deal with on the frontlines and on the homefront, where Allied bombs were making life more and more unpleasant.
Overall picture and sound quality very good and rich in color (have we said that enough times?)
Approximately 120 minutes long.
Region Free (can be played in all DVD players).
DVD-R IS IN GERMAN WITH ENGLISH SUBTITLES.
DIE FRAU MEINER TRAUME (1944)
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George Jacoby's musical comedy was tailor made for the UfA diva Marika Rokk. As a musical revue star, Julia Koster flees to the mountains in a train to finally escape the hustle and bustle of the theatrical world. Somehow, she ends up alone in the wilderness with nothing more than a fur coat (what? a fur coat? in 1944 Germany?!?) and is saved by the engineers Erwing Forster and Peter Groll. Unaware of Julia's identity, Groll falls in love with her. For her part, Julia is enjoying the simple life in the mountain settlement and has discovered she can be quite the housewife, when she wants to be. Unfortunately, Julia's theatre director has caught up with her and is threatening to upset the social apple cart.
Georg Jacobys musikalisches Lustspiel ist maßgeschneidert für Ufa-Diva Marika Rökk: Als Revuestar Julia Köster flieht sie überstürzt mit dem Zug ins Gebirge, um endlich dem Trubel des Theaters zu entkommen. Allein in der Wildnis und nur mit ihrem Pelzmantel bekleidet, wird sie von den beiden Ingenieuren Erwin Forster und Peter Groll geborgen. Ohne von Julias Identität zu wissen, verliebt sich Groll nach anfänglichen Reibereien in die mondäne Frau. Julia genießt ihrerseits das einfache Leben in der Bergbau-Siedlung und entdeckt an sich hausfrauliche Qualitäten. Doch als der Theaterdirektor Julia aufspürt, droht die aufkeimende Liebesbeziehung an den kulturellen und sozialen Gegensätzen zu scheitern.
THERE IS A NEWSREEL PREVIEW BEFORE THE FILM, JUST AS GERMAN AUDIENCES MIGHT HAVE SEEN WHEN THE MOVIE WAS FIRST SHOWN (except this newsreel may not be contemporary to when the film was released).
DVD-R IS IN GERMAN WITH NO SUBTITLES (except for the Newsreel). APPROX. 105 MINS. COMBINED TOTAL. EXCELLENT, DVD DIGITAL FILM QUALITY OVERALL. BOTH THE FILM AND NEWSREEL ARE IN COLOR.
The musician and composer Carl Michael Ziehrer, who by day works in his father’s hat shop, gets the opportunity to conduct one of his works in the Diana-Saelen in Vienna. The young siblings Munk and Mizzi make sure there’s loud applause. The next evening, he composes the waltz “Wiener Maedeln” and dedicates the work to the ladies. By chance, Ziehrer delivers a hat to Munk’s house and meets the oldest sister Klara there for the first time. Ziehrer immediately falls in love with her, but is rejected. At a ball, Ziehrer is supposed to introduce one of his compositions, supported by Klara’s singing. Klara shortly announces thereafter that she is engaged to Count Lechenberg.
Der Musiker und Komponist Carl Michael Ziehrer, welcher tagsüber im Hutgeschäft seines Vaters arbeitet, erhält eines Abends Gelegenheit in den Diana-Sälen in Wien seine Kompositionen zu dirigieren. Die jungen Geschwister Munk, allen voran Mizzi, sorgen für einen enormen Applaus. In der folgenden Nacht komponiert er den Walzer Wiener Mädeln (Weaner Mad'ln) und widmet das Werk den Damen. Zufällig muss Ziehrer am nächsten Tag im Hause Munk einen Hut abliefern und begegnet dort erstmals der ältesten Schwester Klara. Ziehrer ist sofort verliebt, wird aber abgewiesen. Bei einem Ball soll er, unterstützt mit Klaras Gesang, eine Komposition vorführen, weigert sich aber nach „Rosen aus dem Süden“ von Johann Strauß (Sohn) zu spielen. Klara gibt daraufhin kurzerhand ihrer Verlobung mit Graf Lechenberg bekannt.
THERE IS A NEWSREEL ALONG WITH THE FILM, JUST AS GERMAN AUDIENCES MIGHT HAVE SEEN WHEN THE MOVIE WAS FIRST SHOWN (except this newsreel may not be contemporary to when the film was released).
DVD-R IS IN GERMAN WITH NO SUBTITLES (except for the Newsreel).
QUALITY (of feature film only):
· Sharpness of picture? - Excellent picture quality with vibrant colors
LENGTH OF FEATURE FILM: 99 mins
LENGTH OF NEWSREEL: 12 mins
IMMENSEE (1943) *with switchable English subtitles*
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The storyline is simple enough: when a friend of her husband's comes to spend her vacation at their inn, a woman's love is sorely tested.
However, this rare film, directed by Veit Harlan, is rather typical of most of his films: big-time melodrama with a capital "M" and he isn't ashamed of using everything in his arsenal to ensure we don't forget that. The acting is pregnant with tears, the dialog is highly noble without ever being more than superfluous, and everything is through-scored with an academic, predictable, serious and dignified symphonic score, which flows over the viewers like slow-moving lava does over tourists too stupid enough to put down the camera and run away from the spouting volcano. The film might work, if the protagonists were more sympathetic. They are, unfortunately, not: Karl Raddatz is anything but the handsome hero he is meant to be. Kristina Söderbaum only has one or two emotions to display in the whole film, and being the rather robust woman that she is (and who looks as gentle as a stormtrooper cuddling a pit bull), she really shouldn't have been cast in all these over-suffering roles. But then, her husband knew better. The colour photography is very good, and some of the cast - like pretty Käthe Dyckhoff who enjoyed a brief career during the war - are likable.
Unfortunately, this print suffers from the ravages of time and a bad transfer. The colors are very good .. too good; the overly rich AGFA tones are corrupted by the bad copy and there is a line on the bottom of the print reflecting the original transfer onto VHS. The overall quality of the film is "well-used VHS", but quite watchable. The soundtrack is soft and you will need to turn up the TV, but there isn't much distortion at the louder volumes to make this annoying. Overall, considering the rareness of the film, it's still very much recommended ... if you can stomach Veit Harlan's films.
APPROX. 88 MINS. VERY GOOD FILM QUALITY WITH MINOR PICTURE DEFECTS AT TIMES. A VAST IMPROVEMENT OVER OUR PREVIOUSLY OFFERED PRINT.
DVD-R IS IN GERMAN WITH OPTIONAL ENGLISH SUBTITLES.
OPFERGANG (1944) * with switchable English subtitles*
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Aels, a rich and tempermental woman from the North, moves to Hamburg. She lives in a mansoin besides the newly married couple, Alrecht and Octavia. The friendship between Aels and Albrecht does not disturb the harmony of this marriage. But soon, Aels has a reoccurrence of a tropical disease, and because she is confined to bed, Albrecht rides by each day on his horse to her window and inquires as to her health. When, eventually, he gets sick with an epidemic, his wife takes over this dear service and greets Aels in her riding clothes, pretending to be Albrecht and comforting the sick woman, so as to not worry her about Albrecht also being sick. Aels, however, is not completely fooled and ends up dying of a broken heart. It turns out, she cannot live without Albrecht's love -something Albrecht only finds about from her last letter to him before her death.
This film was put out by the famous (notorious?) director Veit Harlan (who directed Kolberg ...inquire about that film!) in 1944 and is shot in glorious AGFA color.
DVD-R IS 89 minutes long. REGION FREE (will play in any DVD player)
FILM QUALITY: Not digital quality, but very good nonetheless. A vast improvement on our previous print.
AVAILABLE IN GERMAN WITH OPTIONAL ENGLISH SUBTITLES.
DAS KLEINE HOFKONZERT (1945)
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Christine Holm has had enough of village life. She packs her suitcases and heads off to a small city to begin a career as a singer and to finally find her father, whom she has never seen before. Things are rather chaotic at the border post; but when Lieutenant von Arneck sees Christine at passport control, he takes all the time in the world to ensure that the woman doesn't disappear so quickly. Soon, the other travellers raise Holy Hell that the customs inspector is flirting instead of checking for smuggled, counterfeit DVDs, drugs and the like. Advisor Zunder has the biggest mouth among the complaining mob. But Zunder probably should have kept his mouth shut, because the idea of "the best defense is a good offense" only serves to push von Arneck to look even closer at Zunder's bags, where there are a bunch of smuggled DVDs and the like. And like all good criminals, who blame everyone else for their misdeeds, Zunder intends to get revenge for being caught with dirty fingers.
Christine Holm hat das Dorfleben satt. Sie packt ihren Koffer, um in der kleinen Residenzstadt Karriere als Sängerin zu machen und endlich ihren Vater zu finden, den sie noch nie gesehen hat. An der Grenzstation herrscht Hochbetrieb, doch als Leutnant von Arneck Christine zur Kontrolle vor sich sieht, nimmt er sich alle Zeit der Welt, um das die hübsche Frau nicht so schnell aus den Augen zu verlieren. Es dauert nicht lange, da macht sich unter den anderen Reisenden der Unmut über den flirtenden Zollinspektor Luft. Vor allem der Kommissionsrat Zunder hält sich nicht zurück bei seiner lautstarken Beschwerde. Doch das bringt Arneck keineswegs aus der Ruhe, zumal er bei der Inspektion von Zunders Gepäck so manches "Schmuggelgut" zutage fördert. Zunder sinnt auf Rache.
THERE IS A NEWSREEL PREVIEW BEFORE THE FILM, JUST AS GERMAN AUDIENCES MIGHT HAVE SEEN WHEN THE MOVIE WAS FIRST SHOWN (except this newsreel may not be contemporary to when the film was released).
DVD-R IS IN GERMAN WITH NO SUBTITLES (except for the Newsreel). APPROX. 71 MINS. COMBINED TOTAL. VERY GOOD FILM QUALITY OVERALL, BUT THERE ARE SOME MINOR SYNC ISSUES WITH THE SOUND AND PICTURE.
TOTAL DURATION: 1110 MINUTES (approximately 18.5 hours!)
