The Passion of Joan of Arc and Die Nibelungen Join The Masters of Cinema Series
Posted July 16, 2012 10:12 AM by Webmaster
British distributors Eureka Entertainment announced today its forthcoming releases in The Masters of Cinema series for the months of October, November and December. The Masters of Cinema Series closes 2012 with films by Fritz Lang, Carl Theodor Dreyer, Ernst Lubitsch, Yasujiro Ozu, Samuel Fuller, and Teinosuke Kinugasa.
Eureka Entertainment's full Q4 line up is as follows:
From the same legend that inspired Wagner's Ring cycle of operas, but with Fritz Lang's signature cinematic touch, a 5-hour fantasy epic in a beautiful new restoration by the Friedrich-Wilhelm-Murnau-Stiftung, Germany. Blu-ray and DVD editions from spectacular HD materials.
Ripsnorting drama from the maverick legend Samuel Fuller, who drew on his own experiences as a newspaperman to self-finance this long-overlooked hardboiled gem about media wars in the 1880s New York press. DVD edition from a new progressive transfer.
29 October 2012
SOUL POWER
The vérité documentary – compiled entirely from footage shot in 1974 – of the astonishing back-to-Africa 3-day music festival "Zaire '74". It was held in Kinshasa ahead of the biggest boxing event of all time: the Muhammad Ali–George Foreman "Rumble in the Jungle". Re-issued as a Blu-ray + DVD "Dual Format" edition & standalone DVD edition.
One of the most famous and iconic of all silent films, Carl Theodor Dreyer's mesmeric The Passion of Joan of Arc is released in an exclusive new restoration featuring Dreyer's very own Danish intertitles – on Blu-ray for the first time anywhere in the world, in a limited-edition premium "Dual Format" (Blu-ray + DVD) SteelBook edition. Also available as standalone DVD & blu-ray sets.
Described by Pauline Kael as nothing less than "perfection", and by Empire Magazine as "the most sophisticated comedy ever produced in Hollywood", Ernst Lubitsch's very first comedy of the sound era is a cinematic feast of wit, charm, and romance. DVD edition from a new HD transfer.
A typically exquisite offering from the great Yasujiro Ozu, reworking his own A Story of Floating Weeds [Ukigusa monogatari] to explore the trials and tribulations of an ageing actor on his return to a seaside port and lives he left behind. Exclusively restored, on Blu-ray for the first time anywhere in the world (in a Blu-ray + DVD "Dual Format" edition), and also available as a standalone DVD set.
Critically acclaimed but long unavailable in the west, Teinosuke Kinugasa's enthralling Cannes and Oscars-winning tale of feudal intrigue, political machinations, and erotic obsession is available once more. Beautifully restored in a Blu-ray + DVD "Dual Format" edition, also available as a standalone DVD set.
Wow, what a fantastic announcement for classic cinema lovers! I'm definitely in for at least the Lang and Dreyer releases, and most likely the Ozu. Jigokumon sounds interesting too, need to check it out.
Another strong slate from The Masters of Cinema Series. Though I haven't actually seen any of them yet, all these films look intriguing to me. I'll research them and preorder them. The Passion of Joan of Arc; Park Row; and Soul Power look especially interesting, but they all look quite strong. Keep up the good work, Eureka.
The Passion of Joan of Arc is one of the greatest films of all time. At the very least, you should try to rent the Criterion DVD release and see it. This is an essential film.
Die Nibelungen is also a treasure of World Cinema.
Please, oh please, tell me Joan of Arc is gonna be region free. The region-free Eureka discs I've gotten so far (Sunrise, City Girl) have been amazing.
I pray Die Nibelungen will be region free as well. I can't imagine seeing these films released across a broad market. It would be a shame if they were unnecessarily restricted.
