Deaf Crocodile

[swo17]

Though I wish we were also getting the 1935 Der Student von Prag

[TechnicolorAcid]

Dennis Bartok on his Instagram just posted a screen-grab from Krakatit with the announcement it’s coming soon from Deaf Crocodile. Here’s my writeup on it:

I loved this one a lot, it starts off fairly generically with a simple “how did this man get here?” flashback structure before slowly but steadily adding on more and more elements until into a surrealist mind warp of itself without veering into unintentional comedy which most definitely happen had a lesser director been given reign to direct. And it should also be noted that the lead actor in this looks distractingly like Dirk Bogarde which is the only thing I wanted to delve into because this a film where seeing it blind is the best possible thing to do when watching this.

[Lowry_Sam]

Dennis Bartok on his Instagram just posted a screen-grab from Krakatit with the announcement it’s coming soon from Deaf Crocodile.

I assume this is for the 1948 film? And there's 0% chance it will include the 1961 TV version, the 1980 remake or the 2017 opera? (I'd actually love to see the opera version, but that's probably well beyond Deaf Crocodile's ken).

[TechnicolorAcid]

Dennis Bartok on his Instagram just posted a screen-grab from Krakatit with the announcement it’s coming soon from Deaf Crocodile.

I assume this is for the 1948 film? And there's 0% chance it will include the 1961 TV version, the 1980 remake or the 2017 opera? (I'd actually love to see the opera version, but that's probably well beyond Deaf Crocodile's ken).

This is in fact the 1948 version, here’s the caption he provided for the teaser and the image provided:

Coming soon from @deafcrocodile in glorious 4K, with some of the most striking B&W cinematography of the 1940s…

[brundlefly]

Haven't kept up with DC's extras, but I wonder if Imogen Sara Smith might be available for this. Solid noir bent, and she did such a great job mixing research and recognition with her Bitter Stems commentary.

[What A Disgrace]

It's worth mentioning that the Instagram blurb says it is coming out in 4K.

[MichaelB]

Specifically 4K UHD, or merely a 4K restoration on BD as per standard DC practice?

[TechnicolorAcid]

Specifically 4K UHD, or merely a 4K restoration on BD as per standard DC practice?

I remember this being alluded to somewhere but I think it’s going to be a UHD, especially considering it’d be a wasted opportunity not to release Krakatit in the highest quality format to let it’s cinematography truly shine.

[What A Disgrace]

The Instagram post says "Coming soon from @deafcrocodile in glorious 4K...", so I assume it's a UHD.

[TMDaines]

So do I!

In fact, I deliberately namechecked Yuri Ilyenko in my commentary for The Devil's Bride as an example of another Soviet-era filmmaker who was somehow able to tackle full-on folk-inspired subject-matter in a decidedly non-realistic way - and yes, there was an intentional if unspoken "hint, hint" there!

Although I daresay there are logistical challenges right now with regard to getting hold of decent high-definition source materials.

My understanding is that the Dovzhenko Centre in Ukraine is a bit of a mess politically. It's embarrassing to see the restorations of works from neighbouring countries, but nothing coming out of Ukraine.

[MichaelB]

Yes, I'm a Facebook friend of Ivan Kozlenko, and that's very much the impression I'm getting too. Hence the lack of anything other than new Ukrainian films getting released.

But they have a cast-iron excuse.

[TMDaines]

Yes, I'm a Facebook friend of Ivan Kozlenko, and that's very much the impression I'm getting too. Hence the lack of anything other than new Ukrainian films getting released.

But they have a cast-iron excuse.

If you are referring to Russia's invasion, then, yes, fair enough now. But the situation long predates that.

[TechnicolorAcid]

Dennis Bartok has posted an image on his Instagram from Song of the Miraculous Hind with the note that it’s coming in “glorious 4K”.

[Finch]

clip

SIRIUS (SZÍRIUSZ) -- 1942, 103 min. A truly marvelous rediscovery courtesy of the National Film Institute (NFI) in Hungary, director Ákos D. Hamza’s SIRIUS is an intensely romantic time-travel film with overtones of the Christopher Reeve/Jane Seymour-starring SOMEWHERE IN TIME and BACK TO THE FUTURE. In the 1940s, a brash Hungarian playboy (László Szilassy) travels back two hundred years with a mad scientist to the mid-18th century world of wigs and pompadours, where he falls in love with a penniless opera singer (Katalin Karády) and makes enemies of all the aristocratic fools he encounters (including his own great-grandfather). But can he make it back to the present before dawn with his new love – or will he lose her forever? One of the first great divas in Hungarian film and music, lead actress Katalin Karády was brutally tortured by the Nazis during WW2 and saved the lives of a number of Hungarian Jewish children who were set to be executed by the Danube River, for which she was posthumously honored by the Yad Vashem, Israel’s official memorial to victims of the Holocaust. Beautifully restored from the original 35mm B&W nitrate negative by the NFI, and released for the first time on Blu-ray in the U.S. by Deaf Crocodile. In Hungarian with English subtitles.

Special Features

“SIRIUS Werkfilm” (1942, 3 min., B&W, silent) – this ultra-rare behind-the-scenes footage of SIRIUS during production was shot by a 19-year old studio trainee and shows the director and lead actors setting up for filming. Purchased as a 9.5mm amateur home reel in 1985 and recently preserved by the NFI in Budapest

New video interview with György Ráduly, director of the National Film Institute (NFI) – Film Archive on the making and preservation of SIRIUS, moderated by Dennis Bartok. (In English)

New video essay by journalist and physical media expert Ryan Verrill and film professor Dr. Will Dodson of Someone’s Favorite Productions.

New commentary track by hall of fame comics artist, film historian, and author Stephen R. Bissette.

New artwork by Beth Morris

Blu-ray authoring by David Mackenzie of Fidelity In Motion.

Deluxe Edition Bonus Content

Slipcase featuring new artwork by Richard Cox

60-page illustrated book

New essay by film historian Rolf Giesen

New essay by film critic Walter Chaw

Limited to 1500 units

THIS DELUXE LIMITED EDITION IS INCLUDED IN SUBSCRIPTIONS.

A STANDARD EDITION WILL BE RELEASED AT A LATER DATE.

[MichaelB]

From the latest newsletter:

The Short Films of Yuri Norstein:
Treasures of Soviet Animation Vol. 3

Our third volume of classic & rare Soviet animated gems from the vaults of Soyuzmultfilm studios is focused on the short films of legendary animator Yuri Norstein (b. 1941). This first-ever U.S. Blu-ray release of Norstein’s films features several rare shorts new to home video, all newly restored by Deaf Crocodile and co-presented with Seagull Films.

THE 25TH, THE FIRST DAY (25-E - PERVYY DEN) - 1968, 9 min., co-dir. Arkadiy Tyurin.
Norstein's first film is a visually striking tribute to the Bolshevik Revolution on October 25th, incorporating the Cubist-inspired artworks of Soviet painters Nathan Altman and Kuzma Petrov-Vodkin.

SEASONS (VREMENA GODA) - 1969, 9 min. A man and woman ride through the forest while the seasons change around them -- leaves swirling, cranes overhead, a tattered scarecrow in a field -- in this lovely, elegiac short set to music by Tchaikovsky. Produced and written by the great animator Ivan Ivanov-Vano.

CHILDREN AND MATCHES (DETI I SPICHKI) - 1969, 5 min. Norstein’s rarely-seen educational short about the dangers of matches, from ancient times up to today. The image of pipe-smoking portraits on the wall suddenly bursting into flames is particularly surreal.

THE BATTLE OF KERZHENETS (SECHA PRI KERZHENTSE) - 1971, 10 min., co-dir. Ivan Ivanov-Vano. Arguably Norstein's first great animated film, inspired by the legend of the City of Kitezh which disappeared into a lake to avoid Mongol invaders. BATTLE incorporates Russian frescoes from the 14th-16th centuries, set to music by Rimsky-Korsakov.

THE FOX & THE HARE (LISA I ZAYATS) – 1973, 12 min. Norstein’s utterly charming and irresistible short about a temperamental "house-filching fox" who boots a poor rabbit out of its home. The rabbit turns to a wolf, bear, bull and rooster for help, with surprising results. Told in a gorgeous combination of cut-out and hand-drawn styles.

THE HERON & THE CRANE (TSAPLYA I ZHURAVL) - 1974, 10 min. An awkward crane and a high-spirited heron go back and forth on marrying each other, in this impossibly lovely and heartbreaking short about romantic misunderstandings.

HEDGEHOG IN THE FOG (YOZHIK V TUMANE) – 1975, 11 min. "In the evenings, the little hedgehog used to go to the little bear's to count stars. They would sit on some logs, sipping tea, and gaze at the starry sky." So begins the deceptively epic journey of the tiny hedgehog, filled with impossible marvels and dangers: a shimmering white horse and a crafty owl. A fluttering bat, a falling leaf and the ever-present curtain of fog. Widely considered one of the greatest animated films ever made, HEDGEHOG fits more mystery, suspense and delight into eleven brief minutes than most features do in two hours.

A DAY BEFORE OUR ERA (ZA DEN DO’ NASHEY ERY) – 1977, 6 min. Co-dir. Fyodor Khitruk. This experimental collage of images of the French Revolution was apparently abandoned before it was finished, and remains one of Norstein’s rarest films. A companion piece in some ways to his earlier THE BATTLE OF KERZHENETS.

THE TALE OF TALES (SKAZKA SKAZOK) – 1979, 29 min. Norstein's longest film to date, TALE is a story about stories -- or more precisely, a dream of many dreams. A giant bull and a little girl skip rope. A frustrated poet picks up a lyre. Couples dance under a streetlight to nostalgic music until the male partners disappear, headed off to war. And through it all, the Little Grey Wolf -- Norstein's greatest creation alongside the Hedgehog -- watches silently at the rondo of human loves and losses.

More details will be announced when pre-sales begin in November.

[Yakushima]

From the latest newsletter:

The Short Films of Yuri Norstein:
Treasures of Soviet Animation Vol. 3

Very tempted to double-dip (I already have the excellent Japanese Blu-ray). Curious about the extras. I hope they'll be able to source the excellent short documentaries on Norshtein and Yarbusova by Irina Margolina, part of the great World of Animation (Мир анимации или анимация мира) Russian TV series from 2002.

[MichaelB]

I can confirm that there'll certainly be multiple extras - and English-friendly ones this time.

[Yakushima]

I can confirm that there'll certainly be multiple extras - and English-friendly ones this time.

Thank you, Michael. Fantastic!

[Michael Kerpan]

Definitely a must-buy (for the third time -- first VHS, then DVD, now this).

[MichaelB]

And of course the other big advance on the Japanese Blu-ray (which I have, and treasure) is that it has nine Norstein films rather than six - the new additions being Seasons, Children and Matches and The Day Before Our Era.

Although they're minor work by comparison, with the lovely puppets-and-lace Seasons being the strongest title - Children and Matches is of historical interest as being Norstein's first film as solo director, but it was strictly a reputation-repairing, rent-paying day job (he denounced it as "complete rubbish" to his biographer Clare Kitson, although it's not that bad!), while The Day Before Our Era is all that was completed of a project that was shaping up to take an unacceptably ambiguous line on the purpose of revolutions.

[Michael Kerpan]

One assumes Overcoat will NEVER be finished???

[Yakushima]

One assumes Overcoat will NEVER be finished???

I've seen close to 30 minutes of finished footage at Norshtein/Yarbusova exhibit in NYC some 10 years ago, and it was magnificent. The reply by one of the exhibit organizers to our excited questions on what is the current status of the production was "He (Norshtein) does not like to talk about it anymore" or something similar. I'd be very surprised if it is ever going to be completed, but I would love the finished parts to be included in one of the future Blu-ray collections.

[Saturnome]

One assumes Overcoat will NEVER be finished???

If he's working at the same pace as he was in the 80s-2000s, there should be something like 45 minutes of film made by now. He would probably need to live to be a centenarian to complete the film, around 2040.

[swo17]

If he dies before it's done, someone can always just finish it with AI

[Saturnome]

Maybe I was born on this earth to prevent anyone from doing so