‘The City Without Jews’ on Blu-ray & DVD July 28, 2020!
Based on the controversial and best-selling novel by Hugo Bettauer, H.K. Breslauer s 1924 film adaptation of The City without Jews (Die Stadt ohne Juden) was produced two years after the publication of the book, only a decade before events depicted in the fictional story became an all-too-horrific reality. Set in the imaginary city of Utopia (a thinly-disguised stand-in for Vienna), the story follows the consequences of an antisemitic law passed by the National Assembly forcing all Jews to leave the country. At first, the decision is met with celebration, yet when the citizens of Utopia are confronted with the loss of the Jewish population – and the resulting economic and cultural decline – the National Assembly must decide whether or not to invite the Jews back. Though darkly comedic in tone, and stylistically influenced by German Expressionism, the film also contains starkly realistic and eerily prophetic sequences, such as the shots of trains transporting deported Jews out of the city. The implicit critique of Nazism in the film is one reason it no longer screened in Continental Europe after 1933, and no prints were thought to have survived. The 1933 fragment, found and published by the Filmarchiv Austria in 1991, was missing critical scenes. Now, thanks to the discovery of a nitrate print with the missing footage in a Parisian flea market in 2015, as well as the comprehensive restoration work of the Filmarchiv Austria, this previously lost film can once again be appreciated in its ever-relevant entirety. The most definitive and authoritative edition of this remarkable film published anywhere in the world, The City without Jews (Die Stadt ohne Juden) features a newly-commissioned score by the acclaimed silent film ensemble, pianist Donald Sosin and Klezmer violinist Alicia Svigals.
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Flicker Alley, in proud partnership with Filmarchiv Austria and the Sunrise Foundation For Education and the Arts, presents a Blu-ray/DVD dual-format edition of H.K. Breslauer’s The City without Jews (Die Stadt ohne Juden), a bold work of cinematic social commentary. Once considered lost, now available in a comprehensive new restoration!
Recently discovered and newly restored, the 1924 film adaptation of The City without Jews (Die Stadt ohne Juden), presented by Flicker Alley and Filmarchiv Austria, is set to be released in a world-premiere Blu-ray/DVD dual-format edition.
BONUS MATERIALS INCLUDE:
Victims of Hatred (Opfer des Hasses) (1923) – A semi-documentary feature additionally restored by Filmarchiv Austria about the Jewish refugees who fled pogroms in Russia, produced by the Ju disches Hilfswerk – the Jewish Relief Organization in Vienna. Music composed and performed by Donald Sosin. ONLY IN THIS EDITION!
Conversation with Dr. Nikolaus Wostry, Filmarchiv Austria (2019) – Dr. Margrit Frölich moderates an in-depth interview with Dr. Nikolaus Wostry, managing director and head of film collections at Filmarchiv Austria, discussing the challenging history of the film and its legacy in the Republic of Austria today. ONLY IN THIS EDITION!
Saving Die Stadt ohne Juden (2016) – Filmarchiv Austria s crowdfunding campaign video for the digital scanning of The City without Jews (Die Stadt ohne Juden), an integral step in the process of rescuing and preserving this landmark of Austrian silent cinema. ONLY IN THIS EDITION!
The City without Jews, Muslims, Refugees, Foreigners – The chilling images featured in this slide show of the 2018 exhibition at METRO Kinokulturhaus document both the historical context of the film and its truly expansive contemporary relevance. ONLY IN THIS EDITION!
Collector s Edition Souvenir Booklet – Limited edition booklet with new essays by Ernst Kieninger, Armin Loacker, Margrit Frölich, and Cynthia Walk on the film s history and significance, as well as articles on the comprehensive reconstruction and restoration process by Anna Dobringer and Fumiko Tsuneishi.
The City Without Jews (1924) – Trailer from Flicker Alley on Vimeo.
The City Without Jews is released
on Blu-ray & DVD July 8, 2020!
ORDER NOW!
About Filmarchiv Austria
As the custodian of Austria’s audio-visual heritage, Filmarchiv Austria is the country’s central institution for collecting its films. The diversified holdings span a period of more than one hundred years, from the late nineteenth century to the present day. The FAA currently owns 200,000 films, 2,000,000 photographs and film stills, 50,000 film programs, 16,000 film posters and more than 40,000 books and journals. At its three main locations – the Film Repository Laxenburg, the Audio-Visual Center Augarten, and the METRO Kinokulturhaus – the FAA attends to its various tasks of preserving, documenting and presenting the cinematic heritage of Austria.
About Flicker Alley, LLC
Flicker Alley, LLC, founded in 2002, was born out of a passion for cinematic history and a desire to bring filmmakers and films from the past to new audiences and renewed recognition. The driving purpose of Flicker Alley is to contribute to ongoing interest in our film heritage through the creation of new, high-quality digital editions for broadcast, and through home video distribution. Each Flicker Alley publication is the culmination of hundreds of hours of research, digital restoration, graphic design, music composition and scoring. Collectively, they reflect the creativity, expertise and shared passion of many talented collaborators. Flicker Alley is a multiple-year recipient of the National Society of Film Critics’ Film Heritage Award for publishing “rare early U.S. and foreign silent films.”
Gerard Iribe
Gerard Iribe is a writer/reviewer for Why So Blu?. He has also reviewed for other sites like DVD Talk, Project-Blu, and CHUD, but Why So Blu? is where the heart is. You can follow his incoherency on Twitter: @giribe
