Sirk in Germany 1934-1935 on 2-disc Eureka Blu-ray in February
4 December 2024
Eureka Entertainment has announced the release of Sirk in Germany 1934-1935, a collection of the director’s earliest films which established a blueprint for his later work. Available in a two-disc Blu-ray set from iun February as part of The Masters of Cinema Series, in a Limited edition of 2000 copies exclusively featuring an O-card slipcase and collector’s booklet.
An undisputed master of melodrama, director Douglas Sirk is best known for the lavish, sweeping romances he made during the last decade of his career, including Magnificent Obsession, All That Heaven Allows, Written on the Wind,Imitation of Life and There's Always Tomorrow. But by the time Sirk – born Hans Detlef Sierck – arrived in Hollywood, he had already made several films in his native Germany. The Masters of Cinema series presents this collection of Sirk’s earliest films, all of which established a blueprint for his later work: April, April!, The Girl from Marsh Croft (Das Mädchen vom Moorhof) and Pillars of Society (Stützen der Gesellschaft).
In Sirk’s directorial debut – the comedy April, April! – a businessman and shameless social climber, Julius Lampe (Erhard Siedel), is subjected to a cruel April Fools’ Day prank when he is led to believe a noble prince (Albrecht Schoenhals) intends to personally inspect his pasta factory. Then, in Sirk’s first melodrama The Girl from Marsh Croft [Das Mädchen vom Moorhof], farmer Karsten Dittmar (Kurt Fischer-Fehling) falls in love with the disreputable young maid Helga Christmann (Hansi Knoteck) – much to the dismay of his fiancée Gertrud Gerhart (Ellen Frank). Finally, in Pillars of Society [Stützen der Gesellschaft], wealthy Norwegian shipbuilder Consul Karsten Bernick (Heinrich George) must face up to a lifetime of corruption and deceit when farmer Johann Tonnessen (Albrecht Schoenhals) returns to Norway after a twenty-year absence and discovers that Bernick has smeared his good name.
Presented alongside Sirk’s shorts Two Greyhounds [Zwei Windhunde], Three Times Before (3 x Ehe)and The Imaginary Invalid (Der eingebildete Kranke), these three features – all released in 1935 – showcase the burgeoning talents of a filmmaker who would go on to become one of the most important figures in the history of Hollywood cinema. Sirk’s early works are presented here on Blu-ray for the first time in the UK from brand-new restorations by the Friedrich Wilhelm Murnau Foundation.
Sirk in Germany 1934-1935 will be released as a Limited Edition 2-disc Blu-ray set by Eureka Entertainment on 24 February 2025 as part of the Masters of Cinema series at the RRP of £29.99.
2-DISC BLU-RAY FEATURES:
Limited edition O-Card slipcase featuring new artwork by Scott Saslow
HD presentations from new restorations supplied by the Friedrich Wilhelm Murnau Foundation
Optional English subtitles on all features and shorts
Two Greyhounds [Zwei Windhunde] – 1934 short by Douglas Sirk
Three Times Before [3 x Ehe] [silent version] – 1934 short by Douglas Sirk
Alternate “sound” presentation of Three Times Before(produced at the same time as the “silent version,” unfortunately the original sound reel no longer exists – this version is presented with subtitles)
The Imaginary Invalid ]Der eingebildete Kranke] – 1935 short by Douglas Sirk
New audio commentaries on all three featuresby Sirk expert David Melville Wingrove
Magnificent Obsessions – new interview with film historian Sheldon Hall on Sirk’s career from Germany to Hollywood
Limited edition collector’s booklet featuring a new extended essay on Sirk’s early works by German cinema expert Tim Bergfelder
