For those who can receive the TV Channel ARTE, Fritz Lang's Metropolis on TV

[Reduman]

Even though this note has little to do with a possible European release of Fritz Lang's Metropolis on blu-ray, fans of the movie based in France and Germany (or if you can get the TV channel ARTE on satellite) might like to record a very special TV programme tonight (Friday, 12th February 2010). The TV special begins tonight at 20:15 CET on the ARTE TV channel (a French-German joint venture). It is actually a live broadcast from the "Friedrichstadtpalast" arena in Berlin. The restored film premiere of Metropolis is being screened as part of Berlin's 60th Film Festival Anniversary celebrations (the Berliniale). There is also a simultaneous public viewing being shown at Berlin's iconic Brandenburg Gate (for those of you crazy enough to brave the current cold spell!). For the TV broadcast, there will be a round of interviews and commentary before the screening itself begins ca. 20:40 hrs. At 23:10 hrs (also on the ARTE TV channel), a documentary film on Lang's masterpiece, as well as its new restoration version containing the 25 missing minutes found in an archive in Buenos Aires in 2008called "Die Reise nach Metropolis (The Journey to Metropolis) by Artem Demenok, will be screened. (For details in German see [http://www.arte.tv/de/programm/242,d...year=2010.html)
For those planning to be in Berlin this weekend,or in the near future, there is a special exhibition ("The complete Metropolis") on at the Museum für Film und Fernsehen (German Film and TV Museum (Deutsche Kinemathek), Potsdamer Platz 2, Berlin which runs until April 25, 2010. I'm swooning with excitement already!
Btw, Fritz Lang's 'other' masterpiece "M" is being released on blu-ray on February 22, 2010 in the UK! Without doubt, a great month for Fritz Lang fans ... Although, I have not heard of any definite date for a blu-ray release on this side of the Atlantic, but given the TV special, I would anticipate a release in the coming months.

[HotRats]

Here's Radio 4's item on it http://news.bbc.co.uk/today/hi/today...00/8512087.stm

[Reduman]

Originally Posted by HotRats

Here's Radio 4's item on it http://news.bbc.co.uk/today/hi/today...00/8512087.stm

Thanks for this - an interesting report!

In 2008, it was a German newspaper (actually a report in its supplemental magazine) which broke the news that most of the missing footage from Metropolis [ca. 25 mins} had been found in a small film museum in Argentina. The footage consisted of a badly damaged 16 mm version. For those who want to learn more about the rediscovery of the 'lost' Metropolis footage in Buenos Aires, you can read the following German language version of a newspaper article from the German weekly Die Zeit:

http://www.zeit.de/2008/28/Metropolis-Reportage-28

or a shorter english language summary here:

http://www.zeit.de/online/2008/27/me...lisch?page=all

There is also a video report (4:19 mins) available on the following page, you will need to scroll down to the middle of the page and press the "play" button on the screen (German commentary only):

http://www.zeit.de/2010/07/Metropolis-07

Enjoy!

[McCrutchy]

Would ARTE be transmitted in the UK (with English subs) or no?

[Eureka Entertainment]

Originally Posted by McCrutchy

Would ARTE be transmitted in the UK (with English subs) or no?

You can watch it online, arte.tv

Apparently it will have German intertitles, I don't think it will be subtitled.

Our MD is there watching it this evening.

[Reduman]

As I currently live in Germany, I unfortunately cannot say whether ARTE has an english-language subtitle option or not, if available on satellite in the UK. I clearly only view the channel as broadcast here in Germany. Given that we are speaking of a silent film here, one can still view the film (with a live orchestra!), though presumably the intertitles tonight will be in German (French) ... The follow-up documentary will be in German language of course. Let's hope that a blu-ray version with lots of extras (and english language intertitles) will be available soon, so that all can enjoy it!

[Eureka Entertainment]

No English subs online.

[Matt865]

http://twitter.com/mastersofcinema/status/9023347516

Nul points to ARTE for their astonishingly bad internet ShitCast™ of METROPOLIS. A camcorder 1 mile away from the screen at Pariser Platz.

Sums it up nicely.

[McCrutchy]

Originally Posted by Matt865

http://twitter.com/mastersofcinema/status/9023347516



Sums it up nicely.

Glad I didn't have time to bother then. Oh well, I'll trek to NYC for the US theatrical run.

[Daredevil666]

I watched it on Arte HD. It's astounding.

[PGW]

How about some more details?

How does the quality of the "new" footage look, in comparison?

I think Kino is supposed to issue this on blu-ray in the States. Damn, I want this YESTERDAY!

[KENTA]

The new footage looks quite bad in comparison to the old one, but that was expected. (16mm vs. original camera negative)
I was more than glad to see the new footage, it contained a lot of great moments and I simply can't imagine watching the film ever again without these scenes.

[remlap]

Metropolis Screenshots

If anyone wants to see my screenshots

They are png at source resolution

[retask]

So when will the new restored movie be released on Blu or DVD?

[Reduman]

Originally Posted by retask

So when will the new restored movie be released on Blu or DVD?

Well, Kino International in the US appears to be gearing up for some sort of Metropolis revelation in April 2010 (See Kino teaser "website": http://www.kino.com/metropolis/). Whether this is the month of an actual blu-ray release, or the month in which a release date will be announced is anyone's guess! As the "teaser" tag by definition means, Kino are not giving away much just now.

If Kino does actually issue the restored version this early on DVD/Blu-ray, then they will have certainly stolen a march on the planned European release, which apparently will not be out until November this year (2010). I happen to know this because the people who will be recording the orchestral score for the European DVD/Blu-ray release are not recording it until June (2010). This is information I have from speaking to several people at a Metropolis podium discussion held in Berlin on 13 February 2010. They are directly involved in producing the new DVD/Blu-ray (European) version.

I am surmising that the copyright holder for Metropolis which is the FW Murnau Stiftung (Foundation) in Germany, will likely want to see a region-locked release of the movie in the US to help protect the market for the European release later on. I have to emphasise that this is just my opinion, and is not based on any known facts or insider information. Nevertheless, I am, most interested in finding out what score Kino intends to use on any new release of theirs and what supplemental [bonus] material will be available on the disc(s).

Early this morning (23rd February, ca. 1:45 am CET) ARTE again broadcast the documentary on the making of the original movie and the restoration of the "new" Metropolis called "Die Reise nach Metropolis". The documentary, which is ca. 52 mins long, is most interesting. Unfortunately my DVD recorder had missed off the last seven minutes of the documentary on the date of its original broadcast (12th February) because of the Metropolis broadcast overrun. I have now been able to record this programme to SD DVD in its full length. The programme will be shown one more time (in the foreseeable future) on 1 March 2010 on ARTE.