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    The Threepenny Opera [2 Discs] [Criterion Collection]

    3.5 4

    Director: G.W. Pabst, Georg W. Pabst Cast: Rudolf Forster

    Rudolf Forster
    , Lotte Lenya
    Lotte Lenya
    , Carola Neher
    Carola Neher
    , Fritz Rasp
    Fritz Rasp
    , Reinhold Schunzel
    Reinhold Schunzel


    DVD

    (B&W / Full Frame)

    $39.99
    $39.99

    Temporarily Out of Stock Online

    Customer Reviews

    • Release Date: 09/18/2007
    • UPC: 0715515025720
    • Original Release: 1931
    • Source: Criterion
    • Region Code: 1
    • Presentation: [B&W]
    • Sound: [Dolby Digital Mono]
    • Language: English
    • Runtime: 6600
    • Sales rank: 18,007

    Special Features

    Disc One: ; New, restored high-definition digital transfer, made from a new film restoration element from the Bundesarchiv in Germany; Audio commentary by scholars David Bathrick and Eric Rentschler; Archival introduction by Threepenny stars Fritz Rasp and Ernst Busch; New, exclusive documentary on Threepenny's controversial journey from stage to screen; New and improved English subtitle translation; ; Disc Two: ; L'op?ra de Quat'sous, Pabst's French-language version of the film, starring Albert Pr?jean and Florelle; A multimedia presentation by film scholar Charles O'Brien on the differences between the English and French versions; Archival interview with Fritz Rasp; Galleries of production photos by Hans Casparius and production sketches by art director Andrej Andrejew; Plus: A new essay by film critic Tony Rayns

    Cast & Crew

    Performance Credits
    Rudolf Forster Mackie Messer
    Lotte Lenya Jenny
    Carola Neher Polly Peachum
    Fritz Rasp Peachum
    Reinhold Schunzel Tiger Brown
    Valeska Gert Mrs. Peachum
    Herman Thimig Vicar,Vicar
    Ernst Busch Street-Singer
    Paul Kemp Mackie's Gang
    Gustav Puttjer Mackie's Gang
    Oskar Hocker Mackie's Gang
    Krafft Raschig Mackie's Gang
    Herbert Grunbaum Filch
    Albert Prejean Mackie Messer
    Odette Florelle Polly
    Jack Henley Tiger Brown
    Gaston Modot Peachum
    Jane Marken Mrs. Peachum
    Margo Lion Jenny
    Antonin Artaud Mackie's Gang
    Vladimir Sokoloff Mackie's Gang/Smith
    Merminod Mackie's Gang
    Reinhold Schuenzel Tiger Brown
    Gustav P?ttjer Mackie Messer's Gang Member
    Kurt Weill Composer

    Technical Credits
    Seymour Nebenzal Producer
    Laszlo Vajda Screenwriter
    Leo Lania Screenwriter
    B?la Bal?zs Screenwriter
    Adolf Jansen Sound/Sound Designer

    Scene Index

    Disc #1 -- Threepenny Opera: Feature
    1. "How Does a Man Survive?" [2:53]
    2. "Mack the Knife" [5:31]
    3. The Cuttlefish Hotel [7:32]
    4. Burglary and the Chief of Police [5:29]
    5. "The Wedding Song for Poor People" [2:16]
    6. "Liebeslied" [2:20]
    7. The Wedding [7:36]
    8. "Polly's Song" [5:22]
    9. Tiger Brown Arrives [3:45]
    10. Jonathan Jeremias Peachum [8:13]
    11. A Visit to Tiger Brown [3:28]
    12. "Song of Futility" [1:37]
    13. Polly's Promotion [8:15]
    14. Turnbridge Street [5:42]
    15. "Pirate Jenny" [4:25]
    16. Chase Scene [1:47]
    17. Suky Tawdry [3:35]
    18. Deputy Director Polly [3:29]
    19. Jail [4:06]
    20. Procession of the Poorest [4:33]
    21. Reprise of "Song of Futility" [:31]
    22. 10,000 Bail [5:48]
    23. The Coronation [5:49]
    24. 10,000 Investment [1:51]
    25. "Cannon Song" [2:11]
    26. Final Stanzas of "Mack the Knife" [2:35]
    1. Brecht and Weill [10:51]
    2. "Sure to Be a Flop" [11:22]
    3. The Film [5:18]
    4. A Number of Changes [18:27]
    5. More Marxist? [2:21]
    Disc #2 -- Threepenny Opera: Supplements
    1. "How Does a Man Live?" [1:10]
    2. "Mack the Knife" [5:40]
    3. The Cuttlefish Hotel [7:26]
    4. Burglary and the Chief of Police [5:22]
    5. "The Wedding Song for Poor People" [2:14]
    6. "Liebeslied" [2:17]
    7. The Wedding [7:48]
    8. "Polly's Song" [5:12]
    9. Tiger Brown Arrives [3:22]
    10. Jonathan Jeremias Peachum [7:50]
    11. A Visit to Tiger Brown [2:46]
    12. "Song of Futility" [1:29]
    13. Polly's Promotion [7:21]
    14. Turnbridge Street [5:32]
    15. "Pirate Jenny" [3:18]
    16. Chase Scene [2:31]
    17. Suky Tawdry [3:24]
    18. Deputy Director Polly [3:10]
    19. Jail [3:12]
    20. Procession of the Poorest [5:05]
    21. Reprise of "Song of Futility" [:29]
    22. 10,000 Bail [5:37]
    23. The Coronation [2:30]
    24. 10,000 Investment [2:45]
    25. "Cannon Song" [3:01]
    26. Final Stanzas of "Mack the Knife" [1:40]

    In this adaptation of Bertoldt Brecht and Kurt Weill's Threepenny Opera, Rudolf Forster stars as robber captain MacHeath -- aka Mackie Messer, or Mack the Knife -- who falls in love with Polly, daughter of beggar king Peachum. Despising MacHeath, Peachum plots the thief's downfall.

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    Librettist Bertolt Brecht was understandably upset with the considerable liberties taken in transferring his and Kurt Weill's monumental The Threepenny Opera to the screen. Still, while director G.W. Pabst and his collaborators may have altered too much of the material (including cutting some of the score's most memorable numbers) and may have (perhaps inevitably) changed the theatrical tone of the piece, the result is still fascinating. If Brecht's sense of theatrical alienation is missing, his attacks on capitalism still come through strongly. As with the play, there's a distinct remoteness to the piece; one watches the film and while one is never bored, one is also never engaged in the characters, thus making the viewer an observer rather than a participant. The cast is strong, with Rudolf Forster making a charmingly ruthless Mackie whose stern authoritarianism still has a softer side to it. Carola Neher captures both the tender and the tough sides of Polly, and Reinhold Schuenzel is an amusing Tiger Brown. Best of all, however, are Fritz Rasp and Lotte Lenya. Rasp's Peachum is a slimy marvel, a Fagin with no soul and no remorse. Lenya's performance is mesmerizing; she gives so much weight to the film that her character seems a major force, rather than the relatively minor role that it is, and her "Pirate Jenny" is both shilling and thrilling. Pabst and his designers have given the film a distinctive chiaroscuro look, and the director has created several sequences -- including the climactic march during the coronation -- that are simply stunning. Ultimately, the problems in adapting Threepenny to the screen keep the film from being a classic, but it's still a unique experience.
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