PANDORA’S BOX [Die Büchse der Pandora] (Masters of Cinema) Limited Edition Blu-ray

Description

In a role intended at one point for Marlene Dietrich (The Blue Angel), 22-year-old Louise Brooks (Diary of a Lost Girl), with her fragile beauty and iconic dark bob hairstyle, gives a performance, decades ahead of its time, that immortalised her as an icon. Largely condemned and censored upon its initial release for its daring treatment of sexuality and female desire, Brooks’ understated yet erotically charged performance endures as among the most modern of the silent era. Adapted from a pair of plays by Frank Wedekind, Pandora’s Box tells the story of prostitute Lulu, a free spirit whose open sexuality breeds chaos in its wake. When Lulu’s latest lover, the newspaper editor Dr Ludwig Schon (Fritz Kortner, The Hands of Orlac), announces plans to leave her to marry a more respectable woman, Lulu is devastated. Cast in a musical revue written by Schon’s son, Alwa (Francis Lederer, The Return of Dracula), Lulu seduces Schon once more – only to have their tryst exposed, and Schon’s plans for a more socially acceptable marriage shattered. Left with no choice but to marry Lulu, Schon meets with tragedy on their wedding night. Lulu stands trial for the incident, facing years of imprisonment. With the aid of her former pimp (Carl Goetz, Tom Sawyer), an infatuated lesbian countess (Alice Roberts, The Merry Widower) and Alwa, she flees toward a fate of increasing squalor and peril, finally crossing paths one Christmas Eve with Jack the Ripper.Reviled and bowdlerised at its debut, Pandora’s Box has since been recognised as one of the masterpieces of early German cinema. A sordid melodrama made with great style, it affirms G. W. Pabst as a daring and important director and Louise Brooks as one of cinema’s most exquisite and distinctive performers. The Masters of Cinema series is proud to present Pabst’s masterpiece in a new restoration on Blu-ray for the first time in the UK. LIMITED EDITION BOXSET (3000 UNITS) FEATURES:*Hardbound case featuring artwork by Tony Stella | 1080p HD presentation on Blu-ray from a definitive 2K digital restoration | Optional English subtitles | Orchestral Score by Peer Raben | New audio commentary by critic Pamela Hutchinson | New visual appreciation by author and critic Kat Ellinger | New video essay by David Cairns | New video essay by Fiona Watson | PLUS: A 60-PAGE BOOK featuring new writing on the film by critics Alexandra Heller Nicholas, Imogen Sara Smith, and Richard Combs; alongside archival stills and imagery*All extras subject to changePRESS“Louise Brooks is the poster girl for a generation”– Cosmopolitan“one of the great masterpieces of the silent era”– Huffington Post“★★★★★ There is something hypnotically unbridled about Brooks' performance” – Irish Times“★★★★★ It's lightning in a bottle - remarkable, and endlessly fascinating.” – Times“★★★★★ intensely erotic silent-era classic.” – Guardian