BERLIN SYMPHONY OF A GREAT CITY

At once an invaluable photographic record of life in Weimer Berlin and a timeless demonstration of the cinema's ability to enthrall on a purely visceral level, Berlin, Symphony of a Great City (Berlin, die Symphonie der Grosstadt) offers a kaleidoscopic view of a single day in the life of a bustling metropolis. Carl Mayer (The Last Laugh), influenced by the naturalistic Kammerspiel movement, envisioned "a melody of pictures" sprung from daily reality instead of the stylized artificiality of the studio-bound expressionist film. Following Mayer's rough outline, photographer Karl Freund deployed a team of cameramen to explore the avenues, alleyways, and factories of Berlin and secure hidden-camera glimpses of the people and machinery that provide the city with its constant motion. The many hours of footage were then edited into a series of five acts, like movements of a symphony, by Walther Ruttmann as a continuation of his experiments with abstract motion. Scanned in 2K resolution from 16mm elements and featuring a score by composer Timothy Brock as performed by the Olympia Chamber Orchestra, Flicker Alley and Blackhawk Films are proud to release this classic of documentary cinema in a high-definition Blu-ray edition for the first time ever. Berlin defined the formula of the "city symphony" film and according to John Grierson the filmmaker/critic who coined the term "documentary" "No film has been more influential, more imitated."

• UPC: 810162037246
• Release: 2018-09-04
• Content Provider: Flicker Alley, LLC
• Runtime: 62:00
• Genre: Documentary
• Language: Silent (with English Subtitles)
• Format: BR
• Screen:
• Aspect: 1.33:1
• Rating: NR
• Audio: Mono
• Color/BW: B/W
• Special Features: Important Product Information: This product is manufactured on demand in the BD-R format. It will play in nearly all leading Blu-ray players that have the latest firmware updates. Microsoft Xbox One, however, does not currently support BD-R playback. Bonus Feature: Commentary track by filmmaker Alex Barrett, director of London Symphony.
• Copyright: (c)2018 Flicker Alley, LLC
• Number of Discs: 1
• Disc Format: Blu-Ray