(aka "Nosferatu, eine Symphonie des Grauens" or "Nosferatu the Vampire" or "Nosferatu, a Symphony of Horror" or "Nosferatu, a Symphony of Terror" or "Nosferatu: The First Vampire" or "Terror of Dracula" or "Die Zwölfte Stunde")
directed
by F.W. Murnau
Germany 1922
Posters
 |
 |
Theatrical Release: March 5th, 1922 - Germany
Reviews More Reviews DVD Reviews
DVD Comparison:
Films sans Frontieres - Region 0 - PAL vs. Eureka Video - Region 2 - PAL vs. BFI - Region 0 - PAL
Big thanks to Bram Blijleven for tall of the screen captures!
(Films sans Frontieres - Region 0 - PAL - LEFT -. Eureka - Region 2 - PAL MIDDLE -. BFI Region 0 - PAL - RIGHT)
| DVD Box Covers |
|
|
|
| Distribution |
Films sans Frontieres Region 0 - PAL |
Eureka Video Region 0 - PAL |
BFI Region 0 - PAL |
| Runtime | 1:32:57 | 1:31:57 | 1:28:30 |
| Video |
1.25:1
Original Aspect Ratio |
1.25:1
Original Aspect Ratio |
1.25:1
Original Aspect Ratio |
|
NOTE: The Vertical axis represents the bits transferred per second. The Horizontal is the time in minutes. |
|||
| Bitrate:
Films sans Frontieres |
|
||
| Bitrate:
Eueka |
|
||
|
Bitrate: BFI |
|
||
|
Big thanks to Bram Blijleven for all the comments below:
|
|||
| Films sans Frontieres | Eureka Video | BFI | |
|
The DVD was issued by Films Sans Frontieres (www.films-sans-frontieres.fr)
in 1999. It is the Cinemateque de Bolongne
restauration and runs 1.33.02.
Music by Galeshka Moriavoff. Titlecards are in
German with optional French or
English subtitles. There are 5 chapters.
Included in the film are the 'Act
1' / 'End of Act 1' etc. titlecards.
To make things even more complicated this disc
contains 2 versions of the
film... The one above and a French print which
runs at 1.00.36 at 24fps.
Same music score - shortened obviously. French
titlecards, black & white. I
included 2 frames and a menu of this version
(French2 xx)
The sound on the DVD is MPEG2.0 at 192Kbps.
I don't think the disc is still available (not
at amazon.fr of
www.cinestore.com)
but it is still mentioned at the website of FSF. You can
find it at www.fnac.com
but is is stated 'Supprimé à la vente,
indisponible.' My French is extremely limited
but I think it means
unavailable?
|
When
you take a look at the posted frames taken from the Eureka version you
will see this is EXACTLY the same print as the Image disc (see
comparison
HERE). The titelcards are also identical. Take a close look at
1st and 3rd captured frames are exactly the same as the ones already
HERE with the same dirt on the picture there's the same hair on picture
3 and the same scratch on picture 2. On Eureka capture #2 the head is
cut off at the same place.
I
reinserted the Films sans Frontieres disc but was not able to find the same dirt spots
on the same scenes. No hair to be discovered on the shoulder of
Nosferatu.
So
the only difference between both versions is the fact that Eureka is in
sepia only. And of course that is is longer, but the Image version was
cut down to fit the music score. In fact I remember that David Shepard
mailed me that the prints were the same when I asked how it could be
that the Eureka version was longer.
Eureka
has very nice menu's. When you insert the DVD you an old book Nosferatu
it opens and pages are folded until the main menu appears. I made some
captures so you can see this. There are 13 chapters. The B&W version
on the second disc is exactly the same but of course in plain B&W.
|
The
BFI pictures are posted below. BFI is not the same version as Kino, see BFI
#5. I could not find the scratch on Nosferatu that is on the picture
on your page. The Kino picture is a bit sharper, but on Kino you cannot
clearly see what Nosferatu holds in his hands, you can however in the
BFI version.
If
you compare BFI #3 with the same on your page you can see the lack of
sharpness, but take a look at the same French picture - much better!
Compare French image with the Kino one. Although Kino is very sharp it is
much grainier - throughout the film (I also have the Kino disc).
The
BFI version has titlecards very close to the original German, The Kino
cards look like it but not as good as BFI.
So
I suppose there are 4 versions left: The French, BFI, Kino and
Eureka/Image.
Difficult
to say which one is best! The score of BFI is good and you see as much
as possible because of the windowboxing. The French picture is better
then BFI, and it is nice to have the original titles (I speak German).
For region one you should stick to Kino I suppose.
In
the past there has been a lot of fuss about Nosferatu - like the
negative got destroyed and only a few prints surviving. All the
different DVD's don't make things better!!
The
BFI disc has 18 chapters
| |
|
The British Film Institute version (with a
nice 'Hammer-films like' score byJames Bernard - color tinted) The one
released by EUREKA (Same version as the new Image release but tinted
Sepia and with another score) A French
version released by Films-Sans-Frontieres (with original German
titlecards)
I have some information about the Image
disc: the film is shorter than the Kino (and other) versions. In fact
is is just as long as the earlier version Image released. David Shephard
edited the new version down to fit his already existing music scores!
He thought that the new scenes didn't add much to the film and might
not have been in the original film... There were some postings about
this in the silent-movies newsgroup when the DVD was released.
Personally I prefer the BFI version,
because of the music score and because of the fact it is window-boxed
so little picture is lost.
|
|
| Comments: |
|
Associated Reading (CLICK COVERS or TITLES for more information)
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
|
Metropolis (Bfi Film Classics, 54) by Thomas Elsaesser |
Movie Posters of the Silent Film Era To Color by Rex Schneider, Christopher Buchman |
American Film Cycles: The Silent Era (Bibliographies
and Indexes in the Performing Arts) by Larry Langman |
Family Secrets: The Feature Films of D. W. Griffith by Michael Allen |
The First Female Stars : Women of the Silent Era by David W. Menefee |
Silent Players: A Biographical and Autobiographical
Study of 100 Silent Film Actors and Actresses by Anthony Slide |
The Silent Cinema Reader by Lee Grieveson, Peter Kramer |
Silent Stars Speak: Interviews With Twelve Cinema
Pioneers by Tony Villecco |
Haunted Screen Expressionism in the German Cinema by Lotte Eisner |
DVD Menus
(Films sans Frontieres - Region 0 - PAL - LEFT -.
Eureka - Region
2 - PAL MIDDLE -. BFI Region 0 - PAL - RIGHT)
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
(Films sans Frontieres
version 1 - Region 0 - PAL - LEFT -. Films sans Frontieres version 2 - Region 0 - PAL -
RIGHT)
 |
 |
Screen Captures
(Films sans Frontieres - Region 0 - PAL - TOP -. Eureka - Region 2 - PAL MIDDLE -. BFI Region 0 - PAL - BOTTOM)
 |
|
|
 |
(Films sans Frontieres - Region 0 - PAL - TOP -. Eureka - Region 2 - PAL MIDDLE -. BFI Region 0 - PAL - BOTTOM)
 |
|
|
 |
(Films sans Frontieres - Region 0 - PAL - TOP -. Eureka - Region 2 - PAL MIDDLE -. BFI Region 0 - PAL - BOTTOM)
 |
|
|
 |
(Films sans Frontieres - Region 0 - PAL - TOP -. Eureka - Region 2 - PAL MIDDLE -. BFI Region 0 - PAL - BOTTOM)
 |
|
|
 |
| DVD Box Covers |
|
|
|
| Distribution |
Films sans Frontieres Region 0 - PAL |
Eureka Video Region 0 - PAL |
BFI Region 0 - PAL |