(aka 'Du skal ære din hustru')

Denmark 1925

  In Master of the House, the failure of his small business turns Victor (Johannes Meyer) into a household tyrant, constantly complaining and criticizing his long-suffering family and eventually driving out his saintly wife Ida (Astrid Holm) to stay with relatives. His elderly Nanny Mads (Mathilde Nielsen) assumes control and, under her firm tutelage, he comes to fully appreciate the value of his wife.

This is a charming, richly detailed tragi-comedy of domestic manners. By turns funny, intensely emotional and deeply affecting it clearly still enjoys considerable contemporary relevance. Dreyer compressed and clarified the stage play by Svend Rindom on which he based his film, making it a definitively cinematic rather than theatrical work.

Master of the House was particularly successful in France where it was widely admired. It resulted in Dreyer being invited to work there and in the eventual commission of his first large budget film, The Passion of Joan of Arc (1928).

As well as directing feature films, Dreyer was involved in 13 state-commissioned documentaries and short films up to 1956, on subjects ranging from art and architecture to road-safety. Two of his rare short films are featured on this DVD; Good Mothers, a documentary about the Mothers' Aid Institution and They Caught the Ferry, which was financed by the Road Safety Council and contains superb action sequences.

Theatrical Release: October 5th, 1925

Reviews    More Reviews    DVD Reviews

DVD Review: BFI - Region 2 - PAL

 

 

Comments:

The film is in very bad shape, but thanks to BFI's DVD it is at least watchable. There is extensive damage and due to frame rate conversion (I assume) I notice many instances of combing. Dreyer fans may be aware of My Metier as it is on the extra disc of Criterion's Dreyer Boxset. The title cards and credits have been redone/restored in English and I think I would have preferred the original no matter how poor the condition - as they would have been translated, subtitle-wise, anyway. As part of the Dreyer canon it is essential viewing and I'll assume that it will probably never look any better on digital - I've heard of no extensive (and it would need extensive) restoration planned. Two other Dreyer shorts are included - Good Mothers and They Caught the Ferry. There is another excellent liner notes booklet included. The feature is, as described, a unique tragi-comedy with Dreyer's deft touch and meticulous composition (see last capture). We, of course, recommend but purchasers should be aware of the deplorable condition the print is in - possibly the worst I have ever seen (this includes those many damaged Ozu films). It is regrettable but it was very expected! Gary W. Tooze

 

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Recommended Film reading (CLICK COVERS or TITLES for more information)

	NO COVER POSTED					NO COVER POSTED
My Only Great Passion: The Life and Films of Carl Th.Dreyer (Hardcover) by Jean Drum	The Cinema of Carl Dreyer (The International film guide series) by Tom Milne	The Films of Carl-Theodor Dreyer David Bordwell	Transcendental Style in Film: Ozu, Bresson, Dreyer by Paul Schrader Paperback  or Hardcover	Speaking the Language of Desire : The Films of Carl Dreyer by Ray Carney Paperback  or Hardcover	DREYER IN DOUBLE REFLECTION edited with commentary by Donald Skoller	Carl Theodor Dreyer's Jesus: A Great Filmmaker's Final Masterwork (Hardcover) by Carl Theodor Dreyer

Check out more in "The Library"

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DVD Box Cover		CLICK to order from:
Distribution	BFI Video - Region 2 - PAL

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Gary Tooze Mississauga, Ontario,    CANADA

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