Early Women Filmmakers Blu-ray/DVD Giveaway

Lois Weber's The Blot

Giddy from the success of their Behind the Door (1919) contest from this past March, Flicker Alley is back in the giveaway game…and they asked Thrilling Days of Yesteryear—in addition to other respected classic movie blogs and websites—if we’d like to be a part of a contest in which the prize is a copy of Early Women Filmmakers: An International Anthology, their bodacious new Blu-ray/DVD release celebrating the innovative and groundbreaking talents of fourteen celebrated female film directors.  How could I refuse to participate in what is surely going to be one of the most talked-about classic film releases of 2017?

Did you know that more women worked in the film industry during its first two decades than at any time since?  That a woman created some of the first narrative films ever made?  Or that in 1916, the highest-paid director in Hollywood was a woman?

Despite their incredible achievements, many early women filmmakers have been largely written out of film history, their contributions undervalued. On May 9th, Flicker Alley presents Early Women Filmmakers: An International Anthology on Dual-Format Edition Blu-ray/DVD, showcasing the work of 14 of early cinema's most innovative and influential women directors, re-writing and celebrating their rightful place in film history.

Read on for your chance to win a copy!

Germaine Dulac's La Cigarette

International in scope, this groundbreaking collection features over 10 hours of material, comprised of 25 films spanning 1902-1943, including many rare titles not widely available until now, from shorts to feature films, live-action to animation, commercial narratives to experimental works. Directors include Alice Guy Blaché, Lois Weber, Mabel Normand, Madeline Brandeis, Germaine Dulac, Olga Preobrazhenskaia, Marie-Louise Iribe, Lotte Reiniger, Claire Parker, Mrs. Wallace Reid (Dorothy Davenport), Leni Riefenstahl, Mary Ellen Bute, Dorothy Arzner, and Maya Deren.

Alice Guy Blaché's Falling Leaves

These women were technically and stylistically innovative, pushing the boundaries of narrative, aesthetics, and genre. Going back to the beginning of cinema, this collection makes visible the tremendous directorial contributions women made all around the world. Beautifully restored in high definition, Early Women Filmmakers features new scores by Sergei Dreznin, Frederick Hodges, Tamar Muskal, Judith Rosenberg, and Rodney Sauer and the Mont Alto Motion Picture Orchestra.

Bonus Materials Include:

•             Booklet Essay: By film scholar and Women Film Pioneers Project Manager Kate Saccone.

•             Audio Commentary: For Lois Weber’s The Blot by author, professor, and expert on women and early film culture Shelley Stamp, courtesy of Milestone Film and Video.

For a complete list of films included on the set, please visit Flicker Alley.

Release Date: May 9, 2017

List Price: $69.95

Order now on sale for $49.95 through May 16th!

Watch the trailer:



One lucky winner will receive a copy of Early Women Filmmakers: An International Anthology on Dual Format Edition Blu ray/DVD from Flicker Alley! Giveaway is open to residents of U.S./Canada and ends on May 22, 2017.

Watch the above trailer, comment with your thoughts, and enter to win on the form below:

Entry-Form

Remember, members of the TDOY faithful—you cannot win if you don’t enter!  (Don’t ask me how this principle works…it just does.)  You don’t want to miss out on this fabulous prize!

“The secret to winning is constant, consistent management.” – Tom Landry

I received a nice e-note (a short e-mail) from Flicker Alley’s Sarah Bastin yesterday afternoon, letting me know that they did select a winner in their Blu-ray/DVD giveaway for their latest release—the restored version of Behind the Door (1919).  It’s Kevin S. (from Undisclosed Location, AK), and I’m most pleased to be able to put his name in lights at this ‘umble scrap of the blogosphere…which will result, I’m sure, in his shunning from friends and eventual ostracizing completely from society.  (Sorry, Kev.)

The nice thing about the Flicker Alley giveaway—for me, that is—is that I didn’t have to feel guilty with regards to the winner; the last time I looked before the contest ended they had over 4,000 entries—which is a tad larger than the usual number of entries I get whenever Thrilling Days of Yesteryear has a swag giveaway.  Nevertheless, congrats to Kevin…and I have told Sarah that the next time there’s prizes to be given out via Flicker Alley deal TDOY in.

Behind the Door (1919) Blu-ray/DVD Giveaway

It’s been a little over a month since we’ve handed out some excellent swag here at Thrilling Days of Yesteryear…so I thought I’d rectify the “fabulous prizes” drought by announcing a swell opportunity for members of the TDOY faithful to win a copy of Behind the Door (1919)—an upcoming release (due out April 4) from the hardest-working folks in the classic film heritage business: Flicker Alley.

If you make regular visits to this humble scrap of the blogosphere, you know that Flicker Alley is responsible for more than a few of the movies I’ve reviewed here in TDOY’s silent film showcase on Thursdays; past feature films written up on the blog include Victory (1919)/The Wicked Darling (1919), Tol’able David (1921), and Isn’t Life Wonderful (1924).  In addition, I’ve given titles like Children of Divorce (1927), The House of Mystery (1921), and Too Late for Tears (1949) the “Where’s That Been?” treatment at ClassicFlix, and the dusty TDOY DVD shelves are adorned with past bodacious Flicker Alley releases like Chaplin’s Essanay Comedies and The Mack Sennett Collection, Vol. 1.  From Cinerama to Curtis Harrington, Flicker Alley is dedicating to presenting the finest silent, classic, and eclectic film collections so near and dear to all of us.

This is why I am so pleased and honored to participate (along with so many other great silent and classic film sites) in Flicker Alley’s giveaway for the upcoming April 4 release of Behind the Door (1919) on Dual Format Edition Blu-ray/DVD.

Legendary producer Thomas H. Ince and director Irvin V. Willat made this—“the most outspoken of all the vengeance films” according to film historian Kevin Brownlow—during the period of World War I inspired American patriotism.

Hobart Bosworth stars as Oscar Krug, a working-class American, who is persecuted for his German ancestry after war is declared. Driven by patriotism, Krug enlists and goes to sea. However, tragedy strikes when his wife (Jane Novak) sneaks aboard his ship and is captured following a German U boat attack. Krug’s single minded quest for vengeance against the sadistic German submarine commander (played with villainous fervor by Wallace Beery) leads to the film’s shocking and brutal climax.

This newly restored edition represents the most complete version of the film available since 1919, thanks to the collaboration of the San Francisco Silent Film Festival, the Library of Congress, and Gosfilmofond of Russia.

Sourced from the only two known remaining prints and referencing a copy of Willat’s original continuity script, this edition recreates the original color tinting scheme and features a new score composed and performed by Stephen Horne.  Flicker Alley is honored to present Behind the Door on Blu-ray and DVD for the first time ever.

Bonus Materials Include:

•            Original Russian version of Behind the Door: The re-edited and re-titled version of the film that was distributed in Russia, with musical accompaniment by Stephen Horne.

•            Original Production Outtakes: Featuring music composed and performed by Stephen Horne.

•            Restoring Irvin Willat’s Behind the Door: An inside look at the restoration process with the restoration team.

•            Kevin Brownlow, Remembering Irvin Willat: Directed by Patrick Stanbury, an in-depth interview with renowned historian and honorary Academy Award® winner Kevin Brownlow on the career of director Irvin Willat.

•            Slideshow Gallery: Original lobby cards, production stills, and promotional material.

•            12-page Booklet: Featuring rare photographs and essays by film historian Jay Weissburg, film restorer Robert Byrne, and composer Stephen Horne.

Official Release Date: April 4, 2017

Pre-order now at the special sale price of $29.95 for a limited time!

Giveaway Hosted By:

FlickerAlley

Co-Hosted By:

Nitrateville

Silent Era

Once Upon a Screen

Silent-ology

Ferdy on Films

Caren’s Classic Cinema

Toronto Film Society

Spellbound By Movies

A Classic Movie Blog

Second Sight Cinema

Sister Celluloid

Cinematic Catharsis

Classic Movie Man

Old Hollywood Films

Thrilling Days of Yesteryear

True Classics

One lucky winner will receive a copy of Behind the Door (1919) on Dual‑Format Edition Blu‑ray/DVD from Flicker Alley! Giveaway is open to residents of U.S./Canada and ends on April 12, 2017.

Entry-Form

Leave a comment on this post after watching the trailer, and let me know what you think!

“The critics are always right. The only way you shut them up is by winning.” – Chuck Noll

Profuse apologies for not having this announcement up sooner: I’ve been distracted by little annoyances all morning, and didn’t get a chance to draw the winner in Thrilling Days of Yesteryear’s “Pulp Fiction” giveaway till after lunch.  The response to this one, by the way—tremendous, as Dear Leader himself might say; we came close to Johnny Dollar proportions.  As always, I wish I had enough sets to hand out to all who entered…alas, I cannot.  But I can make certain that copies of Nick Carter, Master Detective: Chasing Crimes and The Shadow: Dead Men Tell make their way to lucky winner and member of the TDOY faithful Richard C. of Kingman, AZ (“Home of the Dry Heat”).

While I’m issuing mea culpas…I should have had a pair of posts up on Thursday and Friday this past week (one for TDOY’s “Silent Spotlight” and the other for Forgotten Noir Fridays) but I had a deadline for an outside project due, not to mention an appointment at the optometrist and various and sundry interruptions.  Tuesday, I’ll be back with Overlooked Films on Tuesdays and normal blogging will resume.  I thank you.