Asphalt (1929 film): Difference between revisions

Asphalt
Asphalt
Directed by	Joe May
Screenplay by	Joe May; Hans Székely; Rolf E. Vanloo;
Produced by	Max Pfeiffer; Erich Pommer;
Starring	Gustav Fröhlich; Betty Amann;
Cinematography	Günther Rittau
Production; company	Universum-Film AG
Distributed by	UFA-Filmverleih GmbH
Release date	11 March 1929 (Berlin);
Running time	85 minutes
Country	Germany

Browse history interactively

← Previous edit

Content deleted Content added

VisualWikitext

Inline

Latest revision as of 09:16, 2 January 2024

Asphalt is a 1929 German silent film directed by Joe May. The film stars Gustav Fröhlich and Betty Amann and is about a young woman in Berlin who is driven into poverty and steals a valuable piece of jewelry. She is caught by a police officer which leads to the woman to attempt to seduce him into letting her go. The film was shot between October and December 1928 at UFA.

Plot

In Berlin, a young woman named Else is a gorgeous trickster. Her high fashion clothes and perfectly ornamented makeup make her deserving to be peering over diamond cases while batting her eyes in want at the jeweler. She is caught lying and after professing it was the first time, that she needed the money. Even when she meets Albert, she insists her luxurious apartment and belongings are not hers. She maintains her story until she flings herself into his arms and confesses to him, "I like you."

Else thinks about Albert and as she smiles for the first time when she finds the passport photo of Albert in her apartment. Gazing at the photo she smiles comparing him to her criminal, older, and uglier boyfriend in a photo beside her. She stares and smiles at his picture again in the nightclub, when she becomes compelled to return his passport and give him a gift of cigars, a scene that results in a confession of love from both Else and Albert.

Albert is then at Else's feet, begging her to be his wife, that she can no longer stand the differences between them. He looks up at her in her white elegant dress and she runs away. She breaks away and exposes all her stolen goods from her criminal past. As he considers his fate, her criminal boyfriend enters the scene and a brawl ensues. The boyfriend is killed accidentally, and after struggling with his decision, Albert leaves the scene. In confession to his parents, Albert's father deems that the law is the law, and he must turn himself in. When Else discovers he has done so, she knows what she must do. Else voluntarily turns herself into the police. Else is able to smile once again as Albert follows her and professes he will wait for her. Albert watches Else through a barred doorway as she goes off to jail.

Cast

Albert Steinrück as Hauptwachtmeister Holk
Else Heller as Frau Holk
Gustav Fröhlich as Wachtmeister Albert Holk
Betty Amann as Else Kramer
Hans Adalbert Schlettow as Konsul Langen
Rosa Valetti as Frau an der Theke
Kurt Vespermann as Curt Vesperman
Hans Albers as the first thief

Production

Asphalt was made by UFA, one of Germany's most prestigious film studios. It was shot between October and December 1928 at the Ufa Studios in Neubabelsberg.^[2]

Release

Asphalt was distributed theatrically by UFA-Filmverleih GmbH and premiered in Berlin at the Ufa-Palast am Zoo on 11 March 1929.^[1] Asphalt was originally only available in a shortened version with English-language intertitles.^[3] In 1993, the Stiftung Deutsche Kinemathek in Berlin discovered a print of Asphalt at the Gosfilmofond archive in Moscow which seemed to have been sourced from the original film negative.^[3] The chronology of scenes in print found differed from earlier versions and included extra scenes with German intertitles.^[3] The newly discovered version of the film was released on DVD by the Masters of Cinema on April 11, 2005 with a score by Karl-Ernst Sasse.^[4]^[3] Kino Video released the film on DVD again on July 18, 2006.^[4]

Reception

Fritz Walter, writing in the Berliner Börsen-Courier found the films theme of the conflict between duty and love to be "the banality of the film script".^[2] Lotte Eisner related to this statement, writing in 1965 that "Within this insipid plot Joe May occasionally remembers his artistic ambitions. Then we get the high-angle shot of the street where the young Fröhlich, the Führer of the crossroads, on duty as a policeman, dominates the traffic—a shot in which the German taste for ordered ornamentation comes through yet again"^[2] Critic Siegfried Kracauers's review in Frankfurter Zeitung conversely commented that May "has all the finesse of his craft, he accomplishes all that he wants to. There are few prose writers that can convey the posh couple’s taxi ride as tightly as he does. Similarly, the wide shots are used and sustained with enormous strength of style, and the roaming camera is extremely skilled in the way it reveals human co-existence and spaces"^[2]

References

^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g "Asphalt". Filmportal.de. Retrieved 1 April 2020.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d Smith 2005.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d "Asphalt". Masters of Cinema. Archived from the original on 29 August 2012. Retrieved 1 April 2020.
^ ^a ^b "Asphalt". AllMovie. Retrieved 2 April 2020.

Sources

Smith, R. Dixon (2005). "Ufa Style and the End of Silent Cinema in Joe May's Asphalt". Masters of Cinema. Archived from the original on 29 August 2012. Retrieved 1 April 2020.

External links

[fp-1] ^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g "Asphalt". Filmportal.de. Retrieved 1 April 2020.

[FOOTNOTESmith2005-2] Smith 2005.

[Asphalt-back-3] "Asphalt". Masters of Cinema. Archived from the original on 29 August 2012. Retrieved 1 April 2020.

[dvd-4] "Asphalt". AllMovie. Retrieved 2 April 2020.

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
+{{short description|1929 film directed by Joe May}}
-{{Unsourced|date=February 2018}}
+{{use dmy dates|date=January 2020}}
 {{Infobox film
 | name           = Asphalt
-| image          = ASPHALT orig colour.jpg
+| image          = Asphalt-german-movie-poster-md.jpg
-| image_size     =
+| alt            =
 | caption        =
 | director       = [[Joe May]]
-| producer       = [[Erich Pommer]]
+| producer       = {{plainlist|* [[Max Pfeiffer]]
+* [[Erich Pommer]]<ref name="fp" />}}
-| writer         = [[Hans Székely]]<br>Joe May<br>[[Rolf E. Vanloo]]
-| narrator       =
+| screenplay     = {{plainlist|* Joe May
+* [[Hans Székely]]
-| starring       = [[Gustav Fröhlich]]<br/>[[Else Heller]]<br/>[[Albert Steinruck]]<br/>[[Betty Amann]]
+* [[Rolf E. Vanloo]]<ref name="fp">{{cite web|url=https://www.filmportal.de/en/movie/asphalt_ea43d4a698735006e03053d50b37753d|publisher=[[Filmportal.de]]|title=Asphalt|access-date=1 April 2020}}</ref>}}
+| based_on       =
+| starring       = {{plainlist|*[[Gustav Fröhlich]]
+* [[Betty Amann]]
+}}
 | music          =
-| cinematography = [[Günther Rittau]]
+| cinematography = [[Günther Rittau]]<ref name="fp" />
 | editing        =
-| distributor    = [[Universum Film AG]]
+| studio         =[[UFA GmbH|Universum-Film AG]]<ref name="fp" />
+| distributor    = UFA-Filmverleih GmbH
-| released       = {{Film date|df=y|1929|3|11|Germany}}
-| runtime        = 93 minutes
+| released       = {{Film date|df=yes|1929|3|11|Berlin|}}
-| country        = Weimar Republic
+| runtime        = 85 minutes<ref name="fp" />
+| country        = Germany<ref name="fp" />
-| language       = [[Silent film]]<br>[[German language|German]] intertitles
+| language       =
 | budget         =
+| gross          =
 }}
-'''''Asphalt''''' is a 1929 German [[silent film]]. The film was one of the last silent films released in Germany as the world was entering the era of [[sound film]].
+'''''Asphalt''''' is a 1929 German [[silent film]] directed by [[Joe May]]. The film stars [[Gustav Fröhlich]] and [[Betty Amann]] and is about a young woman in Berlin who is driven into poverty and steals a valuable piece of jewelry. She is caught by a police officer which leads to the woman to  attempt to seduce him into letting her go. The film was shot between October and December 1928 at  [[UFA GmbH|UFA]].
 ==Plot==
+In Berlin, a young woman named Else is a gorgeous trickster. Her high fashion clothes and perfectly ornamented makeup make her deserving to be peering over diamond cases while batting her eyes in want at the jeweler. She is caught lying and after professing it was the first time, that she needed the money. Even when she meets Albert, she insists her luxurious apartment and belongings are not hers. She maintains her story until she flings herself into his arms and confesses to him, "I like you."
-Else, played by Betty Amann, becomes the tragic hero of Asphalt as her character transcends her unhappy criminal life to redeem herself in an unfolding confession of true love.
+Else thinks about Albert and as she smiles for the first time when she finds the passport photo of Albert in her apartment. Gazing at the photo she smiles comparing him to her criminal, older, and uglier boyfriend in a photo beside her. She stares and smiles at his picture again in the nightclub, when she becomes compelled to return his passport and give him a gift of cigars, a scene that results in a confession of love from both Else and Albert.
-As fitting with the harsh urban landscape of Berlin, Else is a gorgeous trickster when the story begins. Her high fashion clothes and perfectly ornamented makeup make her deserving to be peering over diamond cases while batting her eyes in want at the jeweler. We immediately experience the power of her female persuasion in the cuts between the almost possessed jeweler and her. She is good at what she does - seducing men - not stealing diamonds per se. She lies as she gets caught, professing it was the first time, that she needed the money. Even when she meets Albert, played by Gustav Frohlich, she insists her luxurious apartment and belongings are not hers. She maintains her story and pristine female fatal composure until she flings herself into his arms and confesses to him, "I like you." A close-up captures the couple's passionate embrace.
+Albert is then at Else's feet, begging her to be his wife, that she can no longer stand the differences between them. He looks up at her in her white elegant dress and she runs away. She breaks away and exposes all her stolen goods from her criminal past. As he considers his fate, her criminal boyfriend enters the scene and a brawl ensues. The boyfriend is killed accidentally, and after struggling with his decision, Albert leaves the scene. In confession to his parents, Albert's father deems that the law is the law, and he must turn himself in. When Else discovers he has done so, she knows what she must do. Else voluntarily turns herself into the police. Else is able to smile once again as Albert follows her and professes he will wait for her. Albert watches Else through a barred doorway as she goes off to jail.
-Yet, it is the rare moments when Else thinks about Albert that we begin to see her character evolve, with most of her expression transcending from her sad eyes throughout the film. Her first smile comes after she finds the passport photo of Albert in her apartment. Gazing at the photo she smiles comparing him to her criminal, older, and uglier boyfriend in a photo beside her. This is the first soft moment with this character and the smile is a big contrast. She stares and smiles at his picture again in the nightclub, when she becomes compelled to return his passport and give him a gift of cigars, a scene that results in a confession of love from both Else and Albert.
-It is when Albert is at Else's feet, begging her to be his wife, that she can no longer stand the differences between them. He looks up at her in her white elegant dress and she runs away. She breaks away and exposes all her stolen goods from her criminal past. Her confession becomes a conduit metaphor for the criminal underworld of the city as she pleads with him, "Don't go, don't let me go down." She is looking for mercy and redemption. She believes he can save her and this is motivation enough for her to confess.
-In the closing scene, the director portrays Else in a dark suit voluntarily turning herself into the police. Her once flashy eyes are humbled and filled with tears of compassion and love. Her confession becomes an expression of her love and she rescues her lover from being accused of murder.
-She is able to smile once again as Albert follows her and professes he will wait for her. The gorgeous closing shot shows Albert watching Else through a barred doorway as she goes off to jail.
 ==Cast==
+{{castlist|
 * [[Albert Steinrück]] as Hauptwachtmeister Holk
 * [[Else Heller]] as Frau Holk
 * [[Gustav Fröhlich]] as Wachtmeister Albert Holk
 * [[Betty Amann]] as Else Kramer
@@ Line 44: / Line 47: @@
 * [[Rosa Valetti]] as Frau an der Theke
 * [[Kurt Vespermann]] as Curt Vesperman
+* [[Hans Albers]] as the first thief}}
 ==Production==
+''Asphalt'' was made by [[UFA GmbH|UFA]], one of Germany's most prestigious film studios. It was shot between October and December 1928 at the Ufa Studios in [[Neubabelsberg]].{{sfn|Smith|2005}}
-===Crew===
+==Release==
+''Asphalt'' was distributed theatrically by UFA-Filmverleih GmbH and premiered in Berlin at the [[Ufa-Palast am Zoo]] on 11 March 1929.<ref name="fp" /> ''Asphalt''  was originally only available in a shortened version with English-language intertitles.<ref name="Asphalt-back">{{cite web|url=http://eurekavideo.co.uk/moc/catalogue/asphalt/essay|title=Asphalt|access-date=April 1, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120829101022/http://eurekavideo.co.uk/moc/catalogue/asphalt/essay|archive-date=August 29, 2012|publisher=[[Masters of Cinema]]}}</ref> In 1993,  the [[Stiftung Deutsche Kinemathek]] in Berlin discovered a print of ''Asphalt'' at the [[Gosfilmofond]] archive in Moscow which seemed to have been sourced from the original [[film negative]].<ref name="Asphalt-back" /> The chronology of scenes in print found differed from earlier versions and included extra scenes with German intertitles.<ref name="Asphalt-back" /> The newly discovered version of the film was released on DVD by the [[Masters of Cinema]] on April 11, 2005 with a score by [[Karl-Ernst Sasse]].<ref name="dvd">{{cite web|url=https://www.allmovie.com/movie/asphalt-v136856/releases|publisher=[[AllMovie]]|title=Asphalt|access-date=April 2, 2020}}</ref><ref name="Asphalt-back" /> [[Kino Video]] released the film on DVD again on July 18, 2006.<ref name="dvd" />
-''Asphalt'' was made by [[Universum Film AG|UFA]], a German studio, and produced by [[Erich Pommer]] who was responsible for producing several films including [[Fritz Lang]]'s ''[[Der müde Tod]]'' (1921), ''[[Dr. Mabuse, der Spieler]]'' (1922), ''[[Die Nibelungen]]'' (1924), ''[[Metropolis (1927 film)|Metropolis]]'' (1927), and ''[[Spione]]'' (1928); [[F. W. Murnau]]'s ''[[The Last Laugh (1924 film)|The Last Laugh]]'' (1924), ''[[Faust (1926 film)|Faust]]'' (1926), and ''[[Tartüff]]'' (1927); and other popular films of the era including ''[[The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari]]'' (1920) and ''[[Varieté]]'' (1925).
+==Reception==
-Director Joe May co-wrote the script. The sets were designed by [[Erich Kettelhut]] who also worked on ''Dr. Mabuse, der Spieler'', ''Metropolis'', and ''[[Berlin: Symphony of a Great City]]'', with the uncredited assistance of Robert Herlth (''Der müde Tod'', ''Der letzte Mann'', ''Tartüff'', ''Faust'') and Walter Röhrig (''Das Cabinet des Dr. Caligari'', ''Tartüff'', ''Faust''). The cinematographer was [[Günther Rittau]] (''Die Nibelungen'', ''Metropolis'', ''[[Der blaue Engel]]'').
+Fritz Walter, writing in the ''[[Berliner Börsen-Courier]]'' found the films theme of the conflict between duty and love to be "the banality of the film script".{{sfn|Smith|2005}} [[Lotte Eisner]] related to this statement, writing in 1965 that "Within this insipid plot Joe May occasionally remembers his artistic ambitions. Then we get the high-angle shot of the street where the young Fröhlich, the Führer of the crossroads, on duty as a policeman, dominates the traffic—a shot in which the German taste for ordered ornamentation comes through yet again"{{sfn|Smith|2005}}  Critic Siegfried Kracauers's review in ''[[Frankfurter Zeitung]]'' conversely commented that May "has all the finesse of his craft, he accomplishes all that he wants to. There are few prose writers that can convey the posh couple’s taxi ride as tightly as he does. Similarly, the wide shots are used and sustained with enormous strength of style, and the roaming camera is extremely skilled in the way it reveals human co-existence and spaces"{{sfn|Smith|2005}}
-==Premiere==
-''Asphalt'' was premiered on 11 March 1929 at [[Berlin]]'s prestigious [[Ufa-Palast am Zoo]]. Critics noted the cheap, pulp-fiction nature of the plot but also praised May’s skill and [[cinematography]] and editing.<!-- this is directly lifted from http://www.eurekavideo.co.uk/moc/catalogue/asphalt/essay/ -->
 ==References==
 {{Reflist}}
+===Sources===
+* {{cite web|url=http://eurekavideo.co.uk/moc/catalogue/asphalt/essay|access-date=April 1, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120829101022/http://eurekavideo.co.uk/moc/catalogue/asphalt/essay|archive-date=August 29, 2012|publisher=Masters of Cinema|title=Ufa Style and the End of Silent Cinema in Joe May's Asphalt|last=Smith|year=2005|first=R. Dixon}}
 ==External links==
 {{Commons category|Asphalt (1929 film)}}
-* [http://www.eurekavideo.co.uk/moc/catalogue/asphalt/essay/ Essay on ''Asphalt''] at the [[Masters of Cinema]] website
 * ''[http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/asphault/ Asphalt]'' at [[Rotten Tomatoes]]
 * [http://film.virtual-history.com/film.php?filmid=2649 Bibliography]
 * {{IMDb title|0019655}}
-* {{Amg movie|136856}}
 {{Joe May}}
+{{Authority control}}
 [[Category:1929 films]]
-[[Category:1920s drama films]]
+[[Category:1929 drama films]]
-[[Category:German films]]
 [[Category:German silent feature films]]
-[[Category:German drama films]]
 [[Category:German Expressionist films]]
 [[Category:Films of the Weimar Republic]]
@@ Line 80: / Line 84: @@
 [[Category:Films directed by Joe May]]
 [[Category:Films produced by Erich Pommer]]
-[[Category:Screenplays by Joe May]]
+[[Category:Films with screenplays by Joe May]]
-[[Category:Screenplays by Hans Székely]]
+[[Category:Films with screenplays by Hans Székely]]
+[[Category:UFA GmbH films]]
+[[Category:Silent German drama films]]
+[[Category:1920s German films]]