Fritz Lang's The Tiger of Eschnapur (aka Journey to the Lost City, Part 1)

Starring:Debra Paget, Paul Hubschmid, Walter Reyer, Claus Holm, Luciana Paluzzi, ValÃ©ry Inkijinoff, Sabine Bethmann, RenÃ© Deltgen, Jochen Brockmann, Richard Lauffen, Jochen Blume, Helmut Hildebrand, Guido Celano, Victor Francen, Angela Portaluri, Panos Papadopulos
Director: Fritz Lang
Studio: Fantoma
Product Type: DVD

Amazon.com

Long dismissed as the last gasp of a great directing career, Fritz Lang's two-part saga of India needs to be rescued from the movie dustbin. While it has clear limitations, notably the listless actors and shoddy special effects (hard to overlook the fake tiger), this opus is marked by an awesome sense of formal design, immaculate camera composition, and the creeping sense of fate messing up the characters' lives. In part one, The Tiger of Eschnapur, we delve into the political and personal intrigue that results from a Maharaja's infatuation with a temple dancer (sawed-off, sexy Debra Paget). Lang's pacing is deliberate; sometimes the movie resembles an Indiana Jones yarn slowed to a stroll. But as Lang brings the many threads together, the scheme emerges, and the crisp location shooting in India presents a storybook exoticism that, admittedly, has little to do with reality. It ends with a cliffhanger, solved by part two, The Indian Tomb. --Robert Horton

Description

After more than two decades of exile in Hollywood, master filmmaker Fritz Lang triumphantly returned to his native Germany to direct the lavish two-part adventure tale The Tiger of Eschnapur and The Indian Tomb from a story he had co-authored almost forty years earlier. With incredible precision, Lang crafts a blend of color, decor, movement and montage that, in the twilight of his career, once again proves him a virtuoso of film form. Previously available in America only as Journey to the Lost City, a 90-minute condensation of the two films, these exotic masterpieces are presented restored and complete for the first time in the U.S. Western architect Harold Berger (Paul Hubschmid), called to India by Chandra, the Maharajah of Eschnapur, falls in love with the beautiful temple dancer Seetha (Debra Paget), although she is promised to the Maharajah. Their betrayal ignites the wrath of a vengeful Chandra, who is fighting his own battle for power with his scheming half-brother, and the lovers are forced to flee into the desert. Featuring breathtaking location photography and cliff-hanging suspense, the first part of Lang's epic is highlighted by Paget's erotic temple dance and Hubschmid's battle to the death with a man-eating tiger.

Customer Reviews:

MASTERPIECE.......2002-04-29

THE TIGER OF ESCHNAPUR, the first part of the incredible indian saga directed by veteran film director Fritz Lang in 1960, has nourished my imaginary world at a time when there was here only one TV channel available. I was then hypnotized by wild hungry tigers, marble palaces, sinister caves filled with leprouses, bad bald priests conspiring against the local Maharajah, fakirs playing with magic ropes, all characters that seemed have escaped from my adventure books.

This movie should be recommended to parents desperately looking for a smart choice in the jungle of the hundreds of titles available. Furthermore, the copy presented in this DVD is superb, allowing us to admire the subtle colors of India's countryside where the movie was shot on location. Years before the revival of action/adventures movies, Fritz Lang already invited us to a wild ride through imagination, irrational fears and unknown countries.

A DVD zone your library.

LONG JOURNEY OF FRITZ LANG BACK TO FIRST SCRIPT.......2001-11-20

Born in Vienna in 1890, Fritz Lang was encouraged to be an architect or engineer by his father, who owned a successful construction company. After a brief stint in a technical school, Fritz ran off to Munich and Paris to study art and be a painter. He traveled throughout Europe, Asia and North Africa and at the start of World War I returned to Vienna to enlist in the army. Severely injured in the war, he wrote several screenplays while recuperating. Still shell-shocked, he returned to Vienna where he acted briefly in the theater and then got a job as a writer in a Berlin production company.

Around 1918, Berlin film mogul Joe May assigned Lang and actress Thea von Harbou to adapt the latter's novella "The Indian Tomb" into a screenplay. Lang began a long personal and professional relationship with Thea, whom he eventually married (she was the apparent inspiration and source for Lang's most celebrated films, including "M," and "Metropolis"). Lang wanted to direct "Indian Tomb" himself but was considered too inexperienced and May took the reigns and assigned 300 workmen to build sets on his 50 acre Maytown Studio. The resulting three and a half hour epic starring Conradt Veidt is a landmark in German cinema ...

When the new Nazi regime banned the exhibition of Lang's "Testament of Dr. Mabuse," he left Germany and came to America after a brief stay in Paris.

Initially under contract to MGM, Lang directed numerous American films over the next 20 years. By the 50's, the film biz was in economic decline and the monocled Lang had acquired a "difficult" reputation.

In the late 50's, Lang, his eyesight failing, returned to Germany and made his last films "THE INDIAN TOMB" and "THE TIGER OF ESCHANPUR" ...which were the first films he wanted to direct, and which he co-authored almost 40 years earlier.

Previously available in America only as a heavily edited 90 minute condensation on video titled "Journey to the Lost City," these newly restored, full frame (as photographed), digital transfers of this two-part story is much more than a gloriously colorful comic book adventure that's reminiscent of serialized cliffhangers. It would be unfair to detail the plot, but the story centers on western architect Harald Berger called to India by the Maharajah of Eschanupur to repair and remodel the royal palace. Berger falls in love with temple dancer Santha, although she is promised to the Maharajah. Already troubled with a scheming brother and a potential revolt of his subjects, the Maharajah sees their love as a further betrayal. Numerous complications ensue for the embattled lovers. The only American actor is Debra Paget in the eye-popping role of temple dancer Santha.

What makes these two epics so fascinating is the pure cinema style of the fabled director and the multitude of themes that were so dominant in his art and life. But even more than that, here's a director who chose to go back 40 years and make his first screenplay his last film.

The pace is admittedly and intentionally measured and the sets are obvious, and multilayered. The lighting is much more in the old German tradition of lighting the set and not just the actors. Complex color harmonies abound within and from scene to scene. And the entire enterprise has an operatic feel that adds to the sense of mythic fable that underscores everything.

Lang's deep personal interest in architecture is visualized in the elaborate and stunning sets that allow for fabulous camera placement to maximize the sense of grandeur.

The architect/engineer hero (remember Lang's early but abandoned education in similar fields) eventually explores the decaying, lowest, ancient underground levels of the palace where the "living dead" (lepers) are kept in darkness. In the same manner, the director seems intent on underscoring the subtext rather than the surface plot. There's a continuing theme that suggests the destructive power of erotic desire. It's no accident that Debra Paget's nearly naked temple dance is what's most remembered by those who saw this film. But more than that, according to Lang expert Tom Gunning ("The Films of Fritz Lang: Allegories of Vision and Modernity") there's the "illusion of power that always undermines any character who believes he's in control."

This is the philosophical epitaph of a mature, world class filmmaker. As dazzling as it is to look at, this exotic adventure with its kitschy eroticism seems to be saying something much more interesting that the Indiana Jones like story on its surface. Lang's fatalism permeates every frame of this tale. All characters are defeated in their plans for revenge, escape or power and the gods remain indifferent. Lang seems to be focused on preaching a provocative message that demands a response. And I would be willing to bet that was Lang's intent. Is there wisdom in resignation? Can we control our destiny?

Filmed in German on location in the province of Rajastan, India. A fine English dub is available on an alternate audio track.

Amazon.com

Long dismissed as the last gasp of a great directing career, Fritz Lang's two-part saga of India needs to be rescued from cinema's dustbin. While it has clear limitations, notably the listless actors and shoddy special effects (hard to overlook the fake tiger), this opus is marked by an awesome sense of formal design, immaculate camera composition, and the creeping sense of fate messing up the characters' lives. In the first part, The Tiger of Eschnapur, we delve into the political and personal intrigue that results from a maharaja's infatuation with a temple dancer (sawed-off, sexy Debra Paget). Lang's pacing is deliberate; sometimes the movie resembles an Indiana Jones yarn slowed to a stroll. But as Lang brings the many threads together, the scheme emerges, and the crisp location shooting in India presents a storybook exoticism that, admittedly, has little to do with reality.

In the second part, The Indian Tomb, a lovesick maharaja exacts his vengeance. Auteurists will recognize Lang's impeccable eye for screen space and his obsessive concern with the price of tempting fate. Even non-auteurists will appreciate the revolt of the underground leper colony and the cobra dance performed by Paget, who wears something less than a bikini. This is melodrama served up without apology by a director more interested in patterns than psychology. --Robert Horton

Description

After more than two decades of exile in Hollywood, master filmmaker Fritz Lang triumphantly returned to his native Germany to direct this lavish two-part adventure tale from a story he co-authored almost forty years earlier. Called to India by the Maharajah of Eschnapur, architect Paul Hubschmid falls in love with beautiful temple dancer Seetha (Debra Paget), who is promised to the Maharajah. Their betrayal ignites the ruler's wrath, and the lovers are forced to flee into the desert for a series of spectacular adventures! Featuring breathtaking location photography and nail-biting suspense, this epic is highlighted by Paget's erotic temple dance, a battle to the death with a man-eating tiger, sandstorms, a cave of lepers, and a bloody palace rebellion. Together these films provide a cinematic link between classic silent serials and the modern action thrills of Indiana Jones and The Mummy. Previously available in America as "Journey to the Lost City," a radically condensed 90-minute version, these exotic masterpieces are presented in this specially priced 2-disc boxed set completely restored to their original splendor! (The two films in this set--"The Tiger Of Eschnapur" and "The Indian Tomb"--are also available individually.)

Customer Reviews:

I love Debra Paget!.......2007-01-03

Of course I love Fritz Lang, he was one of the great directors of the 20th century. This is pretty good if ocassionally the low budget peaks through on the sets. The location shooting in India is colorful and wonderful, though.

The great surprise is Debra Paget, an actress I had never paid attention to before. She is fabulous in the movies and her erotic dances, particularly in the second movie, are enough to cause the onset of puberty in a five year old. She is entirely convincing as an Indian princess.

I can recommend the movie for her performance and for the great Saturday afternoon matinee feel to these films. After all, Lang was one of the originators of the cliff hanger serial and this was a return to that style. Great fun!

An Indiana Jones type Indian Adventure, 1960 style.......2006-01-01

As a silent film enthusiast who has enjoyed the German 1921 silent film "The Indian Tomb", written by Fritz Lang and his then-wife Thea von Harbou, I was curious to see this 1959 version of the same story, this time directed by Fritz Lang himself. Although the story is essentially the same and the characters and plots are recognizable, Fritz Lang obviously did a lot of re-writing of the old 1921 screenplay to suit a much different 1959 audience, and I think he succeeded very well. While the original 1921 film is 3 ½ hours long with a more complex and sinister plot, the story has been reworked into two separate films, namely "The Tiger of Eschnapur" and "The Indian Tomb", and has all the hallmarks of a late 1950s, early 60s adventure epic. The quality of these two DVDs is simply excellent, and visually the films are already a delight, being filmed on location in the state of Rajasthan, India - in particular the city of Udaipur, famous for its magnificent palaces which also featured in the James Bond classic, "Octopussy". With real-life Mogul palaces and other striking Indian settings, Lang did not have to go to any great lengths to create a fantasy-like adventure world, not unlike modern-day Indiana Jones movies. Unlike Indiana Jones, however, the story in Lang's Indian Epic is serious: love, jealousy, revenge, intrigues in the royal family, schemes, lepers and a holy man with words of wisdom. The story moves along at a comfortable, steady pace with a good measure of suspense and unexpected turns, along with a nice dose of exotic - and erotic - dancing by Debra Paget. And although fake tigers are always mentioned in connection with "The Tiger of Eschnapur", I would not have noticed if I hadn't heard about it before, as there are plenty of good shots of real, live tigers, and I don't think a one or two second scene of a stuffed tiger or fake cobra should ruin a viewer's overall enjoyment of these two films.

While I would give the story and film quality a 4 ½ - star rating, I was so pleased with this box set in general, the notes on each film inside, the bonus photo gallery and in particular the option of the English-dubbed or original German version (with or without English subtitles) that I'm giving it the full 5 stars. For anyone who speaks German as I do, I'd like to point out that the German language spoken in these two films is absolutely top-class quality and a delight to hear. I'm sure anyone who enjoys 50s and 60s movies will be delighted by this box set and the restored full-length versions of both films (they were previously released in a much condensed version entitled "Journey to the Lost City") and for anyone who has enjoyed the silent 1921 version, this set would surely also be of interest to compare and have a nice change.

Indiana Jones Ancester!.......2005-12-27

I Began to know Fritz Lang with brilliant 1000 eyes of Dr.Mabuse! He was a Genius. Every Single Lang's movie Ive seen was extremely Enjoyable and considered as a masterpiese! Metropolis, Die Nibelungen & ...
But Indian Epic was something else.

metropolis and indiana jones.......2003-04-02

after watching all of fritz lang's films, most of them in black and white, I found myself especially in awe of the color and detail in this dvd....yes, there are strong hints from metropolis: the leper's advance is similar to the movement of the deadly sins and there are complex tunnel passages in both films...as in rancho notorious, the plot deals with hate, murder and revenge; deception and fate also play their strong roles...but it's the way this film looks visually--the colors, costumes, and architecture -- that sets it apart from all the other lang films...it's definitely worth viewing.

Average customer rating:

MASTERPIECE
LONG JOURNEY OF FRITZ LANG BACK TO FIRST SCRIPT

Der Tiger von Eschnapur [Region 2]
Starring: Debra Paget , Paul Hubschmid , Walter Reyer , Claus Holm , and Luciana Paluzzi
Director: Fritz Lang
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Action & Adventure | Genres | DVD | Video

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Fritz Lang's The Indian Tomb (aka Journey to the Lost City, Part 2)

ASIN: B00005EAXN

Amazon.com

Customer Reviews:

MASTERPIECE.......2002-04-29

A DVD zone your library.

LONG JOURNEY OF FRITZ LANG BACK TO FIRST SCRIPT.......2001-11-20

When the new Nazi regime banned the exhibition of Lang's "Testament of Dr. Mabuse," he left Germany and came to America after a brief stay in Paris.

Lang's deep personal interest in architecture is visualized in the elaborate and stunning sets that allow for fabulous camera placement to maximize the sense of grandeur.

Filmed in German on location in the province of Rajastan, India. A fine English dub is available on an alternate audio track.

In 1974, Fritz Lang died Beverly Hills. He was blind.

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