CURZON SOHO, SATURDAY 28 + SUNDAY 29 NOVEMBER 2009
SISSI & MAIDENS IN UNIFORM DOUBLE BILL
As part of TRIBUTE TO ROMY SCHNEIDER and the 12th Festival of German Films
Saturday, 28 November, 1.30pm
SISSI
In true fairy-tale fashion, young Sissi, the daughter of Duke Max of Bavaria,
accidentally meets and so charms the Emperor of Austria that he marries her
and she becomes Empress Elisabeth of Austria. Followed by two sequels, and
even a US version, the film was also a fairy-tale success for Romy Schneider
and Karlheinz Böhm. With its excellent cast, beautiful nature scenes and lavish
court settings, it makes a unique spectacle.
Austria 1955, 102mins. Directed by Ernst Marischka. With Romy Schneider,
Karlheinz Böhm, Magda Schneider, Gustav Knuth. German with English
subtitles.
INTRODUCED BY PROFESSOR ERICA CARTER, WARWICK UNIVERSITY
Sunday, 29 November
MAIDENS IN UNIFORM DOUBLE BILL
Continuing their investigation into queer fandom and crushes and in honour of
Romy Schneider, Club Des Femmes is delighted to co-present with the Goethe-
Institut London a rare double bill of MAIDENS IN UNIFORM (MÄDCHEN IN
UNIFORM, 1931 and 1958 versions).
WRITER ALI SMITH WILL INTRODUCE EACH SCREENING
Synopsis for both films: Prussia 1910. After the death of her mother Manuela is
taken to a boarding school for aristocratic girls. Sensitive and shy, she finds it
difficult to adapt to the harsh Prussian discipline imposed by the school. Only
one teacher, Fräulein von Bernburg, seems sympathetic to the girls. When
Manuela, drunken with success and a little too much punch after peforming in
the school play, openly declares her love for her teacher, the matron is
outraged and her harsh punishment almost leads to catastrophe.
Sunday, 29 November, 3.30pm
MAIDENS IN UNIFORM (MÄDCHEN IN UNIFORM) 1931 by Leontine Sagan
Based on the play YESTERDAY AND TODAY by Christa Winslow, the story was
first made into an internationally successful film in 1931. Directed by Leontine
Sagan, it starred an all-female cast and was cooperatively produced with cast
and crew sharing the profits. Critics praised it as a highlight of late Weimar
cinema but it was prohibited by the Nazis and only resurfaced with the rise of
the feminist movement in the 70s, when its lesbian content moved more into
focus as opposed to its reading as a primarily anti-authoritarian film.
Germany 1931, 88mins. Directed by Leontine Sagan. With Hertha Thiele,
Dorothea Wieck, Emilie Unda. German with English subtitles.
Sunday, 29 November, 5.45pm
MAIDENS IN UNIFORM (MÄDCHEN IN UNIFORM) 1958 by Géza von Radványi
with Romy Schneider
Released in 1958, the remake by male director Géza von Radványi was also
very popular and for Schneider it was a personal breakthrough. She easily
identified with Manuela’s character having spent several years in a boarding
school herself and having felt the pressures of early stardom. But more
importantly she was part of an excellent ensemble that included Therese
Giehse, one of Germany’s greatest stage actresses, as well as the younger but
equally well-respected Lili Palmer. Schneider shared a kissing scene with
Palmer that caused a minor scandal in orderly post-war Germany. For
Schneider however there was nothing frivolous about the film or the role. For
the first time she felt like a serious actress, exulted and empowered as
Manuela was by her part in the film’s pivotal stage play.
FRG 1958, 95mins. Directed by Géza von Radványi. Romy Schneider, Lilli
Palmer, Therese Giehse, Christine Kaufmann, Sabine Sinjen. German with
English subtitles.
All films are shown in English or with English subtitles.
VENUE:
Curzon Soho, 99 Shaftesbury Avenue, London, W1D 5DY
BOX OFFICE 0871 703 3988
www.curzoncinemas.com
TICKETS
Ł 6 (no concessions)
Special Offer: The Maidens in Uniform Double-Bill Ł10
The 12th FESTIVAL OF GERMAN FILMS takes place from Friday 27 November
until Thursday 3 December at the Curzon Soho.
http://www.germanfilmfestival.co.uk/
Download brochure:
http://www.germanfilmfestival.co.uk/GFF_2009_brochure.pdf
TRIBUTE TO ROMY SCHNEIDER is a collaboration of Ciné lumičre / Institut
français, Club des Femmes, German Films, and the Goethe-Institut London.
With media support from Cinémoi, Sky channel 343. For more information see
www.cinemoi.tv.
http://www.goethe.de/ins/gb/lon/kue/flm/en5044784v.htm
The exhibition ROMY SCHNEIDER: WIEN – BERLIN – PARIS will run from 5
December 2009 until 30 May 2010 at the Museum für Film und Fernsehen
Berlin.
A large number of unknown photographs of Romy Schneider, her film partners,
and family from the 1950s and 1960s will be on display from the collections of
the Deutsche Kinemathek. The exhibition will also present loans from private
individuals and institutions from France, Austria, and Italy. For more
information see www.filmmuseum-berlin.de.
We would like to thank the following institutions for their assistance: Austrian
Cultural Forum London, Beta Film, Film Archiv Austria, Deutsches Film Institut,
Museum für Film und Fernsehen.
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