Asphalt

In this stark, silent melodrama from 1929, we see the darkly compelling template for hundreds of films noir that came later. The story is simplicity itself: a young, earnest police officer who lives at home with his parents is summoned to arrest a beautiful would-be jewel thief & take her to the local police station. Needless to say, he never gets her there, being completely won over by her seductive act. Yet it becomes more than that, as she's actually drawn to the innocent young man, who is guilt-ridden but unable to let go of her. And then her criminal boyfriend reappears on the scene ...What makes this film so intense & dazzling is the cinematography, which captures the shadowed energy of the city at night -- but even more than that, it's the astonishing performance by Betty Amann as the leading lady/femme fatale. She's a vision of dark-eyed, silken slinkiness who reveals an almost feral lust in her attempts to seduce the young police officer. She not only throws herself at him, she literally throws herself ON him, clawing at his hair & grinding her body into his with stunning ferocity. Yet she also shows a remarkable tenderness in later scenes, often with almost imperceptible expressiveness. Her eyes are absolutely incredible!There are only a handful of title cards, but the acting & direction tell you everything you have to know. The score is often jaunty, even jolly, providing a mocking counterpoint to the increasingly corrupt goings-on. It's melodrama boiled down to its essence, a thick, black, sickly-sweet syrup that draws flies to the moral decay of the players. Highly recommended!

A simple early film noire type of take elegantly told and shot in gorgeous and aptly atmospheric Black and White. Not as inventive as Fritz Lang's great Weimar-era crime films but as cinematagraphically gorgeous and atmostmopheris as any 1940s Hollywod more noire film.

Very good silent German expressionism film of the late 1920s. Traffic policeman falls for a beautiful diamond thief he has to escort to the police station, and is torn between duty and love (guess which wins). Throw in another really bad guy, a bank heist, a father who is even more duty-bound than his son, and a murder. The opening drags a little, but the action eventually picks up. Musical score is great, better than most. If you like classic silent films or German expressionism films, you'll probably like this one.

Slow-building tale of a young traffic cop that arrests a beautiful jewel thief. Silent film with such great acting that few title cards are needed or used. Although elements of the plot are difficult to swallow the emotions portrayed come across as genuine, especially the characterizations of the policeman's parents by Albert Steinrück and Else Heller. Plus, Amann is gorgeous and sexy in her "Roaring 20s" outfits.

I was searching for a silent movie to watch and i came by it quite by accident.So happy i found this gem. Really liked the acting, story and lighting. Film wasbeautifully restored. I watched it again a few days later and liked it more.I ordered the dvd to send to a friend in California. Her name is Betty Ammon andthe star of asphalt is Betty Amann. Some coincidence?

B/W German film, 1929. Outstanding acting with story developing very slowly. Scenes reflecting realistically situations of that time using symple details captivating getting deeper and deeper emotions. Having personal experience of that time I see more and more the differences of cultures and times of today! Reflectilng I appriciate the high rating of the film at the time of original showing!

One of the best silent era films I have ever seen. The acting was so far beyond anything Hollywood had to offer.

This is a terrific piece of German "film noir", which was cut off by the Nazis in 1933, when it should have begun to flourish... this DVD uses a very good set of prints, and has a fine soundtrack... the story line is intact, and the directing and acting is superb... a very good film, of which there would have been more but for Hitler.

This impressive German silent film deserves its place in Eureka's "Masters of Cinema" series, mainly for its artistic qualities using various camera and lighting techniques. The art of expressing a story, its characters and their emotions without the use of talking reached its glorious pinnacle in the late 1920s, and "Asphalt" is a beautiful example of this special form of cinema. The story of "Asphalt" is fairly simple: a sensuous woman uses flirtation and the usual feminine wiles to steal, then avoid being arrested as she compromises a young, duty-conscious policeman. Before he knows it he's in deep trouble which leads to some suspense, and the final outcome is emotionally satisfying for the viewer. This basic storyline is greatly enhanced by the use of the camera: moving cameras, close-ups, montages and other effective techniques which captivate the viewer. Adding further dimension and emotional impact are the superb performances by the stars: Betty Amann is perfect in her role as the seductive thief and Drama Queen who later shows her true colours, thereby adding depth to her character. Gustav Froehlich, star of Germany's most famous silent film, "Metrolopis", is equally brilliant as the young policeman who goes through anguishing emotions over the thief he was supposed to arrest. To top it all off, the picture quality is excellent and the orchestral musical score perfectly suits the moods and atmosphere of the film. Definitely a must-have in any good silent film collection, and also an important addition to any fine quality movie collection in general. Eureka has also supplied an extremely good booklet giving a short overview of silent films, the director of "Asphalt" and various other points of interest about the film. Another 5-star masterpiece by Eureka not to be missed!

Not seen many silents, but this is ace, a good introduction to the era with a similar vibe to metropolis, grand stuff indeed!

Joe May's ASPHALT has been impossible to see in America until just very recently when Kino International released it as part of their ongoing series of German silent cinema. Their edition is a Region 1 copy of this Eureka release which came out in 2005. Joe May (pronounced MY) was once a very important man in the German cinema of the 1920's. He had his own production company which made THE INDIAN TOMB a film which helped to launch the careers of Fritz Lang and Thea von Harbou who quickly eclipsed him with such films as DR MABUSE, DIE NIBELUNGEN, and METROPOLIS. Forced to flee Germany when Hitler came to power (like Lang but not von Harbou) he never attained a career in Hollywood the way Lang did although his 1940 film of Nathaniel Hawthorne's HOUSE OF THE SEVEN GABLES with Vincent Price is quite good. Which brings us back to ASPHALT.Although extremely well made entirely in a studio and full of first rate black and white photography and crisp editing, the story of a lady thief and the policeman who becomes involved with her is ultimately disappointing as there is really nothing that exciting here especially if you compare it with G.W. Pabst's PANDORA'S BOX which was made at the same time. Lead actress Betty Amann does a good job but she's no Louise Brooks and her part calls for charisma. It's nice to see Gustav Frohlich in something other than METROPOLIS and he acquits himself well in a more restrained performance. I'm glad to have finally seen ASPHALT after having read about it but it won't be a film that I'll be revisiting often like PANDORA'S BOX or DIARY OF A LOST GIRL which are better examples of what was being done on the dramatic front in Germany at the time. It's probably no accident that Joe May was not able to make a name for himself in America where there was so much more competition.

1929. The end of a romantic era. The silent cinema was dying. Fortunately, you can find some swan song here and there. Asphalt is one example. Visually beautiful, it's a love story between people with completely different social roles. The authority, conventionalism , love, redemption, etc.... Somehow this movie represents the end of an era.

"Asphalt" ist ein erstklassiger deutscher Stummfilm von 1929. Er lebt von den erotischen Spannungen und sozialen Kontrasten zwischen dem braven Polizeiwachtmeister (Gustav Fröhlich) und der ihn verführenden ertappten Juwelendiebin (Betty Amann). Eine spannende Geschichte mit tragischem Ausgang und dennoch versöhnlichem Ende. Das ganze hervorragend inszeniert von Joe May und gefilmt von Kamera-Legende Günther Rittau in einer stimmungsvollen Kulisse der Metropole Berlin. Bemerkenswert auch die swingende (neue) Fimmusik von Karl-Ernst Sasse. Der Film kommt in der gewohnten ansprechenden Aufmachung der "Masters OF Cinema"-Reihe mit den original deutschen Zwischentiteln, einem schön designten Booklet mit umfangreichen Produktionsinfos und einem englischsprachigen Essay zum Thema "Ufa Style and the End of Silent Cinema in Joe May's Asphalt". Wie auch bei Pabsts "Tagebuch einer Verlorenen" lohnt sich hier die Anschaffung dieser vergleichsweise teuren Import-DVD aus England. Und wieder einmal wundert man sich darüber daß solche Schätze der deutschen Filmgeschichte im Ausland veröffentlicht werden und sich dort offensichtlich gut verkaufen, während sie in ihrem Ursprungsland selbst mehr als ein Jahrzehnt nach ihrer Restaurierung durch die Friedrich-Wilhelm-Murnau-Stiftung noch nicht auf DVD erschienen sind. Warum dies so ist, bleibt ein großes Rätsel.