Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger forged a filmmaking partnership that has forever influenced the silver screen, crafting a catalogue of twenty-four films that are among the most renowned works cinema has to offer.
This second selection features seven more entries from their powerful collaboration:
One of Our Aircraft is Missing (1942) - Blu-ray
I Know Where I'm Going! (1945) - 4K UHD + Blu-ray
The Red Shoes (1948) - 4K UHD + Blu-ray
The Small Back Room (1949) - 4K UHD + Blu-ray - worldwide first on 4K UHD!
The Tales of Hoffmann (1951) - 4K UHD + Blu-ray - worldwide first on 4K UHD!
Oh... Rosalinda!! (1955) - Blu-ray
The Battle of the River Plate (1956) - Blu-ray
This special collection also includes the feature documentary Cameraman - The Life and Work of Jack Cardiff (2010) on Blu-ray, alongside hours of brand NEW and archival Special Features.
Limited Edition 12-Disc Hardbox (authoring and encoding by Fidelity In Motion) with an exclusive 236-page hardcover booklet, featuring pressbooks, programmes, and original production photographs, as well as a brand NEW essay by critic Jeremy Arnold.
“Of course, all films are surrealist. They are because they are making something that looks like a real world but isn't.” - Michael Powell
1500 copies only.
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One of Our Aircraft is Missing (1942) - Imprint Collection #615
The first film Powell & Pressburger made under the banner of The Archers, One of Our Aircraft Is Missing is riveting screen dynamite, described by the New York Times as “tremendously exciting … its motors never miss a beat.”
On its way back from a raid in Germany, a British bomber is shot down over Nazi-held Holland. Parachuting into Dutch farmlands under the cover of darkness, the crew connects with members of the local resistance, who shelter the Brits from their Nazi inquisitors as they make their way towards freedom.
Starring Godfrey Tearle (The 39 Steps), Eric Portman (A Canterbury Tale), Hugh Williams, and Bernard Miles, the film was nominated for three Academy Awards, and its success brought about a new era for the duo of filmmakers.
Special Features and Technical Specs:
1080p High-definition presentation on Blu-ray
NEW Audio commentary by film historians Alain Silver and Jim Ursini
The Volunteer – 1944 short film directed by Powell and Pressburger
An Airman’s Letter to His Mother – 1941 short film directed by Michael Powell
Audio: English LPCM 2.0 Mono
Aspect Ratio 1.37:1
Optional English Subtitles
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I Know Where I'm Going! (1945) - Imprint Collection #616
A joyous romantic comedy starring Wendy Hiller (The Elephant Man) and Roger Livesey (A Matter of Life and Death), this essential Powell & Pressburger outing has been fully restored in 4K by the BFI and The Film Foundation from the original nitrate camera negative.
Plucky Englishwoman Joan Webster travels to the remote islands of the Scottish Hebrides in order to marry a wealthy industrialist. Trapped by inclement weather on the Isle of Mull and unable to continue to her destination, Joan finds herself charmed by the straightforward, no-nonsense islanders around her and becomes increasingly attracted to naval officer Torquil MacNeil, who holds a secret that may change her life forever.
“I reached the point of thinking there were no more masterpieces to discover, until I saw I Know Where I'm Going!” - Martin Scorsese
Special Features and Technical Specs:
Disc One - 4K UHD
2160p High-definition presentation on 4K UHD (Dolby Vision / HDR10)
Theatrical Trailer
Audio: English LPCM 2.0 Mono
Aspect Ratio 1.37:1
Optional English HOH Subtitles
Disc Two - Blu-ray
1080p High-definition presentation on Blu-ray of the 4K restoration
NEW Interview with film critic & author Neil Sinyard
I Know Where I'm Going! Revisited - 1994 documentary by Mark Cousins
Audio interview with actress Dame Wendy Miller by associate professor Dr. Brian McFarlane
Theatrical Trailer
Audio: English LPCM 2.0 Mono
Aspect Ratio 1.37:1
Optional English HOH Subtitles
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The Red Shoes (1948) - Imprint Collection #617
Dazzling Technicolor, fairytale visuals, and magical storytelling are at the heart of The Red Shoes, a masterpiece of filmmaking that is amongst some of the best films ever committed to celluloid.
Based on the 1845 story by Hans Christian Andersen, Powell & Pressburger elicited captivating performances from Anton Walbrook, Marius Goring, and Moira Shearer, crafting an Oscar-winning box office smash hit that is still captivating audiences today.
A fledgling ballerina falls in love with a brilliant composer, but the jealous head of the ballet company plots to drive them apart.
Painstakingly restored in 4K by the UCLA Film & Television Archive in association with the BFI, The Film Foundation, ITV Global Entertainment Ltd., and Janus Films, this breathtaking, timeless crown jewel is not only essential Powell & Pressburger, but essential cinema.
Special Features and Technical Specs:
Disc One - 4K UHD
2160p High-definition presentation on 4K UHD (Dolby Vision / HDR10)
NEW Audio commentary by film historian Pamela Hutchinson, author of BFI Classics: The Red Shoes
Theatrical Trailer
Audio: English LPCM 2.0 Mono
Aspect Ratio 1.37:1
Optional English HOH Subtitles
Disc Two - Blu-ray
1080p High-definition presentation on Blu-ray of the 4K restoration
NEW Audio commentary by film historian Pamela Hutchinson, author of BFI Classics: The Red Shoes
NEW Film scholar Ian Christie discusses The Red Shoes
A Profile of The Red Shoes - documentary (2000)
The Ballet of The Red Shoes - featurette
Martin Scorsese’s introduction to the 2009 Cannes screening
Interview with Thelma Schoonmaker
Theatrical Trailer
Audio: English LPCM 2.0 Mono
Aspect Ratio 1.37:1
Optional English HOH Subtitles
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The Small Back Room (1949) - Imprint Collection #618
Worldwide first on 4K UHD!
Produced by Alexander Korda, The Small Back Room saw Powell & Pressburger move away from the Rank Organisation, despite the enormous success of The Red Shoes, returning to their roots to create this tense wartime drama.
Sammy Rice is a bomb disposal expert, tortured by the loss of his foot and battling alcoholism. He is pushed to his limits when asked to disarm a deadly, unexploded German booby trap.
Starring David Farrar (Black Narcissus), Kathleen Byron (Saving Private Ryan), Jack Hawkins (Lawrence of Arabia), Leslie Banks (The Man Who Knew Too Much), and Cyril Cusack (Harold and Maude), this is a fascinating entry at a pivotal moment in the careers of Powell & Pressburger.
Special Features and Technical Specs:
Disc One - 4K UHD
2160p High-definition presentation on 4K UHD (Dolby Vision / HDR10)
NEW Audio commentary by film historians Jo Botting and Melanie Williams
Audio commentary by film scholar Charles Barr
Audio: English LPCM 2.0 Mono
Aspect Ratio 1.37:1
Optional English HOH Subtitles
Disc Two - Blu-ray
1080p High-definition presentation on Blu-ray of the 4K restoration
NEW Audio commentary by film historians Jo Botting and Melanie Williams
Audio commentary by film scholar Charles Barr
Restoring The Small Back Room - featurette
The Making of an Englishman - featurette
A Tortured Hero - Kevin Macdonald on The Small Back Room
Defusing the Archers - Ian Christie on The Small Back Room
Interview with cinematographer Christoper Challis
Audio: English LPCM 2.0 Mono
Aspect Ratio 1.37:1
Optional English HOH Subtitles
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The Tales of Hoffmann (1951) - Imprint Collection #619
Worldwide first on 4K UHD!
Another fantastical Technicolor outing from Powell & Pressburger, this musical fantasy is an adaptation of the opera of the same name by Jacques Offenbach, with an exquisite score performed by the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra.
A melancholy poet reflects on three women he loved and lost in the past: a mechanical performing doll, a Venetian courtesan, and the consumptive daughter of a celebrated composer.
Many collaborators from The Red Shoes returned to work on this film, including actors and ballet dancers Moira Shearer, Ludmilla Tchérina, Robert Helpmann, and Léonide Massine, as well as cinematographer Christopher Challis and editor Reginald Mills.
Nominated for two Academy Awards, The Tales of Hoffman was described by filmmaker George A. Romero as his “favourite film of all time; the movie that made me want to make movies”.
Special Features and Technical Specs:
Disc One - 4K UHD
2160p High-definition presentation on 4K UHD (Dolby Vision / HDR10)
NEW Audio commentary by film historians Alain Silver & Jim Ursini
Theatrical Trailer
Audio: English LPCM 2.0 Mono
Aspect Ratio 1.37:1
Optional English HOH Subtitles
Disc Two - Blu-ray
1080p High-definition presentation on Blu-ray of the 4K restoration
NEW Audio commentary by film historians Alain Silver & Jim Ursini
NEW Interview with film critic & author Neil Sinyard
NEW Film critic Kim Newman on The Tales of Hoffman
Introduction from Martin Scorsese
Interview with Thelma Schoonmaker
Trailers
Stills Gallery
Audio: English LPCM 2.0 Mono
Aspect Ratio 1.37:1
Optional English HOH Subtitles
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Oh... Rosalinda!! (1955) - Imprint Collection #620
Four years after The Tales of Hoffman, Powell & Pressburger set another 1800s comedic opera aglow in Technicolor with Johann Strauss’ Oh… Rosalinda!!
Starring Michael Redgrave (The Lady Vanishes), Mel Ferrer (War and Peace), Anthony Quayle (Lawrence of Arabia), Ludmilla Tchérina (The Red Shoes, The Tales of Hoffman) and Anton Walbrook (The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp).
When the hapless Colonel Eisenstein is sent to prison over a legal misunderstanding, his wife Rosalinda finds herself pursued by an old American flame, setting in motion a whirl of mistaken identities, disguises, and romantic deceptions that culminate in a dazzling masked ball where nobody is quite who they seem.
One of the first films to be produced in CinemaScope, this playful, extravagant musical outing set in post-war Vienna is a gem in the Powell & Pressburger filmography.
Special Features and Technical Specs:
1080p High-definition presentation on Blu-ray
NEW Audio commentary by film historians Jonathan Rigby and Kevin Lyons
NEW Interview with film historian Matthew Sweet
Trailer
Audio: English LPCM 2.0 Mono
Aspect Ratio 2.35:1
Optional English HOH Subtitles
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The Battle of the River Plate (1956) - Imprint Collection #621
Based on true events from one of the first major naval engagements of World War II, Powell & Pressburger's captivating VistaVision drama stars John Gregson (The Lavender Hill Mob), Anthony Quayle (Lawrence of Arabia), Bernard Lee (The Third Man, Goldfinger), and Peter Finch (Network).
When Commodore Harwood gambles that the German battleship Graf Spee will make for the River Plate, three British cruisers engage in a ferocious battle.
Inspired by Captain Patrick Dove's famous memoir, I Was Graf Spee's Prisoner, this wartime epic used real ships and is a true spectacle of filmmaking. Nominated for three BAFTA Awards, The Battle of the River Plate remains Powell & Pressburger's most commercially successful film.
Special Features and Technical Specs:
1080p High-definition presentation on Blu-ray
NEW Audio commentary by cinema historian Stuart Galbraith IV, with Michael Wynd, researcher at the National Museum of the Royal New Zealand Navy
NEW Interview with film historian Sheldon Hall
Talking Film: Powell & Pressburger
Profile of the Battle of the River Plate - documentary
German Theatrical Trailer
Restoration samples
Audio: English LPCM 2.0 Mono
Aspect Ratio 1.78:1
Optional English HOH Subtitles
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Bonus Disc: Cameraman - The Life and Work of Jack Cardiff (2010)
In 2001, Jack Cardiff (1914 - 2009) became the first director of photography in Academy Awards history to win an Honorary Oscar. However, the first time he held the famous statuette in his hand was a half-century earlier, when his Technicolor camerawork was awarded for Powell & Pressburger's Black Narcissus.
Beyond John Huston's The African Queen and King Vidor's War and Peace, the films of the British-Hungarian creative duo (The Red Shoes) guaranteed immortality for the renowned cameraman whose career spanned seventy years.
Special Features and Technical Specs:
1080p High-definition presentation on Blu-ray
Interview with director Craig McCall by film historian Ian Christie
Jack’s Actress Portraits – featurette
Jack’s Behind-the-Scenes Movies – featurette
Cinematographer and Director Relationship – featurette
Working with Three-Strip Technicolor – featurette
Photo Galleries
Theatrical Trailer
Audio: English LPCM 2.0 Mono
Aspect Ratio 1.85:1
Optional English HOH Subtitles
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Hardcover Booklet
This 236-page hardcover booklet includes original production photographs from the films, as well as:
One Of Our Aircraft Is Missing - original Australian programme
NEW Love as a Force of Nature - essay by critic Jeremy Arnold on I Know Where I'm Going
The Red Shoes - Original Australian programme
The Red Shoes - original souvenir programme
The Tales of Hoffman - original souvenir programme
The Tales of Hoffman - original production notes
Oh... Rosalinda!! - original press kit
The Battle of the River Plate - original souvenir programme