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Message # 436.4.1.1.1

Subject: Re: Additional information about the film

Date: Sun 13/10/02 01:12:01 GMT

Name: MK

Email: wamtec@compuserve.com

Website:

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Tks for the additional info. I had a feeling that the reason it has not been widely shown was because of the reasons we already discussed...i.e. an odd sized film format, requiring many thousands to restore for tv airing...and not one single famous named star in the film (although the leading lady Heidelinde Weiss has never had a film career...she is apparently very well known as a stage and tv actress in Germany and even as last as last year she was still doing many stage plays in Germany).

The other noteworthy aspect of this film is that it DID win an award at the 1964 Cannes Film Festival (although after now finally seeing the film...I am kinda surprized that this would win such an award...cos the look and feel and era of this film looks very similarly to one of those wacky Frankie Avalon/Annette Funicello movies of that same era).

In reply to Message (436.4.1.1)

Additional information about the film

By John R. - jrokesmith@aol.com Sat 12/10/02 21:24:52 GMT

Website:

The film was restored recently and is currently touring German arthouse cinemas where I saw it recently. As that cinema didn´t is only equipped with standard 35 mm and 16 mm projectors it seems obvious that the restored print is on 35 mm making it quite likely that it will get a TV showing in the near future.

While the film is called one of the most important debut features in German post-war cinema according to one of my movie books it has never aquired a kind of cult following. Because the director never made another film of note (being better known as one of the most innovative comedy TV show creators) and the cast while being fairly well known doesn´t have any major stars a commercial release on video and DVD is highly unlikely.

While the film is based on a novel by Curt Goetz who is probably Germany´s best comedy writer of the last century (American audiences might be familiar with the 1952 Cary Grant Movie "People Will Talk" which is based on one of his plays) the novel is hardly known in Germany. The novel is a satiric view on Hollywood based on Goetz´s experinces as an emigree during WW II but very little of that translates to the 1965 movie which is a typical 60s product closer to the style of Richard Lester´s films of the same era. Because of that it will hardly be promoted as a work of Goetz whose films and plays are frequently revived.

As a result we have to look out for a TV screening to get a higher quality copy. If it happens it has to be taped then because I don´t believe that there will be any reruns in the near future.

In reply to Message (436.4.1)

Re: Re: for German movies fans or formal wet fans

By MK - wamtec@compuserve.com Fri 11/10/02 01:02:32 GMT

Website:

I do not see any scene like this in the copy of this film I obtained. FYI, there are 2 other wet scenes in the film (aside from the pool party scene). There is a scene earlier in the film where Heidelinde Weiss is in a dress and stands under a rain gutter to shower herself (like Gene Kelly in Singing in the Rain), and then there is the scene right at the end of movie, where 2 go go girls who are twins, in identical hot pants and blouses, drown Heidelinde in the pool. BTW...the film is very hard to follow cos all the continuity is mixed up and the story is told in reverse (ala Pulp Fiction) and is truly avante garde in nature, cos it keeps switching time zones and one minute there are scenes in 19th century France and the next minute we are in modern day Hollywood. The film also switches from black and white to color segments all the time too.

I am trying to think of a film that is similar to this...the closest one I can think of is the 1968 Richard Burton film called CANDY, where you have swedish actress Ewa Aulin going from one seamingly pointless avante garde scene to the next, with very little reasoning. Considering that Tote Von Beverly Hills was made first, one can assume that other films like Candy and also Barbarella must have gained some influences from this film.

As for the ocean scene you mention...I don't see it in this version of the film I have....but then thats does not mean it does not exist, cos the film was released in Germany and then re-edited for releases in the UK and USA and given at least 10 different titles. In the UK the movie was released as "Lu" (the name of the leading lady character", but in the USA it was released under several titles...i.e. Corpse of Beverly Hills That Girl from Beverly Hills, Dead Girl of Beverly Hills, etc.

The film was shot in an unsual wide screen aspect ratio (screen size) for 1964, on 65mm film (when most minor films used 35mm and major films used 70mm), so one of the reasons it has probably not been released on video nor shown on tv would be that nobody wants to pay for the high costs of converting odd format films to video, or doing "pan & scan" versions for tv. It costs well over $100,000 to fully restore such a film for dvd or tv airing, so nobody wants to do that unless the film is very famous.

Anyway, the version I have runs 97mins long...maybe the scene you mention will appear if we ever see an official release on DVD some day.

ps....while on the subject of bootlegs of rare films with wet scenes that are not available on video and never shown on TV, I also recently obtained a bootleg copy of the very rare Jenny Agutter film called "I START COUNTING" from 1968...which has a wet scene with Jenny in school uniform in the lake. I saw that film back in 1969, and it took me 33 years to finally track down a copy of that film too.

In reply to Message (436.4)

Re: for German movies fans or formal wet fans

By pongo - bwj@talk21.com Thu 10/10/02 17:55:15 GMT

Website:

There's also another scene towards the end of the film with the heroine in the sea in her high heels

In reply to Message (436)

for German movies fans or formal wet fans

By MK - wamtec@compuserve.com Thu 10/10/02 13:29:10 GMT

Website: http://wamtec.com/cbh.jpg

FYI, I managed to bootleg version of "Tote Von Beverly Hills" (no other way to get it, cos it has never been released on video nor shown on tv for 20 years...so I had to use my sources to get an underground copy).

Here are some quickie vidcaps I made. If this film ever comes out on video or dvd I will buy a dvd version to get a better copy of it.

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