Carl Th. Dreyer—My Metier Film Still

Carl Th. Dreyer—My Metier

Torben Skjødt Jensen

Denmark

1995

94 minutes

Black and White

1.66:1

Danish

128

Synopsis

Torben Skjødt Jensen’s elegant documentary is a collage of memories and reflections on one of cinema’s greatest directors. Visually rich and densely layered, Carl Th. Dreyer—My Metier illuminates an artist too little understood and too important to overlook. Through interviews, historical writings, and rare archival footage, a portrait of Dreyer emerges: an austere perfectionist, yes, but also a passionate man possessing a genuine sense of humor. The Criterion Collection is proud to present this in-depth study of Dreyer’s life and work for the first time on home video.

Cast

Dreyer's voiceHenning Jensen
Interview subjectsHenning Bendtsen
Hélène Falconetti
Birgitte Federspiel
Preben Lerdorff Rye
Lisbeth Movin
Baard Owe
Jørgen Roos
Axel Strøbye

Credits

DirectorTorben Skjødt Jensen
ScenarioTorben Skjødt Jensen
Assistant directorPrami Larsen
IdeaLars Bo Kimergaard
CommentaryHarald Paalgaard
Assistant photographerBirger Bohm
Video photographers Torben Sjkødt Jensen and Prami Larsen
EditingGhita Beckendorff
ProducerMichael Brask

Disc Features

  • Digital transfer, supervised by director Torben Skjødt Jensen
  • Rare interview footage and archival material
  • Extensive biographical essay by Dreyer scholar Edvin Kau
  • Optimal image quality: RSDL dual-layer edition
  • PLUS: A 22-page booklet, including a reprint of Dreyer’s essay “Thoughts on My Metier”

From the Current

About Carl Th. Dreyer—My Métier

by Torben Skjødt Jensen Aug 20, 2001

Carl Th. Dreyer—My Métier works on three aesthetic levels playing off each other. Shot in 35mm black and white, the documentary’s narrative is rich in content. The participants in these pieces are the actors, film crew, and colleagues who have worked . . .

Thoughts on My Métier

by Carl Theodor Dreyer Aug 20, 2001

There is a certain resemblance between a work of art and a person. Just as one can talk about a person’s soul, one can also talk about the work of art’s soul, its personality.The soul is shown through the style, which is the artist’s way of giving expression to his perception of . . .

The Conquerors—An Interview with Torben Skjødt Jensen

by Ulrich Breuning Aug 20, 2001

I have known Torben Skjødt since 1983. His debut video Englefjæs—which I thought to be very accomplished—was presented during a film week in Silkeborg. A debut work, yes, but made with a self-assured maturity by a self-taught creator of images. Since then I have followed his . . .

Carl Th. Dreyer

by Armond White Aug 20, 2001

Before Lars von Trier, Krzysztof Kieslowski, Andrei Tarkovsky, Ingmar Bergman, Robert Bresson there was Carl Th. Dreyer. The first great film artist to pursue the ineffable in cinema, Dreyer gave depth to what early silent filmmakers innately understood yet took for granted: that . . .

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