New foreign films tend to get short shrift on DVD, especially when they're issued by a major studio. But "The Counterfeiters" is not a typical case. The Austrian/German production won the Oscar earlier this year for best foreign-language film. And Sony has given above-average treatment to the DVD ($29) and Blu-ray release ($39) coming out Tuesday.
Based on actual events, "The Counterfeiters" recounts the tale of Salomon (Sally) Sorowitsch, Germany's foremost counterfeiter -- and a Jew. When he is apprehended, the Nazis place him in a concentration camp, where his dabbling in art earns him favors.
Soon, he's transferred to another camp, where his captors have assembled an all-star cast of criminals, craftsmen and other specialists. Their task: manufacture fake British pound notes and U.S. dollars to help the bankrupt Nazis. In return, they are given special treatment and shielded somewhat from the horrors faced by the detainees in unseen parts of the prison camp.
This creates a dilemma for even a hardened criminal such as Sally (Karl Markovics). His pride as a world-renowned counterfeiter compels him to produce flawless work, but the results aid the Nazi war effort. He's continually pressured by fellow prisoners to sabotage their counterfeiting work, but their well-being -- and even their lives -- hinges on being productive.
Austrian director Stefan Ruzowitzky touches on these aspects of the story, the making of the film and more in his catch-all commentary on the disc. He speaks in English, even though "The Counterfeiters" is a German-language film. (There also are French and English dubs.)
Ruzowitzky, who also wrote the script, refers frequently to how he fictionalized some elements for good storytelling.
"The movie is not a documentary, but it is a feature film," he says. "And, of course, I did change a lot to adapt the story to the screen." But, he adds, "overall, the movie has to be truthful."
The extras are a showcase for Ruzowitzky, who also contributes an interview segment and a question-and-answer session before an audience at an American Film Institute screening. Other supplements -- some in German with English subtitles -- include interviews with Markovics and counterfeiter and Holocaust survivor Adolf Burger, a making-of featurette and deleted scenes.
