Andrzej Zulawski Returns With Metaphysical Noir DARK MATTER
via Quiet Earth
8/26/12
For those familiar with Zulawski's porous scifi devolution On the Silver Globe, you're in for a big treat. Seemingly blending the currently popular genres with a page from Jodorowsky, Zulwaski is working on a scifi/metaphysical/noir which is currently in the financing/development stage, and we've got the first synopsis and promo art for you below.
Corti, an important entrepreneur from Lyon, dies in his bed, with his loved ones around him. His only son, Antony, came back to see his father for the last time. For this occasion, he meets again with his forever friend, Raoul, son of one of the closest employees of Corti. Though they've been separated for years because of their studies abroad - corporate finance for Antony and nuclear physics for Raoul - those two have kept the same affection and complicity.
While Antony takes in hand the business of his father and tries to win the confidence of his top executives and financial partners, a mysterious notebook left behind by Corti will increasingly puzzle him... Who was really his father? What was he doing in Africa 30 yeas ago with those same men who faithfully remained around him until today? Why did he lead his company into the industrial adventure of Geneva's Large Hadron Collider? What is this''dark matter' in which he seems to have drowned himself? ...
Day after day, Antony feels that his own life is on the edge. He would love to understand. But soon, money is lacking and Corti's industrial empire must absolutely find cash or die... The only solution imagined by Antony becoming more and more confused is to go back to the roots of gangsterism and organize a burglary.
A fantastic burglary in the great tradition of films noirs...
But a metaphysical burglary...
(https://xixax.com/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi.imgur.com%2FpR5QX.jpg&hash=e973e855054116c3f245ce650b5d58a54bdc8fdd)
I live in Poland, yet I'm not very literate, when it comes to Polish cinema. I have huge issues with Wajda: especially his status in homeland bothers me. I stopped watching Polish films altogether after going into endless discussion (it is easier to say I didn't see something).
How I discovered Zulawski? Possession was described to me as horror made in France with actors speaking English. I was planning horror marathon for some time (racking up dozen of films), so why not?
Possession. First of all: definitely not a horror. It has some of nightmare qualities, yet it is much more. I find it hard to describe: it goes from love/hate story to thriller to what-the-hell in no time.
It is a deeply unsettling picture: the way actors behaved, how movie is shot/edited, what characters have to say - all of that did disturb me. Acting is top notch, although not something I am used to (expressive as in theater, yet not quite like it). Words: it is weird mix of dialogue, thoughts spoken aloud and dogmatics - sometimes it sounded pretentious.
Overall it is very emotional film, sometimes close to exploitation cinema I would say. It was worthy and interesting enough, that I picked next thing from Zulawski I could get.
Chamanka. Easy to get, hard to watch - dreadful experience. Way too vulgar for me. Weird thing with fucking: not really explicit sex, for some reason done in mechanic way - they wanna harm each other in process? Dialogue is even more vulgar: character don't speak, they just bark. There is no chemistry between actors, you can almost sense that they don't trust each other. There are moments, where film is close to self parody e.g. explosion at the end is silly, not scary.
Devil. This film I love. Energetic and baroque - how I would describe it.
Film is made from handheld tracking shots (follow shot is probably more accurate term). When characters are stationary, camera is spinning/rotating or zooming. Action is often cut to reverse shot (180 degree), continuity is often broken (jumping from one place to another, snow to no-snow and so on). Film felt very fast/dynamic for me (music helps a lot with this also), even though it is cut slowly.
Opening scene is amazing. It is about 7 minutes long and sets up viewer emotionally for the rest of the screening. Once scene after another is soaked with more madness. Surprisingly: supposed devil is most sane and humane character. Rest is just pure throat cutting.
One note about ending. When Jakub was shot by cloaked figure I was sure this meant that devil doesn't exist, humans are corrupted enough to do unspeakable without devil. This would probably work as ending for me as well. Yet true ending is much more mythical.
Third Part of Night. It was good, not great. Too soon to write something solid.
I've yet to finish one of his movies, my introduction to him was also 'Possession' on tv late one night. I caught it a half hour in and to this day I would call it one of the weirdest cinematic experiences I've ever had- watching all that shit happen without a context for it. When I see it in full, it probably won't seem any saner to me. I remember even before the kooky scifi stuff starts happening it felt like a very dangerous movie, the tone of the acting, the blocking, it was so violent. Like the story was about to take a direction I could've never anticipated and sure enough, it did.
It's the number one DVD I look for when I'm shopping for 'em, but there are so many goddamned movies called
'Possession', I get tricked everytime. You know what? Fuck it, I'm ordering it off amazon as a birthday present this year.
Thanks for mentioning the other ones, I think I might like this guy.
Call me crazy but I'm convinced Nolan ripped off the opening scene from L'amour braque for the opening sequence in The Dark Knight...not the only movie to feature characters robbing a bank while wearing stylized masks, but something about it...
The opening scene (http://vimeo.com/38547674) from L'amour braque on Vimeo. And I guess I'm not the only one (http://acidemic.blogspot.com/2010/03/luxury-of-depserate-gamblers.html).
This release has been a long time in the making (5 years). One of the best emotional horror stories ever made. Reelist put it well in that even the
blocking is violent. And Isabelle Adjani, well, see for yourself:
After witnessing the final film she called it "pyschological pornography"
Mondo Vision to Release Andrzej Zulawski's Possession in the U.S.via blu-ray.com(https://xixax.com/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi.imgur.com%2FhdIiltf.jpg&hash=d92a7567ca33dadbd4aea2f6e6b4a86d79ff23b1)
Independent U.S. distributors Mondo Vision have confirmed that they will release a Limited Special Edition of controversial Polish director Andrzej Zulawski's Possession (1981), starring Isabelle Adjani, Sam Neill, Margit and Margit Carstensen. The release is expected to arrive on the U.S. market later this year.
With their marriage in pieces Anna and Mark's tense relationship has become a psychotic descent into screaming matches, violence and self-mutilation. Believing his wife's only lover is the sinister Heinrich, Mark is unaware of the demonic, tentacled creature that Anna has hidden away for liaisons in a deserted apartment and will stop at nothing to protect.Possession will be presented in an all new 2K digital transfer supervised and approved by the director. UNCUT & Fully Uncensored, this edition also marks the first ever release of the film in North America in its original Director's Cut.* The film is presented in the original aspect ratio of 1.66:1 along with an uncompressed mono audio soundtrack. This Dual Layer disc has been transferred and encoded using a high-frequency process which preserves as much of the detail and texture from the original film as is possible on the Blu-ray format.
CONTENT:1. Original English Mono [dts-HD Master Audio]
2. Audio Commentary
3. Unauthorized Alternate Audio*
4. Subtitles: English, French, and Spanish Subtitles (optional, in White or Yellow)
5. Video: 1.66:1/1080P
6. Discs Dual Layer BD-50
DISC 1: THE FEATURE FILM-Digitally Restored 1080p HD Transfer Approved by Director Andrzej Zulawski [124min]
EXTRAS: [4 Hr. 8 Mins.][All extras except commentary come with Optional English Subtitles in White or Yellow]
-The Other Side of The Wall: The Making of POSSESSION [52min]
-Audio Commentary with Director Andrzej Zulawski [124min]
-Video Interview with Director Andrzej Zulawski [36min]
-Video Interview with Translator Eric Veaux [22min]
-Theatrical Trailer [3min]
-More from Mondo Vision [11min] [collection of 4 trailers from Andrzej Zulawski films]
La Femme Publique
L'important C'est Da'imer
La'mour Braque
Szamanka
PLUS:-24-page Booklet Featuring an Essay by Daniel Bird
*This audio track features alternative music. It is not the director's approved version, and is included for completeness. Most notable is the addition of the piano theme during the subway miscarriage scene, and the removal of music during a pivotal scene. A handful of releases, including Possession's first U.S. DVD release (ironically billed as the "Director's Cut") were issued only with this audio track. This additional music although composed by Andrzej Korzyñski was never used by the director in the final cut of the film. It is strongly recommended to watch the film with the original director's approved audio.
:multi:
I thought this would never happen. My most sought after film until I settled for this imported version:
(https://xixax.com/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fimg0105.popscreencdn.com%2F157974751_possession-1981-isabelle-adjani-dvd-new.jpg&hash=eae67326136c288d038c3eb86133366a3a9b24d1)
...still haven't watched it, I'm waiting for the right night to feel that creeped out again. How much do these things usually run, $30, $40? In any case, I'm all over it. Do me a favor and let me know when it's released? Thx Wilder, great news.
The Limited Editions run about $50 and are kept at 2,000 units. Mondo Vision also releases non-limited editions of their premium Zulawski sets without all of the same extras in regular digipack versions (in the past there were soundtrack CDs included in the LE's that weren't sold with the regular packagings). I can't remember how much those are, I think $25 or $30. Apparently Possession will come out some time in May.
If you don't want to wait until then, there's also the UK Second Sight blu-ray release (http://www.amazon.co.uk/Possession-Blu-ray/dp/B00CZB8IOW?SubscriptionId=AKIAIY4YSQJMFDJATNBA&tag=bluraycom-21&linkCode=xm2&camp=2025&creative=165953&creativeASIN=B00CZB8IOW&m=A3P5ROKL5A1OLE) which contains the exact same transfer and also has the Zulawski commentary. Some screenshots from it here (http://www.blu-ray.com/movies/Possession-Blu-ray/60051/#Screenshots)
(https://xixax.com/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi.imgur.com%2FLZ352lp.jpg&hash=a2d1788857b3a8ff15a78a319b82a8bcfc9e15b9)
[abandoned statements about and appreciation for a lineage that goes something like zulawski -> beineix -> carax -> noé, as in artists who blend their idea's expansion with cinema's expansion]
[opinion about this not being one of my favorite zulawski movies, this one feels more like a lead into new french extremity, but also an opinion about zulawski always deserving recognition, and well a lot of skill goes into making a movie this icky, early noé movies are also icky]
[calculated reuse of the sweetness wilder and reelist are sharing, aww, such babes <3]
hell yeah. so excited
Limited and Special Editions of Mondo's release of Possession (1981) detailed (http://www.blu-ray.com/news/?id=13697)
i dont know why ive ignored this thread before but, possession is one of my favorite films.
the scene with the milk in the subway is, for me, the best scene in a horror film, ever.
so glad its getting more recognition.
Heads up Mondo Vision's release of Possession should be available to pre-order via Toufaan (http://www.toufaan.com/) soon
It's up.
Some discussion about "Possession", copied uncorrected from shoutbox:
QuoteMel [07|Jun 06:31 PM]: It is very personal film. Zulawski was dealing not only with personal, but also artistic issues at the time (On the Silver Globe).
Mel [07|Jun 06:33 PM]: His second film "Devil" got banned and he had issues with making films in Poland, so he went to France.
Mel [07|Jun 06:34 PM]: At the time there were heavy travel restriction in Eastern bloc, so he couldn't take his wife and son.
Mel [07|Jun 06:35 PM]: "Most Important Thing Love" is a success, so he goes back to Poland and this is were "Possession starts"
Mel [07|Jun 06:36 PM]: As he stated in some interviews, his family is pretty much gone.
Mel [07|Jun 06:37 PM]: Eventually his wife, Braunek leaves him and kid, in order to become Buddhist priest.
Mel [07|Jun 06:39 PM]: He is also persuaded to make another film in Poland, which turns into disaster, after being banned, while filming.
Spoilers for "Possession":This can explain where "Possession" comes from. Some of my mussing: Heinrich and Buddhism? Miscarriage, mental breakdown and "On the Silver Globe"? Berlin Wall, man with pink socks and censors in Poland? Doppelgangers and starting again in France?
I'm not going to start a thread for the Locarno Film Festival so I'll mention here:
http://variety.com/2015/film/global/locarno-unveils-diverse-lineup-mixing-known-directors-and-discoveries-1201540624/
They're killing it. Andrzej Zulkawski's Cosmos will premiere. Chantal Akerman's No Home Movie will premiere. Athena Rachel Tsangari's Chevalier will premiere. Hong Sang-soo's Right Now, Wrong Then will premiere.
Andrzej Zulawski's La Note Bleue Prepped for Blu-ray
via blu-ray.com
Independent U.S. distributors Mondo Vision have revealed that they are planning to release on Blu-ray director Andrzej Zulawski's film La Note Bleue (1991), starring Sophie Marceau, Marie-France Pisier, Janusz Olejniczak, Féodor Atkine, and Aurélien Recoing.
Supplemental features, technical specs, and the official release date for this upcoming release are expected to be revealed soon.
Synopsis: Andrzej Zulawski's La Note Bleue can be called an event. This is probably the first time that a director has, in all humility, treated the life of a composer – Chopin in this instance – without sacrificing any of his ambitions as a filmmaker. In others words, not for a single moment does he attempt to appropriate or put to his own use the music he is filming. He directs it, and perhaps illustrates it, but in no way reduces it.
In La Note Bleue the music therefore serves neither as an excuse nor as a foil. It quite simply is. Invisible by nature, and yet terribly present. Mazurka, Nocturne, Funeral March... Notes heard time and again, but which here regain all their strength, ardor, and virtuosity. New notes altogether, it might seem, and yet profoundly melancholy. Paul Claudel declared "the eye can listen." La Note Bleue proves him to be right, whispering to us that the "ear can see.
Four clips from Zulawski's forthcoming Cosmos:
One (https://vimeo.com/133443797)
Two (https://vimeo.com/133443800)
Three (https://vimeo.com/133443799)
Four (https://vimeo.com/133443798)
This actress Victória Guerra looks amazing
(https://xixax.com/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi.imgur.com%2FNGGDcqm.jpg&hash=42e08254df8107372f186ee99888b4f96f8c33b7)
New Zulawski interview (http://www.filmcomment.com/blog/locarno-interview-andrzej-zulawski/) at Film Comment
this is awesome
Polish film director Andrzej Zulawski dies at 75 via Global Post (http://www.globalpost.com/article/6734167/2016/02/17/polish-film-director-andrzej-zulawski-dies-75)
Polish art-house film director Andrzej Zulawski died on Wednesday at the age of 75 after a long battle with cancer, his family said.
"My father died in the early hours of Wednesday, at a hospital in Poland. He had no chance of survival," his son and fellow director Xawery Zulawski told AFP.
"He had projects in the works but the choice had been made: death. He didn't fight it, he didn't want to fight it."
Xawery had posted on Facebook on Tuesday that Zulawski was "terminally ill with cancer".
The actor, writer and director of several French films had just released his last film Cosmos in 2015, which won him the best director award at the Locarno film festival in Switzerland.
Zulawski was "a very original artist, sometimes controversial but always true to himself", Polish Filmmakers Association president Jacek Bromski told Polish broadcaster Polsat.
Born in occupied Poland in 1940, Zulawski left for Paris at the age of five with his parents and later studied at the Sorbonne.
His films had a good dose of nihilism, savage eroticism and hopelessness, which he attributed in a 2004 Paris Match interview to being born during World War II.
"Going into the war my family numbered 40 people, afterwards there were three... My younger sister died of hunger," he told the magazine.
"As a kid I saw things that I never should have seen. It's undoubtedly what gave me the sense that every day is a miracle."
Zulawski is survived by three children, including a son with French actress Sophie Marceau. They separated in 2001.
"It's a huge loss for Polish and world cinema," Polish film critic Janusz Wroblewski told AFP.
"His films are considered cinema classics, but at the time they were avant-garde," he said of the director of "The Third Part of the Night" (1971) and "The Devil" (1972).
"He was provocative, breaking many Polish stereotypes and introducing eroticism in his films."
tragic, but what an amazing life he lead. we were to have had him for as long as we did.
rock in peace, andrzej.
Oh no...this one saddens me. We're lucky to have a
swan song (http://xixax.com/index.php?topic=13376.msg342006#msg342006) on the way, though.
Quote from: 03 on February 17, 2016, 12:02:42 PM
rock in peace, andrzej.
Beautiful, fitting.
Cosmos is Zulawski's Inherent Vice, in terms of he wrote the adaptation of the Witold Gombrowicz novel. it's a strong finish for his career through these ingredients alone.
Film Comment on Zulawski (http://www.filmcomment.com/blog/film-comment-selects-andrzej-zulawski/)
-Cosmos (2015) (https://www.filmlinc.org/films/cosmos/) premieres at Lincoln Center @ 6:30pm tomorrow (sold out)
-The Third Part of the Night (1972) (https://www.filmlinc.org/films/the-third-part-of-the-night/) screens tomorrow at @ 9:15pm
-The Devil (1972) (http://www.filmlinc.org/films/the-devil/) screens Saturday Feb 20 @ 1pm
-On the Silver Globe (1988) (http://www.filmlinc.org/films/on-the-silver-globe/) screen Saturday Feb 20 @ 3:30pm
Trailer (https://vimeo.com/174724049) for the new restoration of Zulawski's The Devil (1972).
Zulawski's
La Note Bleue (1991) is supposedly being released on February 17th from Mondo Vision and will be available to pre-oder from
Toufaan (https://www.toufaan.com/) within the next few days
Ailing composer Frederic Chopin (Janusz Olejniczak) cannot choose between author George Sand (Marie-France Pisier) and her daughter (Sophie Marceau).(https://xixax.com/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi.imgur.com%2FAeVvTyN.jpg&hash=2919d64f82353769e8f77579675c758221e29208)
(https://xixax.com/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi.imgur.com%2FAmE6ht0.jpg&hash=d4554e385faf00966949d18cc2d5a4ab92df45b1)
Need an On The Silver Globe blu-ray release ASAP. Can't get that movie out of my head.
The restoration of On the Silver Globe is streaming for free (http://exmilitai.re/film.html) for the next 5 days
June 16, 2020L'important c'est d'aimer (1975) is coming to blu-ray from Film Movement. Available for pre-order from
DiabolikDVD (https://www.diabolikdvd.com/product/limportant-cest-daimer-blu-ray/)(https://i.imgur.com/gR8HK6s.jpg)
Servais (Fabio Testi), a reporter and photographer, meets Nadine Chevalier (Romy Schneider), an actress who is forced to earn her living by accepting roles unworthy of her real talent. She is married to Jacques (Jacques Dutronc), a delightful sort of disenchanted clown who runs away from the realities of life. Nadine and Servais soon discover how important their encounter was and neither one of them wants to dismiss it as a mere fling.
Quote from: wilder on June 11, 2019, 01:26:56 AMThe restoration of On the Silver Globe is streaming for free (http://exmilitai.re/film.html) for the next 5 days
It's still streaming !
Quote from: Criterion Forum member JonathanKSome good news for Zulawski fans... Reached out to Mondo Vision for an update and they confirmed that after taking some time off since Zulawski's passing, they have now begun working on the Polish Trilogy and are also preparing a 4K edition of Possession with possibility of a "disc upgrade program" in place for those who have purchased the original Limited Edition. When asked if they would continue their Limited Edition trend with the Polish Trilogy I did not get a straight answer but was told "we are weighing all options at this point, it would either come as a boxset or individual releases". Apparently they are sitting on ton of extras recorded with Zulawski while he was still alive...
Quote from: wilder on June 11, 2019, 01:26:56 AM
The restoration of On the Silver Globe is streaming for free (http://exmilitai.re/film.html) for the next 5 days
Surprisingly, it appears that this iz still streaming, for those that missed it before!
July 27, 2021
L'amour Braque (1985) on blu-ray from Kino, from a 4K restoration from the original camera negative
(https://i.imgur.com/sorOyr9.jpg)
Sophie Marceau (The World Is Not Enough, Braveheart), Francis Huster (La Femme Publique, Le Dîner de Cons) and Tchéky Karyo (La Femme Nikita, Dobermann) form the mad love-triangle at the core of Andrzej Zulawski's L'Amour Braque (a.k.a. Mad Love), a postmodern, existentialist homage to Fyodor Dostoevsky's classic novel The Idiot.
A manic bank robber (Karyo) aims to take back his beloved moll (Marceau) from rival gangsters. On a train to Paris, he meets a neurotic dreamer (Huster) who assumes the mantle of the tale's "idiot" and gets swept up in the ensuing maelstrom of love and vengeance. Brimming with outbursts of energy and eruptions of emotional violence, L'Amour Braque is a deliriously unique, perverse and bloody ballet choreographed by the visionary director of Possession and Cosmos.
QuoteAndrzej Żuławski's Possession has finally received a new 4K restoration that will roll out this fall. Coming from Metrograph Pictures, it'll premiere at Fantastic Fest in Austin, Texas and will open theatrically and digitally exclusively at Metrograph on October 1 before expanding to theaters nationwide on October 15.
4K restorations of The Third Part of the Night (1971), Diabel (1972), and On the Silver Globe (1988) are coming from French label Le chat qui fume (https://www.blu-ray.com/news/?id=31286) in March 2023 / probably means an announcement from Mondo Vision is imminent
May 2023Andrzej Zulawski: Three Films on blu-ray from Masters of Cinema (UK). Up for pre-order from
DiabolikDVD (https://www.diabolikdvd.com/product/andrzej-zulawski-three-films-eureka-uk-limited-edition-box-set-blu-ray-region-b-preorder/)(https://i.imgur.com/QGhyEgg.jpg)
QuoteAn uncompromising visionary and a true maverick of European cinema, the Masters of Cinema Series is proud to present three films by Andrzej Żuławski, all making their UK debuts on Blu-ray from new 4K restorations.
Rich with multilayered symbolism and apocalyptic imagery, The Third Part of the Night is Żuławski's highly influential debut feature film. After his whole family is slaughtered during the Nazi-occupation of Poland, Michal (Leszek Teleszyński) decides to join the resistance but descends into madness after encountering a doppelgänger of his murdered wife.
The Devil is a violent tale of Satanic seduction during the Prussian invasion of Poland in the 17th century, which proved so controversial upon release that it was banned for 16 years.
And finally, On the Silver Globe, Żuławski's masterpiece about a team of astronauts who land on a desolate planet and start a new society. When filming was 80% complete, the Polish government ordered the production to be shut down and all the negatives be destroyed. Miraculously, the original film reels were preserved and ten years later the film was presented at the Cannes Film Festival to great acclaim.
SPECIAL FEATURES
- Limited Edition Box Set [3000 Copies]
- Limited Edition Hardbound Slipcase
- All films presented in 1080p HD from definitive 4K restorations
- Optional English Subtitles for all films, from translations by Daniel Bird and approved by director Andrzej Żuławski before his death in 2016
- Escape to the Silver Globe (dir. Kuba Mikurda, 2021) – acclaimed documentary on the production history of On the Silver Globe
- Brand new feature length audio commentary on On the Silver Globe by Daniel Bird
- Michael Brooke on "The Third Part of the Night" – Brand new interview
- Michael Brooke on "The Devil" – Brand new interview
- Brand new video piece by Daniel Bird on the cinematography of On the Silver Globe
- Brand new video piece by Daniel Bird on the costumes and props of On the Silver Globe
- Brand new documentary short by Daniel Bird using previously unseen archival footage from the filming of On the Silver Globe
- Brand new interview with Lukasz Żuławski
- Brand new interview with Adam Żuławski
- A Limited Edition 60-page collector's book featuring new essays and archival material
October 25, 2023
Possession (1981) on 4K UHD blu-ray from Umbrella Entertainment (Australia). Available to pre-order from DiabolikDVD (https://diabolikdvd.com/product/possession-umbrella-au-4k-uhd-blu-ray-all-region-preorder/)
(https://i.imgur.com/l9swHnP.jpg)