Blu-ray Releases Details
Ashes and Diamonds - Criterion Collection

  • Note To Viewer

    This disc has not yet been reviewed. The following information has been provided by the distributor.

Genres: Drama, Romance, War
Starring: Zbigniew Cybulski, Ewa Krzyzewska, Waclaw Zastrzezynski
Director: Andrzej Wajda
Plot Synopsis:

A milestone of Polish cinema, this electrifying international sensation by Andrzej Wajda—the final film in his celebrated war trilogy—entwines the story of one man's moral crisis with the fate of a nation. In a small Polish town on the final day of World War II, Maciek (the coolly charismatic Zbigniew Cybulski), a fighter in the underground anti-Communist resistance movement, has orders to assassinate an incoming commissar. But when he meets and falls for a young barmaid (Ewa Krzyzewska), he begins to question his commitment to a cause that requires him to risk his life. Ashes and Diamonds' lustrous monochrome cinematography—wreathed in shadows, smoke, and fog—and spectacularly choreographed set pieces lend a breathtaking visual dynamism to this urgent, incendiary vision of a country at a crossroads in its struggle for self-determination.

  • Release Details
    Release Date: August 24th, 2021
    MPAA Rating: Not Rated
    Movie Release Year: 1958
    Release Country: United States
    Movie Studio: Criterion
  • Technical Specs
    Length:103 Minutes
    Specs:Blu-ray Disc
    NEW 4K RESTORATION OF THE FILM
    Video Resolution/Codec:1080p AVC/MPEG-4
    Aspect Ratio(s):1.66:1
    Audio Formats:Polish: LPCM Mono
    Subtitles/Captions:English
    Special Features:
    • Audio commentary from 2004 featuring film scholar Annette Insdorf
    • New video essay by Insdorf on the film's legacy
    • Andrzej Wajda: On "Ashes and Diamonds," a 2005 program featuring director Andrzej Wajda, second director Janusz Morgenstern, and film critic Jerzy Plazewski
    • Archival newsreel footage on the making of the film
    • Rare behind-the-scenes production photos, publicity stills, and posters (DVD only)
    • New English subtitle translation
    • PLUS: An essay by film scholar Paul Coates