As the Barbican Centre in London gears up for a long overdue part retrospective of the career of the man I recently described in Sight & Sound as Polish cinema’s only authentic surrealist, I thought I’d post another DVD overview for the benefit of those who can’t get there – or indeed those who can, and who’d like to explore further. The good news is that virtually all of Has’s features are available somewhere, but the downside is that many are currently restricted to Polish-language French-subtitled editions. But there are rumours that those masters will be released on Polish DVDs in due course, and if precedent is any guide they should have English subtitles.
The main labels responsible are Malavida Films (France), Mr Bongo Films (UK), Best Film Co and TVP (Poland). Image Entertainment’s The Saragossa Manuscript is now out of print, but copies are still floating around eBay, Amazon and elsewhere.
In chronological order, including shorts:
1947 – Brzozowa Street (Ulica Brzozowa, IMDB)
- Included in TVP’s The Noose (Pętla), Region 0 PAL. No subtitles, though my review should fill in a few gaps.
1947 – Harmony (Harmonia, IMDB)
- Included in TVP’s One-Room Tenants (Wspólny pokój), Region 0 PAL. No subtitles, but no spoken content.
1950 – My City (Moje miasto, IMDB)
- Included in TVP’s The Noose (Pętla), Region 0 PAL. No subtitles.
1957 – The Noose (Pętla, IMDB)
- TVP, Region 0 PAL. Optional English subtitles on main feature. Extras include unsubtitled shorts Brzozowa Street and My Town (see above).
- Included in the fourth volume of Best Film Co’s 50 Years of the Polish Film School (50-lecie Polskiej Szkoły Filmowej, Region 0 PAL. Optional English, French, German, Russian and Polish HOH subtitles on main feature, though not brief accompanying featurette. Extensive, fully bilingual booklet in Polish and English.
- Le Noeud coulant, Malavida, Region 0 PAL. French subtitles only.
1958 – Farewells (Pożegnania, IMDB)
- Les Adieux, Malavida, Region 0 PAL. French subtitles only.
1959 – One-Room Tenants (Wspólny pokój, IMDB)
- TVP, Region 0 PAL. Optional English subtitles on main feature. Extras include the dialogue-free short Harmony (see above).
- Chambre commune, Malavida, Region 0 PAL. French subtitles only.
1960 – Goodbye to the Past (Rozstanie, IMDB)
- Adieu jeunesse, Malavida, Region 0 PAL. French subtitles only.
1961 – Gold Dreams (Złoto, IMDB)
- L’or de mes rêves, Malavida, Region 0 PAL. French subtitles only.
1962 – How To Be Loved (Jak być kochaną, IMDB)
- Included in the fourth volume of Best Film Co’s 50 Years of the Polish Film School (50-lecie Polskiej Szkoły Filmowej, Region 0 PAL. Optional English, French, German, Russian and Polish HOH subtitles on main feature, though not brief accompanying featurette. Extensive, fully bilingual booklet in Polish and English.
- L’art d’être aimée, Malavida, Region 0 PAL. French subtitles only.
1965 – The Saragossa Manuscript (Rękopis znaleziony w Saragossie, IMDB)
- Mr Bongo Films, Region 0 PAL. English subtitles.
- Image Entertainment, Region 0 NTSC. English subtitles.
- Le manuscrit trouvé a saragosse, Malavida, Region 0 PAL. French subtitles only.
1966 – The Codes (Szyfry, IMDB)
- Les codes, Malavida, Region 0 PAL. French subtitles only.
1968 – The Doll (Lalka, IMDB)
- La poupée, Malavida, Region 0 PAL. French subtitles only.
1973 – The Hourglass Sanatorium (Sanatorium pod klepsydrą, IMDB)
- Mr Bongo Films, Region 0 PAL. English subtitles.
- La Clepsydre, Malavida, Region 0 PAL. French subtitles only.
1983 – An Uneventful Story (Nieciekawa historia, IMDB)
- Une Histoire banale, Malavida, Region 0 PAL. French subtitles only.
1985 – Write and Fight (Pismak, IMDB)
- L’Écrivain, Malavida, Region 0 PAL. French subtitles only.
1986 – The Memoirs of a Sinner (Osobisty pamiętnik grzesznika przez niego samego spisany , IMDB)
- Journal intime d’un pêcheur , Malavida, Region 0 PAL. French subtitles only.
1988 – The Tribulations of Balthazar Kober (Niezwykła podróż Baltazara Kobera, IMDB)
- Les Tribulations de Balthazar Kober, Malavida, Region 0 PAL. French subtitles only.
As ever, additions and corrections are most appreciated.