Mr Bongo Releasing The Saragossa Manuscript and The Hourglass Sanatorium on UK Blu-ray This Fall
Debi Moore
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Two classic films from legendary Polish director Wojciech Has are making their UK debut on Blu-ray next month thanks to Mr Bongo Films. Has’ The Saragossa Manuscript and The Hourglass Sanatorium get the high-def treatment in their fully restored versions on 7 September 2015.
If adjectives like “hallucinatory,” “frightening,” “grotesque,” and “disturbing” grab your attention (and if they don’t you’re probably in the wrong place), then read on for the details!
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THE SARAGOSSA MANUSCRIPT
Described by world-famous filmmakers Luis Bunuel and David Lynch and rock star Jerry Garcia as their favorite film, Wojciech Has’ psychedelic epic The Saragossa Manuscript is a mysteriously magical and sometimes disturbing 1960s cult classic like no other.
Adapted from the highly esteemed explorer Jan Potocki’s magnum opus, The Saragossa Manuscript encompasses a whole new supernatural world. During Napoleon’s invasion of Spain, two soldiers of opposing sides discover a strange manuscript at an inn. Spanning centuries and nations, the magical text chronicles the adventures of Alfonso van Worden (Zbigniew Cybulski – Ashes and Diamonds) and follows a rich slew of journeys from the humorous to the horrifying to the chilling final revelations.
Alternatively frightening and comical in its mind-bending exploration of human nature, The Saragossa Manuscript beautifully presents Has’ intricate approach to storytelling.
THE HOURGLASS SANATORIUM
Wojciech Has’ cinematic universe of byzantine sets, hallucinatory images. and galleries of grotesque characters is brought to life in his psychedelic masterpiece The Hourglass Sanatorium.
Adapted from a collection of short stories by Polish-Jewish writer Bruno Schulz and funded by the Polish Arts Council, this beautifully re-mastered edition dispenses with traditional narrative, fashioning an audiovisual mosaic that blurs the line between reality and fantasy.
Set in the pre-World War II era, a young man named Joseph (Jan Nowicki – Tulips, Spirala) visits a strange dilapidated sanatorium to see his dying father, Jakob (Tadeusz Konrat – Adventure in Marienstadt, Zawilosci Uczuc). Upon arrival, he finds a hospital crumbling into ruin, where time is slowed down in order to maintain his father’s life signs. Joseph must venture through the many rooms of the sanatorium, each filled with sinister worlds conjured from his memories, dreams, and nightmares.
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