Regarded as one of the greatest of all Polish films from its premiere in October 1958, Andrzej Wajda's third feature Ashes and Diamonds retains that stature over half a century later.
The entire film takes place on 8th May 1945, when the war in Europe ended with Germany's formal surrender – but while other countries celebrated, Poland's postwar power struggle was only just beginning. In depicting the various factions jockeying for position, including ambitious Communists, aristocratic patriots, cynical journalists and anti-Nazi rebels recently emerged from the Warsaw sewers, Wajda brilliantly anatomises a riven country desperately trying to find its identity at a time when a fifth of its population had recently been killed and many more driven into exile. Maciek Chelmicki (Zbigniew Cybulski) embodies this conflict: outwardly a calculating assassin, his ultra-cool façade begins to crack when he badly botches a mission, falls in love with the barmaid Krystyna (Ewa Krzyzewska) and dares to dream of a life outside the armed resistance that's characterised his entire adult life. His all too human indecision makes him Polish culture's Hamlet, and Cybulski's performance remains iconic to this day.
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Ashes and Diamonds will be released on UK dual format (DVD and Blu-ray, the latter for the first time in the UK) by Arrow as part of the Arrow Academy label on 3rd October 2011 at the RRP of £24.99.
Featuring a new 2K resolution restoration of the film image and sound transferred from 35mm, the disc will have the following extras:
- Interview with director Andrzej Wajda on Ashes & Diamonds;
- Comprehensive booklet by writer and film historian Michael Brooke, including new writing on the film, a re-print of Marek Hendrykowsk's monograph on ‘Ashes & Diamonds', Andrzej Wajda's lecture on 'Cinema Past and Present' and more;
- Artwork presentation packaging including three original posters and a newly commissioned artwork cover.
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