Dekalog (1988)

[Oscar Rothman]

https://www.criterion.com/films/28661-dekalog

New 4K digital restoration, with uncompressed monaural soundtracks on the Blu-rays
New high-definition digital restorations of A Short Film About Killing and A Short Film About Love, with uncompressed monaural soundtracks on the Blu-rays
Selection of archival interviews with director Krzysztof Kieślowski, culled from footage from the 1987 production of Dekalog: Two, excerpts from the 1995 documentary A Short Film About “Dekalog,” and a 1990 audio recording from the National Film Theatre in London
New program on the visual rhyming of Dekalog by film studies professor Annette Insdorf
New and archival interviews with Dekalog cast and crew, including cowriter Krzysztof Piesiewicz, thirteen actors, three cinematographers, editor Ewa Smal, and Kieślowski’s confidante Hanna Krall
Trailers
PLUS: A booklet featuring an essay and film analyses by film scholar Paul Coates and excerpted reprints from Kieślowski on Kieślowski

New cover by Anthony Gerace

Synopys
This masterwork by Krzysztof Kieślowski is one of the twentieth century’s greatest achievements in visual storytelling. Originally made for Polish television, Dekalog focuses on the residents of a housing complex in post-Communist Poland, whose lives become subtly intertwined as they face emotional dilemmas that are at once deeply personal and universally human. Using the Ten Commandments for thematic inspiration and an overarching structure, Dekalog’s ten hour-long films deftly grapple with complex moral and existential questions concerning life, death, love, hate, truth, and the passage of time. Shot by nine different cinematographers, with stirring music by Zbigniew Preisner and compelling performances from established and unknown actors alike, Dekalog arrestingly explores the unknowable forces that shape our lives. Also presented are the longer theatrical versions of Dekalog’s fifth and sixth films: A Short Film About Killing and A Short Film About Love.

[CBHampson]

Yessssssssss!

[filmmusic]

It says aspect ratio 1.33:1.
i wonder if it's true .

[James Luckard]

Originally Posted by filmmusic

It says aspect ratio 1.33:1.
i wonder if it's true .

It's a Polish TV miniseries, that would be the correct aspect ratio, wouldn't it?

[JoeBuck]

Originally Posted by filmmusic

It says aspect ratio 1.33:1.
i wonder if it's true .

Yes, it is

[MifuneFan]

1.33:1 is the OAR so no problem there.

[SkyAntoine]

Stoked about this although I have never seen it.

How does this generally compare to Three Colors trilogy, Blind Chance or Veronique?

[starman15317]

Can't wait for this! I checked out the old DVD set from my campus library fairly recently and I watched Decalogue One and Two, which were great, but that DVD set had such terrible PQ and AQ that I just decided to wait for this release. This 4K restoration will be amazing!

[Pyoko]

Great that it's getting a new 4K transfer. I got the Polish BD set a while back and in addition to being 16:9 the quality was horrendous.

Was going to watch it anyway, but now I'm really glad I held off.

[Bates_Motel]

Originally Posted by filmmusic

It says aspect ratio 1.33:1.
i wonder if it's true .

Of course it's true. I was just concerned because the restoration trailer was cropped to 16x9.

Originally Posted by Pyoko

I got the Polish BD set a while back and in addition to being 16:9 the quality was horrendous.

Me too. It was 1080 interlaced.

Originally Posted by SkyAntoine

Stoked about this although I have never seen it.

How does this generally compare to Three Colors trilogy, Blind Chance or Veronique?

Kubrick once said it was the best thing he'd seen in years and wished he had made it.

[filmmusic]

Originally Posted by James Luckard

It's a Polish TV miniseries, that would be the correct aspect ratio, wouldn't it?

Originally Posted by MifuneFan

1.33:1 is the OAR so no problem there.

I know it's the OAR.
I just wondered because the recently released Bluray was cropped.

http://www.dvdbeaver.com/film5/blu-r...ue_blu-ray.htm

[houseca]

Release of the year!

What took Criterion so long?

[easydreamer]

Dekalog has been one of my most favorites. Now my dream came true

I'm also glad that the original title is used instead of The Decalogue.

A bit sad that the feature films are only HD restorations, though.

[Pyoko]

Originally Posted by Bates_Motel

Me too. It was 1080 interlaced.

The interlacing wasn't really a problem since it was effectively 25p, but the whole thing was drowned in really ugly noise plus massive compression issues.

Speaking of which, I assume this will be 24fps, so probably slowed down from 25fps which makes sense would be the original speed since it was made for TV, though it would be nice to know for sure. Either way a small price to pay for a new transfer.

[Scottie]

Pre-order is now live on Amazon.

[Rockercub]

I have a question. I rarely ever preorder Criterion releases and usually wait for sales. But this is one I'm really excited about, so I went ahead and put in a preorder on Amazon. Should I expect the price to come down a bit by the time of release? Because it's going for $20 cheaper on Criterion's site (not taking shipping into account).

[MifuneFan]

Originally Posted by Rockercub

I have a question. I rarely ever preorder Criterion releases and usually wait for sales. But this is one I'm really excited about, so I went ahead and put in a preorder on Amazon. Should I expect the price to come down a bit by the time of release? Because it's going for $20 cheaper on Criterion's site (not taking shipping into account).

Many get a 30% discount. So you coudld potentially see it for around $70. Of course, if you can wait till November, you can get it for $50 or less during the B&N sale.

[Bates_Motel]

Originally Posted by filmmusic

I know it's the OAR.
I just wondered because the recently released Bluray was cropped.

http://www.dvdbeaver.com/film5/blu-r...ue_blu-ray.htm

One has nothing to do with the other.

[Rockercub]

Originally Posted by MifuneFan

Many get a 30% discount. So you coudld potentially see it for around $70. Of course, if you can wait till November, you can get it for $50 or less during the B&N sale.

I know I should wait, but I don't know if I can. I've been waiting for this one for years. It is just a couple of months, I suppose. Oh, well, I can always cancel my preorder. Thanks!

[jvince]

Finally! I've been waiting for this since forever!

Originally Posted by SkyAntoine

Stoked about this although I have never seen it.

How does this generally compare to Three Colors trilogy, Blind Chance or Veronique?

Better than Three Colors and Veronique. I agree with Kubrick. The Decalogue is one of the best things I've ever seen. Citizen Kane and Vertigo ain't got nothing on this masterpiece.