The Saragossa Manuscript

As far as _The Saragossa Manuscript_ may be said to be “about” anything, this film is about the art of storytelling. It is based on one of the most amazing books I have ever read, written by Jan Potocki and bearing the same title as the film, and which belongs to the tradition that includes Boccaccio’s _Decameron_, Chaucer’s _Canterbury Tales_, _The Arabian Nights_, Don Juan Manuel’s _Count Lucanor_, and Basile’s _Tale of Tales_. There is, however, a big difference: whereas the other collections gather stories loosely connected by a pretext (a pilgrimage, a plague, etc.), the stories that compose _The Saragossa Manuscript_ beautifully flow into each other and/or contain each other like the dolls that make up a Russian matryoshka. Such a work, many will argue, is virtually impossible to adapt to film. I will let the reader decide whether Wojciech Has’ film is a good adaptation; what cannot be denied is that this film is a fantastic, inimitable work of art in itself. I, for my part, cannot imagine a more effective adaptation of the text.For details on the book and the story, I refer you to my review of the Penguin edition (titled _The Manuscript Found in Saragossa_), which I posted on March 25, 2018. The film opens with the finding of the manuscript, and in it we follow the adventures of Alfonso van Worden (played, without sunglasses, by the iconic Zbigniew Cybulski, of _Ashes and Diamonds_ fame), a Walloon officer who encounters a vast gallery of characters that have stories to tell him. Most importantly, Alfonso and other characters keep running into two women who may or may not be connected to the two corpses that hang from the gallows below which some of the characters wake up from their dreams.Towards the end of the film (2:24:08), one of the characters says: “We are like blind men lost in the streets of a big city. The streets lead to a goal, but we often return to the same places to get to where we want to be. I can see a few little streets here which, as it is now, are going nowhere. New combinations have to be arranged, then the whole will be clear, because one man cannot invent something that another cannot solve.” A magnificent description of _The Saragossa Manuscript_.This film is rich, joyful, and full of vitality. The mise en scène is exquisite. You will be mesmerized by the eerie atmosphere and haunting imagery. The film plays with elements of horror, but is also characterized by a constant, delightful sense of humor. Few masterpieces of cinema manage to be both serious and playful, earthly and transcendent. Marcel Carné’s _Children of Paradise_ (1945), a very different film, comes to mind as another example.Luis Buñuel and David Lynch are among the fans of _The Saragossa Manuscript_. This is not surprising when one considers that these two filmmakers have consistently explored the world of dreams and their narrative logic. The influence of _The Saragossa Manuscript_ is evident especially in two of Buñuel’s films. In _The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie_ (1972), the characters repeatedly wake up from dreams, to the point that it becomes difficult to tell where reality begins, if it begins at all. _The Phantom of Liberty_ (1974), for its part, has no single protagonist.The Mr. Bongo edition contains no extras whatsoever, but this is a restored version of the film, and the image is gorgeous. At the risk of stating the obvious, I will say _The Saragossa Manuscript_ demands a Criterion Collection release. Hopefully we will see that in the near future.This was my introduction to the work of Wojciech Has, but I will now make a point of watching _The Hourglass Sanatorium_ (1973), _Noose_ (1958), _How to Be Loved_ (1963), and any other film of his I can find.Thanks for reading, and enjoy the film!

The mesmerizing Polish cult classic based on the complex 19th century novel by Jan Potocki, Wojciech Has' film The Saragossa Manuscript (1965) is one of cinema's greatest puzzles and a nearly lost gem of the 1960's. When a soldier fighting in the Napoleonic wars finds a ominous old tome in a crumbling Spanish inn he instantly becomes bewitched by the fascinating ghostly tales within. Told with a cycle of a story in a story in a story... multi-layered structure of fugues and déjà vu. A surrealist delirium adorned with a collection of soldiers, noblemen, Islamic and Kabbalist mystics, gypsies, ghosts, bandits, a hermit, and pair of beautiful twin seductresses, and enriched with a atmospheric feel of esoterica and the arcane. This highly cinematic hall of mirrors is also quite mischievous, roguish, and remarkably entertaining, taking gallows humor rather literally. Even at three hours it is captivating enough for multiple viewings. Brilliantly directed and edited, a colorful cast, an eclectic score, and stunningly photographed in B&W, a memorable and rare film experience that captures the spirit and feel of an unfilmable novel- which is somewhat ironic, as it doesn't follow the book completely. A personal favourite of mine, and most famously noted as a favourite of Jerry Garcia, as well as David Lynch, and master filmmaker Luis Buñuel (it's pretty obvious); Martin Scorsese and Francis Ford Coppola were essential in it's restoration. If you've read The 1,001 Nights (The Arabian Nights), Don Quixote, Fictiones of Jorge Luis Borges, and naturally Potocki's The Manuscript Found At Saragossa- this is the movie for you. For film recommendations Buñuel's Discreet Charm Of The Bourgeoisie (1972), the psychedelic Performance (1969), Fellini Satyricon (1969), maybe Marketa Lazarova (1968). This long awaited Blu ray by Yellow Veil Pictures is an excellent restoration of the uncut 182 min. original version that looks superb- nice and clean, and contains two fine, informative interviews, one with film critic Sebastian Smolinski, and one with film scholar and specialist of Polish cinema, Annette Insdorf, who contributed to the insightful audio commentaries of Criterion's releases of Ashes And Diamonds (1958) (also starring Zbigniew Cybulski) and Krzystof Kieslowski's Three Colors Trilogy, she also introduces the film. Also included: a reversible cover (purple or yellow) and a booklet with two essays, by Annette Indorf and the booklet says Atnon Bitel (even though the box says Samm Deighan), both well done either way. Most highly recommended!

If you are the sort of person who gravitates to Heisenberg's Uncertainty Principlewhen you do physics, then this is the book/film for you. It is also rich in charactersand plot structure. I really do not know any other work of art in the same category. Theauthor -- Potocki -- was an 18th c. Polish nobleman who killed himself after hefinished the book (in so far as "finished" is an accurate word to use on a story thatis recursive.) Potocki took a silver tea pot, had the priest bless it, then melted itdown into bullets and used one to shoot himself. Expect the novel to haveepisodes that are equally weird.

It's a classic, based on a novel written by a Polish nobleman during the early 19th Century Gothic period when Frankenstein was written. The film is stylish and humorous, (unlike a lot of Gothic works.) In other words, it's fun! And it's very, very weird!The Polish film industry fell on very hard times after the 1960s, and allowed the film masters to deteriorate. Various people have restored it. I haven't seen the Blu-Ray of this restoration yet, but I'm justifiably hopeful. I know the restoration efforts were very painstaking. Criterion offers it. After I watch it, I'll update this review if I'm disappointed.The attractive babe in the foreground of the shot above may not be what she appears to be, and the nobleman hitting on her should watch out!

Besides the quality of the movie, which is long and surreal and very European, the seller did a wonderful job of packaging the product to minimize shifting or damage. First-class shipping!

Just go with it. Like an acid trip without all the colors.

A true classic. Should be better known.

Ich habe diesen Film 1985 in einem Programmkino in Nürnberg gesehen und bin mir ziemlich sicher, dass er da in Deutsch synchronisiert war. Leider ist die polnische Fassung mit englischen Untertiteln etwas anstrengend, auch weil der Film ja eigentlich in Spanien spielt. Sehr schöne Bilder, eine skurrile Geschichte in der Geschichte in der Geschichte. Das Buch ist übrigens auch nicht schlecht.

Superbe édition remasterisée de ce chef d'oeuvre du cinéma européen et polonais. Si le film est soust-tité en anglais, ce n'est pas le cas des suppléments, mais cette édition est d'abord faite pour le marché local. Dommage qu'il n'ait pas encore d'édition blu-ray pour le marché francophone de film légendaire !. Ne pas hésiter donc à l'acheter.

Die Verfilmung des gleichnamigen Romans ist voll und ganz gelungen. Sehenswert.

The best movie ever :)