Two Films by Jerzy Skolimowski

[Calvin]

On April 24th, the BFI will release Jerzy Skolimowski's Identification Marks: None and Hands Up! in a 2-disc Blu-Ray set

[swo17]

Awesome!

[beamish14]

As excited as I am by this, I do wish that Walkover could have been included. It’s basically the mirror image of Identification Marks

[swo17]

Although at least that already has a Polish Blu-ray. The big gap remains Bariera

[yoloswegmaster]

Coming in April:



Extras:

Newly recorded audio commentaries on both films by Michel Oleszczyk
Archive interview with Jerzy Skolimowski (1983)
Video essay by Polish film expert Michael Brooke
Illustrated booklet with new writing on the films by Ewa Mazierska
Other extras TBC

[charal]

BFI text on website implies HANDS UP is the 1981 (edited) version and not the original longer 1967 cut. This is a pity as is the absence of WALKOVER which was an essential part of the ‘trilogy.’

[swo17]

Has the original cut ever been readily available? The Polish DVD set also only had the later version, and that's all I've ever seen circulating on backchannels. The re-edit is a substantially new work and very engaging in that form (it's partly about the time that passed while the film was suppressed) though the original would of course be of interest as well

[foe1942]

French Malavida released "Hands Up!" on a 2-disc DVD. It includes a sepia 1981 version and the original, longer cut from 1967. I still do not comprehend why "IM:N" is not coupled with "Walkover", hmnn... Anyway, that is great news overall. "Hands Up!" is a monster, one of the strongest late 60s art-house that emerged from Europe. Hopefully, "Bariera" B-R is in the making.

[MichaelB]

Thanks for that tip-off - I had no idea that the 1967 cut had ever been commercially released, so I'll get my hands on that ASAP.

As for Walkover, the rights weren't made available to the BFI.

[foe1942]

"It's also well worth noting that when it comes to Skolimowski, "longer" probably doesn't mean "better"" Well, the original 1967 cut of "hands up!" includes for instance a FULL opening scene (Skolimowski/Leszczyc unbandaging himself / bulbs smooshing) with a longer Komeda jazzy/motorik score. And it is freaking b r e a t h t a k I n g and it is ONE OF THE BEST OPENING SCENES EVER PERIOD. The same scene in a 1981 shorter cut is much less powerful/impactful/tangible ... It would be a real travesty if the upcoming B-R is a shorter cut : |

[MichaelB]

Full specs announced:

IDENTIFICATION MARKS &
HANDS UP!
Two films by Jerzy Skolimowski

BFI 2-disc Blu-ray release on 24 April 2023

See a clip from HANDS UP! here

Presented on Blu-ray for the first time in the UK, these two early features by Jerzy Skolimowski (EO, Deep End) offer a rare insight into the cinematic origins and evolution of one of Europe’s most significant filmmakers.

Skolimowksi himself stars in his 1965 film IDENTIFICATION MARKS: NONE, charting a day in the life of a student, Andrzej Leszczyc, as he prepares for army service. But as Andrzej tries to straighten out his life before his departure, he encounters Barbara. Is she the woman he’s been waiting for?

The fourth in the series of works featuring his celluloid alter ego Andrzej, HANDS UP! finds Skolimowski once again on screen. The film was made in 1967 but banned for 14 years under Poland’s communist regime. Skolimowski later revisited HANDS UP! and added a sequence that explains why it was originally blocked by the censors.

The release of this double disc set follows that of Skolimowski’s most recent film, the Oscar-nominated EO, released on BFI Blu-ray/DVD and on BFI Player as a Subscription Exclusive on 3 April.

A BFI Southbank season dedicated to the director, OUTSIDERS AND EXILES: THE FILMS OF JERZY SKOLIMOWSKI, presented in partnership with the Kinoteka Polish Film Festival, takes place from 27 March – 29 April. It features screenings of films, including DEEP END (1970) (available on BFI Blu-ray/DVD), some of which the director will introduce himself and includes an ‘In Conversation with Jerzy Skolimowski’. In addition to EO, Skolimowski’s films DEEP END, LE DÉPART (1967) and ESSENTIAL KILLING (2010) will also be available on BFI Player from 3 April.

Special features
• Newly recorded audio commentaries on both films by critic and scholar Michał Oleszczyk (2023)
• The Boxing Ichthyologist (2023, 32 mins): writer Michael Brooke introduces us to the early Polish films of Jerzy Skolimowski in this newly commissioned video essay
• Archive interview with Jerzy Skolimowski (1983, audio only, 43 mins): the director discusses his early work in an interview recorded at the BFI’s National Film Theatre
• Stills galleries
***First pressing only*** illustrated booklet with new essays by Ewa Mazierska and David Thompson; 10 films that left their mark on Skolimowski; credits and notes on the special features

Product details
RRP: £29.99 / Cat. no. BFIB1485/ 15
Poland / 1965, 1981 / black and white, colour / 65 minutes, 80 minutes / Polish with optional English language subtitles / original aspect ratios 1.85:1, 1.66:1 // 2 x BD50: 1080p, 24fps, LPCM 2.0 mono audio (48kHz/24-bit)

[MichaelB]

It's also now been confirmed that Second Run will be releasing Walkover and Barrier in the very near future - I don't think they've set the release date in stone yet, but they'll certainly be out several months before the end of the year. Michał Oleszczyk and I are heavily involved with those releases as well - and I can't wait to hear Michał's commentaries on the BFI disc; they're his commentary debuts, but anyone who's seen even one of his video intros will know what a safe pair of hands he is with material like this.

Also, enquiries were made about the 1967 Hands Up!, but it seems that it's with a different rightsholder so it wasn't contractually possible. I'm assuming Studio Kadr (who didn't originally produce it) must have taken over the rights exclusively to the 1981 version when carrying out the restoration, and that this postdated the now ancient Malavida DVD release.

[foe1942]

That is wonderful news Michael! Hopefully, these would be separate releases.
Did you have a chance to speak with Jerzy about "Hands Up!" and "Bariera" during the ongoing Kinoteka PFF?
I assume "Hands Up!" was shot right on the spot, based on a loose screenplay with lots of improvisation involved.
"Bariera" feels like guerilla filmmaking as well, on the other hand, looks quite spectacular and that spectacle must have been, to some extent at least, conjured up prior to shooting I guess.
All in all, Jerzy's talents simply erupted around 1966/67.

[knives]

I haven’t seen it confirmed anywhere, but is this region free or at least A friendly?

[TechnicolorAcid]

I haven’t seen it confirmed anywhere, but is this region free or at least A friendly?

Region B if I remember correctly.

[jheez]

I can confirm it's region B only