"Director: Mikhail Kalatozov"

• The Cranes Are Flying (1957) (CRITERION COLLECTION) UK Only | Blu Ray | (13/04/2020) from £21.65   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £N/A

  This landmark film by the virtuosic MIKHAIL KALATOZOV (Letter Never Sent) was heralded as a revelation in the post-Stalin Soviet Union and the international cinema community alike. It tells the story of Veronica and Boris, a couple who are blissfully in love until the eruption of World War II tears them apart. With Boris at the front, Veronica must try to ward off spiritual numbness and defend herself from the increasingly forceful advances of her beau's draft-dodging cousin. Winner of the Palme d'Or at the 1958 Cannes Film Festival, The Cranes Are Flying is a superbly crafted drama with impassioned performances and viscerally emotional, gravity defying cinematography by Kalatozov's regular collaborator SERGEI URUSEVSKY (I Am Cuba). Special Features New 2K digital restoration, with uncompressed monaural soundtrack on the Blu-ray New interview with scholar Ian Christie on why the film is a landmark of Soviet cinema Audio interview from 1961 with director Mikhail Kalatozov Hurricane Kalatozov, a documentary from 2009 on the Georgian director's complex relationship with the Soviet government Segment from a 2008 program about the film's cinematography, featuring original storyboards and an interview with actor Alexei Batalov Interview from 2001 with filmmaker Claude Lelouch on the film's French premiere at the 1958 Cannes Film Festival New English subtitle translation PLUS: An essay by critic Chris Fujiwara

• I Am Cuba (Soy Cuba) | DVD | (03/04/2006) from £11.59   |  Saving you £3.40 (29.34%)   |  RRP £14.99

  I Am Cuba is an epic poem to Communist kitsch - a dramatic journey though the decadence of Batista Havana set against the grinding poverty and oppression of the Cuban people. In the four short stories showing the rise of the revolution Kalatozov's astonishingly acrobatic and groundbreaking camera work takes the viewer on a sweeping ride encompassing bathing beauties landless peasants and student revolutionaries. The film was rediscovered and presented by directors Francis Ford Coppola and Martin Scorcese at the Sundance and Cannes film festivals to critical acclaim. I Am Cuba will change your view of cinema forever...

• I Am Cuba (Soy Cuba) 2xDVD BOXSET | DVD | (22/06/2007) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £22.99

  I Am Cuba (1964): Filmed by great Russian director Mikhail Kalatozov during 1963-4 I am Cuba (or Soy Cuba) is an epic poem to Communist Kitsch - a dramatic journey through the decadence of Batista's Havana and the grinding poverty and oppression of the Cuban people. In the four stories showing the rise of the revolution Kalatozov's astonishing acrobatic and groundbreaking camera work takes the viewer on a sweeping ride encompassing bathing beauties landless peasants and student revolutionaries. Siberian Mammoth (2005): Vincente Ferraz's documentary unearths the truth behind why SOY CUBA was rejected by Cubans and Soviets alike upon its release and shelved for more than 30 years. Through a combination of breathtaking footage from the Cuban revolution interviews with surviving Soviet and Cuban cast and crew members this documentary provides us with insights into the ideology of the Cold War the recent history of Cuba and the complete story behind I Am Cuba.

• The Cranes Are Flying | DVD | (05/12/2011) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £15.99

  This moving WW2 drama deservedly won the 1958 Cannes Palme d'Or and reintroduced Soviet cinema to the outside world as well as being a huge domestic box office hit. The film looks at the impact of the war on the participants: the lovers who fail to say their farewells prior to Boris's departure through unfortunate circumstances; his surgeon father who has to continue caring for his patients and the shifty cousin trying to avoid the conflict altogether.

• The Cranes Are Flying (Region 2) | DVD | (29/01/2007) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £19.99

  This moving WW2 drama deservedly won the 1958 Cannes Palme d'Or and reintroduced Soviet cinema to the outside world as well as being a huge domestic box office hit. Veronica (Tatiana Samoilova who won the Best Actress Award in Cannes for the role) is madly in love with her fianc Boris (Alexei Batalov) who departs for the front to do his patriotic duty for the war effort. The film looks at the impact of the war on the participants: the lovers who fail to say their farewells prior to Boris' departure through unfortunate circumstances; his surgeon father who has to continue caring for his patients; and the shifty cousin trying to avoid the conflict altogether. The story unravels to depict a poignant portrayal of blameless individuals doing their best to survive the travails of tragedy and hardship. The film's compelling narrative is complemented by brilliant cinematography which was way ahead of its time.