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Reviews of silent film releases on home video.
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Un Chien Andalou
(1929)

Luis Buñuel and Salvador Dali’s bizarre surrealist short film is hard to watch for some, and is a fascinating, unhinged masterpiece to others. Good or bad, the film is full of striking images that are hard to forget.

British Film Institute
2011 Blu-ray Disc / DVD edition

L’Age d’or (1930), black & white, 63 minutes, BBFC Classification 15, with Un Chien Andalou (1929), black & white, 16 minutes, BBFC Classification 15,
and A Propósito de Buñuel (2000), color and black & white, 98 minutes, not rated.

British Film Institute,
BFIB1054, UPC 5-035673-01059-4.
One single-sided, dual-layered, Region B Blu-ray Disc, 1.33:1 aspect ratio image in pillarboxed 16:9 (1920 x 1080 pixels) 24fps progressive scan AVC (MPEG-4) format, SDR (standard dynamic range), ? Mbps average video bit rate, ? Mbps audio bit rate, PCM and Dolby Digital 48 kHz 2.0 stereo and mono sound, French language intertitles, optional English language subtitles; chapter stops; and one single-sided, dual-layered, Region 2 PAL DVD disc, 1.33:1 aspect ratio image in full-frame 4:3 (720 x 576 pixels) progressive? scan MPEG-2 format, SDR (standard dynamic range), ? Mbps average video bit rate, ? Kbps audio bit rate, PCM and Dolby Digital 48 kHz 2.0 stereo and mono sound, French language intertitles, optional English language subtitles; chapter stops; standard two-disc BD keepcase; £19.99.
Release date: 30 May 2011.
Country of origin: England

This dual-format Blu-ray Disc / PAL DVD edition presents Un chien Andalou in a new high-definition video transfer, with two music scores including a new commissioned score by Mordant Music and the familiar 1960 vintage ‘tango’ score.

The disc is supplemented by an introduction (DVD only) and audio commentary by author Robert Short, and a feature-length documentary (DVD only) A Propósito de Buñuel on Buñuel, and includes a 30-page booklet.

North American collectors will need a region-free PAL Blu-ray Disc or DVD player capable of outputting an NTSC-compatible signal to view this edition.

United Kingdom: Click to purchase this Region B Blu-ray Disc / PAL DVD edition from Amazon.co.uk. Purchase supports Silent Era.

Transflux Films
2004 DVD edition

Un Chien Andalou (1929), black & white, 17 minutes, not rated.

Transflux Films, no catalog number,
UPC 8-24820-19299-4, ISBN 1-8406-8200-0.
One single-sided, single-layered, Region 0 NTSC DVD disc, 1.33:1 aspect ratio image in full-frame 4:3 (720 x 480 pixels) interlaced scan MPEG-2 format, SDR (standard dynamic range), 6.5 Mbps average video bit rate, ? Kbps audio bit rate, Dolby Digital 48 kHz 2.0 mono sound, French language intertitles, English language subtitles; 5 chapter stops; standard DVD keepcase; $19.95.
Release date: 28 December 2004.
Country of origin: USA

Ratings (1-10): video: 5 / audio: 5 / additional content: 7 / overall: 6.

This DVD edition has been mastered from an English-subtitled print sourced from the 1960 Les Grands Film Classiques sound version, which is commonly utilized for home video editions of Un chien Andalou. As with others, this edition is compromised by the tight framing, and contrasty and grainy images of the source print.

The disc’s supplementary material includes “A Slice of Buñuel,” a video interview/documentary with Buñuel’s son Juan-Luis (16 minutes), a bonus interview with Juan-Luis Buñuel on Salvador Dali and Luis Buñuel (5 minutes), audio commentary by Spanish surrealism expert Stephen Barber, a two-page abridged transcript of a Bunuel speech from 1953, and “Dave McKean: Graphic design and statement,” images and text.

USA: Click the logomark to purchase this Region 0 NTSC DVD edition from Amazon.com. Your purchase supports Silent Era.

Canada: Click the logomark to purchase this Region 0 NTSC DVD edition from Amazon.ca. Your purchase supports Silent Era.

British Film Institute
2004 DVD edition

Un Chien Andalou (1929), black & white, 17 minutes, BBFC Classification 15, with L’Age d’or (1930), black & white, 63 minutes, BBFC Classification 15, and A Propósito de Buñuel (2000), color and black & white, 98 minutes, not rated.

British Film Institute,
unknown catalogue number, unknown UPC number.
One? single-sided?, dual-layered?, Region 2 PAL DVD disc, 1.33:1 aspect ratio image in full-frame 4:3 (720 x 576 pixels) interlaced scan MPEG-2 format, SDR (standard dynamic range), ? Mbps average video bit rate, ? Kbps audio bit rate, Dolby Digital 48 kHz 2.0 stereo? and mono sound, English? language intertitles, no foreign language subtitles?; chapter stops; standard DVD keepcase; £29.99.
Release date: 25 October 2004.
Country of origin: England

In addition to the two films mentioned on the front cover, this PAL DVD edition presents an introduction and audio commentary by author Robert Short, and a feature-length documentary A Propósito de Buñuel on Buñuel, and includes a 30-page booklet.

North American collectors will need a region-free PAL DVD player capable of outputting an NTSC-compatible signal to view this edition.

This Region 0 NTSC DVD edition is . . .