The Poster Art of Hans Hillmann
By May 12, 2014
Film Info
- Poland
- 1958
- 103 minutes
- Black and White
- 1.66:1
- Polish
- Spine #285
On the last day of World War II in a small town somewhere in Poland, Polish exiles of war and the occupying Soviet forces confront the beginning of a new day and a new Poland. In this incendiary environment we find Home Army soldier Maciek Chelmicki, who has been ordered to assassinate an incoming commissar. But a mistake stalls his progress and leads him to Krystyna, a beautiful barmaid who gives him a glimpse of what his life could be. Gorgeously photographed and brilliantly performed, Ashes and Diamonds masterfully interweaves the fate of a nation with that of one man, resulting in one of the most important Polish films of all time.
Cast
| Maciek Chelmicki | Zbigniew Cybulski |
| Krystyna | Ewa Krzyzewska |
| Szczuka | Waclaw Zastrzezynski |
| Andrzej | Adam Pawlikowski |
| Drewnowski | Bogumil Kobiela |
| Porter | Jan Ciecierski |
| Pieniazek | Stanislaw Milski |
| Kotowicz | Artur Mlodnicki |
| Mrs. Staniewicz | Halina Kwiatkowska |
| Major Florian | Ignacy Machowski |
| Slomka | Zbigniew Skowronski |
| Stefka | Barbara Krafftowna |
Credits
| Director | Andrzej Wajda |
| Screenplay | Andrzej Wajda and Jerzy Andrzejewski |
| Cinematography | Jerzy Wojcik |
| Editing | Halina Nawrocka |
| Based on the novel by | Jerzy Andrzejewski |
| Sound | Bogdan Bienkowski |
| Music conducted by | Filip Nowak |
| Production design | Roman Mann |
| Camera | Krzsztof Winiewicz, Bogdan Myslinski, Jerzy Szurowski, Zygmunt Krusznicki and Wieslaw Zdort |
Disc Features
SPECIAL EDITION FEATURES
- New, restored high-definition digital transfer
- Audio commentary by film scholar Annette Insdorf
- Andrzej Wajda: On Ashes and Diamonds, a 35-minute exclusive new interview with the director, second director Janusz Morgenstern, and film critic Jerzy Plazewski
- Vintage newsreel footage on the making of Ashes and Diamonds
- Rare behind-the-scenes production photos, publicity stills, and posters
- New and improved English subtitle translation
- PLUS: A new essay by film scholar Paul Coates
Current Posts
Photo Galleries
Film Essays
Ashes and Diamonds
By April 15, 2005
Ashes and Diamonds has rightly been lauded as one of the finest of postwar East-Central European films, and the most vital work of the Polish School. It is salutary, however, to remember how . . . Read more »
Film Essays
Ashes and Diamonds
By November 15, 1994
Andrzej Wajda’s third full-length film, Ashes and Diamonds (Popiol y diament) established the director as a leader of the new Polish cinema. Set in a provincial town on May 8, 1945, the day of . . . Read more »
Film Essays
Ashes and Diamonds
By April 15, 2005
Ashes and Diamonds has rightly been lauded as one of the finest of postwar East-Central European films, and the most vital work of the Polish School. It is salutary, however, to remember how . . . Read more »
Film Essays
Ashes and Diamonds
By November 15, 1994
Andrzej Wajda’s third full-length film, Ashes and Diamonds (Popiol y diament) established the director as a leader of the new Polish cinema. Set in a provincial town on May 8, 1945, the day of . . . Read more »
Photo Galleries
Dispatches
Flashback: Andrzej Wajda
By September 30, 2013
The author describes his interactions with the great Polish filmmaker. Read more »
Film Essays
Ashes and Diamonds
By April 15, 2005
Ashes and Diamonds has rightly been lauded as one of the finest of postwar East-Central European films, and the most vital work of the Polish School. It is salutary, however, to remember how . . . Read more »
Film Essays
Ashes and Diamonds
By November 15, 1994
Andrzej Wajda’s third full-length film, Ashes and Diamonds (Popiol y diament) established the director as a leader of the new Polish cinema. Set in a provincial town on May 8, 1945, the day of . . . Read more »
