- Directed by: Wojciech Has
- Cast: Zbigniew Cybulski, Iga Cembrzynska
- Language: Polish with English subtitles
- Year: 1965
- Duration: 175min
- Certificate: 15
- Type: Film
Screening as part of Kinoteka on Tour
During Napoleon’s invasion of Spain, two soldiers discover a strange manuscript at an inn. The book chronicles the adventures of Alfonso van Worden. Alfonso’s passage through the dangerous Sierra Morena mountains is repeatedly interrupted by seemingly random encounters with an assortment of larger-than-life figures. As the soldiers immerse themselves in the script, they become immersed in its endlessly interconnected narrative.
Wojciech Has’ adaptation of Polish novelist Jan Potocki’s magnum opus became a major countercultural favourite during the 1960s, largely due to the patronage of the Grateful Dead’s Jerry Garcia, who regarded the film's narrative waywardness as a kind of cinematic trip. Luis Buñuel and David Lynch were also admirers, while Martin Scorsese and Francis Ford Coppola assisted in the film's restoration and re-release. Despite its length and the slippery challenge of its storytelling, The Saragossa Manuscript is largely a lighthearted work, laden with warm comedy, ribald drama, Gothic atmospherics, and unforgettable imagery.
