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BFI Releasing Jerzy Skolimowski's EO

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  • BFI Releasing Jerzy Skolimowski's EO

    Press release!

    EO

    A film by Jerzy Skolimowski

    BFI Blu-ray/DVD, DTO and BFI Player SVOD Exclusive release on 3 April 2023



    EO, a grey donkey with melancholic eyes and a curious spirit, begins his life as a circus performer before escaping on a trek across the Polish and Italian countryside. During his travels, he encounters an eclectic cast of characters, including a countess, a young Italian priest and a riotous Polish football team. An equine hero, EO boldly points out societal ills and serves as warning of the dangers of neglect and inaction, all while on a quest for freedom.

    Directed by Jerzy Skolimowski, the veteran Polish director (Deep End, The Shout), EO won the Jury Prize at the 2022 Cannes Film Festival, before being nominated for Best International Feature at the 2023 Academy Awards.

    The release of EO comes alongside the BFI release of two more Skolimowski features: IDENTIFICATION MARKS: NONE (1965) and HANDS UP! (1981) will be presented together on a 2-disc Blu-ray on 24 April.

    In addition, OUTSIDERS AND EXILES: THE FILMS OF JERZY SKOLIMOWSKI, a BFI Southbank season dedicated to the director, presented in partnership with the Kinoteka Polish Film Festival, takes place from 27 March – 29 April. It will feature screenings of films, including DEEP END (available on BFI Blu-ray/DVD), some of which the director will introduce himself and will include ‘In Conversation with Jerzy Skolimowski’ on 28 March. A selection of films will also be available on BFI Player and EO will be available exclusively to BFI Player subscribers.

    Special features
    • Jerzy Skolimowski & Ewa Piaskowska on the making of EO (2022, 27 mins): director Jerzy Skolimowski and co-writer Ewa Piaskowska discuss the making of EO at the New York Film Festival
    • Skolimowski A to Ż (2023, 53 mins): an alphabetical journey through the work of Jerzy Skolimowski with writer Michael Brooke
    • High Rise Donkey (1980, 56 mins): in this Children’s Film Foundation adventure, three children who live in a tower block try to save a donkey from small-time crooks
    • The Clown and His Donkey (1910, 4 mins): rare silhouette animation by Charles Armstrong depicting a clown doing tricks with his donkey Charles Armstrong depicting a clown doing tricks with his donkey
    • UK trailer and assorted teasers
    • ***First pressing only*** illustrated booklet with an essay by Ewa Mazierska, an interview with Jerzy Skolimowski & Ewa Piaskowska by David Thompson and a film review by Christina Newland for Sight and Sound; credits and notes on the special features

    Product details
    RRP: £19.99 / Cat. no. BFIB1484 / 15
    Poland, Italy / 2022 / colour / 88 mins / Polish and Italian, with optional English language subtitles / original aspect ratio 1.43:1 // BD50: 1080p, 24fps, 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio, PCM 2.0 stereo audio DVD9: PAL, 25fps, 5.1 surround audio (48kHz/24-bit), Dolby Digital 2.0 stereo audio (48kHz/16-bit)

    Pre-order EO from the BFI Shop:
    https://shop.bfi.org.uk/eo-dual-format-edition.html

    BFI Blu-ray/DVD releases can be ordered from home entertainment online retailers or from the BFI Shop at https://shop.bfi.org.uk/

    About the BFI
    We are a cultural charity, a National Lottery distributor, and the UK’s lead organisation for film and the moving image.
    Our mission is:
    ● To support creativity and actively seek out the next generation of UK storytellers
    ● To grow and care for the BFI National Archive, the world’s largest film and television archive
    ● To offer the widest range of UK and international moving image culture through our programmes and festivals - delivered online and in venue
    ● To use our knowledge to educate and deepen public appreciation and understanding
    ● To work with Government and industry to ensure the continued growth of the UK’s screen industries

    Founded in 1933, the BFI is a registered charity governed by Royal Charter.
    The BFI Board of Governors is chaired by Tim Richards.

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  • #2
    Not the kind of donkey film that I'm used to. I liked Deep End, but am clueless about the rest of his output (other than acting in Eastern Promises).
    I'm bitter, I'm twisted, James Joyce is fucking my sister.

    Comment


    • #3
      I recently watched his film THE SHOUT for the first time. It's really interesting. I think it was on Amazon prime (at least it was in Canada).
      Why would anybody watch a scum show like Videodrome? Why did you watch it, Max?

      Comment


      • #4
        The Shout is on the Criterion Channel in the US.

        Comment


        • #5
          Originally posted by Derrick King View Post
          The Shout is on the Criterion Channel in the US.
          I'd be curious to know the quality of the version they're streaming. The one I watched looked horrible, like a really early DVD.
          Why would anybody watch a scum show like Videodrome? Why did you watch it, Max?

          Comment


          • #6
            Originally posted by agent999 View Post
            Not the kind of donkey film that I'm used to. I liked Deep End, but am clueless about the rest of his output (other than acting in Eastern Promises).
            I also really liked DEEP END but haven't seen anything else of his. This looks pretty interesting.
            I don't go to church. Kneeling bags my nylons.

            Comment


            • #7
              Based soley on 'Deep End' and 'The Shout', Skolimowski is clearly a fascinating director, and it's great that he's still working.

              I've felt guilty for years about not bothering to check out his more recent films, but... I'm not sure this donkey one is really going to get me on-board. Instead maybe I'll finally go back to that one he made a few years ago about Vincent Gallo running through the woods or whatever...

              EDIT: 'Essential Killing' (2010) - that's the one I mean.
              BW Haggar
              Senior Member
              Last edited by BW Haggar; 03-16-2023, 10:35 AM.
              https://breakfastintheruins.blogspot.com/
              http://stereosanctity.blogspot.com/

              Comment


              • #8
                Originally posted by Matt H. View Post

                I'd be curious to know the quality of the version they're streaming. The one I watched looked horrible, like a really early DVD.
                I'll try to check it out this weekend. Did the Amazon stream open with the Criterion & Janus Films logos?

                Comment


                • #9
                  Originally posted by Derrick King View Post

                  I'll try to check it out this weekend. Did the Amazon stream open with the Criterion & Janus Films logos?
                  I don't believe so. I probably would've been more shocked at the quality of the stream if it did.
                  Why would anybody watch a scum show like Videodrome? Why did you watch it, Max?

                  Comment


                  • #10
                    Thanks. The version that is streaming on the Criterion Channel apparently does open with the Criterion/Janus logos.

                    Comment


                    • #11
                      I got to see EO during it's brief engagement in theaters. Definitely worth a look. My piece on it:

                      Acclaimed Director Jerzy Skolimowski's (Deep End, Moonlighting) latest is about Eo, a circus performer who gets cast aside when the show suddenly closes. The only one who seems to care is Eo's onstage co-star, Kasandra (Sandra Drzymalska). Eo is a donkey.

                      Skolimowski doesn't try to overly anthropomorphize Eo, nor frame angles from the creature's POV. The camera simply observes Eo (played by six donkeys of both sexes) as it gets bounced from one situation to the next as the critter interacts with people along its path. Cinematographer Michael Dymek and his team create an intense mood as the camera tracks, glides and comes in close to approximate the world as Eo experiences it. A red filter is utilized in several of the night-time scenes giving them an ominous, spectral feel. Pawel Mykietyn's synthesized score adds to the surreal atmosphere.

                      Eo always is seen from the perspective of where a donkey falls on the food chain. The humans are clearly viewed as the real “animals”. An easy target, perhaps, but, usually justified under the circumstances. The other beasts are treated just as carelessly, with one sequence in a pound showing the true terror in their eyes. At one point Eo observes a robotic quadruped slinking and slithering through the night in the brush. It would be nightmare fuel for a person, never mind a scared lonely donkey.

                      The one major miscalculation is when Skolimowski departs from Eo's perspective to observe some soccer hooligans and later, Isabelle Huppert in a Sicilian villa. Eo is present, but, pushed aside. The scenes have some thematic connections, but, they break the spell.

                      Fortunately, Eo is such a compelling and lovable animal that the diversions are only momentary. It's an admirable and gripping adventure.

                      Comment


                      • #12
                        Originally posted by Matt H. View Post

                        I'd be curious to know the quality of the version they're streaming. The one I watched looked horrible, like a really early DVD.
                        I checked out a few minutes of the Criterion Channel stream last night, and unfortunately it appeared to be standard def. So I guess it'll be a while before it gets a disc release.

                        Comment


                        • #13
                          This is getting a domestic release from Janus Films Contemporaries in October.

                          https://www.criterion.com/films/33481-eo
                          Rock! Shock! Pop!

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                          • #14
                            This is one of my favourite new movies I've seen this year. It's a glorious visual poem and a perfect 88 minutes. It reminded me of Terence Malick circa TREE OF LIFE.
                            Why would anybody watch a scum show like Videodrome? Why did you watch it, Max?

                            Comment


                            • #15
                              Originally posted by JoeS View Post
                              The one major miscalculation is when Skolimowski departs from Eo's perspective to observe some soccer hooligans and later, Isabelle Huppert in a Sicilian villa. Eo is present, but, pushed aside. The scenes have some thematic connections, but, they break the spell.
                              The soccer hooligan sequence worked fine for me, but I agree that the Huppert scene was completely out of place. I'm not sure what the point of that scene was. The cynic in me feels like they wanted a little star power just to entice people, but who knows?

                              Why would anybody watch a scum show like Videodrome? Why did you watch it, Max?

                              Comment

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