Sayat Nova 1968
Probably, besides the cinematic language suggested by Griffith and Eisenstein, the world cinema hasn’t discovered anything revolutionary new until Parajanov’s The Color of Pomegranates. Paradjanov's films also show the influence of Andrei Tarkowsky, a director he greatly admired.

The Colour of Pomegranates is a biography of the great Armenian poet, singer and musician Sayat-Nova. The ‘King of Songs’ wrote is several languages, making him a legend across several countries. Writing and performing at a time of great religious piety (18th century) and a priest himself, he created great romantic and secular works. Parajanov doesn’t attempt to tell the story in a traditional way. Instead, he mixes Sayat-Nova’s writings and his own symbolic (often religious) imagery.
From boyhood discovery of literature, through courtship and monastic life, to eventual death, the film explores not the biographical details of his life, but the spirit of his work through the themes, metaphors, and symbols of which it was crafted.

Director: Sergei Parajanov
Cast: Sofiko Chiaureli, Melkon Alekyan, Spartak Bagashvili
Country: Soviet Union
Genre: Biography, Drama, History, Music

Sayat Nova (1968) Second Sight Limited Edition
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2xBD50 | 1080p AVC | 01:19:44 + 01:12:47 | 41.9 Gb + 37.9 Gb + 3% rec
Language: Armenian
Subtitles: English

It's a miracle in itself that we're able to see the original cut today. The authorities cut Parajanov's film and hired another film-maker (Sergei Yutkevich) to re-cut the film, and this is the release which has been largely screened since. This new restoration is as close to the original as possible.

Extras:

DISC ONE
*** The Film - Armenian Version (The Parajanov's Cut) (79:44)
*** The Film - Russian Version (The Yutkevich's Cut) (72:42)
• Optional annotated commentary on the 'Armenian Cut' by James Steffen, author of 'The Cinema of Sergei Parajanov' and advisor on the new restoration (as subtitles)
• Optional audio commentary on the 'Yutkevich Cut' by Levon Abrahamyan

DISC TWO
• New 2K restoration of Sergei Parajanov's short film 'Kiev Frescoes' (11:40, with optional annotated subtitle commentary by Daniel Bird)
• 'Poetry, Pomegranates and Parajanov: A new appreciation' visual essay by Daniel Bird (9:14)
• 'Pomegranates Rediscovered' Cecilia Penciarelli of Bologna Cineteca on the multi-national efort to save the film (8:40)
• 'Free Parajnov!' Tony Rayns on the campaign to free Parajanov (11:40)
• 'The World is a Window: The Making of the Colour of Pomegranates' documentary (75:59)
• 'Memories About Sayat Nova' Levon Grigoryan's 2006 documentary feature extracts from the rushes (31:33)
• 'Parajanov: A Requiem' documentary (59:06)

Sayat Nova (1968) Criterion Collection
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BD50 + 2xDVD | 1080p AVC, NTSC | 01:20:09 | 46.2 Gb + 10.7 Gb + 3% rec
Language: Armenian
Subtitles: English

Extras:
*** The Film - Armenian Version (The Parajanov's Cut) (80:09)
• New audio commentary by critic, filmmaker, and festival programmer Tony Rayns
• 'The Color of Armenian Land', a rarely seen 1969 documentary by Mikhail Vartanov featuring footage of director Sergei Parajanov at work (16:58)
• New video essay on the film's symbols and references, featuring scholar James Steffen (42:24)
• New interview with Steffen on the production of the film (18:50)
• Documentaries from 1977 (26:12) and 2003 (51:53) on Armenian poet Sayat-Nova and Parajanov
• 'The Last Film' 2015 experimental short documentary by Martiros M. Vartanov (3:13)

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