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Chronicle of the Years of Fire (1975)
Chronicle of the Years of Fire (1975) poster

Chronicle of the Years of Fire (1975)

Chronique des Années de Braise

Drama, War, History • 2h 57m

Director: Mohammed Lakhdar-Hamina

Cast: Yorgo Voyagis, Leila Shenna, Mohammed Lakhdar-Hamina, Nourredine Meziane (Cheikh Nourredine), Sissani (Mohamed Djediat), Hadj Smaine Mohamed Seghir, Yahia Benmabrouk, Keltoum (Aïcha Adjouri), Sid Ali Kouiret, Nadia Talbi, Areski Nebti, François Maistre, Brahim Hadjadj, Taha El-Amiri

Best video & English-friendly release

Criterion Martin Scorsese’s World Cinema Project No. 5 Blu-ray

Updated 13 days ago


About the film

A meticulous chronicle of the evolution of the Algerian national movement from 1939 until the outbreak of the revolution on November 1, 1954, the film unequivocally demonstrates that the "Algerian War" is not an accident of history, but a slow process of suffering and warlike revolts, uninterrupted, from the start of colonization in 1830, until this "Red All Saints' Day" of November 1, 1954. At its center, Ahmed gradually awakens to political awareness against colonization, under the gaze of his son, a symbol of the new Algeria, and that of Miloud, half-mad haranguer, half-prophet, incarnation of Popular memory of the revolt, the liberation of Algeria and its people.

Alternative Titles
Chronicle of the Years of Embers

Featured in Cannes Palme d’Or Winners

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Director: Apichatpong Weerasethakul

Best Video & English-Friendly:

Strand Releasing Blu-ray vs New Wave Blu-ray?

Additional Info:

New 4K restoration recently screened at Venice Film Festival https://variety.com/2026/film/news/apichatpong-weerasethakuls-4k-restorations-match-factory-1236843949/

Director: Claude Lelouch

4K · Solid
Best Video & English-Friendly:

French Metropolitan 4K Blu-ray

Video Notes:

French Metropolitan 4K Blu-ray has English subtitles and is better than Criterion Blu-ray see caps and comparison

Director: David Lynch

4K · Excellent
Best Video & English-Friendly:

Criterion 4K Blu-ray

Additional Info:

Criterion standard BD encode, sold separately, is not very good

Director: Jerry Schatzberg

Best Video & English-Friendly:

Warner Archive Blu-ray

Director: Quentin Tarantino

4K · Excellent
Best Video & English-Friendly:

2025 Taiwan Deltamac 4K Blu-ray

Video Notes:

2025 Taiwan Deltamac 4K Blu-ray > US Paramount 4K Blu-ray (Taiwan 4K Blu-ray is not low passed as the US 4K Blu-ray and has better grain and fine detail retention)

Best Audio:

Matrixed Dolby Stereo: 1995 Miramax LaserDisc 2.0

Original 5.1 Discrete Mix: 2012 Japan Warner Bros Blu-ray, 1996 Criterion LaserDisc, 2002 2-Disc Collector’s Edition DVD

5.1 DTS Mix: 1997 Miramax LaserDisc, 2002 2-Disc Collector’s Edition DVD

Director: Francis Ford Coppola

4K · Excellent
Best Video & English-Friendly:

Theatrical Cut: Italy Eagle Pictures 4K Blu-ray
Redux Cut: Lionsgate vs Eagle Pictures?
Final Cut: Lionsgate or Eagle Pictures, both are not great (visible chroma noise)

Best Audio:

Theatrical: Germany 4K Blu-ray/US Blu-ray DD 5.1 (1979 mix)

Additional Info:

In the Lionsgate US/UK 6-disc set, there are 4 discs of the main feature. For whatever reason, the 4K discs lack the *original track. The Germany 4K Blu-ray release is different on this matter.

  1. UBD: Final Cut: Atmos, DD2.0

  2. UBD: Redux/Theatrical: Atmos

  3. BD: Final Cut: Atmos, DD2.0

  4. BD: Redux/Theatrical: Dtru5.1 (Redux mix?), DD5.1 (?), DD5.1 (Theatrical only), DD2.0 (downmix??)

    1. As a result the Theatrical Cut has 4 tracks, The Redux has 3. Differences are unclear.

  5. BD: Hearts of Darkness

  6. BD: Special Features

Director: Bong Joon Ho

4K · Excellent
Best English-Friendly:

UK Artificial Eye 4K Blu-ray

Upcoming Release:

Criterion 4K Blu-ray releasing January 2027

Best Video:

France The Jokers 4K Blu-ray

Video Notes:

France The Jokers 4K Blu-ray has the least DNR (UK Artificial Eye might be similar? Both better than Universal 4K Blu-ray)

Criterion even though doesn’t have 4K, it has the B&W version and a lot of extras.

Director: Henri-Georges Clouzot

4K · Excellent
Best Video & English-Friendly:

Criterion 4K Blu-ray

Video Notes:

Criterion 4K Blu-ray > BFI 4K Blu-ray. caps Criterion presents the master as originally graded in SDR whereas FiM added HDR / Dolby Vision for the BFI.

Best Audio:

1991 Criterion LaserDisc

Audio Notes:

Criterion 4K Blu-ray's audio mix has more detail than BFI’s and same applies to the subtitles, covering both English and France spoken word

Director: Luis Buñuel

4K · Solid
Best Video & English-Friendly:

Criterion 4K Blu-ray

Best Audio:

Radiance Blu-ray / Criterion DVD

Additional Info:

Radiance's audio is ported from the Criterion DVD, see Blah-ray

Director: Jacques Demy

4K · Excellent
Best Video, Audio & English-Friendly:

Criterion 4K Blu-ray

Video Notes:

For Blu-ray Criterion Demy Set > StudioCanal

More from Criterion

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Director: Martin Scorsese

Video format: 4K Streaming

Best Video & English-Friendly:

Criterion Blu-ray

Upcoming Release:

Criterion 4K Blu-ray releasing 16th February 2027

Video Notes:

Netflix has 4K Streaming

Director: Victor Sjöström

Best Video & English-Friendly:

Flicker Alley Blu-ray

Upcoming Release:

Criterion Blu-ray with a new score composed and performed by Matti Bye

Director: Victor Sjöström

Video format: 1080p Blu-ray

Upcoming Release:

Criterion Blu-ray new 2K restoration

Director: Victor Sjöström

Video format: 1080p Blu-ray

Upcoming Release:

Criterion Blu-ray 

  • New 4K digital restoration of the 1928 theatrical-release version, preserved and digitally restored by the MoMA, with original soundtrack

  • New 2K digital restoration of the 1983 variable-frame-rate version, with a score by Carl Davis

Director: Leo McCarey

Best Video & English-Friendly:

2012 MoC Blu-ray or Elephant Films France Blu-ray

Upcoming Release:

Criterion Blu-ray with new 4K restoration

Video Notes:

They are using the same very old HD transfer.

Directors: Joel Coen & Ethan Coen

4K · Excellent
Best Video & English-Friendly:

Criterion 4K Blu-ray

Director: Philip Kaufman

4K · Excellent
Best Video, Audio & English-Friendly:

Criterion 4K Blu-ray

Video Notes:

Criterion 4K Blu-ray is a significant upgrade over previous WB Blu-ray see comparison

Audio Notes:

Criterion for the first time on home video have provided the 70mm 6-track as well as the Dolby stereo which was previously on LaserDisc. Both tracks are unique so included both with the 6-track default. Criterion’s 5.1 remix is lossless compared to the lossy tracks of the previous blu-rays and DVDs.

See comparison

Director: Krzysztof Kieślowski

4K · Solid
Best Video & English-Friendly:

2023 Criterion 4K Blu-ray (bad compression) / Curzon 4K Blu-ray (visible chroma noise and meh compression)

Best Audio:

Miramax DVD?

Director: Roman Polanski

Best Video & English-Friendly:

Criterion Blu-ray

Upcoming Release:

4K restoration screened at Venice Film Festival 2026, though no news on a physical release

Director: Todd Solondz

4K · Solid
Best Video & English-Friendly:

Criterion 4K Blu-ray review

Best Audio:

1999 R1 Trimark DVD

Audio Notes:

The Criterion 4K Blu-ray has audio that, despite being in a lossless codec, is extremely lossily compressed akin to an MP3.

More Drama on Blu-ray

Director: Richard Rush

4K · Excellent
Best Video, Audio & English-Friendly:

Radiance 4K Blu-ray

Video Notes:

> Shout! Factory 4K Blu-ray (FiM encode on Radiance compared to Duplitech encode on Shout! Factory)

Director: Paul Verhoeven

Video format: UHD Blu-ray

4K · Superior Imports
Video Notes:

Capelight/Plaion Media Germany 4K Blu-ray > MUBI UK. Good encode and correct colors on the Germany import

Director: Vincente Minnelli

Best Video & English-Friendly:

WB Blu-ray

Additional Info:

New restoration to be shown at TCM Film Fest

Director: Robert De Niro

4K · Solid
Best Video & English-Friendly:

MVD 4K Blu-ray

Upcoming Release:

2027 FreeWind Media UK 4K Blu-ray 

Director: Joel Coen

4K · Excellent
Best Video & English-Friendly:

UK Arrow 4K Blu-ray

Video Notes:

Shout is still very good but Arrow has the edge due to better handling of highlights and less chroma noise, comparison

Best Audio:

All the same

Director: Joseph Losey

4K · Solid
Best Video & English-Friendly:

StudioCanal 4K Blu-ray

Director: Walerian Borowczyk

4K · Solid
Best Video & English-Friendly:

Radiance 4K Blu-ray

Video Notes:

caps

Director: Francesco Rosi

4K · Excellent
Best Video & English-Friendly:

Indicator 4K Blu-ray

Video Notes:

See caps

Director: Todd Haynes

Video format: UHD Blu-ray

4K · Excellent
Best English-Friendly:

Kino Lorber Blu-ray

Video Notes:

French BubbelPop 4K Blu-ray has EN audio but doesn't have EN subtitles see caps

Caveat of Kino Lorber: "Hero" segment is stretched from 4:3 to 16:9, 1999 Fox Lorber DVD features original framing

Director: John G. Avildsen

4K · Excellent
Best Video & English-Friendly:

Sony boxset or 2024 VHS packaging 4K Blu-ray

Video Notes:

Sony boxsets or 2024 VHS packaging has Dolby Vision, 2019 Sony 4K Blu-ray is HDR10 only.

Best Audio:

Original Stereo mix: Columbia Pictures LaserDisc, Sony 4K Blu-ray (any) 

5.1 remix: Sony 4K Blu-ray, Sony Blu-ray 

Dolby Atmos remix: Sony 4K Blu-ray (any)

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Researched and maintained by

vanshady

· last reviewed 13 days ago

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