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Él (1953)
Él (1953) poster

Él (1953)

Drama, Thriller, Romance • 1h 31m

Director: Luis Buñuel

Criterion 4K in November

Video format

4K Streaming

Best English-friendly & video release · updated 1 year ago

Overview

Gloria encounters Francisco, a man whose social veneer betrays a truer self burrowed underneath.

Release details

TSPDT
2026: #368
2025: #355
2024: #346
2023: #339
2022: #339
Length
91 mins
Type
Movie
Alternative Titles
This Strange Passion

More from Luis Buñuel

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Director: Luis Buñuel

4K · Solid
Best English-Friendly & Video:

Criterion 4K Blu-ray

Sources: Criterion Forum (opens in a new tab)

Best Audio:

Radiance Blu-ray / Criterion DVD

Additional Info:

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

Director: Luis Buñuel

Video format: 1080p Blu-ray

Best English-Friendly:

DVD 

Sources: film-foundation.org (opens in a new tab)

Best Video:

Japan IVC Blu-ray

Video Notes:

Japan IVC Blu-ray but not English-friendly

Film Foundation has 4k restoration https://www.film-foundation.org/world-cinema but no EN-friendly release yet

Director: Luis Buñuel

Best English-Friendly & Video:

StudioCanal 50th Anniversary Blu-ray

Sources: Criterion Forum (opens in a new tab) · caps-a-holic (opens in a new tab)

Video Notes:

StudioCanal 50th Anniversary Blu-ray uses a newer 4k scan than Criterion Blu-ray or older StudioCanal Blu-ray see https://caps-a-holic.com/c_list.php?c=4373

Director: Luis Buñuel

Best English-Friendly & Video:

US VCI Blu-ray or UK Second Run Blu-ray

Sources: DVDBeaver (opens in a new tab)

Video Notes:

US VCI Blu-ray or UK Second Run Blu-ray share the same 4K restoration transfer and look essentially the same see caps

Best Audio:

2001 R2 Films Sans Frontières DVD

Director: Luis Buñuel

Best English-Friendly & Video:

Radiance Blu-ray

Sources: Criterion Forum (opens in a new tab)

Director: Luis Buñuel

Best English-Friendly:

BFI Blu-ray or unreleased 4K restoration

Sources: Criterion Forum (opens in a new tab) · filmlinc.org (opens in a new tab)

Best Video:

4k transfer, no disc https://www.filmlinc.org/nyff2019/films/lage-dor/ 

Director: Luis Buñuel

4K · Solid
Best English-Friendly & Video:

StudioCanal 4K Blu-ray

Sources: Criterion Forum (opens in a new tab)

Video Notes:

StudioCanal has 4k, good encode, accuracy of the color grading is debatable vs Criterion

Director: Luis Buñuel

Best English-Friendly & Video:

BFI Blu-ray

Sources: Criterion Forum (opens in a new tab)

Director: Luis Buñuel

Video format: 1080p Blu-ray

Best English-Friendly:

Lionsgate DVD

Director: Luis Buñuel

Best English-Friendly & Video:

Radiance Blu-ray

Sources: Criterion Forum (opens in a new tab)

Video Notes:

Radiance Blu-ray is new 4K restoration

More from Criterion

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Director: Michael Mann

4K · Excellent
Best English-Friendly & Video:

Arrow 4K Blu-ray

Sources: Criterion Forum (opens in a new tab) · thedigitalbits.com (opens in a new tab) · slow.pics (opens in a new tab)

Video Notes:

Arrow 4K Blu-ray is encoded by FiM and is better than Criterion, see caps https://slow.pics/c/Z2RRQAAT

Criterion 4K Blu-ray vs Blu-ray: caps colors are more different and nuanced than anticipated even in the SDR-converted caps and the usual gain in highlight detail is also apparent. Encode looks excellent except for the brightest areas as usual.

Best Audio:

5.1/5.0 mix (essentially a 4-track mix in 5.1 and 5.0 containers respectively)-Arrow/Criterion 4K Blu-ray. Only imperceptible differences in bit-depth: 20 vs 24. 

2.0 mix- Arrow 4K Blu-ray (original stereo)

Additional Info:

Arrow and Criterion 4K Blu-rays have differing extras 

Criterion has FEL Dolby Vision, Arrow has MEL

Arrow Limited Edition includes the Theatrical Cut Blu-ray from an older HD master, most likely from a 2K scan of an interpositive.

Director: Stanley Kubrick

4K · Excellent
Best English-Friendly & Video:

Criterion 4K Blu-ray (included in the Complete Kubrick box set with FiM encode of the same master from the WB release without the filtering)

Sources: slow.pics (opens in a new tab)

Video Notes:

Comparison between the Criterion and WB.

Best Audio:

5.1: WB 4K Blu-ray, a remix but has higher fidelity

Mono: Criterion 4K Blu-ray (restored for the box set)

Director: Stanley Kubrick

4K · Excellent
Best English-Friendly & Video:

Criterion 4K Blu-ray (included in the Complete Kubrick box set with FiM encode of the same master from the Sony release without the filtering)

Sources: Criterion Forum (opens in a new tab) · slow.pics (opens in a new tab)

Video Notes:

Comparison between Sony and Criterion.

Best Audio:

Mono: 1994 LaserDisc (marginally, unfiltered) or Criterion 4K Blu-ray (filtered)
5.1 Remix: Criterion 4K Blu-ray

Director: Stanley Kubrick

4K · Excellent
Best English-Friendly & Video:

Criterion 4K Blu-ray (included in the Complete Kubrick box set with FiM encode of the same master from the WB release without the filtering)

Sources: slow.pics (opens in a new tab)

Video Notes:

WB 4K early pressing has errors of a shot, later pressings fixed. Comparison between Criterion and WB.

Best Audio:

6-Track 70mm mix: Criterion 4K Blu-ray (restored for the box set), 1997 MGM LaserDisc, 1998 MGM DVD
35mm Mono Mix: Criterion 4K Blu-ray

Matrixed Stereo Remix: MGM Japan LaserDisc (1985) [G158F5509]
5.1 Remix: Criterion 4K Blu-ray

Director: Steve James

Best English-Friendly & Video:

Criterion Blu-ray and UK Dogwoof Blu-ray probably similar

Sources: Criterion Forum (opens in a new tab)

Director: Joel Coen

4K · Disappointing
Best English-Friendly & Video:

Director's Cut: Disappointing UK StudioCanal/US Criterion 4K Blu-ray
Theatrical Cut: LaserDisc or 2001 UK Universal DVD

Sources: Blu-ray.com (opens in a new tab)

Video Notes:

https://forum.blu-ray.com/showthread.php?p=21782879#post21782879 - comparison. StudioCanal is a massive improvement to the Criterion but still flawed in some areas (chroma noise)

Director: Hiroshi Teshigahara

Best English-Friendly & Video:

Criterion Blu-ray

Sources: Criterion Forum (opens in a new tab)

Best Audio:

Criterion DVD

Director: Ingmar Bergman

Best English-Friendly:

BFI Blu-ray

Sources: Criterion Forum (opens in a new tab)

Best Video:

2022 BFI Boxset Blu-ray

Best Audio:

Tartan DVD, Criterion DVD

Director: Ingmar Bergman

Best English-Friendly & Video:

Criterion Blu-ray

Sources: Criterion Forum (opens in a new tab)

Video Notes:

BFI has boosted contrast and crushed blacks

Best Audio:

Tartan DVD

Director: Nicolas Roeg

4K · Disappointing
Best English-Friendly & Video:

Criterion 4K Blu-ray

Sources: Criterion Forum (opens in a new tab)

Video Notes:

Criterion 4K Blu-ray poor compression, otherwise Second Sight has best Blu-ray

More Drama on Blu-ray

Directors: Ethan Coen & Joel Coen

Video format: UHD Blu-ray

Best English-Friendly & Video:

UK StudioCanal UHD

Sources: Criterion Forum (opens in a new tab)

Director: Nicolas Winding Refn

Video format: 1080p Blu-ray

Best English-Friendly:

US Magnolia BD

Audio Notes:

UK Entertainment One release contains directors commentary track

Director: Simon Wells

Video format: 1080p Blu-ray

Best Audio:

Dolby Stereo: THX Certified Laserdisc

Director: Samuel Fuller

Video format: 1080p Blu-ray

Best English-Friendly & Video:

Criterion Blu-Ray

Sources: Criterion Forum (opens in a new tab)

Director: Steve De Jarnatt

Best English-Friendly & Video:

2024 Kino Lorber Blu-ray

Upcoming Release:

UK Transmission 4K Blu-ray in January 2027

Best Audio:

Either the 2015 Kino Lorber Blu-ray or the Arrow Blu-ray

Audio Notes:

The 2024 Kino Lorber Blu-ray is botched.

Director: Maurice Tourneur

Video format: 1080p Blu-ray

Upcoming Release:

VCI Blu-ray Dec 15th

Director: James Kirkwood

Video format: 1080p Blu-ray

Upcoming Release:

VCI Blu-ray Dec 15th

Director: Liliana Cavani

4K · Solid

Director: Iain Softley

4K · Excellent
Best English-Friendly & Video:

Capelight Germany 4K Blu-ray

Sources: slow.pics (opens in a new tab)

Video Notes:

Both 88 Films and Germany Capelight are superior to the Shout! Factory in HDR10 but their FEL layer may even things out. Objectively, the Capelight looks best as they avoided the chroma blocking that’s visible in 88’s disc but they in turn included an Atmos mix. I have the Shout! Factory, love how it looks and the 4K transfer is spectacular. https://slow.pics/c/vPmFQSAH

Best Audio:

88 Films 4K Blu-ray

Additional Info:

Shout! Factory has the exclusive The Beauty of the Baud and the You Can't Stop Us All featurettes.

Director: Akira Kurosawa

4K · Excellent
Best English-Friendly & Video:

BFI 4K Blu-ray

Sources: Criterion Forum (opens in a new tab)

Best Audio:

2015 Star Media Blu-ray/2019 BFI Player WEB-DL

Edit history

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Researched and maintained by

vanshady

· last reviewed 1 year ago

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