The Phantom of Liberty (1974)
Le Fantôme de la liberté
Comedy • 1h 44m
Director: Luis Buñuel
Cast: Adriana Asti, Milena Vukotić, Jean-Claude Brialy, Monica Vitti, Jean Rochefort, Michel Piccoli, Adolfo Celi, Claude Piéplu, Paul Frankeur, Pierre Maguelon, François Maistre, Marie-France Pisier, Michael Lonsdale, Paul Le Person, Julien Bertheau, Maxence Mailfort, Hélène Perdrière, Pierre-François Pistorio, Pascale Audret, Anne-Marie Deschodt, Bernard Verley, Jenny Astruc, Ellen Bahl, Philippe Brigaud, Philippe Brizard, Agnès Capri, Jean Champion, Jacques Debary, Jean-Michel Dhermay, Pierre Lary, Marius Laurey, Alix Mahieux, Guy Montagné, Bernard Musson, Muni, Jean Mauvais, Marcel Pérès, Jean Rougerie, André Rouyer, Marianne Borgo, Auguste Carrière, Jean Degrave, Orane Demazis, Luis Buñuel
Best video release
Criterion and StudioCanal very similar
About the film
This Surrealist film, with a title referencing the Communist Manifesto, strings together short incidents based on the life of director Luis Buñuel. Presented as chance encounters, these loosely related, intersecting situations, all without a consistent protagonist, reach from the 19th century to the 1970s. Touching briefly on subjects such as execution, pedophilia, incest, and sex, the film features an array of characters, including a sick father and incompetent police officers.
- TSPDT
- 2026: #7242025: #7012024: #7052023: #6662022: #666
Director: Luis Buñuel
Sources: Criterion Forum (opens in a new tab)
Video format: 1080p Blu-ray
Director: Luis Buñuel
StudioCanal 50th Anniversary Blu-ray
Sources: Criterion Forum (opens in a new tab) · caps-a-holic (opens in a new tab)
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
Sources: DVDBeaver (opens in a new tab)
Director: Luis Buñuel
Sources: Criterion Forum (opens in a new tab) · filmlinc.org (opens in a new tab)
4k transfer, no disc https://www.filmlinc.org/nyff2019/films/lage-dor/
Sources: Criterion Forum (opens in a new tab)
StudioCanal has 4k, good encode, accuracy of the color grading is debatable vs Criterion
Sources: Criterion Forum (opens in a new tab)
Director: Stanley Kubrick
Sources: Criterion Forum (opens in a new tab) · slow.pics (opens in a new tab)
The 4K discs in both Criterion and Imprint sets are FiM encodes, but low-passed. The compression is better, but some of the grain is lost. Difference is pronounced in screen caps, but not likely to be noticed during playback, without a reference to compare it to. Comparisons
All discs use the same source transfer. It's not of the highest quality, and it includes some slight distortion, looping, clicks, pops, and hum. Criterion cleaned it up for their release, but unfortunately also lost a lot of fidelity in the process.
MGM NTSC DVD doesn't seem to have some of the more prominent distortion and has slightly different EQ but is otherwise the same.
Director: Sidney Lumet
Sources: Criterion Forum (opens in a new tab) · slow.pics (opens in a new tab) · Blu-ray.com (opens in a new tab)
1.85:1: Kino Lorber 4K / Capelight 4K
1.66:1: Criterion 4K but low pass filtered
Comparison between the 4Ks, Criterion on the AR choice
Other discs have unnecessary filtering and sound worse, the difference isn't substantial but audible
Director: Stanley Kubrick
Sources: Criterion Forum (opens in a new tab)
Included in the Complete Kubrick box set with FiM encode of the same master from the Universal release without the filtering.
DTS:X mix on Universal 4K Blu-ray most closely approximates original surround mix
Criterion DVD and Universal 4K Blu-ray has additional features not found on the Criterion 4K Blu-ray
Director: Sam Peckinpah
Director: Alfonso Cuarón
Sources: Criterion Forum (opens in a new tab)
Janus and thus Criterion likely to release 4K Blu-ray in 2027
Director: Hal Ashby
Sources: slow.pics (opens in a new tab)
See caps https://slow.pics/c/lVdZaG0W
Sources: Criterion Forum (opens in a new tab) · slow.pics (opens in a new tab)
StudioCanal's 4K release is similar in encode quality, but has significant glitches in multiple frames. See comparisons 9-16 here: https://slow.pics/c/YkSVb3Ey
The pitch of the StudioCanal 4K's English audio is too high
Criterion has more extras than StudioCanal.
Director: Jacques Tati
Sources: Criterion Forum (opens in a new tab)
StudioCanal 4K Blu-ray (part of Jacques Tati boxset releasing December 2026)
More Comedy on Blu-ray
Director: Ernst Lubitsch
4K restoration from Original Camera Negative
Director: Jack Conway
4K restoration from safety preservation elements
4K restoration from safety preservation elements
Director: Jack Conway
4K restoration from safety preservation elements
Director: William Dieterle
4K restoration from Original Camera Negative
Edit history
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Maintained by the community
· last reviewed 1 year ago
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