Founded in 1933, the British Film Institute is a London charity that runs the BFI National Archive and publishes Blu-rays for the UK market. Releases lean on archive restorations of British cinema, silent film, documentary and world classics, usually with booklets and short films as extras. The BFI Flipside line, launched in 2009, revives overlooked British films, and UHD discs began with The Seventh Seal in 2021.
BFI
149 films on Best BluraysBest video release: 19 in 4K125 in HD4 in SD1 with no official release3 more for audio only2 more announced
Best 4K release by tier:
- Excellent13
- Solid3
- Disappointing2
Films where BFI's release is the pick. How picks are made
125 of 149 films match · Page 4 of 7
Films where BFI's release is the pick. How picks are made
Best English-Friendly, Video & Audio:
BFI Blu-ray
Sources: Criterion Forum (opens in a new tab)
Video Notes:
Strong VDMS encode of a 4K scan.
No comparisons available against France Potemkine or Japan IVC. They are presumably from the same master, but do not feature English subs.
Audio Notes:
TBD: BFI Blu-ray’s mono sounds clean. No hiss but not noticeably muffled/filtered either. No known comparisons against older releases.
Best English-Friendly & Video:
BFI Blu-ray
Sources: Criterion Forum (opens in a new tab)
Upcoming Release:
StudioCanal 4K Blu-ray (part of Jacques Tati boxset releasing December 2026)
Director: John Cassavetes
Best English-Friendly & Audio:
BFI Blu-ray
Sources: Criterion Forum (opens in a new tab) · DVDBeaver (opens in a new tab)
Director: Pier Paolo Pasolini
Best English-Friendly & Video:
2019 BFI Blu-ray
Sources: Criterion Forum (opens in a new tab)
Best English-Friendly & Video:
BFI Chantal Akerman: Volume 2 Blu-ray
Best English-Friendly & Video:
BFI Chantal Akerman: Volume 2 Blu-ray
Best English-Friendly:
BFI Blu-ray or OOP fixed Image Entertainment Blu-ray
Sources: Criterion Forum (opens in a new tab)
Best Video:
1925 silent version: BFI Blu-ray for HD reconstruction (complete 1925 print is lost)
1929 silent version: OOP fixed Image Entertainment Blu-ray
1930 sound version: 2003 Image Entertainment DVD (excellent transfer, but severely compromised by indiscriminate over-use of the restoration process)
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/
Directors: Robert Siodmak & Edgar G. Ulmer
Best English-Friendly:
BFI vs Criterion?
Sources: Criterion Forum (opens in a new tab)
Director: Jacques Tati
Best English-Friendly:
Criterion for 1949 and 1964, BFI for 1964 English Variant and 1994/5
Sources: Criterion Forum (opens in a new tab)
Directors: Anthony Asquith & A.V. Bramble
Best English-Friendly & Video:
BFI Blu-ray
Video Notes:
(sold through Kino Lorber in US)
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