NOTE: The below Blu-ray captures were taken directly from the Blu-ray disc.

ADDITION: Criterion Blu-ray (March 2020): Criterion have transferred Mikhail Kalatozov's The Cranes are Flying to Blu-ray. It is rendered via a "New 2K digital restoration". The Criterion DVD came out way back in 2002 - it had about 1 5.5 Mbps bitrate. This new 1080P has almost 7X that and the HD presentation is gorgeous. Of course, kudos to the emotive cinematography of Sergey Urusevskiy (I Am Cuba, Letter Never Sent). There may be a shade more information on the side edges and a bit less on the top and bottom as compared to the Criterion DVD. The higher resolution improves upon every facet of the early SD image(s); detail, depth and, obviously, contrast. It, frequently, looks breathtaking on Blu-ray.

NOTE: We have added 39 more large resolution Indicator Blu-ray captures (in lossless PNG format) for DVDBeaver Patrons HERE

On their Blu-ray, Criterion use a linear PCM mono track (24-bit) in the original Russian language. Dialogue is clean and there are some war-related effects plus and amazing score by Moisey Vaynberg (aka 'Mieczysław Weinberg') - from Wikipedia "his music has been increasingly described as "some of the most individual and compelling music of the twentieth century". Weinberg's output was extensive, encompassing 26 symphonies, 17 string quartets, nearly 30 sonatas for various instruments, 7 operas, and numerous film scores.". It supports the film demonstratively in the uncompressed transfer. It's another significant part of the viewing experience. Criterion offer optional English subtitles on their Region 'A' / 'B' Blu-ray.

The Criterion Blu-ray includes a new, 19-minute, interview with scholar Ian Christie on why the film is considered such a landmark. Filmed by Criterion in September 2019, Christie explains the delicate sociopolitical context in which The Cranes Are Flying was released and how it represents such a turning point in Soviet cinema. There is an 11-minute audio interview with director Mikhail Kalatozov. It is from an interview with the director that was conducted by film critic Gideon Bachmann in July 1961, at the second Moscow International Film Festival. Hurricane Kalatozov, is a 1 1/4-hour documentary from 2009 on the Georgian director’s complex relationship with the Soviet government. Directed by Patrick Cazals, this illuminates the inventiveness of Kalatozov's films to, often, circumvent the demands of the communist government. Included is a 19-minute segment from a 2008 program on Sergei Urusevsky about the film’s cinematography, featuring original storyboards and an interview with actor Alexei Batalov . It features the cinematographer's drawings for The Cranes Are Flying, along with interviews with his daughter, Inga Urusevskaya. There is the 2001 interview with filmmaker Claude Lelouch on the film’s French premiere at the 1958 Cannes Film Festival. In this brief interview of less than 5-minutes Lelouch recalls visiting Moscow during the filming of The Cranes Are Flying and his instrumental role in getting the film to play at the 1958 Cannes Film Festival. The package contains a liner notes booklet with an essay by critic Chris Fujiwara.

The Cranes are Flying is an absolute masterpiece and Mikhail Kalatozov's film was far overdue to reach Blu-ray status. Nice to have the new extras and this is 'must-own' territory and has our absolute highest recommendation! 

Gary Tooze