Second Time Around

"Master Storyteller: A Tribute to Wojciech Has"
The Pacific Film Archive's retrospective of the work of Polish director Wojciech J. Has is something of a historic cinematic event. Has is known in this country primarily for The Saragossa Manuscript and The Sandglass, but most of his works have never screened here before. The 11-film series includes all but a few of his 14 or so movies. As a bonus, Has will appear in person at this week's screening of The Saragossa Manuscript and his first feature, The Noose. Often freely adapting unusual texts, Has' films are uniquely cinematic and never simply illustrated literature. The vagaries of time and space are explored through works that are both baroque in design and intimate in feeling. Shown complete in a newly restored director's cut with an additional 30 minutes, The Saragossa Manuscript (1964; screening Thursday, Oct. 2, at 7 p.m.) has to be among the most elaborate narratives ever devised, a story-within-a-story phantasmagoria on the curious adventures of a 17th-century nobleman. The film is full of humor and surprise, lighthearted fancy and spooky cabalistic musings. The Noose (1957; screening Friday, Oct. 3, at 7 p.m.) was Has' film debut; it features Gustaw Holoubek as a desperate alcoholic bent on suicide. And Farewells (1958; screening Friday, Oct. 3, at 9:20 p.m.) is a humorous drama about the relationship between a rebellious upper-class student and a cynical taxi driver, separated then reunited after World War II.

-- Steve Mobia

"Master Storyteller: A Tribute to Wojciech Has" begins Thursday, Oct. 2, and then runs Fridays and Sundays in October at the Pacific Film Archive, 2625 Durant (at College) in Berkeley. For a complete schedule, see Reps Etc., Page 80. Tickets are $5.50, $1.50 more for an additional feature. Call (510) 642-1124 for more information.