? about criterion

[Iamspartacus]

Do movies that get put out on criterion such as StageCoach, BottleRocket, Paths of Glory, 12 Angry Men etc. ever get released in a regular bluray edition? Should I hold out in hopes of saving money or do I just need to buy the more expensive criterion and realize it isn't coming out on regular blu? Thanks.

[HyperRealist]

Just buy the Criterion....

[Iamspartacus]

Yeah but I like spending 10 dollars or less on blurays if at all possible.

[Hatter]

Originally Posted by Iamspartacus

Yeah but I like spending 10 dollars or less on blurays if at all possible.

So does everybody. But certain titles are definitely worth splurging a bit more on.

[bdmartin134]

Criterion is very well known for their outstanding transfers. Why not own the pinnacle PQ/AQ, and intelligent commentaries/sp. features of such movies that you name? By the way, I'm pretty sure if you can track down a Barnes & Noble they are selling for $19.99 for majority of the titles. That's well worth it in my opinion..

[steve_dave]

Criterion has exclusive rights to a number of titles in their library. If you want a movie then price shouldn't be an issue. However, there are other avenues although you won't be spending $10 or less. So that option is also pointless.

[Iamspartacus]

Ugh. OK, let me rephrase. Have there been ANY instances in which a bluray came out on Criterion and, at a later time, was rereleased in non criterion form? Thanks.

[MifuneFan]

Only on rare occasion will Criterion lose the rights to something and it'll be released by another studio. That happened with The Third Man for instance, and was released by Lionsgate/Studio Canal shortly after, but the transfer was arguably inferior, and the extras were definitely worse.

Bottom Line: Get the damn Criterion. They're all 50% off at Barnes and Noble right now. Some people here who are BN members have actually gotten coupons to work and have gotten them for around $10 each (8 off 40 + 10% off member discount)

[koover]

Originally Posted by bdmartin134

Criterion is very well known for their outstanding transfers. Why not own the pinnacle PQ/AQ, and intelligent commentaries/sp. features of such movies that you name? By the way, I'm pretty sure if you can track down a Barnes & Noble they are selling for $19.99 for majority of the titles. That's well worth it in my opinion..

Yep....agreed
These are some of the best transfers in the biz. Plus the supplemental features are outstanding. Sometimes ya just gotta splurge and go for it.

[koover]

Originally Posted by hariseldon

Only on rare occasions has it happened when another studio will rescind it's Criterion license and release the movie itself -- The Third Man is probably the best known when Studio Canal went rogue and released an incredibly inferior product. The Third Man is now on the collectors/speculators circuit and routinely fetches $100+ new.

Other side there are a few times (ex. Traffic and Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas) when there is a studio Bluray out and the Criterion comes out later with it's Deluxe edition.

If you time the Criterion sales at BN and are creative (or bit lucky) you can get the regular priced discs at $10-15 new. This sale my average price for a new disc has been a bit under $14.

Do you own a few Criterions or what

[jrmac2000]

I have to agree. Just find a way to get the Criterion edition. It is always a definitive or at least a near definitive version of the film. I must caution you though, Criterion can be very addictive!

[MifuneFan]

Originally Posted by jrmac2000

I have to agree. Just find a way to get the Criterion edition. It is always a definitive or at least a near definitive version of the film. I must caution you though, Criterion can be very addictive!

I've managed to keep my addiction to a minimum by having no sort of ambition and thus remaining poor

[Show spoiler]

[wilky61]

Originally Posted by Iamspartacus

Ugh. OK, let me rephrase. Have there been ANY instances in which a bluray came out on Criterion and, at a later time, was rereleased in non criterion form? Thanks.

It has happened a couple times. Universal Studios has released Blu-Rays for Traffic, Fear & Loathing in Las Vegas, etc.

Back in the old DVD days, there was a Universal Studios release for Rushmore as well as Brazil.

They are almost always inferior to the Criterion releases, though.... maybe the old SE DVD release of Silence of the Lambs was superior to the Criterion DVD for the same movie... but that was one of the very first Criterion DVDs and the SE DVD (MGM? I forget the studio) came out years later...


Long story short: Just buy the Criterion if you like the movie.

[HyperRealist]

Traffic, Fear and Loathing and Dazed and Confused were out BEFORE the Criterion.

[vdc530]

Originally Posted by Iamspartacus

Ugh. OK, let me rephrase. Have there been ANY instances in which a bluray came out on Criterion and, at a later time, was rereleased in non criterion form? Thanks.

Yes. Absolutely.

$10 is a lot of money. Shit, I can feed myself the entire day with $10, so how in the world can I justify putting that same $10 towards a Criterion? Because buying a Criterion is like sex for the first time, every time. Sure you can walk into a car dealership and haggle for a better price on a Hyundai like an *******, but for $10 more you can glide in like Jesus and shit on the common people as you step inside an all black 500 Benz. Ok, you probably won't go through all the trouble I do to buy a Criterion, but aside from the experience, the question is do you want to be stuck with a Hyundai or a Mercedes?

[MifuneFan]

Originally Posted by HyperRealist

Traffic, Fear and Loathing and Dazed and Confused were out BEFORE the Criterion.

As mentioned already by hariseldon...

[aggienader08]

I think you prolly didnt have to start a new thread in order to ask this simple question, however I'm glad you didn't post this in the Criterion thread because you might've been eaten alive.

To the OP: when criterion releases a film without a prior release that usually means they have the distribution rights to the film. However, there are many titles that are owned by some major studios that receive treatment of their own before Criterion is granted access to them. So what I'm telling you is that you should just go ahead a buy the Criterion of the films you listed because chances are very slim you won't be seeing them distributed by anyone else in the near or distant future.

[TJS_Blu]

AFAIK, it hasn't happened on the Hi-Def front other than the Studio Canal titles. Regardless of whether you think the CC version is superior or equal or even inferior, the Studio Canal release has an Amazon history low price that was more expensive than I paid for the in-print CC.

There aren't too many examples that I can think of that haven't been mentioned on the Std Def front either, MGM's Hitchcocks were around ten bucks...

I do enjoy the thrill of a bargain, but sometimes (waiting for a CC title to be offered by a different studio for less than 10 dollars) unlikely events = diminishing returns. Of course, if all you have is ten bucks, you don't have many choices, ebay, 2nd hand, etc.

[BohemianGraham]

MoC and BFI over in the UK also offer cheaper alternates for Criterions, that is if you buy a region free player.

But for the titles listed by the OP, doesn't look like they'll be getting cheap NA releases. Some of them have been out under Criterion for over 4 years now.

[MifuneFan]

Originally Posted by BohemianGraham

MoC and BFI over in the UK also offer cheaper alternates for Criterions, that is if you buy a region free player.

But for the titles listed by the OP, doesn't look like they'll be getting cheap NA releases. Some of them have been out under Criterion for over 4 years now.

I wouldn't say that's really much of a cheaper option. More than likely you'll pay more to import it than getting the Criterion version from the B&N sale, and the extra are more than likely inferior too.