The Criterion Collection

[Jafar]

After years of hopelessly waiting for a proper edition of the film, I finally managed to get a copy of the Spanish limited edition for an inflated price just last week, so I wouldn’t be surprised if an announcement comes tomorrow.

Originally Posted by dex14

It's on the Criterion Channel and opens with the Criterion and Janus logos.

[Watershipdownisgood]

Hmmmmm..... revised guesses
Hud
The English Patient
Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore
Pee Wees Big Adventure
Dog Day Afternoon
Red Beard
Captain Blood
Kiss of the Spider Woman
Yi Yi 4K
Eclipse Series 6 Ernest Lubitsch Musicals

Honestly, I could see this list of titles being the lineup for December.

Cloud for Criterion Premieres such a stupid name change no offense I personally don't like the name change

[DimitriL]

Originally Posted by Watershipdownisgood

That still makes me think though what about the fact there's so many Robert Altman films on the channel right now it's really peculiar. There's like 20 of his films on there doesn't anyone besides me find that particularly bizarre.

There's a curated Robert Altman spotlight happening right now.

[Watershipdownisgood]

Originally Posted by DimitriL

There's a curated Robert Altman spotlight happening right now.

I know, but what I'm wondering is does it mean a Blu-Ray box set, or nothing at all. I'm personally leaning more towards at this point nothing at all. Even though these titles that are on the channel currently stand out like a sore thumb. That being Quintet, Gosford Park, California Split, and a few others. California Split, Gosford Park, and Quintet standing out the most to me.

Even though I'm skeptical of this I think there's still a slim possibility of a Robert Altman box set coming out in December. If not next year

[DimitriL]

Originally Posted by Watershipdownisgood

I know, but what I'm wondering is does it mean a Blu-Ray box set, or nothing at all. I'm personally leaning more towards at this point nothing at all. Even though these titles that are on the channel currently stand out like a sore thumb. That being Quintet, Gosford Park, California Split, and a few others. California Split, Gosford Park, and Quintet standing out the most to me.

Yeah, I think it's just one of those periodic big explorations that they do. Especially since a decent amount of them are Fox films. There's an 18-film Wim Wenders spotlight up, there's usually a big Holidays with Hitchcock spotlight every year, they just wrapped up a big Michael Mann one.

I would be highly unsurprised to see a remastered 3 Women sooner than later, though. (I also anticipate that we will never, ever, ever see a Criterion edition of Quintet. The most misbegotten thing he ever made. Though I find it fascinating that he wanted Walter Hill to write and direct it based on his idea.)

[Watershipdownisgood]

Originally Posted by DimitriL

Yeah, I think it's just one of those periodic big explorations that they do. Especially since a decent amount of them are Fox films. There's an 18-film Wim Wenders spotlight up, there's usually a big Holidays with Hitchcock spotlight every year, they just wrapped up a big Michael Mann one.

I would be highly unsurprised to see a remastered 3 Women sooner than later, though. (I also anticipate that we will never, ever, ever see a Criterion edition of Quintet. The most misbegotten thing he ever made. Though I find it fascinating that he wanted Walter Hill to write and direct it based on his idea.)

I really do think we should keep an eye on two of those titles. That being Gosford Park, and California Split as Criterion has been trying to put a Blu-Ray out of California Split for years now, but due to the music licensing issues they haven't put it out. I wonder if they finally succeeded in doing it this time. It's one of Robert Altmans few biggest titles still not on Blu-Ray yet.

[Egbert Souse]

My predictions:

Pee-wee's Big Adventure
Shadows of Forgotten Ancestors
Hitchcock/Selznick box set
The Night of the Hunter 4K
Yi Yi 4K

[DimitriL]

Originally Posted by Watershipdownisgood

I really do think we should keep an eye on two of those titles. That being Gosford Park, and California Split as Criterion has been trying to put a Blu-Ray out of California Split for years now, but due to the music licensing issues they haven't put it out. I wonder if they finally succeeded in doing it this time. It's one of Robert Altmans few biggest titles still not on Blu-Ray yet.

I've got an eye on Split too. Doesn't Arrow have Gosford Park? I don't know where that one landed after 2018.

[RiverDeep]

Originally Posted by darrellmaclaine

Thanks! And wow... that's awful. Don't even see why it needs 2 discs to be honest. Return Of blitzed down to 10 minutes and even the Back From The Dead special has lost 3 minutes? And yep, the 'Promotional Materials' section is just the bits and bobs from the old MGM DVD dragged across. No B1tch School, no Nigel Nat Geo footage, no Live Earth, no All The Way To 11 doc, and so little Return Of that they may as well not have bothered.

Previously unreleased or rare things they could have licenced - the 117 minute version of The Return Of Spinal Tap, the Majesty Of Rock video, the SNL material from the time, the TV Show sketch, footage from the Likely Stories series that birthed the film, or if Criterion wanted to do their 'extended non-fiction feature on disc 2' trick they could have licenced the 2010 out-of-character live show film from Shearer who owns it himself. Just one of these things on top would have been a significant gesture.

So other than the Reiner/Oswalt interview, there is literally nothing new here, and if you have any 2009 edition of the Blu-ray and the old Criterion DVD you have everything here plus a better master of the film. When did Criterion get so slapdash?

I've tried to keep up with the Tap releases since VHS and Laserdisc times, but some add new things, some carry them over, others include new shorter edits of previous releases, and then some gets dropped or left in the cold! Here are some issues I know of from the releases I own, and I'm using dvdcompare for the new Criterion 4K release details.

The Criterion LD and DVD (and now 4K+BD) had these exclusives that I believe have not appeared on any others:
Audio Commentary with co-writers/actors Christopher Guest, Michael McKean, and Harry Shearer (1994)
Audio Commentary with co-writer/director Rob Reiner, producer Karen Murphy, and editors Robert Leighton and Kent Beyda (1994)
(The additional Spinal Tap commentary where they're in character as the band comes from the 2000 MGM DVD and is now included with the Criterion as well.)
"Spinal Tap: The Final Tour" 1982 short (20:45)

Then there's this on the Criterions, but I don't know how much was included and/or reconfigured on the studio releases:
"The Cutting Room Floor" deleted scenes (Criterion DVD was 79:14, but the new Criterion 4K runs 98:10)

This one is all over the place:
"The Return of Spinal Tap" 1992 mockumentary:
MVD 2003 DVD (110:00)
Optimum UK BD (57:43)
Criterion 2025 4K excerpts (10:02)

You're right, something looks edited here too:
"Back from the Dead" 2009 interviews with the band
2009 CD album + bonus DVD (59:21)
Criterion 4K (56:26)

And there's so much unique stuff on the Optimum UK BD that you have to keep that one. At least I only paid like $10 new for it when it was commonly available.

[MifuneFan]

December predictions

Birth (2004)
Pee-Wee's Big Adventure (1985)
I Know Where I'm Going! (1945)
The Man Who Wasn't There (2001)
Ikiru (1952)

[darrellmaclaine]

Originally Posted by RiverDeep

This one is all over the place:
"The Return of Spinal Tap" 1992 mockumentary:
MVD 2003 DVD (110:00)
Optimum UK BD (57:43)
Criterion 2025 4K excerpts (10:02).

The UK Second Sight DVD (which was timed to cash in with MGM's DVD) is equally uncut but plays in true stereo, making it the only decent quality disc release there has yet been (and probably ever now frankly). It's Region 0, but a PAL conversion (though is not sped up, it's frame blended). Needless to say it is long out of print.

There are two brief clips of it in the sequel, hopefully it will get a new lease of life at some point. I rewatched it the other night, it's a lot of fun.

I hadn't noticed that the deleted scenes package is longer on the new release - have they gone back to elements I wonder or just combined the Criterion and MGM packages into a supercut? There was unique material on each - also the MGM stuff was newly telecined from an answer print of the rough cut but the Criterion was from a tape source. Maybe they've used the MGM one as a base and added the extra bits from the old Criterion package.

[sfmarine]

Pee-Wee's Big Adventure & The English Patient and I’ll be a happy collector.

[RiverDeep]

Originally Posted by darrellmaclaine

The UK Second Sight DVD (which was timed to cash in with MGM's DVD) is equally uncut but plays in true stereo, making it the only decent quality disc release there has yet been (and probably ever now frankly). It's Region 0, but a PAL conversion (though is not sped up, it's frame blended). Needless to say it is long out of print.

There are two brief clips of it in the sequel, hopefully it will get a new lease of life at some point. I rewatched it the other night, it's a lot of fun.

I hadn't noticed that the deleted scenes package is longer on the new release - have they gone back to elements I wonder or just combined the Criterion and MGM packages into a supercut? There was unique material on each - also the MGM stuff was newly telecined from an answer print of the rough cut but the Criterion was from a tape source. Maybe they've used the MGM one as a base and added the extra bits from the old Criterion package.

I didn't know about the UK Second Sight DVD of The Return. It's not in the database here, so maybe you can add it! What's the UPC? I'll try to find a copy for myself.

I do own a few other oddities, like this self produced DVD:


Forgot to mention I did see the sequel and Q&A and enjoyed it! Also saw the original film when it returned to theaters in July.

[darrellmaclaine]

Originally Posted by RiverDeep

I didn't know about the UK Second Sight DVD of The Return. It's not in the database here, so maybe you can add it! What's the UPC? I'll try to find a copy for myself.

UPC is 5028836030195. Happy hunting!

Originally Posted by RiverDeep

I do own a few other oddities, like this self produced DVD:

I adore this DVD, gone back to it many times for a pick-me-up. Once it was being given away for $5 a copy and now it goes for a fortune. This should have been the disc 2 feature of the new Criterion release - it was shot in HD and everything, would have worked really well. I'm sure Harry would have happily cut a fair deal.

Originally Posted by RiverDeep

Forgot to mention I did see the sequel and Q&A and enjoyed it!

Yeah, I loved it too. Exactly what I wanted, perfectly hit the spot! My longer review is here!

[OnlyJapantown]

Originally Posted by MifuneFan

December predictions

Birth (2004)
Pee-Wee's Big Adventure (1985)
I Know Where I'm Going! (1945)
The Man Who Wasn't There (2001)
Ikiru (1952)

That would be really wonderful, it's a personal favourite. Rarely gets mentioned as a favourite Coen film but it makes my top 3 for sure.