The Criterion Collection

[Scottie]

Is there a chance of Criterion ever releasing "Cat On A Hot Tin Roof"?

[brandon_260]

Originally Posted by Meek12345

Do you all think the following titles are good blind buys?

Lonesome
It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World
Revanche
Stray Dog

I have seen several well-known silent films and liked most of them, but I don't own any silent films released by Criterion yet. I have read a few rave reviews for Lonesome, and it appears to have an impressive amount of special features.

I only own one Criterion comedy, To Be or Not To Be, so I would like to expand my comedy collection. IAMMMMW seems to be a highly regarded comedy with substantial special features. Although, I'm concerned about the packaging a little bit.

Revanche has been praised quite a bit on this forum so I am curious about it. My only reservation is that it is unrated or maybe rated R. Is there a significant amount of violence, sexuality, or profane language? I guess the content can't be more graphic than Se7en, and I own that one.

The only Kurosawa films I own right now are Seven Samurai, Yojimbo/Sanjuro, and Ran. I would like to get a couple of Kurosawa's crime/modern films. Stray Dog seems to be a popular title on this board. Should I wait for the blu-ray though? It looks like Criterion is planning to release most of Kurosawa's films on blu this year.

Thanks in advance for the help!

I've only seen Lonesome and Revanche. I personally wouldn't recommend Revanche as a blind buy. It's a very cold film, something I usually have no issue with, but I can't say I was taken by the film. Lonesome on the other hand comes with a huge recommendation. One of my favorite films of the 20s.

[BluMonday]

Originally Posted by TylerScruggs

Wait, what other movie could this be hinting at?

Wait, why isn't this THE LIFE AQUATIC again? How many scuba diving movies are there with a hand-held underwater propulsion device, plus leopard print tie = Leopard Shark, no?

[Mansinthe]

Originally Posted by pedromvu

Fantastic Mr. Fox and Foreign Correspondent packaging from criterionForum

they do look nice, but i already have a feeling half of these will arrive damaged

[Yami]

Originally Posted by BluMonday

Wait, why isn't this THE LIFE AQUATIC again? How many scuba diving movies are there with a hand-held underwater propulsion device, plus leopard print tie = Leopard Shark, no?

Upgrades always have blue coloured clues. And it's an obvious match for Tie Me Up, Tie Me Down:

[hoytereden]

If this thread is a any indication, Criterion's email box must be lit up with complaints on their new packaging.

[AgentOrange]

Originally Posted by Tin Drum

I wish Life Aquatic would come out too so the complainers of the complainers for the release to come out can stop their complaining...

Ouch! That Mr. Fox and FC packaging has one hell of a busted to corners. And I am getting these from Amazon. Sigh.

I knew this was going to happen when they started announcing 3 disc sets. Garbage. They need to put a stop to this - at least just compress them in to 2 discs (to fit in their 2 disc plastic) even if it means giving up the features on the DVD.

I'm going to avoid the soft packages wherever I can - unless it's something I really must have on blu-ray. I have a large collection, and I can't be bothered if practically every release is going to require "care" to make sure it doesn't get squished or damaged.

[jayembee]

Originally Posted by iScottie

Is there a chance of Criterion ever releasing "Cat On A Hot Tin Roof"?

Yes, there's a chance they could release it. Unfortunately, it's a snowball's chance in Hell. Cat is a Warner-owned title, so unless Warner relaxes on their licensing policy, it's probably not going to come out from Criterion.

[smoss469]

It's especially horrible for those of us (and I'm in this camp) that cannot go to a physical location and cherry pick through a dozen packages to find the one that doesn't look like it's been used for a door stop.

[Judex]

Originally Posted by smoss469

It's especially horrible for those of us (and I'm in this camp) that cannot go to a physical location and cherry pick through a dozen packages to find the one that doesn't look like it's been used for a door stop.

This!
I'm dreading receiving Jules et Jim. Hopefully it makes it's way over the pond ok.

[14728]

When will BD.com post a review for Mad Mad Mad Mad World? I'm still positive I'll get the release

[cash_black]

Originally Posted by smoss469

Yeah, I'm worried about my Amazon FC pre-order as well. If they continue to use such cheap and shoddy packaging, I'm real tempted to stop buying any new release.

I never have problem with amazon packaging, maybe they pack better for overseas buyers?

[Killer Meteor]

How in general do you folks find Criterion's BD subtitles? I find them hard to read against white backdrops - Yojimbo being an example.

[octagon]

Originally Posted by Killer Meteor

How in general do you folks find Criterion's BD subtitles? I find them hard to read against white backdrops - Yojimbo being an example.

It's not just you. Their solid white subs can be a bit trying at times.

[pro-bassoonist]

Originally Posted by 14728

When will BD.com post a review for Mad Mad Mad Mad World? I'm still positive I'll get the release

It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World Blu-ray REVIEW



We did not get an early screener, but the review is above.

One thing I would like to mention, which I believe is what most people are curious about: The new reconstruction preserves the film's excellent rhythm. While I think that the majority of the credit for it should go to Stanley Kramer, Criterion's reconstruction is indeed very good -- the trims (which are quite different, really) are incorporated in a way that never creates the impression that there are multiple stops.

I liked it quite a lot. It works very well

Pro-B

[The Great Owl]

Fans of Jean-Pierre Melville's Le Samourai might find this of interest...

I just finished watching This Gun for Hire (1942), starring Alan Ladd and Veronica Lake.



I have always read that Melville's Le Samourai was heavily influenced by This Gun for Hire, and, now that I've seen both films, I am inclined to agree. The initial scenes of Alan Ladd's professional hitman character in his apartment with only a stray kitten as a friend come off like a blueprint of the beginning of the Melville film. The attire of the hitman is basically identical in both movies, and both movies feature plot elements of the hitman being betrayed by those who hired him. This Gun for Hire and Le Samourai are not spot-on identical, but the many similarities are apparent. I think that This Gun for Hire is a great film, but I prefer the undeniable coolness of Le Samourai, and I like Alain Delon's mostly dialogue-free role.

Alan Ladd and Veronica Lake made some fun movies together. My DVDs of The Glass Key and The Blue Dahlia should be arriving soon.

[octagon]

Originally Posted by AgentOrange

I knew this was going to happen when they started announcing 3 disc sets. Garbage. They need to put a stop to this - at least just compress them in to 2 discs (to fit in their 2 disc plastic) even if it means giving up the features on the DVD.

I'm going to avoid the soft packages wherever I can - unless it's something I really must have on blu-ray. I have a large collection, and I can't be bothered if practically every release is going to require "care" to make sure it doesn't get squished or damaged.

Originally Posted by smoss469

It's especially horrible for those of us (and I'm in this camp) that cannot go to a physical location and cherry pick through a dozen packages to find the one that doesn't look like it's been used for a door stop.

This kind of talk will undoubtedly rankle the 'real movie fans don't care about packaging' crowd but crushable packaging is a legitimate concern.

It's obviously not of primary importance but if nothing else it's a perfectly reasonable tie-breaker (particularly since B&N appears to have fallen back in love with corrugated mailers).

[Ctzalman]

Originally Posted by AgentOrange

I knew this was going to happen when they started announcing 3 disc sets. Garbage. They need to put a stop to this - at least just compress them in to 2 discs (to fit in their 2 disc plastic) even if it means giving up the features on the DVD.

I'm going to avoid the soft packages wherever I can - unless it's something I really must have on blu-ray. I have a large collection, and I can't be bothered if practically every release is going to require "care" to make sure it doesn't get squished or damaged.

if your package arrives damaged, amazon will send you a replacement. i had a situation where i ordered a book and it arrived just completely mangled. they had a new one shipped out within two days and paid the shipping costs to return the damaged book.

i'm pretty OCD about my cases as well. i'm expecting J&J on tuesday, i didn't even know it was a digipack. fingers crossed...

another method (albeit shady), is to go to a brick and mortar store, buy a pristine copy, and then bring your banged up copy to the store the next day and return it. again, pretty shady, but i've known some folks to use this method w/o any problems.

[StLouisRibs]

Originally Posted by Killer Meteor

How in general do you folks find Criterion's BD subtitles? I find them hard to read against white backdrops - Yojimbo being an example.

I think it's a bit of a shame there's no secondary option on Foreign Films with multiple dialects to transcribe English speech in the subtitles as well. I watched Europa the other day on DVD and was totally baffled by one scene towards the middle in English where I didn't catch about eight lines of dialogue but had no way to interpret...

[oildude]

Originally Posted by octagon

A Face in the Crowd (by a fairly wide margin too)
A Streetcar Named Desire
On the Waterfront
Gentleman's Agreement
[this space available]

Wild River. Just do it.

And the fact that you rate A Face in the Crowd so highly means you get a gold star for good work. We need that one on blu-ray.

I wish Fox would release the remaining four titles from their two Elia Kazan box sets that haven't gotten the individual treament.

I plan to watch On the Waterfront again tonight. I've been in a Brando and Kazan mood this weekend after watching Viva Zapata! this past week.