The Criterion Collection

[atfree]

Originally Posted by PBateman87

Damn, I need to go onto my Facebook more often. Great, look forward to checking out the cover artwork.

I actually think they initially planned a Friday announcement, in that the pre-order links showed up on Amazon first thing Saturday morning. Not sure what changed on their end, but tomorrow's "announcement" has lost it's sense of anticipation for sure (unless Criterion has something up their sleeve for tomorrow).

[Tin Drum]

Originally Posted by atfree

I actually think they initially planned a Friday announcement, in that the pre-order links showed up on Amazon first thing Saturday morning. Not sure what changed on their end, but tomorrow's "announcement" has lost it's sense of anticipation for sure (unless Criterion has something up their sleeve for tomorrow).

I don't know. They haven't done a Friday announcement (if the 15th is on a weekend) in a long while. They probably had to send info to Amazon as usual and Amazon jumped the gun. I don't believe Amazon ever put pre-orders up so quickly.

[tenia]

Originally Posted by The Great Owl

Yesterday, though, I had Jules and Jim sitting underneath my Scream Factory copy of Cat People in my Blu-ray stack, and I noticed that the spine of the digipak is twice as wide as the spine of the Amaray case Blu-ray. The fact that these new digipaks take up enough space for two other Blu-rays is the only real grievance of mine, aside from the fact that I'm compelled to buy them in person to make sure that the digipak is in good condition.

I check myself a Scanavo case VS Nashville (I suppose it has the same thickness than the Jules and Jim digi) : Scanavo is 14mm thick. Nashville is 19 mm. I also checked IAMMMMW and it's 17 mm thick.

It IS thicker, but it's not quite double thickness.

And also, as I wrote several times here and there, I have a much worse history with broken Scanavo cases than with creased digis. Maybe I'm lucky, I don't know.

[KrugerIndustrial]

^ You can replace Scanavo cases.

[Infernal King]

DigiPacks are proof Satan exists.

[14728]

Originally Posted by Infernal King

DigiPacks are proof Satan exists.

Alright, I think that is a little over exaggerated. I mean, just cause some blu ray has a bad case doesn't mean that it must be proof of hell

[Infernal King]

Originally Posted by 14728

Alright, I think that is a little over exaggerated. I mean, just cause some blu ray has a bad case doesn't mean that it must be proof of hell

Over-exaggerating for comedic effect is the parlance of our times.

Seriously though, I will never agree with Criterion's decision.

[The Great Owl]

Originally Posted by Infernal King

DigiPacks are proof Satan exists.

Originally Posted by 14728

Alright, I think that is a little over exaggerated. I mean, just cause some blu ray has a bad case doesn't mean that it must be proof of hell

I'm not about to get into an argument about the proof of Hell with somebody named "Infernal King."

It's interesting to read all of the opinions regarding digipak vs. plastic Criterion cases in the main forum, though.

I wonder how much feedback the Criterion Collection has received from real people in the real world regarding this issue. I appreciate their desire to create artistically-innovative packages for people to enjoy, but the practicality aspects of the plastic cases give them an edge.

[Art_Vandelay]

It kind of bothers me that Fanstastic Mr. Fox is a digipack while all the other Wes Anderson movies are in plastic cases. I'm not against them in general, but I like some uniformity with series or directors in this case. For example, both of Linklater's Criterion blus are in digipack, but that's fine with me.

[Bruisermoore]

Originally Posted by Art_Vandelay

It kind of bothers me that Fanstastic Mr. Fox is a digipack while all the other Wes Anderson movies are in plastic cases. I'm not against them in general, but I like some uniformity with series or directors in this case. For example, both of Linklater's Criterion blus are in digipack, but that's fine with me.

You're not alone Sir, I feel the same way, especially because I keep all of my WA blus together. It was a bit off already though because of Moonrise Kingdom.

[natureboy]

Originally Posted by Infernal King

Over-exaggerating for comedic effect is the parlance of our times.

Do you have a young trophy wife?

[smoss469]

Originally Posted by natureboy

Do you have a young trophy wife?

Does she owe money all over town including to known pornographers? Which is cool...

[Clare2904]

With the official announcement coming tomorrow, I presume the (hopefully) upcoming flash sale will not be until next week?

[Infernal King]

Originally Posted by natureboy

Do you have a young trophy wife?

Originally Posted by smoss469

Does she owe money all over town including to known pornographers? Which is cool...

Strong men also cry.

Strong men... also... cry.

[Quinni]

Originally Posted by Infernal King

DigiPacks are proof Satan exists.

I don't mind DigiPacks too much. At best, it helps to make my Criterion stuff stand out from the majority of my collection. The only problem is the wear and tear (my copy of Godzilla is already showing signs ).

[The Great Owl]

In pre-World War I Paris, an Austrian writer, Jules, befriends another aspiring writer, Jim, and the two enjoy sharing philosophies and company before their lives are forever altered when they cross paths with the buoyantly unpredictable Catherine. Even now, over 50 years after its release, François Truffaut's 1962 movie, Jules and Jim, is a bewildering head-scratcher of a cinematic oddity that utilizes fluidly engaging cinematography and clever editing to find an uncanny grace in the dynamics of these three often-unlikeable characters who are entwined in a love triangle over a span of decades.

When I first saw Jules and Jim years ago, by way of the 2005 Criterion DVD, my Southern "good old boy" self wanted to talk some sense into the two title characters and steer them away from Catherine's center-of-attention neediness. I wanted Jules and Jim to keep walking after Catherine jumped into the Seine, and spend the rest of the day playing a round of golf. I wanted Jules to forget about Catherine and go back to the hot "steam engine girl." I wanted Jim to forget about Catherine and devote his full attention to the loyal and lovely Gilberte. In the end, though, even I was drawn into the web of Catherine because of the undeniable talents of Jeanne Moreau, who is one of the most wonderfully expressive actresses in cinema history. I'm hard-pressed to imagine any other actress who could have made the character of Catherine even remotely tolerable to audiences, and Moreau's seemingly effortless ability to appeal to my sympathies floors me with each subsequent viewing, even if I still find myself having facepalm reactions when watching how Jules and Jim both respond to her fickle, and sometimes cruel, impulses. In Truffaut's visual and aural world, life with Catherine is a irresistible merry-go-round that whisks us away with fast-paced opening narration, a footrace across a bridge, sweeping overhead shots of rural countryside splendor, a bicycle ride on a country road, and 360-degree camera turns.

As I viewed the new Criterion Blu-ray edition of Jules and Jim last night, I was reminded of why the world of these three characters has such an unlikely allure. I love listening to Jules's and Jim's musings on art and writing, I love how Oskar Werner (The Spy Who Came in from the Cold) and Henri Serre (Le Combat Dans L'île) infuse liveliness into their respective characters of Jules and Jim when these characters might have come off as dismissive or cowardly in the hands of any other actors, and I love how Jeanne Moreau's Catherine conveys vulnerability through her eyes and mannerisms even during her most disruptive turns. I like the contrasts of the art culture of Paris with the horrors of World War I trench warfare. More than anything else, I enjoy how Jules and Jim communicates the passage of time in an organic way that simultaneously shows how characters mature over the years and how their deeply-instilled affinities can never really be laid to rest.

The picture quality of Jules and Jim on Blu-ray shows an astounding improvement over the previous DVD edition, and the beauty of the black-and-white images enriches the true joys of Truffaut's filmmaking. The pluses of the audio quality are immediately evident upon hearing the carousel music and quick narration of the opening shots. The myriad of supplements invites multiple visits to this package over time, and I particularly enjoy the input of film critics Robert Stam and Dudley Andrew, and the commentary track with Suzanne Schiffman, Jean Gruault, and Claudine Bouche.

[Fellini912]

Originally Posted by Infernal King

DigiPacks are proof Satan exists.

To use your allegory, I postulated the following:

Twilight time is satan and he has sent his minions into the criterion company. I hope they will see the light.

[The Great Owl]

Originally Posted by Fellini912

Twilight time is satan and he has sent his minions into the criterion company. I hope they will see the light.

Twilight Time is neutral, but some of its scalper customers are Satan.

Yeah, I totally went there.

To their credit, Criterion never released Blu-rays in eco-paks like Twilight Time did with their last batch (Thankfully, they corrected this issue.).

[Infernal King]

Originally Posted by Fellini912

To use your allegory, I postulated the following:

Twilight time is satan and he has sent his minions into the criterion company. I hope they will see the light.

Someone call Max Von Sydow and tell him to clear his schedule for the next few weeks.

[A Sith Lord?]

Life aquatic !!