The Criterion Collection

[blu-bry]

Originally Posted by TJS_Blu

From what I can tell, My Updates logs any films you add to Favorited or any new or changed lists you make or comments you make about a list.

Thank you very much! I will have to play with it.

[hoytereden]

Originally Posted by The Great Owl

For those of you who are wondering how the new Godzilla film stacks up to the 1954 original version, here is my review that I posted in the dedicated movie thread.

[Show spoiler]

The most notable success of this new film is that it wonderfully conveys the size and immensity of Godzilla and the other giant creatures by showing them from a human perspective with the camera eye looking up from ground level. Director Gareth Edwards employs some filmmaking choices that may frustrate viewers accustomed to epic rampages of earlier Godzilla films that were shown from a distant vantage point, because he mostly depicts the monsters with fleeting glimpses, in the same way that we might witness the monsters in real life if we were on the ground beneath them and trying to escape from the destruction. Imagine, for instance, how a game of football on your front lawn might appear from the perspective of ants and insects that are looking up from between the blades of grass and scrambling to avoid being crushed from above by the massive humans who are constantly running around and tackling one another. The daunting aspect of this updated Godzilla is not that these huge monsters are purposely trying to destroy us, but rather that they simply do not realize that we are there beneath their feet while they are walking through our cities and focusing on killing each other. More than anything, this movie is a reminder that we humans are tiny and insignificant in the grand scheme of nature, and that we might just be temporary guests here while larger things are happening beyond our limited scope. Godzilla will make you feel small.

This portion of your review reminded me of The Twilight Zone episode: "The Little People"

[Polaroid]

Originally Posted by Coen

Watched The Great Beauty last night and was completely blown away. I'm 20 years younger than Jep and live in California instead of Rome, but I related to him in a way that really surprised me. Maybe it's being closer to death than birth. What have I done with my life? I also recently came to the same revelation that Jep does, namely that I won't waste any more time doing things that I don't want to do. I was in tears at the end as I watched the end credits and for a few minutes after. Powerful, tremendous film. Certainly my favorite Italian film ever, and likely in my Top Ten all of time.

Glad you enjoyed it! I felt same way, such a powerful film.

[fdm]

Originally Posted by blooregard_q_kazoo

So, what do you think are the chances of a Criterion Blu-ray upgrade of Berlin Alexanderplatz? Japan got the blus in October (I think) and it says remastered on the cover. I'm thinking of importing the set, but the extras seem to be mostly in Japanese, so I'd wait if there was a Criterion on the horizon. The price doesn't help, either.

The dvd set came out just around the time Criterion first started doing blu-rays. It was derived from a thoroughly redone in HD remastering of the original 16mm, PAL frame rate (25fps) film elements (shot for tv).

Whether they will do a blu version, can never tell. Doubtful if it were released there would be any further HD remastering, maybe some tweaks here and there. (Although perhaps they could rejigger it to run real time (the Criterion dvds run at 24fps, so they're slowed down a bit).)

If/when they actually do a blu, hopefully it will just be a blu only package...

And in the meantime, the Criterion dvd package is excellent, and can be had for a lot less. (Not even sure I would bother to upgrade it.)

[Meek12345]

Well, here are my 2 cents on the August release lineup:

Love Streams: I haven't watched a Cassavetes film yet, so I don't have an opinion on this one. I really need to get around to watching A Woman Under the Influence this week.

Y Tu Mama Tambien: Watched this film a long time ago. I thought it was okay. I won't be purchasing it, but I'm happy for everyone that is excited about it.

Tie Me Up! Tie Me Down!: Haven't seen this one and the only Almodovar film that I have seen is Talk to Her. Talk to Her was...interesting. So, I want to see TMUTMD eventually, but I don't think it would be a good blind buy based on my only Almodovar experience.

All That Jazz: I have only seen bits and pieces of this one. I like what I have seen so far. Looks like Criterion will be making this their most elaborate release for the month. I'm beginning to realize that Roy Scheider was an amazing actor. I had only seen him in Jaws until I watched The French Connection recently. Hopefully, I will be able to watch Sorcerer along with The Wages of Fear soon. I imagine that Scheider gives a great performance in that one.

Vengeance is Mine: Sounds interesting. Hopefully, I will get to watch it soon. Doesn't sound like a film that should be a blind buy.

So, for now All That Jazz is the only August title on my criterion.com wishlist. I really need to watch or rewatch all of these films though. Seems like a solid month, but there is no way I can know for sure yet.

[bwdowiak]

Originally Posted by Coen

Watched The Great Beauty last night and was completely blown away. I'm 20 years younger than Jep and live in California instead of Rome, but I related to him in a way that really surprised me. Maybe it's being closer to death than birth. What have I done with my life? I also recently came to the same revelation that Jep does, namely that I won't waste any more time doing things that I don't want to do. I was in tears at the end as I watched the end credits and for a few minutes after. Powerful, tremendous film. Certainly my favorite Italian film ever, and likely in my Top Ten all of time.

Originally Posted by Polaroid

Glad you enjoyed it! I felt same way, such a powerful film.

I'm looking forward to giving this one another look. I only got 45 min in and I was p'd off at the stream quality and bored by some of the intellectual convos. It seemed Jep was, too, so I guess that was the point. Anyway, must see it on blu! Lots of fans of the film here.

[The Great Owl]

Originally Posted by hoytereden

This portion of your review reminded me of The Twilight Zone episode: "The Little People"

Nice! Such a great episode.

This did not occur to me while I was writing the Godzilla review, but it does fit nicely into the context.

The 2014 Godzilla does not match the menace of Godzilla's Tokyo rampage in the 1954 film, but the new film is brilliant in terms of using human perspectives to convey the immense size of the monster.

I'm trying to keep a lid on my discussion here in the Criterion thread, hence the spoiler caps on my non-spoiler review, but it directly relates to the original film that is a Criterion title.

[Polaroid]

NOOOO

they made Y artwork worse!!!



Ughhhhh typography was so much better on original artwork... (below)

[The Great Owl]

I enjoyed Y Tu Mamá También a lot when I rented it several years ago, but it does not have a lot of multiple viewing potential for me.

I have a sort-of funny story related to the movie, though. Shortly after I saw it, one of my co-workers was asking me to recommend a movie for her and her husband to watch over the weekend. I recommended Y Tu Mamá También. The following week, the co-worker was upset at me for recommending a "porn movie" for her and her husband, and she went on a tirade to other co-workers about how the movie was so filthy.

This was a valuable life lesson for me. If a co-worker spends all day at her desk listening to Phil Collins songs on adult contemporary radio, raves about how Home Improvement is her all-time favorite show, and has the wall poster of the kitten hanging from the tree branch with the caption, "Hang in there!", then she might not be entirely receptive to my movie recommendations.

[octagon]

Kittens are awesome.

[dtyner92]

Just got out from seeing Godzilla as well. I won't go into it because I don't want to spoil anything, however, I absolutely loved it! I haven't seen the original Japanese classic, but i'm looking forward to picking that up during the next Criterion 50% off sale. Curious to hear everyone else's thoughts on the movie.

[hoytereden]

Originally Posted by The Great Owl

I enjoyed Y Tu Mamá También a lot when I rented it several years ago, but it does not have a lot of multiple viewing potential for me.

I have a sort-of funny story related to the movie, though. Shortly after I saw it, one of my co-workers was asking me to recommend a movie for her and her husband to watch over the weekend. I recommended Y Tu Mamá También. The following week, the co-worker was upset at me for recommending a "porn movie" for her and her husband, and she went on a tirade to other co-workers about how the movie was so filthy.

This was a valuable life lesson for me. If a co-worker spends all day at her desk listening to Phil Collins songs on adult contemporary radio, raves about how Home Improvement is her all-time favorite show, and has the wall poster of the kitten hanging from the tree branch with the caption, "Hang in there!", then she might not be entirely receptive to my movie recommendations.

The last place I worked most of my co-workers were much younger than me so I rarely mentioned my kinds of movies. One guy did ask me to recommend a "scary" movie on Netflix so I looked at his list and saw The Haunting '63 and gave him my high recommendation on that. Asked him a couple of days later if he watched it and he had a kind of disappointed look and said "Yea, it was good and it was scary but it was in B&W!" "Anytime I see something that way I keep trying to imagine it in color and then I don't concentrate on the movie." Guess I should have recommended the remake.

[Clare2904]

Awful artwork for Y, has put me off buying it now

[The Great Owl]

Originally Posted by dtyner92

Just got out from seeing Godzilla as well. I won't go into it because I don't want to spoil anything, however, I absolutely loved it! I haven't seen the original Japanese classic, but i'm looking forward to picking that up during the next Criterion 50% off sale. Curious to hear everyone else's thoughts on the movie.

I posted my review of Godzilla (2014) a few pages back, but here it is again on the dedicated movie thread from the Movies forum. My Godzilla review

I'm glad that you enjoyed it as well!

Originally Posted by hoytereden

The last place I worked most of my co-workers were much younger than me so I rarely mentioned my kinds of movies. One guy did ask me to recommend a "scary" movie on Netflix so I looked at his list and saw The Haunting '63 and gave him my high recommendation on that. Asked him a couple of days later if he watched it and he had a kind of disappointed look and said "Yea, it was good and it was scary but it was in B&W!" "Anytime I see something that way I keep trying to imagine it in color and then I don't concentrate on the movie." Guess I should have recommended the remake.

On a positive note, I recommended The Innocents (1961) to some co-workers a few years back, and they were all freaked out by the film in a big way. I'm so glad that this movie is apparently going to be a Criterion release soon.

[cash_black]

Just picked up Hidden Fortress was not expecting the upgrade to that amazing! One of the best of the black and white kurosawa transfers for sure!

[hoytereden]

Originally Posted by The Great Owl

On a positive note, I recommended The Innocents (1961) to some co-workers a few years back, and they were all freaked out by the film in a big way. I'm so glad that this movie is apparently going to be a Criterion release soon.

Both my kids enjoy classic B&W films no doubt due to me having them on when they were young. The Marx Brothers were always a hit with them. Which raises the question-when are we going to get their films on Blu? I know Love Happy just got released but honestly that's a Harpo film with the other Marx's added so it could be released as a Starring The Marx Brothers on the posters and the marquees when it was released. I know their MGM films are controlled by Warner's but how about the Paramount's? Something like Duck Soup on Criterion would be terrific.

[Scottie]

I'm sorry, but that's probably one of my favorite artworks in forever.

Also, Y Tu Mamá También is probably my favorite coming-of-age movie and road movie out there. It's such a great story of friendship, living life, and growing older.

[dtyner92]

Originally Posted by The Great Owl

I posted my review of Godzilla (2014) a few pages back, but here it is again on the dedicated movie thread from the Movies forum. My Godzilla review

I'm glad that you enjoyed it as well!

Thanks! I will definitely check out that review.

[jayembee]

Originally Posted by hoytereden

Both my kids enjoy classic B&W films no doubt due to me having them on when they were young.

It's bad enough having a co-worker who doesn't like B&W films. I had one that was odder than that. He didn't mind watching B&W films if they were from the 40s or 50s. But if it was a more recent movie that the director made in B&W for artistic reasons -- eg. Manhattan or Raging Bull -- he hated it being in B&W; he thought it made the film look "cheap". He even got mad about Young Frankenstein being in B&W even while knowing it was a spoof of a classic B&W film. I was never able to quite work out his thinking on this.

The Marx Brothers were always a hit with them. Which raises the question-when are we going to get their films on Blu? I know Love Happy just got released but honestly that's a Harpo film with the other Marx's added so it could be released as a Starring The Marx Brothers on the posters and the marquees when it was released. I know their MGM films are controlled by Warner's but how about the Paramount's? Something like Duck Soup on Criterion would be terrific.

Universal owns the Paramount films, and they've been willing to license to Criterion before, so I suppose it's possible. On the other hand, back in the late 90s, they licensed the W.C. Fields film The Bank Dick to Criterion, but only for a limited time. That DVD is long OOP.

[AnamorphicWidescreen]

Originally Posted by jayembee

It's bad enough having a co-worker who doesn't like B&W films. I had one that was odder than that. He didn't mind watching B&W films if they were from the 40s or 50s. But if it was a more recent movie that the director made in B&W for artistic reasons -- eg. Manhattan or Raging Bull -- he hated it being in B&W; he thought it made the film look "cheap". He even got mad about Young Frankenstein being in B&W even while knowing it was a spoof of a classic B&W film. I was never able to quite work out his thinking on this.

I really enjoy all types of b&w films, both older films & newer ones that were filmed in b&w for artistic reasons, as you mentioned. And Raging Bull, Manhattan (possibly Allen's best film), Young Frankenstein, The Man Who Wasn't There, Broadway Danny Rose, and Stardust Memories are some of my favorite movies of all time. Your co-worker's attitude is quite unusual, especially since in some cases more modern b&w films apparently take great pains to make sure the images look good in b&w (something older films that were only filmed in b&w didn't necessarily do). For example, I remember reading (or watching a documentary) on the Coen brothers' excellent noir flick The Man who Wasn't there (2001), and they mentioned that they took a lot of time making sure that the clothes worn in the film would be of a certain color so that they wouldn't look too unusual if filmed in b&w....I guess some people can't appreciate good art....

Re: the forthcoming Y Tu Mama Tambien Criterion release, sounds good to me - I've never seen the film before, though I remember when it came out....I believe the regular DVD is OOP at this point; though I'm sure I could still find this somewhere, it would be nice to first see the film on Blu....