The Criterion Collection

[Page14]

Originally Posted by The Great Owl

I've never been a fan of steelbooks, although I can understand why others are. I always opt for the normal case if I'm given a choice between that and a steel book.

I'm kind of in the same boat. I've never had anything against steelbooks, but never felt a need to own them either. The practical side in me kicks in when I see that they're a little thicker than plastic cases, thereby taking up a little more shelf space ... that as my collection grows, becomes valuable (which isn't news to anybody here). I did buy the steelbook version of Chinatown, simply because I thought it looked so cool (and I thought it was a movie worthy of special treatment) ... a personal thing, I suppose. But that being said, during these last Black Friday sales, I also picked up 3 more steelbooks ... mostly because they were at a great sale price (as cheap or cheaper than the plastic case versions) ... but I do think they look nice too.

<snip>

Originally Posted by The Great Owl

I won't go so far as to say that I don't care about packaging, though, because I'm grateful that Criterion is no longer releasing movies in the clunky Dual Format boxes. I also think that the Scream Factory slipcovers are a thing of beauty, although I could normally take or leave slipcovers.

Amen to that. Which brings me to a recent Criterion purchase ......... A Black Friday 30% off coupon from B&N was burning a hole in my pocket and I was determined to use it before it expired. After much brain-wracking, I ended up blind-buying the Essential Jacques Demy box set. I almost didn't go for it because of the width (as beautiful as the package is). 3-1/2" seems wide to me for the 6 discs I'll be watching. I'll be curious to see what the packaging will look like if the current dual format sells out and it gets repackaged as bluray only.

[octagon]

Originally Posted by The Great Owl

I've never been a fan of steelbooks, although I can understand why others are. I always opt for the normal case if I'm given a choice between that and a steelbook. The only thing resembling such in my collection now is the tin box for Friday the 13th: The Complete Collection, because that tin box is the only way to own those fine films on Blu-ray. It's too easy for steelbooks and metal casings to get banged up, whereas I can always replace a standard plastic case.

Interestingly enough, a Best Buy steelbook of Guardians of the Galaxy sold out within minutes at most stores yesterday, and people are already paying nearly $100 for it on eBay. I simply grabbed the normal edition from Target during lunch yesterday, and, after looking at the steelbook in the thread, I think that the normal plastic case is the better package by far.

I won't go so far as to say that I don't care about packaging, though, because I'm grateful that Criterion is no longer releasing movies in the clunky Dual Format boxes. I also think that the Scream Factory slipcovers are a thing of beauty, although I could normally take or leave slipcovers.

Fast forward to August 15th, 2017 when TGO interrupts all the 'wtf, where's Mulholland Drive already' posts to announce he was finally able to score an OOP The Testament of Dr Mabuse steelbook for the bargain basement price of $180.

[orbital]

Originally Posted by lordmorpheus72

Thanks, looks like this is a definite title.

Imho that's valid not only for The Passion of Joan of Arc. I'd argue that Eureka!/MoC is the label worldwide concerning silent films (selection & overall package). That alone justifies going regionfree.

[octagon]

Originally Posted by orbital

Imho that's valid not only for The Passion of Joan of Arc. I'd argue that Eureka!/MoC is the label worldwide concerning silent films (selection & overall package). That alone justifies going regionfree.

This. The Nosferatu hiccups notwithstanding, Kino does a very good job with silent films (and let's give credit where credit is due - doing anything with silent films is praiseworthy) but Eureka/MoC absolutely sets the standard.

For the most part I still have to be talked into importing a given title. When it comes to silent films I have to be talked out of it.

[Vinyl]

For region free or B MoC releases I am interested in the testament of dr mabuse, faust, metropolis, passion of Joan of arc, nosferatu, mabuse the gambler...
Pretty much the 20s German movies, passion, and a few other odds and ends from miZuguchi and others

[Sifox211]

Originally Posted by Page14

...I ended up blind-buying the Essential Jacques Demy box set. I almost didn't go for it because of the width (as beautiful as the package is). 3-1/2" seems wide to me for the 6 discs I'll be watching. I'll be curious to see what the packaging will look like if the current dual format sells out and it gets repackaged as bluray only.

Well the Tati set is BD only, and 7 disks, and it is pretty much the same width as the Demy! So you won't gain much when that change happens... unless they bung it in a plastic case.

[Page14]

Originally Posted by Sifox211

Well the Tati set is BD only, and 7 disks, and it is pretty much the same width as the Demy! So you won't gain much when that change happens... unless they bung it in a plastic case.

I guess it all depends on the particular design. For instance, the America Lost and Found: The BBS Story set has 6 discs, and its width is about 2.25".

[jshaide]

Originally Posted by Page14

I guess it all depends on the particular design. For instance, the America Lost and Found: The BBS Story set has 6 discs, and its width is about 2.25".

The David Lean/Coward set is economical too.

[StLouisRibs]

Originally Posted by atlantajoseph

This is the full list (from #1 through #10)

It Happened One Night
Seven Samurai
The Lady Vanishes
Amarcord
The 400 Blows
Beauty and the Beast
A Night to Remember
Walkabout
The Seventh Seal
Salo

TCM just called the list "Top Ten Criterion Film Picks"... no word on whether this is based on sales or some sort of selection process.

Well, given that the middle eight listed upon that list are literally the first spine numbers available in print, I don't imagine it was too rigorous a process.

[italy12]

Originally Posted by Sifox211

Well the Tati set is BD only, and 7 disks, and it is pretty much the same width as the Demy! So you won't gain much when that change happens... unless they bung it in a plastic case.

Originally Posted by Page14

I guess it all depends on the particular design. For instance, the America Lost and Found: The BBS Story set has 6 discs, and its width is about 2.25".

The Demy set is WIDE!!! Tati is about the same size as the BBS set, and they're both narrower in comparison than Demy. The Scorsese World Cinema Project was also a little bulky for the amount of films, especially when you consider it is only 3 discs worth of BD content (2 films per disc) and could have easily fit in either a plastic 3-discer or one 3-disc digipak with a larger book.

When I first saw that Demy set, I knew it was going to be one I'd have to wait for to be released in BD only, if they ever do that with ALL Digi combo packs. I'm almost out of space!!

[atlantajoseph]

Originally Posted by StLouisRibs

Well, given that the middle eight listed upon that list are literally the first spine numbers available in print, I don't imagine it was too rigorous a process.

"Heh heh, let's have some fun with our more stodgy fans and create a top 10 list that includes (snicker) Salo. What can we use as filler for the other nine? Oh, look, here's a spine list (copy/paste).. and we'll top it off with some Gable to keep 'em off balance."

[Page14]

Originally Posted by jshaide

The David Lean/Coward set is economical too.

Yes ... that and the Zatoichi set were the other 2 sets that I was heavily considering. Maybe the next time.

EDIT: I forgot to add the John Cassavettes box set, which was also a strong consideration.

[Sifox211]

Originally Posted by italy12

The Demy set is WIDE!!! Tati is about the same size as the BBS set..

Ah you're right - Tati is 62 mm, Demi is 89 mm

[jmclick]

Originally Posted by lordmorpheus72

Passion of Joan of Arc has come up several times, I may need to add it to the list. I'll make sure to check the others as well. I do enjoy Kazan's work, so I'll look for those. All great suggestions.

I will add my voice to those praising The Passion of Joan of Arc ... but then again, I'm a huge fan of director Carl Th. Dreyer, so I'm hardly unbiased. I would be incredibly happy if Criterion were to upgrade their DVD releases of Vampyr and the Dreyer box set to blu-ray. Day of Wrath, which is included in the box set, is worthy of all the superlatives that critics have been throwing at it for over 70 years: it is indeed a "disturbing", "haunting", "revelatory", "harrowing" masterpiece.

[jayembee]

Originally Posted by Page14

I'm kind of in the same boat. I've never had anything against steelbooks, but never felt a need to own them either.

I'm a sucker for DigiBooks (though I won't buy a film I don't want just because there's a DigiBook release), not so much for SteelBooks. I mean, if it's a question of going for a regular edition or a SteelBook/MetalPak, I'll suck for the latter, but if a non-SB/MP has, say, a bonus disc not in the SB/MP edition, I'll go for the bonus disc. So, yeah, I went for the SB/MP editions of Edge of Tomorrow, Dawn of the Planet of the Apes, and Guardians of the Galaxy, but I won't snap up SB reissues of titles I already have just for the sake of having them.

(Though I confess that I bought a handful of Universal titles in the "comic book style" SteelBook editions at Wal-Mart the other week, but only because they were damn cheap. Unfortunately, they didn't have the one I really wanted: Serenity.)

[jw007]

I've been in an Aki Kaurismäki craze lately and just spent 55€ Euro on 5 films of his on Finnish blu-ray (I only could find such good prices from a Finnish website - recordshopx.com with only 7€ for shipping to the USA!).

In addition to owning Le Havre and La Vie de Boheme on Criterion blu-ray, as well as Criterion's Eclipse DVD box sets of Eclipse 12: The Proletariat Trilogy and Eclipse 29: Leningrad Cowboys, I now will have the 5 following titles (from FutureFilm) as well:

Calamari Union (1985)
I Hired a Contract Killer (1990)
Drifting Clouds (1996)
The Man Without a Past (2002)
Lights in the Dusk (2007)

Each film was only 10.95€ + all of these titles can play in Region A format plus there are English subtitles included.

[bwdowiak]

Originally Posted by jw007

I've been in an Aki Kaurismäki craze lately and just spent 55€ Euro on 5 films of his on Finnish blu-ray (I only could find such good prices from a Finnish website - recordshopx.com with only 7€ for shipping to the USA!).

In addition to owning Le Havre and La Vie de Boheme on Criterion blu-ray, as well as Criterion's Eclipse DVD box sets of Eclipse 12: The Proletariat Trilogy and Eclipse 29: Leningrad Cowboys, I now will have the 5 following titles (from FutureFilm) as well:

Calamari Union (1985)
I Hired a Contract Killer (1990)
Drifting Clouds (1996)
The Man Without a Past (2002)
Lights in the Dusk (2007)

Each film was only 10.95€ + all of these titles can play in Region A format plus there are English subtitles included.

I should probably give another film of his a try. I saw Le Havre and thought it was whimsy for whimsy sake. And extremely predictable, too. They are, perhaps, extremely different, but it reminded me of Wes Anderson quite a bit.

[dkap99]

Anyone have a favorite Eclipse set?

[jw007]

Originally Posted by bwdowiak

I should probably give another film of his a try. I saw Le Havre and thought it was whimsy for whimsy sake. And extremely predictable, too. They are, perhaps, extremely different, but it reminded me of Wes Anderson quite a bit.

Yes...and even moreso, it reminds you of Jim Jarmusch quite a bit. Both have similar styles of storytelling and filmmaking.

Give it a try... the films are easy watching and are very entertaining and even meaningful (with an emphasis on the human condition).

[jw007]

Originally Posted by dkap99

Anyone have a favorite Eclipse set?

Leningrad Cowboys , Eclipse 29.