The Criterion Collection

[Page14]

Originally Posted by AgentOrange

Looks like B&N fulfilled some orders today on the recently OOP Studio Canal titles.

I figured I better take a shot on the ones I don't have now before it's too late - Last Year at Marienbad, Army of Shadows, and Leon Morin.

Now should I cancel my still-pending Amazon order or just see if it goes through?

Originally Posted by jcez28

I think army of shadows is the highest priority right now just got an email from B&N that they cant fulfill the order, was still able to get leon

I'm kind of amazed to see how fast these 4 recent OOP titles (the 3 mentioned above and Le Cercle Rouge) seem to be drying up in the marketplace. (They've been OOP for what ... 10 or 11 days now?) Hopefully I'm wrong about that. I visited the 2 B&N stores within reasonable driving distance to me. One of them was sold out of every copy ... the other still had all 4 of them. I'm not sure if Amazon.com is a good gauge to go by, regarding their availability. ???

Personally, I didn't have any interest in any of these films before I saw that they were going OOP. Now my interest is piqued because I "might" like them, but might not be able to buy them by the time I figure out if I want them or not. (Did that make sense?) (... and the $40 price tag needs to be considered to some degree too ... that's the frugality in me speaking).

[P@t_Mtl]

Originally Posted by octagon

There's really no reason for them to release it. The negatives - no matter how minor they turn out to actually be - are almost sure to outweigh the positives simply because there wouldn't be very many positives.

A little bit of money? A few positive articles only film/BD geeks will read anyway?

There's really nothing in it for them.

Frankly I don't see it. Those that will hate Disney for doing this probably already hate them (they are the great evil of how time, well right behind Lucas judging by some people in this forum ) They will not hate them more or less and they get a nice review for going with history rather to hide and pretent that those times never took place.

[SimBelm]

Originally Posted by ShellOilJunior

I disagree. Marienbad is a game. If the viewer isn't actively engaged in trying to decipher it then it'll wash over you. Just my opinion.

x2 on this, I've never been more engaged watching a movie than with Marienbad, it's like a mental rollercoaster. A puzzle that can be solved an infinite amount of ways, the first time I watched it I went through about 15 or so different theories that all held up by the end.

[Monty70]

Originally Posted by ShellOilJunior

I disagree. Marienbad is a game. If the viewer isn't actively engaged in trying to decipher it then it'll wash over you. Just my opinion.

"I can lose, but I always win"

[The Great Owl]

Originally Posted by ShellOilJunior

I disagree. Marienbad is a game. If the viewer isn't actively engaged in trying to decipher it then it'll wash over you. Just my opinion.

Well said. I enjoy letting Last Year at Marienbad "wash over me", though, in the same way that I allow Fellini's 8 1/2 to wash over me. I have always gravitated toward the sheer beauty of images, and that always keeps me excited even when I cannot readily follow a particular plot.

Last Year at Marienbad really is a puzzle and a game, though. I am the type of person who probably could not win at the seven-five-three-one-rows game in this movie to save my life, no matter how many times I might play it, but I would still have fun every time. The movie is the same way.

[The Great Owl]

Originally Posted by DarkRyder

I'm curious.

I'm taking a class on Hitchcock, and while I was hoping to be...not amazed, but at least enthralled by the man, I am saddened to say I find his films quite lackluster. His technicalities are impeccable, and the man himself is quite interesting, but his films (save for Shadow of a Doubt and Strangers On a Train) are not entirely interesting to me. The way he makes them are interesting, especially his reasoning, but that's not enough for me to say he is great. That being said, I do understand why Hitchcock is hailed so much.

With all that, who here tends to find Hitchcock not entirely interesting? Spidey? But seriously, I'd like to have this conversation with someone because I just hear praise and I'd like to hear the opposite to hear the other side of the coin.

My experience with Hitchcock has been almost the exact opposite.

I saw Lifeboat, North by Northwest, Psycho, and The Birds early on during my childhood when these movies played ever so often on the old TV stations, and these movies all thoroughly rocked my world. Even as a nine or ten year-old kid, I was stunned at how much these movies freaked me out and kept me mesmerized so much more than a lot of contemporary movies did. Unlike most people in this day and age, I saw Psycho with absolutely no clue about what was going to happen during the film, so the final outcome made my jaw hit the floor. These were old movies when I saw them during the early 1980s, but I still thought that they were cool as hell.

When I was slightly older, I had the same experiences with Shadow of a Doubt, To Catch a Thief, Rope, Rear Window, and Vertigo.

The Hitchcock films have never ever felt "homeworky" to me, and I have never given a lot of thought to the cinematography or the techniques. The movies just work for me in a way that most other films do not.

I really really really need to fork out for the Masterpiece Collection box set at some point. Probably this summer sometime.

[Abdrewes]

There are a bunch of BFI blus on sale. Can anyone confirm if the dual disc set blu ray is the same (region coding) as the first blu ray?

[jcez28]

Originally Posted by Page14

I'm kind of amazed to see how fast these 4 recent OOP titles (the 3 mentioned above and Le Cercle Rouge) seem to be drying up in the marketplace. (They've been OOP for what ... 10 or 11 days now?) Hopefully I'm wrong about that. I visited the 2 B&N stores within reasonable driving distance to me. One of them was sold out of every copy ... the other still had all 4 of them. I'm not sure if Amazon.com is a good gauge to go by, regarding their availability. ???

Personally, I didn't have any interest in any of these films before I saw that they were going OOP. Now my interest is piqued because I "might" like them, but might not be able to buy them by the time I figure out if I want them or not. (Did that make sense?) (... and the $40 price tag needs to be considered to some degree too ... that's the frugality in me speaking).

Ya Im the same had very little interest in these films but because of the "if" factor that I might actually enjoy it make this an instant buy. But being that their OOP makes them easier to sell or trade on the forum

[shadedpain4]

Originally Posted by Abdrewes

There are a bunch of BFI blus on sale. Can anyone confirm if the dual disc set blu ray is the same (region coding) as the first blu ray?

Which ones are on sale, and where?

[mrjohnnyb]

For all Herzog fans:

Aguirre, Wrath of God Blu-ray
https://www.blu-ray.com/news/?id=10881

[Fellini912]

Originally Posted by DjMethod

Persona is my favorite as well.

If you liked the inner struggle in Winter Light, The Magician might appeal to you. It is a more light-hearted interplay between faith and science. On the other side of the spectrum is Through a Glass Darkly, a more spiritually cathartic film. I highly recommend both!

Great recommendation. I would add The Seventh Seal, which is the classic Bergman film.

I believe there are two parts to any film:

1)There is the technical aspect: script, direction, acting, cinematography, etc.
2) The idea/s and themes behind the film.

This actually applies to any art form. I think if the ideas and themes are great, it gives any art work longevity. Technical aspect is essential to covey the film makers message.

I think Bergman and Bresson, are masters in both aspects. I could never say any of their films are shallow.

[Abdrewes]

Originally Posted by shadedpain4

Which ones are on sale, and where?

Virtually all of their dual releases are on sale at Amazon UK.

Ten BFI releases (region free, I hope)
+Miami vice theatrical
-------------------------
$157 USD shipped.

[The Great Owl]

Originally Posted by Abdrewes

There are a bunch of BFI blus on sale. Can anyone confirm if the dual disc set blu ray is the same (region coding) as the first blu ray?

I looked up The Loneliness of the Long Distance Runner, The Innocents, and Tess on this site, and they both appear to be Region B locked. I may be looking at the wrong sets, though.

[Abdrewes]

Originally Posted by The Great Owl

I looked up The Loneliness of the Long Distance Runner, The Innocents, and Tess on this site, and they both appear to be Region B locked. I may be looking at the wrong sets, though.

I picked up:
Hero stratus
More
Deep End
London in the raw
Primitive London
That kind of Girl
All the right noises
Her private hell
Pleasure girls
The valley

The original blu ray only releases were all region free, so I'm hoping the dual releases are too

Also: I picked up Max Manus two months ago, only to find out it wasn't region free, but region B. I should have read Dr. Svet's review first I need to find someone to take it off my hands.

[Fellini912]

Originally Posted by Abdrewes

The original blu ray only releases were all region free, so I'm hoping the dual releases are too

Also: I picked up Max Manus two months ago, only to find out it wasn't region free, but region B. I should have read Dr. Svet's review first I need to find someone to take it off my hands.

The Dual releases have region free blu rays (so don't worry, Abdrewes), but the DVDs don't play on my blu ray player. I have bought these titles in the past from BFI:

L'Age d'Oro
Alice (by Svankmajer)
Institute Benjamenta (by the Quay Brothers)

I highly recommend all these films. They are truly surreal. Alice by Svankmajer has an evil white rabbit.

[Show spoiler]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=sfmx5EG03oA

[pike67]

Originally Posted by The Great Owl

My experience with Hitchcock has been almost the exact opposite.

I saw Lifeboat, North by Northwest, Psycho, and The Birds early on during my childhood when these movies played ever so often on the old TV stations, and these movies all thoroughly rocked my world. Even as a nine or ten year-old kid, I was stunned at how much these movies freaked me out and kept me mesmerized so much more than a lot of contemporary movies did. Unlike most people in this day and age, I saw Psycho with absolutely no clue about what was going to happen during the film, so the final outcome made my jaw hit the floor. These were old movies when I saw them during the early 1980s, but I still thought that they were cool as hell.

When I was slightly older, I had the same experiences with Shadow of a Doubt, To Catch a Thief, Rope, Rear Window, and Vertigo.

The Hitchcock films have never ever felt "homeworky" to me, and I have never given a lot of thought to the cinematography or the techniques. The movies just work for me in a way that most other films do not.

I really really really need to fork out for the Masterpiece Collection box set at some point. Probably this summer sometime.

This. The exact same reaction. We must be the same age.

[JackTwist]

For those who have both, now a few years after release, what is your opinion of Studio Canal's Ran blu-ray.

I own the Criterion release, but let's say for $13, is it worth the upgrade?

[JackTwist]

Originally Posted by Fellini912

Great recommendation. I would add The Seventh Seal, which is the classic Bergman film.

I believe there are two parts to any film:

1)There is the technical aspect: script, direction, acting, cinematography, etc.
2) The idea/s and themes behind the film.

This actually applies to any art form. I think if the ideas and themes are great, it gives any art work longevity. Technical aspect is essential to covey the film makers message.

I think Bergman and Bresson, are masters in both aspects. I could never say any of their films are shallow.

I agree with all the above. I think Seventh Seal is a great film, but I find it a bit lesser than the ones I've mentioned. I find more personal works on the whole to be more endearing. And I absolutely love that image from Persona. I will def. check out The Magician, although I'm really wanting to see Summer with Monika.

On Bresson, I can't decide if I want to wait on upgrades for his other films or find a way to view them now. I also recently discovered Letter Never Sent which I highly recommend and I'm eagerly awaiting a viewing of Cranes are Flying.

[Abdrewes]

Originally Posted by Fellini912

The Dual releases have region free blu rays (so don't worry, Abdrewes), but the DVDs don't play on my blu ray player. I have bought these titles in the past from BFI:

L'Age d'Oro
Alice (by Svankmajer)
Institute Benjamenta (by the Quay Brothers)

I highly recommend all these films. They are truly surreal. Alice by Svankmajer has an evil white rabbit.

[Show spoiler]http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature...&v=sfmx5EG03oA

Thank you so much for confirming.

Alice and L'Age D'Or are fantastic films that I've been meaning to import for quite some time. And while we're talking about Bunuel, the Canadian release of Discreet Charm... I'm not familiar with Institute Benjamenta, though. I'm looking into it right now...

[Fellini912]

Originally Posted by Abdrewes

Thank you so much for confirming.

Alice and L'Age D'Or are fantastic films that I've been meaning to import for quite some time. And while we're talking about Bunuel, the Canadian release of Discreet Charm... I'm not familiar with Institute Benjamenta, though. I'm looking into it right now...

I had the same anxiety about the dual releases a year ago when I bought those films. I was relieved to find out that blu rays worked perfectly.

I was hoping for more Bunuel releases from criterion, it seems like it might not happen. All these other companies are releasing them, which is fine.

The Brothers Quay are identical twins and have been making stop motion films for years. Institute Benjamenta is one of their full feature films. Very surreal and interesting, it might not be for everybody.