The Criterion Collection

[Simple Lines]

Originally Posted by joie

Kill Bill, Volume 1, Influences, from Wikipedia.

Wikipedia's Kill Bill, Volume 2, has some interesting info about musical influences.

I thought that the swordfight between O-Ren Ishii and the Bride was interesting, because it looked as though it might have been filmed inside a snow globe.

What that Wikipedia article should do is be a little more specific about the influences. I recently noticed that some things from the Samurai Trilogy, mainly Pt. II: Duel at Ichijojo Temple, were tweaked in both volumes of Kill Bill. In some cases it's obvious, and others it may be considered "stretching".

Here are a couple of examples from Pt. II: Duel at Ichijojo Temple...

1. The ball and chain that Baiken uses against Musashi Miyamoto, during the first duel, could have been the inspiration for the ball and chain Gogo uses during her duel with The Bride in Kill Bill Vol. I.

2. The duel between O-Ren Ishii and The Bride in Kill Bill Vol. I could have been inspired by the snow scene. It's all there: snow, a duel, a woman, buildings of similar design. It seems pretty obvious to me the more I think about it.


Another inspiration for Tarantino, and from another film released by Criterion, is the mysterious box and its' contents from Kiss Me Deadly. He clearly lifted that for the mysterious suitcase in Pulp Fiction, though he could have borrowed it from later films that used it -- Raiders of the Lost Ark or Repo Man. No matter what, I believe it was first used in Kiss Me Deadly.

[ShellOilJunior]

I haven't seen Kill Bill in several years but the tea house scenes reminded me of Sword of Doom.

[Darkcritic]

Today I walked into B&N thinking I would buy La Jetee/Sans Soleil but walked out of it with Eric Rohmer's Six Moral Tales . I had NO intentions to buy it just yet but now I am extremely happy and excited because I did. Also bought The Night of the Hunter on Best Buy and will look for WR: Mysteries of the Organism and a couple other titles I mentioned earlier in the next few days. So, what do you think ?

[Hawkguy]

Originally Posted by Darkcritic

Today I walked into B&N thinking I would buy La Jetee/Sans Soleil but walked out of it with Eric Rohmer's Six Moral Tales . I had NO intentions to buy it just yet but now I am extremely happy and excited because I did. Also bought The Night of the Hunter on Best Buy and will look for WR: Mysteries of the Organism and a couple other titles I mentioned earlier in the next few days. So, what do you think ?

I didn't see you mention any titles earlier, but I can't recommend La Jetee/Sans Soleil enough. Particularly Sans Soleil... it's definitely one of my favorite 'discoveries' I've made this year.

[Darkcritic]

Originally Posted by CoopFilm

I didn't see you mention any titles earlier, but I can't recommend La Jetee/Sans Soleil enough. Particularly Sans Soleil... it's definitely one of my favorite 'discoveries' I've made this year.

I will try to pick it up soon too. I am running low in cash because of the Rohmer's films and a video camera I bought to start making my shorts .

[Lutz]

Originally Posted by Simple Lines

1. The ball and chain that Baiken uses against Musashi Miyamoto, during the first duel, could have been the inspiration for the ball and chain Gogo uses during her duel with The Bride in Kill Bill Vol. I.

This scene is also very similar to the Cynthia Rothrock/Karen Shepherd fight in Above The Law (you can watch it on Youtube).

[Hawkguy]

Originally Posted by Darkcritic

I will try to pick it up soon too. I am running low in cash because of the Rohmer's films and a video camera I bought to start making my shorts .

Oh, well that's more important than any of them

[BluPix]

Originally Posted by ShellOilJunior

THE RED SHOES

I've seen this 4-5 times on Criterion blu-ray and twice during the restoration tour. I cannot recommend this film any more. It's an absolute masterwork. It's brimming with passion from its creators and characters in the film.

The scene that always makes me smile

[Show spoiler] is in rehearsal when Vicky is dancing and Craster is trying to get the music just right. Vicky complains that the music is too fast and Craster remarks that he isn't playing for the circus.

As they argue the camera cuts to Lermontov with a big grin on his face. Great scene.

The Red Shoes, for me, ranks as one of the best films I've seen in the Criterion Collection. Actually, it ranks as one of the best films I've seen, period. I remember the first time I saw the film, after blind buying the Criterion blu, I was enthralled from start to finish. This is one of those classic films that everyone who's serious about film must see.

[Show spoiler]My favorite sequence has to be the big performance in the middle of the film, which is a sheer delight.

[BluPix]

Originally Posted by BluPops

I bought Harakiri on faith (don't like the term "blind buy") during the Barnes and Noble sale. Great film! I guess I expected a more typical action film, and was very pleasantly surprised. If you like Kurosawa, then rent, stream, borrow or buy this film!

Pops

I agree. Harakiri is a terrific film.

If you liked that film, Pops, then I strongly recommend you also try The Human Condition trilogy by the same director, Masaki Kobayashi, on DVD. It's a long series, but an important one and its themes are timeless and universal. I clearly remember seeing it in a theater over the course of a weekend and the time flew by.

Its tone is even more sobering than that of Harakiri.

[BluPix]

Originally Posted by Darkcritic

Today I walked into B&N thinking I would buy La Jetee/Sans Soleil but walked out of it with Eric Rohmer's Six Moral Tales . I had NO intentions to buy it just yet but now I am extremely happy and excited because I did. Also bought The Night of the Hunter on Best Buy and will look for WR: Mysteries of the Organism and a couple other titles I mentioned earlier in the next few days. So, what do you think ?

The Night of the Hunter is a very moody, dark and rather unusual film in the way it was shot and its music. I love that film. I've long loved La Jetee which can be described the same way even though its really very different. Interestingly, your purchase of La Jetee | San Soleil is a fitting tribute to the director of those films, Chris Marker, who just recently passed away.

[toddly6666]

Besides Pro-B's very helpful reviews of Criterions, the Criterion website has a very useful review section, which really helped me to decide what to get during the Criterion sales:

http://www.criterionforum.org/reviews.php

[ccfixx]

Originally Posted by toddly6666

Besides Pro-B's very helpful reviews of Criterions, the Criterion website has a very useful review section, which really helped me to decide what to get during the Criterion sales:

I know you've been around long enough to know that that's not the official Criterion site, right? The Criterion site doesn't have reviews on it, but they do sometimes post links to reviews from other sites.

[ShellOilJunior]

Will we see a box of one of these in November?

• The Archers
• Trilogy of Life
• Wenders Road Movies
• Apu Trilogy
• BRD Trilogy

[P@t_Mtl]

Completed another of many new movies

Jalsaghar 1958 (The Music Room)

When you mention Indian cinema, for most people it's all about those silly musical. While I do enjoy watching some of those, Indian cinema as so much more to offer and The Music Room is one of those films. Such a wonderful movie, the cinematography is beautiful and the music soothing to the mind. The story is a hard one, about a man who is so take by his love of music that he neglect the real life and people around him.

Maybe just a warning for those expecting perfect pictures, it look's beautiful and you can see that they made a good restoration. That being said, expect to see lot's of scratchs and defects, in short if you expect perfect PQ this may not be the release for you

[jrsl76]

Originally Posted by ShellOilJunior

Will we see a box of one of these in November?

• The Archers
• Trilogy of Life
• Wenders Road Movies
• Apu Trilogy
• BRD Trilogy

I would love to have any of these, although I have the BRD DVD set, but if I could get an Archers box set, I would be ecstatic.

[*DrStrangelove*]

Originally Posted by P@t_Mtl

Completed another of many new movies

Jalsaghar 1958 (The Music Room)

When you mention Indian cinema, for most people it's all about those silly musical. While I do enjoy watching some of those, Indian cinema as so much more to offer and The Music Room is one of those films. Such a wonderful movie, the cinematography is beautiful and the music soothing to the mind. The story is a hard one, about a man who is so take by his love of music that he neglect the real life and people around him.

Maybe just a warning for those expecting perfect pictures, it look's beautiful and you can see that they made a good restoration. That being said, expect to see lot's of scratchs and defects, in short if you expect perfect PQ this may not be the release for you

I picked this up a couple of months ago. It's one of those films I had never even heard of until some people on this forum were raving about it. I immediately put it on my wishlist and picked it up as soon as I could. It really is a great film and one that doesn't have a lot of exposure. I feel it gets overshadowed by other, more popular Criterions. It's definatley worth owning. The story is very intriguing and the music performances, while at times strange, are very interesting. I love seeing other cultures and traditions. This film felt very real to me. I look forward to watching more from this director.

[Yankees0222]

Originally Posted by ShellOilJunior

Will we see a box of one of these in November?

• The Archers
• Trilogy of Life
• Wenders Road Movies
• Apu Trilogy
• BRD Trilogy

I'd love to get the Trilogy of Life! we need more Pasolini

Apu Trilogy wouldnt be too shabby either though

[*DrStrangelove*]

I remember watching Mulholland Dr. a while ago. I was about 16 and remember thinking it was just weird and never really cared for it. I decided to give it another try last night and my initial reaction at the end was...WOW. I wouldn't even know where to begin with this film. It's definitely an extraordinary. The whole time I had this eerie feeling like something bad was gonna happen. I think this is probably the only film where I was literally fearful the whole way through. Naomi Watts was incredible. It was just an amazing experience and had me at the edge of my seat from beginning to end. And I still don't really know what the hell was going on in the last 40 min!

Note: I know this isn't Criterion related but it is a film that Criterion could (please?) release.

Edit: I loved the film so much I had to change my avatar.

[ShellOilJunior]

Originally Posted by *DrStrangelove*

I remember watching Mulholland Dr. a while ago. I was about 16 and remember thinking it was just weird and never really cared for it. I decided to give it another try last night and my initial reaction at the end was...WOW. I wouldn't even know where to begin with this film. It's definitely an extraordinary. The whole time I had this eerie feeling like something bad was gonna happen. I think this is probably the only film where I was literally fearful the whole way through. Naomi Watts was incredible. It was just an amazing experience and had me at the edge of my seat from beginning to end. And I still don't really know what the hell was going on in the last 40 min!

Note: I know this isn't Criterion related but it is a film that Criterion could (please?) release.

Edit: I loved the film so much I had to change my avatar.

It could be Criterion related if the youtube video removal thing is to be believed.

[Yami]

I thin we discussed that and came to the conclusion it wasn't really an indicator at all