The Criterion Collection

[SiqMachine]

Originally Posted by SpiderBaby

Most likely the films that were released after blu-rays started (War Trilogy, Dillinger is Dead, Sternberg silents, etc). If they do get blu-ray releases in the future, might be some of the last they upgrade. Also out of print stuff obviously.

I picked up the War Trilogy in this sale figuring the same thing. Thanks for the reply! If anyone can think of any others, let me know. Will definitely pick up Hoop Dreams soon as well.

[AreaUnderTheCurve]

Originally Posted by CoopFilm

Do you have Pale Flower? I think you would like it if you haven't seen it.

Nah. I opted for Branded to Kill instead. I'm about to watch In the Mood for Love, though, another blind buy

[Hawkguy]

Originally Posted by AreaUnderTheCurve

Nah. I opted for Branded to Kill instead. I'm about to watch In the Mood for Love, though, another blind buy

If you also like those films too, then I would really highly recommend Pale Flower to you ...though those are pretty good choices too.

[ShellOilJunior]

Originally Posted by AreaUnderTheCurve

Nah. I opted for Branded to Kill instead. I'm about to watch In the Mood for Love, though, another blind buy

Some excellent choices there. Enjoy!

[georgec]

Has Criterion ever considering doing a public wish list? Allow registered users on their site to vote for which films they want to see upgraded to BD, as well as which films they'd like added to the catalog.

Not something that determines what Criterion releases and upgrades, but just a fun thing for the community to keep track of the films.

[EricJ]

Originally Posted by georgec

Has Criterion ever considering doing a public wish list? Allow registered users on their site to vote for which films they want to see upgraded to BD, as well as which films they'd like added to the catalog.

Well, there was that year we almost got our one choice of a list of seven upgrades including "Kwaidan" and "Kagemusha"...And about 3/4 of the kids voted "I picked 'Howard's End' because that's the one I'd heard of! "
(And we all know that the best Criterions are the ones you've never heard of.)

And that's just on the idea of a set list provided by the studio.
Do I even NEED to tell you what would happen if Criterion opened a user-submitted wish list? Please tell me I don't.

[drbikeshorts]

Originally Posted by AreaUnderTheCurve

So far I've watched House, Tokyo Drifter, Chungking Express, and Rosemary's Baby, all blind buys.

I think I'm a phenomenal blind buyer because I enjoyed all of those and do not intend to sell any of them.

I guess you should consider Seijun Suzuki's Branded To Kill and/or Wong Kar-Wai's In The Mood For Love.

Edit: just saw you next post
You should enjoy both

[retablo]

Considering picking up these Eclipse sets:

Aki Kaurismäki’s Proletariat Trilogy
Jean Grémillon During the Occupation
Travels with Hiroshi Shimizu

I'm not familiar with any of these titles.. I think I'd like the Shimizu and the Kaurismäki sets the best... anyone have these and can recommend one over the other? As long as they aren't Japanese New Wave (which is probably the only film "style" that I really can't stand), I'm good to go.

[SpiderBaby]

Originally Posted by DarkRyder

Does anyone (maybe SpiderBaby?) know if it's better to read first the stories in the Trilogy of Life? I don't mean the entire books, because I know they are long, but I mean the stories from the books.

Not at all. Like CoopFilm said, these are Pasolini's vision of the stories. Like Salo being based on The 120 Days of Sodom book.

[EricJ]

Originally Posted by CoopFilm

Not really. The film versions in the trilogy are often very different, anyway (I've read some of them in the past and read summaries of some while watching the trilogy these past couple nights). So I don't think you exactly gain much from reading about them, they seem to be adapted somewhat loosely.

Ie., "loosely", as in, there's sort of the faintest hint of Chaucer or Arabian Nights structure you might recognize, but then Pasolini keeps wandering off of it, to focus on more vacantly grinning local ethnic non-actors to strip butt-naked (literally, 9 times out of 10) for bad pizza-boy gay porn. You can almost hear the wocka-chicka-wow on the soundtrack, as he starts wandering off the literature source.
(And yeah, I know, "Pasolini was gay? I had no idea! " But there are certainly directors out there who are....less gay. Like, Joel Schumacher, for instance.)

Personally, I'm waiting for someone to do a real period-accurate spin on Canterbury Tales, without the, um, constant distractions off the theme.

[Al_The_Strange]

Originally Posted by EricJ

Do I even NEED to tell you what would happen if Criterion opened a user-submitted wish list? Please tell me I don't.

Come on, we all have this dark, primal, dirty, disturbingly perverse desire to see what Criterion would do if they ever released random Hollywood garbage.

A full-blown fully-restored Criterion copy of 10000 BC, GI Joe, House of the Dead or something else really stupid would just make my day.

[TJS_Blu]

Originally Posted by EricJ

Do I even NEED to tell you what would happen if Criterion opened a user-submitted wish list? Please tell me I don't.

Well, they do, sortof. When you register at their site, you can put ONE (HaHa, I know) on a wishlist.

FILM I MOST WANT ADDED TO THE CRITERION COLLECTION

There doesn't seem to be any data suggesting this wish list ever influences actual releases.

[IronWaffle]

Originally Posted by Al_The_Strange

Come on, we all have this dark, primal, dirty, disturbingly perverse desire to see what Criterion would do if they ever released random Hollywood garbage.

A full-blown fully-restored Criterion copy of 10000 BC, GI Joe, House of the Dead or something else really stupid would just make my day.

Hey, just because YOU can't be bothered to put in the effort to contort reason for appreciating those titles doesn't mean they don't merit artistic consideration! Some films just aren't as easy to fully appreciate as Last Year at Marianbad.

[P@t_Mtl]

Originally Posted by retablo

Considering picking up these Eclipse sets:

Aki Kaurismäki’s Proletariat Trilogy
Jean Grémillon During the Occupation
Travels with Hiroshi Shimizu

I'm not familiar with any of these titles.. I think I'd like the Shimizu and the Kaurismäki sets the best... anyone have these and can recommend one over the other? As long as they aren't Japanese New Wave (which is probably the only film "style" that I really can't stand), I'm good to go.

I would say the Jean Gremillion set for the simple fact that is as Remorques with Jean Gabin and Michelle Morgan but I am just too biase for you to consider this a valid answer

[joie]

Criterion's aspect ratio for On the Waterfront is 1.66:1 with "alternates" of 1.85:1 and 1.33:1. Someone might do an experiment with the old DVD: cut some black paper to mask its 1.33:1 to 1.85:1; it will then look like a non-anamorphic widescreen DVD presentation. Can it be assumed that they will crop the top and bottom equally? Throughout? How would you get 1.66:1 by masking the DVD's picture?

What is on the two discs? Does one of them get the "alternate" aspect ratios? With the 1.66:1 on a disc by itself?

Is Criterions's 1.33:1 the same as Sony's 1.33:1?

Is Criterion's 1.66:1 specification a mistake? They have had:

United States
1954
108 minutes
Black and White
1.66:1
English

since it was announced on their website.

And, later, on the same announcement page, "Alternate presentations of the restoration in two additional aspect ratios: 1.85:1 (widescreen) and 1.33:1 (full-screen)"

Where did 1.66:1 come from? Is it a mistake and should be listed as 1.85:1 with 1.66:1 as one of the alternates? Are they serious about what they have written?

[Egbert Souse]

1.66:1 is apparently the ratio Grover Crisp (Sony's restoration head) recommends. 1.33:1 would be unmatted (in theory - the old DVD probably crops a bit off the sides like Anatomy of a Murder had) and 1.85:1 is the framing people in 1954 would have seen.

[SpiderBaby]

Originally Posted by TJS_Blu

Well, they do, sortof. When you register at their site, you can put ONE (HaHa, I know) on a wishlist.



There doesn't seem to be any data suggesting this wish list ever influences actual releases.

Well my 1,000,000 profiles I made on the site requesting The Last Movie hasn't worked yet.

[Page14]

Originally Posted by BohemianGraham

Yay! That makes me happy! It was the reason why I bought the set back in 2010, when it was like 115 on Amazon Canada. I didn't care (at the time) about the other films (saw them as essentially bonus features) in the set or the price, I just wanted a decent release of Head on BD in the correct aspect ratio with way better bonus features. Obviously, I've changed my tune about the rest of the set.

I can understand that. If you don't buy this set, there's no guarantee that Head would ever be released on its own. Who knows?

Out of the 3 you haven't seen, King of Marvin Gardens is the best. You can attempt A Safe Place, but I honestly wouldn't. I tried 3x to get some redeeming value out of the film and failed. Drive, He Said is actually growing on me, although I still don't like the protagonist. You have to give Jack Nicholson a lot of credit, as he's literally all over this set with the exception of The Last Picture Show. He's director, actor, writer, producer, etc. I have the deluxe edition of the Head soundtrack, and it's really neat to hear him on the Ditty Diego outtakes and rehersals.

Thanks for your insight. I like having movies that Nicholson had a hand in, before he became Nicholson ... if you know what I mean.

I'm Criterion free this weekend, as I'm still waiting for the orders that shipped on the 1st of November to arrive. They should begin to arrive late next week, and I hope that I don't get any duplicates like last year. Week End is still pending shippment. I'll be watching Brave instead, and Series 5 of Doctor Who.

I'm in the opposite extreme. With the recent B&N sale (and even before it), I'm over my ears in Criterions that I need to watch.

[Page14]

Originally Posted by Al_The_Strange

Come on, we all have this dark, primal, dirty, disturbingly perverse desire to see what Criterion would do if they ever released random Hollywood garbage.

A full-blown fully-restored Criterion copy of 10000 BC, GI Joe, House of the Dead or something else really stupid would just make my day.

Not to be confused with 1966's One Million Years, BC.

[Show spoiler](... one of my old-time favorites.).

[TJS_Blu]

Originally Posted by SpiderBaby

Well my 1,000,000 profiles I made on the site requesting The Last Movie hasn't worked yet.

As you know, my wish list was for The Last Movie as well, so looks like it'll take more than a million and one requests to make this happen.