The Criterion Collection

[The Great Owl]

Originally Posted by hoytereden

The original-nobody sings Que Sera Sera

Hey! You got a problem with Doris Day???

Actually, you have a really good point.

[hoytereden]

Originally Posted by The Great Owl

Hey! You got a problem with Doris Day???

Actually, you have a really good point.

Actually, I love her voice. It's just that, as a kid, that song seemed to play endlessly in our household. By coincidence today is 24hrs of Doris on TCM.

[SilentDawn]

Hey everyone,

What is this 5 for 50 coupon everyone is talking about, that sounds amazing.

Plus, is tomorrow the last day of the sale or was it today? I was on vacation so I wasn't able to get a final haul in before we left.


Any help would be greatly appreciated,

Silent.

[The Great Owl]

Originally Posted by hoytereden

Actually, I love her voice. It's just that, as a kid, that song seemed to play endlessly in our household. By coincidence today is 24hrs of Doris on TCM.

I really do not mind the presence of the song in the movie, partly because it does bring back memories of hearing it when I was kid. Doris Day really does have a beautiful voice.

I'm comfortable enough with my masculinity to admit that I have always loved the synth-pop band, Erasure. Erasure used to cover Doris Day's "Que Sera Sera" in concert with a slight alteration in the lyrics, so I always think about that now when I hear the song.

[Scottie]

Originally Posted by The Great Owl

So...

Which version of Alfred Hitchcock's The Man Who Knew Too Much do y'all like best?

After revisiting the 1956 remake that stars James Stewart and Doris Day, I decided that my preferences sway slightly in the direction of the original 1934 version that was given such a beautiful release by Criterion. For me, nothing can replace the menace of Peter Lorre in that version, and I loved the wild and crazy gunfight.

I've got a lot of love for the 1956 version as well, so my preference for the original is high praise. I'm convinced that Steven Spielberg drew influence from a pivotal Morocco sequence in the remake for some of his chase scenes in Raiders of the Lost Ark. James Stewart and Doris Day are both quite fun in their roles, and it's fun to see the frame-by-frame similarities that the remake shares with the original during the London scenes.

Watching the 1956 version really made me want to revisit my Criterion of the original, so I might just do that this weekend.

Honestly, I'm not a big fan of either of them. However, if I have to choose, I'd pick the original. The remake was irritating, in my opinion.

[The Great Owl]

Originally Posted by iScottie

Honestly, I'm not a big fan of either of them. However, if I have to choose, I'd pick the original. The remake was irritating, in my opinion.

I'm coming to terms with the fact that I'm an Alfred Hitchcock fanboy, because I really cannot find fault in any of his films. As I've revisited Hitchcock's pre-1950 movies on Blu-ray, and seen the handful of movies in the Masterpiece Collection box set that I had not previously seen, I'm loving each and every movie. Even my least favorite, Family Plot, has its incredible moments and stands above most top tier works by other directors. (Family Plot almost has the feel of a top tier Coen Brothers film, in fact.)

Hitchcock had a flair for visual splendor, and he had a way of eliciting the maximum impact from his actors. In the documentaries for each movie, actors talk about how Hitchcock did not give "motivations" to the actors, and, instead, instructed them with tangible suggestions tailored for each scene. "Smile like you have broken china in your mouth while you say this line."

I was watching the making-of documentary of The Birds night before last, and remember a discussion about the scene

[Show spoiler]showing the man with his eyes pecked out by the birds.

The camera cuts closer in three zoom shots, because Hitchcock advised, "That's how our eyes would see something like this in real life." He's right.

[hoytereden]

Originally Posted by The Great Owl

I really do not mind the presence of the song in the movie, partly because it does bring back memories of hearing it when I was kid. Doris Day really does have a beautiful voice.

I'm comfortable enough with my masculinity to admit that I have always loved the synth-pop band, Erasure. Erasure used to cover Doris Day's "Que Sera Sera" in concert with a slight alteration in the lyrics, so I always think about that now when I hear the song.

If there's one film of hers that I can recommend without any reservations it would be Love Me or Leave Me. She and Cagney are superb and I think it's her best film, by far. It's on TCM tonight and is a real if you've only seen her comedies or musicals.

[SammyJankis]

Somewhat Criterion related.

I just watched The Illusionist (2010) and absolutely loved it. It's a beautiful and devastating piece of work.

Never seen any Tati. Looked up at my local library to find out that they have only one Tati film, and it's the one I own: Playtime. Hoping they release some of his other films, notably the ones that are OOP.

Now I need to watch Playtime..

[starman15317]

Originally Posted by jw007

i just ordered my replacement cases on criterion.com for the man who fell to earth and the 400 blows!

What's the deal with the old cases? Are they really that bad? Are they the same type of case that Dazed and Confused comes in? Because I always assumed that since its a digipack.

[Hawkguy]

Originally Posted by starman15317

What's the deal with the old cases? Are they really that bad? Are they the same type of case that Dazed and Confused comes in? Because I always assumed that since its a digipack.

They're much less sturdy than the current ones.

[starman15317]

Originally Posted by CoopFilm

They're much less sturdy than the current ones.

Ah, ok. When did they change the sturdiness of the cases? I'm wondering how many titles are affected.

[hoytereden]

Originally Posted by CoopFilm

They're much less sturdy than the current ones.

I'm not even sure about the new ones. Percentage wise, I've gotten far more damaged Criterion cases than regular Blu-ray ones.

[lordmorpheus72]

the problems i've had recently have been with the spines, the plastic gets "picked" and it annoys the crap out of me. the most recent was my Traffic BD. Need to order some blank replacement cases.

[Jobla]

I prefer the remake of THE MAN WHO KNEW TOO MUCH.

[White Dang]

Originally Posted by zoodermin

Quick question guys: I love Bergman films and so far I have The Seventh Seal, Fanny & Alexander, Wild Strawberries and Smiles of a Summer Night and all of them are great. Right now I can afford one more so between Summer with Monika and The Magician, which one you'll choose?

The Magician is one of my favorite films. Just like Bergman's usual, it's existential, but maybe a bit more so for me. It connects with me personally and has one of my favorite quotes:

"I've prayed one prayer in my life: Use me, O God! But He never understood what a devoted slave I'd have been. So I was never used... But that too is a lie. Step by step you go into the dark. The movement itself is the only truth."

If you like dark films, it's a gem.

[Abdrewes]

Originally Posted by SammyJankis

Somewhat Criterion related.

I just watched The Illusionist (2010) and absolutely loved it. It's a beautiful and devastating piece of work.

Never seen any Tati. Looked up at my local library to find out that they have only one Tati film, and it's the one I own: Playtime. Hoping they release some of his other films, notably the ones that are OOP.

Now I need to watch Playtime..

Great movie! (The illusionist)

I suggest seeing these before Playtime:
•Monsieur Hulot's Holiday
•Mon Oncle.

You'll make better sense of what he is doing in Playtime if you do so for it is, really, the culmination of those efforts.

[jw007]

Originally Posted by starman15317

What's the deal with the old cases? Are they really that bad? Are they the same type of case that Dazed and Confused comes in? Because I always assumed that since its a digipack.

what i'm trying to figure out is why criterion still releases their films in sleeves/digipacks such as with sansho the bailiff or amarcord or the leopard or fanny and alexander or dazed and confused or night of the hunter or on the waterfront... i guess maybe some of the supplementary material (the booklet) requires a larger case so thats why they do with the cardboard/paper case over the plastic one (although with heaven's gate, they really crammed that big booklet in there).

[White Dang]

I actually wish they could keep the standard CC case.

I don't like the variation in case size when looking at my collection.

[starman15317]

Yeah, those cases are random. I just wish there was somewhere to put the big booklets instead of just tucking it in with the digipack (I'm not sure if any other Criterion digipacks have a pocket in them but Dazed and Confused doesn't). The Dazed DVD has extra space in the outer case for the booklet so you don't have to tuck it in with the digipack.

[thebard]

Originally Posted by jw007

This was it! My 9th and final haul for this epic July sale.

Not only did I buy 3 Criterion titles at B&N, but I managed to buy the Blu-ray of The Man Who Fell to Earth for $60 + tax at a local record shop just a bit later! I now officially own every OOP Criterion Blu-ray! A month ago I bought The Third Man on Ebay for $125 but I feel I got a great deal today for a used copy of the famous David Bowie film with a mint condition Blu-ray disc.

Here is today's tally.

La Haine ($13.80 + tax) (15% off coupon + $5/50 coupon + 10% member discount)
Blow Out ($16.24 + tax) ($5/50 coupon + 10% member discount)
The Kid With a Bike ($16.23 + tax) ($5/50 coupon + 10% member discount)
The Man Who Fell to Earth ($60 + tax) (purchased at a record store)

I think this is it for me for this summer's sale. The next time I buy Criterion titles will be in November for the next 50% sale.

I'm glad I was able to use all the coupons I wanted today. It's a great way to end it all.

(ps. unfortunately Blow Out didn't have the Brian DePalma blue sticker I wanted, but no big deal... I tried other stores and even special ordered it to 2 other stores, but none came with the blue sticker).

COMING SOON: I will be posting my full haul from all 9 trips with a picture of all the titles I bought.

pic:

[Show spoiler]

Nice! Sweet deal, too...