The Criterion Collection

[jw007]

Originally Posted by evilive

The Jim Jarmusch titles have been some of my absolute favorite blind-buys from Criterion.

I think Jarmusch is my soul brother from another mother.

[theater dreamer]

Originally Posted by renegadeviking

Anyone notice Kino Lorber publishes the masterpieces and Criterion Collection publishes fringe and weird movies these days.

LOL, no.

[nitin]

Originally Posted by Dailyan

Honestly, I'm kind of tempted. I watched a doc on TCM the other night called "Image Makers: The Adventures of America's Pioneer Cinematographers" and showed off some of Von Sternberg's silents; it peeked my interested. I might nab it at my local B&N later this week. The doc also reminded me I need to get off my bum and finally get around to finally watching "Metropolis" and "Sunrise".

Do you have the Eureka or Cohen Keaton sets? The General is also a must watch silent. As is Fritz Lang’s Der Mude Tod.

[fdm]

Originally Posted by FragnitoM

Yeah it is but the video quality is nowhere near UHD or even Bluray

The video quality hasn't been too bad for me, but I haven't managed to watch all that much yet as I've found the audio capacity to be too limited. To me it's kind of the audio equivalent of pan and scan for anything that should have been presented with a complete modern soundtrack (e.g., DD 5.1), a pretty big turn off.

[hoytereden]

Originally Posted by Ray Jackson

Alphabetizing one’s collection is barbaric and crude imo.

Color spine and package height coordination is the only civilized method.

Darks with darks, whites with whites, reds/oranges/yellows etc.

Criterions have their own separate shelf of course.

Try to put directors together when possible.

But ultimately the aesthetic nature of the collection takes precedence.

When done properly, it’s a tribute to the cultural evolution of mankind.

...the only thing that separates us from the animals.

[Show spoiler]

I just stick them on a shelf. The only separating (sounds like we're doing laundry!) I do is digipaks together and regular cases together. I do just the opposite of you-I mix the spines so they don't match. Makes for a colorful display. I have a good number of Criterions but not so many that, even with my mishmash system, I can't locate a title pretty easily.

[hoytereden]

Originally Posted by jayembee

I once considered that, but then I'd go nuts trying to figure out where to file the ones that cross over genre boundries. Would I file Cowboys & Aliens under SF or Westerns? That kind of thing.

As it is, I'd love to still use my "fiendishly complex system that only I can figure out". I had to compromise to a degree once I moved in with my then-fiancée, so that she could at least try to find things on her own. Given that I still make it a little harder by shelving the boutique labels and series films separately, she still is more inclined to just say, "Sweetie? Do we have X, and if so, where on the shelves is it?"

One thing I do specifically for her is to file the Christmas movies in one special place. During the holidays, she likes to watch those, so I just make it easy for her to access those if I'm not around.

Anytime I hear something like this I immediately think of W.C. Fields in The Man On the Flying Trapeze..."Where Is Wolfinger!!!"

[bwdowiak]

Originally Posted by KubrickKurasawa

2001 is the God.
Barry Lyndon is The Father.
The Shining is The Holy Ghost.


Can I ask how 2001 and Stalker are similar in your opinion?

I've only seen Stalker once, but I recall it (and other Tarkovsky films) to be open for interpretation. I think the narratives and dialogue in Barry Lyndon and The Shining are more straight-forward.

[SeanJoyce]

At over 1800 movies I still torment myself by alphabetizing

Collecting is become almost unsustainable. Almost.

[Member-222782]

I ordered several Criterion and Arrow titles through B&N, some of which were November preorders, and apparently they ship as items become available, unlike most retailers that wait until everything is in stock. Wasn't expecting that. One thing, though. This is the second time I've placed an order at B&N and there's no Order History when I check a day or two later. My copy of Matewan shipped so obviously the orders exist, they're just not showing up in the History. Odd.

[jw007]

Originally Posted by SeanJoyce

At over 1800 movies I still torment myself by alphabetizing

Collecting is become almost unsustainable. Almost.

You know what's the hardest though?

When you alphabetize your library in plastic bins.

I have these special media bins (I buy at the Container Store) and they have separators that make 3 rows in there. So when I buy a new blu-ray I have to shift all of my blu-ray cases, which means I have to take out rows of them in order to accommodate the new releases so they stay alphabetized. Luckily I only have about 600 blu-rays, so not that difficult compared to you.

[Gacivory]

I kinda organize my stuff like High Fidelity. I put all the directors together and then connect them by how I feel. Then just remember which is in which section. I need to go through and top to bottom reorganize, but I just don’t have the space yet and need new shelves.

[jayembee]

Originally Posted by nitin

And now it’s 3 all time great films in 3 nights...

Frankenheimer’s Seconds was so far ahead of its time that I am not sure it still gets the credit it really deserves. It’s true that the plot feels like a Twilight Zone episode, but leaving the comparison at just that (which a lot of reviews seem to do) does major disservice to what is perhaps the most imaginatively conceived cinematography/sound design/music trifecta to directly communicate the lucid nightmare that the main character goes through in the film.

Both Jerry Goldsmith’s and James Hong Wowe’s work here goes a long way to making this the sort of experience that feels Lynchian before Lynch came along! Rock Hudson and John Randolph are also superb in the lead roles.

Structurally, the film is also cleverly put together, I have read elsewhere that the middle section drags for some people but it is crucial to the themes that the movie is attempting to communicate about manufactured dreams and realities.

I saw it off the Criterion blu Which is sourced from a 4k scan/2k restoration which is stunning. The audio is a huge part of the experience and the lossless mono track is outstanding and has tremendous depth.

Time for me to yet again say that we really need a Blu-ray of Daniel Petrie's 1980 Resurrection, which was written by Lewis John Carlino, the screenwriter of Seconds. Universal has yet to release it even on DVD, though they eventually out it out on an MOD DVD-R (which I ended up getting). I'd kill for a Criterion release, but at this point, I'd take a Blu-ray from anyone with a licensing deal with Universal. It has an ending that makes me tear up even just thinking about it.

[bonehica]

Originally Posted by SeanJoyce

At over 1800 movies I still torment myself by alphabetizing

Collecting is become almost unsustainable. Almost.

I'm there with ya'. Mine is all alphabetized. Buying a movie that starts with an "A" (or B or C) sometimes makes me cringe. Just knowing I'm going to need a good hour to shift everything over to stick that sucker on the shelf gives me nightmares. This is why I usually wait until I have a decent sized stack of new movies before I decide to get down to it.

[Cremildo]

Originally Posted by jayembee

Time for me to yet again say that we really need a Blu-ray of Daniel Petrie's 1980 Resurrection, which was written by Lewis John Carlino, the screenwriter of Seconds. Universal has yet to release it even on DVD, though they eventually out it out on an MOD DVD-R (which I ended up getting). I'd kill for a Criterion release, but at this point, I'd take a Blu-ray from anyone with a licensing deal with Universal. It has an ending that makes me tear up even just thinking about it.

Nov 5, 2019.

[SeanJoyce]

Originally Posted by bonehica

I'm there with ya'. Mine is all alphabetized. Buying a movie that starts with an "A" (or B or C) sometimes makes me cringe. Just knowing I'm going to need a good hour to shift everything over to stick that sucker on the shelf gives me nightmares. This is why I usually wait until I have a decent sized stack of new movies before I decide to get down to it.

An hour is exactly right. Usually I'll let half a year's worth of buys amass on the counter before resigning myself to the thankless and arduous task of categorizing.

I find I have to break up the stack over the course of several nights, sometimes needing alcohol to aid me. I often find myself coming across stuff that I really don't need and could probably jettison, but I do the old "eh, I'll keep it for now and sleep on it."

But alphabetizing is kiddie play next to moving...especially after you've been somewhere several years and there's that much more to pack/transport

[bonehica]

Originally Posted by SeanJoyce

An hour is exactly right. Usually I'll let half a year's worth of buys amass on the counter before resigning myself to the thankless and arduous task of categorizing.

I find I have to break up the stack over the course of several nights, sometimes needing alcohol to aid me. I often find myself coming across stuff that I really don't need and could probably jettison, but I do the old "eh, I'll keep it for now and sleep on it."

But alphabetizing is kiddie play next to moving...especially after you've been somewhere several years and there's that much more to pack/transport

Preach it! I've done the move thing as well. Ughhh...

[jayembee]

Originally Posted by Cremildo

Nov 5, 2019.

How did I miss that?! Thanks.

[critterdvd]

Originally Posted by SeanJoyce

At over 1800 movies I still torment myself by alphabetizing

Collecting is become almost unsustainable. Almost.

I'm at about 3,500 physical releases at this and I still alphabetize, however I do it in chunks about 2-3 times a year depending on how many movies I pick up (almost always I spend at least 1 day of my Christmas Vacation away from work doing this, and then usually at the beginning of summer). I use slightly modify regular Big-Box Store Bookcases to keep my movies that leaves about 5-8 inches between the top of the Blu-Ray/DVD case and the top of the shelf and I'll store the "new discs" there until I get around to alphabetizing. I also use this as an opportunity to make sure my collection managers are up-to-date (every year I'll find at least a few discs I forgot I bought that are still on my wish list).

[jayembee]

Originally Posted by bonehica

I'm there with ya'. Mine is all alphabetized. Buying a movie that starts with an "A" (or B or C) sometimes makes me cringe. Just knowing I'm going to need a good hour to shift everything over to stick that sucker on the shelf gives me nightmares. This is why I usually wait until I have a decent sized stack of new movies before I decide to get down to it.

Originally Posted by critterdvd

I'm at about 3,500 physical releases at this and I still alphabetize, however I do it in chunks about 2-3 times a year depending on how many movies I pick up [snip]

I leave some extra space -- usually about six titles worth -- on each shelf to accomodate new purchases. In the case of most of the boutique labels, I leave lots of extra space.

[Drake2222]

Originally Posted by bwdowiak

I've only seen Stalker once, but I recall it (and other Tarkovsky films) to be open for interpretation. I think the narratives and dialogue in Barry Lyndon and The Shining are more straight-forward.

A great companion film to Stalker is Dead Man’s Letters, tho unfortunately no blu ray