The Criterion Collection

[nitin]

Originally Posted by FragnitoM

I listened this podcast. He said they already are and have doing the more lengthy 4K scans for years to future proof it but are then releasing it on a physical format that can’t utilize it—so this is not an issue. They’re already doing all the work and then not letting us see it

But, and this is important for UHD releases, only a fraction of those 4k scans have been done with HDR so most of these would not be HDR ready. Off the top of my head, Blood Simple, Tree of Life and Sex Lies and Videotape are some of those HDR scanned titles.

You can add HDR to a non-HDR scan but my understanding is that is not preferable, especially for film based sources.

[joy-division]

[BamaDullard]

Originally Posted by joy-division

You should see the thread for The Elephant Man, which apparently got ugly. No way the last post was 1 day ago.

[Bates_Motel]

Originally Posted by HillSprinter

Depends on the quality of the film stocks, the methods used to strike the prints, and skills of the technicians, much like any digital conversion from film source.

No, it doesn’t. A negative will always have more detail than a print, which is 3-4 generations removed from a negative in the analog world, and at least 1 generation removed for a DI. ��

Originally Posted by NeoNical

Do film prints have less detail than a Blu-ray or nah? Just wondering out of curiosity but I don't have enough money to afford a legit film projector and film print.

99% of the time yes, unless it’s an old master. That’s why things like SFX wires show up on blu that were never seen theatrically.

[Gerby]

Originally Posted by jw007

Dang, do you remember what the model of the Epson projector you had? I'd imagine they might have improved their machines so that doesn't happen anymore. I'm not too worried about that as I'd cover the projector in a dust cover when not in use. I take it you have this Sony projector? https://www.sony.com/electronics/projector/vpl-hw45es

I had an Epson EH-TW7200 (UK model which is now discontinued, i think the US version went by a different model number).
Yeah the Sony i have now is the VPL-HW45es.

[WeeBey]

Some facts to understand the context around Criterion's reluctance to adopt UHD:


Blu-ray Debut: June 2006
HD DVD vs Blu-ray Ended: February 2008
First Criterion Blu-ray: December 2008

Criterion released their first Blu-ray 2.5 years after the introduction of Blu-ray and 10 months after the end of the format war.

UHD Blu-ray Debut: February 2016

It has been over 4 years and we still haven't seen UHD Blu-rays from Criterion.


More facts:

DVD Debut: 1997
DVD Peak: 2005 @ $16.3B
DVD 2018: $2.2B

BD Debut: 2006
BD Peak: 2013 @ $2.37B
BD 2018: $1.8B

UHD BD Debut: 2016
UHD 2017 Growth: 187%
UHD 2018 Growth: 70%
UHD 2019 Growth: 15%
UHD 2019: $300M
UHD Peak: ~2022

Notice the trend here. UHD BD will peak far below a billion dollars, it won't come close to even the heights of regular Blu-ray. UHD BD will be the last physical format. Any future improvement to video standards will be restricted to digital streaming.

Now, of course, it's entirely possible that Criterion will release occasional one-off UHDs here and there but it will never be a normal release for them and, IMO, it's totally understandable. The boutique labels that have released UHD BDs must be selling a very small amount of them that, even if profitable, might not be worth the effort for everyone.

[HillSprinter]

I remember Criterion’s adoption of Blu-ray being interminable, and being ecstatic when they finally announced it. I’d bought a few of their DVD’s, but decided early on to wait (and hope) for Blu-ray releases. Used to go to Amoeba and drool over their massive Criterion section.

[repulsed]

Has anybody contacted Criterion about getting (paying for it) a replacement case and insert for Sex Lies and Videotape? That packaging is horrible and I'd like to put it in a standard case. Thought I'd ask here before emailing Criterion for nothing

[FragnitoM]

Originally Posted by repulsed

Has anybody contacted Criterion about getting (paying for it) a replacement case and insert for Sex Lies and Videotape? That packaging is horrible and I'd like to put it in a standard case. Thought I'd ask here before emailing Criterion for nothing

I complained to them about it when it came out and didn’t get a response. I didn’t buy it directly through them so That’s probably why they didn’t offer a replacement

It really is some awful packaging

[RustinCohle]

I watched my copy of Portrait of a Lady on Fire last night, and some of the subtitles had been changed from the theatrical release. Makes me wonder how many other times Criterion has changed subtitles.

Just one example being this..

Theatrical/Hulu:

[Show spoiler]

Criterion Blu-ray:

[Show spoiler]

[ravenus]

Over the past couple of nights I went through the two discs of Criterion's Night of the Living Dead set. The film of course is a cult phenomenon and justifiably so. Its tale of a motley group of strangers trapped in a farmhouse while the world around them goes to shit with the dead coming to life as flesh-eating ghouls has been endlessly mined for both its socio-political metaphors as well as its pure ability to shock. In a time when horror was weakening, either by way of remote Gothic trappings the audience could no longer relate to or being relegated to child-friendly matinee fare, George Romero and his collaborators brought ingenuity and a nerve-wracking visceral quality that genuinely shook up viewers at the time, and even after so many years, its appeal has not dated. And why should it? A good story with intelligent direction and sincere performances shouldn't have an expiry date. The budget may have been low, but it was made by people with a genuine love for the genre, not just looking to make a quick return on a minuscule investment. This was borne out by the fact that the film's success didn't have Romero immediately cranking out a sequel (Thankfully he was an independent for long stretches of his career and couldn't be kicked off his own idea). In fact each "Living Dead" sequel, at least covering the trilogy, and to a smaller extent Land of the Dead, came when Romero felt he had a sufficiently good story to tell and use the script to make pertinent / satirical observations about the era.

My journey to NotLD was interesting in the sense that I first saw the 1990 remake (officially blessed with a re-write by Romero himself and directed by his long-time collaborator Tom Savini). I quite liked it and at a later point saw the original in a very beat-up public domain version. Even then it had a certain power and I was struck by how much they were pushing the edge in the 1960's, which otherwise I mainly remember for Hammer Horrors and the Corman Poe films. The Millennium Edition DVD from Anchor Bay was then the thing to get - sourced from the original negatives with a master that got Romero's approval for presenting the film "as it was meant to be seen" (in 2002, at least). It also had a wonderful set of extras, some of which have been included on the Criterion release. For the longest time there seemed to be no satisfactory transfer to blu-ray and the film's PD status always made it a question mark as to who would bell this cat. Thanks to the MOMA and Film Foundation (and the people that funded their work) and Criterion, we have a truly respectful HD treatment of an undisputed classic of independent film-making in general and horror film in particular.

Among the special features I'd like to talk about some personally interesting moments.

Romero's interview in a 2012 Toronto film event - an excellent QA session with a very knowledgeable host and a nice audience. One striking moment comes when they discuss Romero casting a black actor in a leading role at that time. Romero talks about it and then reveals that when he was casting for Land of the Dead (a 2005 release) Universal refused to let him have a black actor in the lead. He had to compromise, choosing the 2nd best option of casting the main zombie character, a self-aware leader type, with a black actor, showing that even in more recent times, the glass ceiling is an undeniable reality in mainstream studios.

Actor Duane Jones' audio interview - Duane Jones as Ben was the film's anchor and ultimate statement. He played other interesting roles (mainly in the dreamy psychedelic Ganja & Hess) but people mostly recognized him as Ben which seemed to have put him off a screen career, preferring instead to train actors in his own school-by-appointment. In the interview he comes across as an immensely well-educated erudite intellectual who is also a private person, grateful for the fame, but not interested in being an icon for the cult horror fanbase per se.

There's a very nice analysis of the techniques used in the film from the guys that run the Every Frame A Painting Youtube channel, specially commissioned by Criterion for this release. Worth it.

Of course there's loads of other stuff, including an talking heads admiration society with input from Del Toro, Darabont and Roberto Rodriguez but these were for me the highlights of this beautiful set.

[Albie989]

Say, what was the first Criteion edition to have an anamorphic transfer?

[peschi]

Originally Posted by Albie989

Say, what was the first Criteion edition to have an anamorphic transfer?

Insomnia

[Feiereisel]

Originally Posted by Albie989

Say, what was the first Criteion edition to have an anamorphic transfer?

According to Wikipedia (attributed to the FAQ section of Criterion's old website) it was the first DVD release of Insomnia.

EDIT: Scooped! Well done, peschi!

[DimitriL]

Originally Posted by yarulbcool

But who, really, is even asking for them to make UHD releases a regular thing?

Because they don’t believe in that.

And because even if they did a limited release, there’s zero guarantee even with a popular title that it won’t be a money losing proposition. Unless they go the route of other boutique labels and jack the price up to 50, 60 dollars. And there are friends here who regularly complain that Criterion BDs are overpriced even when they can get them at a $20 price point.

(The only way I see them doing this in a way that makes any possible economic sense is that BD releases become combo sets with the BD and UHD editions included in both. But we still don’t know how much mastering and replication costs figure into this. If the major studios are all selling UHDs at a major markup bc it’s the only business case that makes sense for a super-niche format, I don’t see how Criterions don’t become price prohibitive.)

[SammyJankis]

Originally Posted by anthonyls

That's fine... you'll see. LOL
In the meantime... keep wasting your time dreaming about a sale that ain't gonna happen.

[jonsax201]

[Show spoiler]

Originally Posted by SammyJankis

2nd time I've heard the July 10 date. Starting to sound real to me.

[MelzLife]

this sale better happen! looking to pick up the Godzilla set

[FragnitoM]

Originally Posted by RustinCohle

I watched my copy of Portrait of a Lady on Fire last night, and some of the subtitles had been changed from the theatrical release. Makes me wonder how many other times Criterion has changed subtitles.

Just one example being this..

Theatrical/Hulu:

[Show spoiler]

Criterion Blu-ray:

[Show spoiler]

It could be that the French words/phrases used don’t have an English equivalent and more than one English phrases could be used—so if two different French translators did their own subtitles they may choose different words they think is close. Someone who speaks French could probably address the actual line differences better

[regeyer]

Originally Posted by FragnitoM

It could be that the French words/phrases used don’t have an English equivalent and more than one English phrases could be used—so if two different French translators did their own subtitles they may choose different words they think is close. Someone who speaks French could probably address the actual line differences better

It's also possible that the interpretation has been improved.