The Criterion Collection

[Bn43]

Originally Posted by regeyer

I don't know if that was the same interview I saw. And I wouldn't doubt it that Lucas would try to limit Kurosawa's influence. But it doesn't take a genius to see that influence. Again, Lucas is entitled to praise and credit for his work. But the influence of Kurosawa, and specifically Hidden Fortress, cannot be denied. It's clear as a bell.

I barely thought of Star Wars when I rewatched Hidden Fortress a month ago. Well, except to wonder what the heck people are talking about. Aside from the two comic relief characters discovering the secret (gold/schematics) and being the POV characters, the similarities are superficial at best. That video above really is reaching.

[Professor Echo]

Originally Posted by Bn43

Not really. I'm actually annoyed Lucas felt he had to spend two to three minutes justifying his inspiration for Star Wars in that short video that was included on the disc, apparently because it is brought up so often. They're not that similar. In fact, they're very different adventure movies, both great in their own ways. He created something unique.

Uh huh.

In other news, RAIDERS OF THE LOST ARK had absolutely nothing to do with vintage serials due to the fact that Lucas produced his movie first in 1981 and then got into a time machine and traveled back in time to create the serial format during the earliest days of silent films. Ergo, with RAIDERS he also created something unique.

[Professor Echo]

Originally Posted by regeyer

IMO, Seven Samurai is the best movie ever made. Love it. And, yeah, it's long. But it never feels long. I don't think one frame is wasted.

Speaking of loooooooooong movies, a guy at eBay accepted my offer of $16.50 for a brand new copy of THE EMIGRANTS/THE NEW LAND. I have to admit I've kind of let this one go by for years because I just wondered if a pair of three hour movies about 19th century farming could be all that enthralling, but after reading Glenn Erickson's superb review, I was sold on it. Anyone here ever seen it? You rarely see it mentioned in the Criterion threads, so I'm hoping it's not one of those titles every critic says is a must own, but nobody else ever wants to watch it.

[Bn43]

Originally Posted by Professor Echo

Uh huh.

In other news, RAIDERS OF THE LOST ARK had absolutely nothing to do with vintage serials due to the fact that Lucas produced his movie first in 1981 and then got into a time machine and traveled back in time to create the serial format during the earliest days of silent films. Ergo, with RAIDERS he also created something unique.

Wouldn't know if Raiders is unique. Never watched the movies it was inspired by.

[malakaheso]

Originally Posted by Bn43

Like I said, superficial. That video is reaching. It even throws in scenes from a different Star Wars movie to try to justify itself.

The question of influence is usually too often overstated or taken at face value with many directors. A good example is Tarantino and Godard. Back in the day, if you even questioned this influence, especially the depth of it, QT fanboys would fire back at you with extreme prejudice, but I think it's clear to anyone who has watched Godard seriously that QT had a very superficial understanding of his work at best.

Influence has many layers/levels. The fact that a director states an influence over and over again often doesn't mean much.

As usual, trust the work, not the artist.

[BluLobsta]

Originally Posted by dcx4610

Wrapped up Seven Samurai. I'm sure it's no surprise for someone to say it was a masterpiece.

I did feel its length but I was never bored. It's extremely well paced and despite its length, didn't really feel like it had any filler. It needed to play out exactly the way it did.

While it didn't do anything too special musically or cinematography wise (still very competent), what it excelled in more than virtually any movie is characters, writing and storytelling.

All of the characters had a purpose, had unique personalties, had moments to shine and were extremely likable.

Lord Kikuchiyo was hilarious and his charisma jumped off the screen but it was Shimada who really was the glue to the movie for me. His character was so believable, trustworthy and honorable. It was a pleasure watching him act and I'm happy to see he's the lead in another blind buy of mine, Ikiru.

I certainly see what all of the hype was about and it looks like Hidden Fortress might be next on my list of blind buys.

Yeah, it's hard for me to keep up with all of the Kurosawa films that I want. So far all I have is Seven Samurai and Yojimbo. Then Ozu pulls me toward the buy button, pleading, and I have to wait for now.

...and today is Black Friday...which doesn't help.

[BluLobsta]

Originally Posted by malakaheso

The question of influence is usually too often overstated or taken at face value with many directors. A good example is Tarantino and Godard. Back in the day, if you even questioned this influence, especially the depth of it, QT fanboys would fire back at you with extreme prejudice, but I think it's clear to anyone who has watched Godard seriously that QT had a very superficial understanding of his work at best.

Influence has many layers/levels. The fact that a director states an influence over and over again often doesn't mean much.

As usual, trust the work, not the artist.

Wow, I've never heard of the Tarantino and Godard comparison before but now that I think about it, the political tones definitely do have some similarities. Obviously, Godard can be much more in your face with politics but after watching Masculin Feminin and it being fresh in my mind, I can see it. Interesting. But, yeah, that doesn't mean influence per se.

[joy-division]

Originally Posted by Bn43

Wouldn't know if Raiders is unique. Never watched the movies it was inspired by.

Because they weren't movies

[joy-division]

Article on The New World

https://decider.com/2020/11/26/the-n...nksgiving/amp/

[dkelly26666]

I used to think everyone (especially PT Anderson) in the 90s were imitating Scorsese, to an extent, which is true. But then, watch a lot of Fellini and Visconte and Godard and Ford and Welles, and you see who Scorsese is imitating.

People say George Lucas imitated Kurosawa, and Sergio Leone remade Kurosawa. But then, Kurosawa was imitating John Ford and Howard Hawkes and the like.

Before Woody Allen there was Billy Wilder and Ingmar Bergman.


I think Scorsese said it best once, when he said that the only real pioneers of cinema were the very first filmmakers. He said, "Because everything we do, they've pretty much done before."

The point being that EVERYONE has influences, every one 'pays homage', everyone steals from their idols.

[malakaheso]

Originally Posted by dkelly26666

The point being that EVERYONE has influences, every one 'pays homage', everyone steals from their idols.

That is only the beginning of the discussion, not the end of it. The next question after that is whether they are truly transforming their influences, to what extent and how. Then more questions follow.

[Jay Mammoth]

Originally Posted by zaxxon2000

Barnes and Noble is done without the membership discount. It will be a non player. Why buy from them when Amazon is much faster to deliver. Sad but I will not buy from Barnes anymore.

Had to cancel my copy of the Irishman from Amazon because they couldn’t get it to me until 2 days after release. Got it on release date from Barnes and Noble and didnt have to worry about getting a mangled copy from amazon.

[dancerslegs]

Originally Posted by Professor Echo

Speaking of loooooooooong movies, a guy at eBay accepted my offer of $16.50 for a brand new copy of THE EMIGRANTS/THE NEW LAND. I have to admit I've kind of let this one go by for years because I just wondered if a pair of three hour movies about 19th century farming could be all that enthralling, but after reading Glenn Erickson's superb review, I was sold on it. Anyone here ever seen it? You rarely see it mentioned in the Criterion threads, so I'm hoping it's not one of those titles every critic says is a must own, but nobody else ever wants to watch it.

The Emigrants and The New Land are both fantastic films. Von Sydow and Ullman are both in top form, and the whole 6+ hour saga is engrossing and beautiful from first to last. Don't hesitate.

[joy-division]

Finally managed to buy Notorious along with Studio Ghibli's The Tale of Princess Kaguya

I originally did also Seven Samurai but as I already do own the film in the BFI Kurosawa Samurai collection, I'm happy with that & it's money saved

[spatafore]

Anybody has requested from Criterion.com a replacement only for the Disc?

I open a brand new copy and the disc have a huge circular scratch, maybe not affect the play but... (not tested yet) but looks ugly/dangerous.

[BluLobsta]

Originally Posted by joy-division

Finally managed to buy Notorious along with Studio Ghibli's The Tale of Princess Kaguya

I originally did also Seven Samurai but as I already do own the film in the BFI Kurosawa Samurai collection, I'm happy with that & it's money saved

I love Hitchcock films. I only own two Criterion titles at the moment, however, Notorious and Rebecca. I also own Vertigo which is not available as a Criterion release.

Notorious is an amazing film. I've always been a student of espionage thrillers, ever since falling in love with a stunning, young Diana Rigg as Emma Peel in The Avengers when I was a young child, so Hitchcock fits the bill perfectly for me. Ingrid Bergman completely surprised me in her role. Excellent performance but completely unexpected. Claude Rains was nominated for Best Supporting Actor and he deserved it. Absolutely. Cary Grant was casted perfectly and gives a great performance as well in the lead.

I would also highly recommend Rebecca if you like early Hitchcock, if you don't already own it. It was Hitchcock's first attempt at filmmaking in Hollywood and it was spellbinding. What a great film. It won Best Picture and Best Cinematography in 1941. My next Hitchcock purchase will be Foreign Correspondent, amazingly also directed by Hitchcock in 1940 and nominated for six Academy Awards including Best Picture. Two Academy films in one year at your first attempt in Hollywood. Wow.

My Ghibli library is growing rapidly but the only Princess I own is Princess Mononoke.

[joy-division]

Originally Posted by BluLobsta

I love Hitchcock films. I only own two Criterion titles at the moment, however, Notorious and Rebecca. I also own Vertigo which is not available as a Criterion release.

Notorious is an amazing film. I've always been a student of espionage thrillers, ever since falling in love with a stunning, young Diana Rigg as Emma Peel in The Avengers when I was a young child, so Hitchcock fits the bill perfectly for me. Ingrid Bergman completely surprised me in her role. Excellent performance but completely unexpected. Claude Rains was nominated for Best Supporting Actor and he deserved it. Absolutely. Cary Grant was casted perfectly and gives a great performance as well in the lead.

I would also highly recommend Rebecca if you like early Hitchcock, if you don't already own it. It was Hitchcock's first attempt at filmmaking in Hollywood and it was spellbinding. What a great film. It won Best Picture and Best Cinematography in 1941. My next Hitchcock purchase will be Foreign Correspondent, amazingly also directed by Hitchcock in 1940 and nominated for six Academy Awards including Best Picture. Two Academy films in one year at your first attempt in Hollywood. Wow.

My Ghibli library is growing rapidly but the only Princess I own is Princess Mononoke.

I got Rebecca earlier this year & love it. Everytime I tried to buy Notorious, it had always sold out

If you haven't seen it yet, Princess Kaguya isa must & the Region A is a definite buy as it features an 86 minute documentary(even if it has been edited down from the original doc)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W71m...ature=youtu.be

[Bn43]

I kind of think Kaguya is Takahata's magnum opus. Glad he was able to make something so great before he died, though Only Yesterday, Fireflies and a few others are very good too. After Miyazaki had to keep pushing him to get off his butt and finish it, as I remember from the Kingdom of Dreams and Madness documentary. Watched it for the second time in about six years a month ago. The ending made me tear up again.

[BluLobsta]

Originally Posted by joy-division

I got Rebecca earlier this year & love it. Everytime I tried to buy Notorious, it had always sold out

If you haven't seen it yet, Princess Kaguya isa must & the Region A is a definite buy as it features an 86 minute documentary(even if it has been edited down from the original doc)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W71m...ature=youtu.be

Sounds great! Love Ghibli films. Thank you.

[joy-division]

Originally Posted by Bn43

I kind of think Kaguya is Takahata's magnum opus. Glad he was able to make something so great before he died, though Only Yesterday, Fireflies and a few others are very good too. After Miyazaki had to keep pushing him to get off his butt and finish it, as I remember from the Kingdom of Dreams and Madness documentary. Watched it for the second time in about six years a month ago. The ending made me tear up again.

What do you make of My Neighbours the Yamadas?