The Criterion Collection

[TheSpruceMoose]

Stopped by a Barnes and Noble and immediately fell prey to, "okay I just came here to get.... hmmmm.... alright I'll pick up two, they're half off so f*** it."

So I got me

[Craig Beam]

Originally Posted by TravisTylerBlack

Commentaries are an obvious selling point IMO. Arrow and Kino are both great about including them when possible.

The FIRST thing I look for on any new release is whether or not there's a commentary track (or two, or three). I mean, I've never skipped a title because it lacked one, but...!

[*DrStrangelove*]

Anyone have any thoughts on The Ballad of Gregorio Cortez? I never hear anything about this title, tbh I’d never even heard of it till I saw it on the website but definitely interested in picking it up after reading about it. Anyone seen or own this one?

[DimitriL]

Originally Posted by *DrStrangelove*

Anyone have any thoughts on The Ballad of Gregorio Cortez? I never hear anything about this title, tbh I’d never even heard of it till I saw it on the website but definitely interested in picking it up after reading about it. Anyone seen or own this one?

Terrific film. Very stripped down, authentic and morally complex.

[BenOswald]

Originally Posted by DimitriL

Terrific film. Very stripped down, authentic and morally complex.

Totally agree. Also a pure indie movie with great structure, cool locations, and great character actors.

[Vigojean]

Originally Posted by BaronVH

I would say the jury is still out on the Safdies, but based on the two films I have seen, if someone stuck a gun to my head and said I had to make a prediction of their future, I would say that they would turn out better than those directors you mention. Good Time is extremely, extremely realistic. Very few films can hit the nuance that they did with that film. Look at Uncut Gems. Some of the actors in that film have never acted a day in their life and turned out performances better than in 99% of last year’s films. They are not easy to watch, but they are very well done. Who knows what the future may bring, but they have shown to be highly skilled directors thus far.

Gritty realism is cool when you’re young, but as a Geriatric Millennial, I prefer more Ozu-like contemplative works. Anyway, the best directors of my generation are Paul Dano and Cory Finley. Eggers is talented, but unless your name is David Lynch, I’m not interested in psychological horror. Paul Dano is a student of Bresson and Ozu, and he’s going to surprise many people. Every other Millennial is too busy performing fellatio on Scorsese, Wes Anderson, and David Lynch.

[BunyipPouch]

Originally Posted by Vigojean

Gritty realism is cool when you’re young, but as a Geriatric Millennial, I prefer more Ozu-like contemplative works. Anyway, the best directors of my generation are Paul Dano and Cory Finley. Eggers is talented, but unless your name is David Lynch, I’m not interested in psychological horror. Paul Dano is a student of Bresson and Ozu, and he’s going to surprise many people. Every other Millennial is too busy performing fellatio on Scorsese, Wes Anderson, and David Lynch.

As far as millennials are concerned, it's hard to put Dano and Finley above Barry Jenkins, Greta Gerwig, Damien Chazelle, etc after just 1 and 2 films, respectively. They've done unique-enough stuff to stand on their own too.

(I loved Wildlife and Thoroughbreds, saw both in theaters, but still.)

[noirjunkie]

Originally Posted by DukeTogo84

I'm guessing we'll get our first Criterion UHD in November which could be Citizen Kane, Mank, or both.

I've been wondering if Criterion has been holding off on going to 4K until they could ensure that Citizen Kane would be their first 4K release. It would provide nice symmetry with the company's origins, since it was their very first LaserDisc release, and the film also turns 80 this year.

[KingOfBunnies]

About to buy another batch off B&N. So far I have
Lone Wolf and Cub set
Throne of Blood
Pan's Labyrinth
Dazed and Confused
Do The Right Thing
Being John Malkovich
House

Is there anything else I should consider looking at? I had a friend recommend True Stories but that was sold out. I might nab 1 or 2 more for this order and that will be my haul, but I am open to suggestions. The Criterion Collection has so much to choose from that it gets kind of overwhelming to know what to get.

[mmarczi]

Originally Posted by KingOfBunnies

About to buy another batch off B&N. So far I have
Lone Wolf and Cub set
Throne of Blood
Pan's Labyrinth
Dazed and Confused
Do The Right Thing
Being John Malkovich
House

Is there anything else I should consider looking at? I had a friend recommend True Stories but that was sold out. I might nab 1 or 2 more for this order and that will be my haul, but I am open to suggestions. The Criterion Collection has so much to choose from that it gets kind of overwhelming to know what to get.

I would definitely pick up some Satyajit Ray. If you don't want to go for a set (the Apu Trilogy), I would recommend Charulata, or for something a little more open, The Big City. M by Fritz Lang is another favorite. Hell, let me just right out a list. I could go on and on but I'll try to restrain myself just a bit:

Charulata or The Big City by Satyajit Ray
M by Fritz Lang
Picnic at Hanging Rock by Peter Weir
Taste of Cherry by Abbas Kiarostami
Diabolique or The Wages of Fear by Henri-Georges Clouzot
Harakiri or Kwaidan by Masaki Kobayashi
Ali: Fear Eats the Soul by Rainer Werner Fassbinder
Wings of Desire by Wim Wenders
Ugetsu by Kenji Mizoguchi
Ace in the Hole by Billy Wilder
My Darling Clementine by John Ford
Kuroneko by Kineto Shindo
Two Days, One Night by the Dardenne brothers
Phoenix by Christian Petzold
McCabe & Mrs. Miller by Robert Altman
Black Girl by Ousmane Sembene
45 Years by Andrew Haigh
La poison by Sascha Guitry
Certain Women by Kelly Reichardt
Barry Lyndon by Stanley Kubrick
All About My Mother by Pedro Almodovar
The Cremator by Juraj Herz

[ravenus]

Originally Posted by mmarczi

Wings of Desire by Wim Wenders

Since there's already a beautiful 4K restored German blu-ray of this, I'd consider waiting for an English-friendly release of the same.

[latehong]

Originally Posted by KingOfBunnies

About to buy another batch off B&N. So far I have
Lone Wolf and Cub set
Throne of Blood
Pan's Labyrinth
Dazed and Confused
Do The Right Thing
Being John Malkovich
House

Is there anything else I should consider looking at? I had a friend recommend True Stories but that was sold out. I might nab 1 or 2 more for this order and that will be my haul, but I am open to suggestions. The Criterion Collection has so much to choose from that it gets kind of overwhelming to know what to get.

I just skimmed through your collection and came up with these triple feature ideas and then some...

1) Existential Caper Noir Essentials:



2) Kurosawa is not the only Japanese jidaigeki / chanbara director you should check out:



3) If you're not that into the old Hollywood but interested enough in what Guillermo Del Toro does, why don't you try the chilling film noir he just remade and go from there with other equally brutal classics?:



4) Or if you're not that familiar with silent films but love fast-faced, jaw-dropping action or good laughs, these might open a fantastic new door for you:



5) So you watched Once Upon a Time... in Hollywood. Did you like the lives and stories of people who make movies? Then how about these?:



6) I see you have some Lynch and some sci-fi there... I think you're ready for these:



7) ...and 5 more random recommendations that are famous enough already:



8) ...and 5 more random underappreciated gems I adore:

[Sifox211]

Great call on Il Sorpasso, a film that everyone should see

And Pierre Etaix!

[Rodney-2187]

My humble Criterion section, arranged by spine number:

[DukeTogo84]

I can't remember the last time we got three separate Japanese releases from Criterion within a year. (Maybe we'll get 4, but doubtful). It's a mini miracle and I hope they continue releasing new Japanese titles as well as more upgrades. Samurai Rebellion, Youth of the Beast, and Fires on the Plains are my most wanted Japanese upgrades and Hunter in the Dark is my most wanted Japanese film on Blu-ray period which Criterion has the rights too. Crossing my fingers for 2022.

[tama]

Originally Posted by DukeTogo84

Haha. Hopefully this year, but with Criterion it could much longer. Either way, November's are usually their big month of the year, so I'm expecting something big.

I'm placing bets on an Orsen Welles box set.

[Gacivory]

I’m placing bets on a Rainer Werner Fassbinder set.

[Vinyl]

Originally Posted by Rodney-2187

My humble Criterion section, arranged by spine number:

Looking at that line of films, you should check out The Killing and The Naked City.

[DukeTogo84]

Originally Posted by tama

I'm placing bets on an Orsen Welles box set.

You might be right. I'm hoping it it's a Kurosawa set this year, but I don't think it will be this year. The Orson Welles boxset could be spine #1100.

[themp3000]

Originally Posted by DukeTogo84

You might be right. I'm hoping it it's a Kurosawa set this year, but I don't think it will be this year. The Orson Welles boxset could be spine #1100.

The Incredible Shrinking Man is 1100.