The Criterion Collection

[rkish]

Originally Posted by Fanboyz

POSSIBLE GLITCH WITH "CARLOS"

Possible glitch with disc 2, episode 3 of "Carlos". The left surround channel is much quieter than the right one.

Might either be your copy and/or an issue with your BD player/sound system? I only say this, as there was no mention of this in the blu-ray.com review.

I streamed the miniseries version on NetFlix, but haven't watched/listened to my BD copy as of yet. I'll let you know if I notice anything.

[Cinemach]

Just getting through the Complete Jean Vigo set that I picked up (for $10!) earlier during the sale. What a fantastic package. This not only passes Taxi Driver as my top release of the year...but I think it *might* just surpass The Third Man as my personal top Criterion package and gets strong commendation as one of the best releases in the format's history.

Three Colors will challenge, yes, but the way this set through its extras contextualizes Vigo in terms of his time, and his direct influence to filmmakers decades later, is just phenomenal and represents the peak of the 'Criterion' treatment.

For those on the fence/looking for recommendations - and if you have any interest in French cinema, the silent-to-sound years, or the many European post-war movements, then this set comes HIGHY recommended.

[Mr. Movie Fan]

Originally Posted by rkish

Might either be your copy and/or an issue with your BD player/sound system? I only say this, as there was no mention of this in the blu-ray.com review.

I streamed the miniseries version on NetFlix, but haven't watched/listened to my BD copy as of yet. I'll let you know if I notice anything.

Tried it both in LPCM and in DTS-HD Master Audio Bitstreaming, the L-Surround channel is very quiet. Or simply never not used by the mixer much...

[DionJP]

Hey Pro-B', the snobs over at CriterionForum are talking all kinds of crud about you. Just thought you should know, this isn't the first time also. You should go over and defend your honor.

[Zen_Amako]

Originally Posted by Harmonoff

Conversely, including two movies when only one is the intended version of the director seems a bit silly to me especially when Criterion is pretty good about focusing on definitive versions of films. Like when they released Andrei Rublev, different versions exist but they chose the original version that was later banned. Another more recent example can be seen in their release of Carlos where they excluded the theatrical cut of the film. I'm just glad that the Barnes and Noble sale exists because it eliminates much of the price differences. Otherwise, I would be angry for having to buy the entire boxset at the normal price just to get the TV version. So yes, the two cuts are there for a reason: $$$

It adds historical perspective too. Take Godzilla. I'm sure the American version with Raymond Burr is not the director's intended cut. However, I don't mind Criterion including it for the sake of comparison.

[retablo]

Originally Posted by DLizzle

Ok, but doesn't that pretty much preclude you from ever watching the movie version? One thing Criterion does well is give a good sense of context. Buying the Criterion release of Fanny and Alexander and only ever watching one cut of it, when two are included for a reason, seems a bit silly to me.

Not really. The TV version is the original, intended version. That's how it was original conceived and shot. It was a 4-part TV series in Sweden.

When they decided to release it theatrically later, they had to cut it down (and the majority of edits comes from the 2nd half of the show, which is my favorite part).

I've seen the theatrical, but I see no reason to ever watch it again, because it's not the full experience as intended by Bergman, nor is it the original version.

[DLizzle]

That is a good point. Most of the time it's the other way around, where the longer cut comes later. Now I'm not sure what to watch first!

[rkish]

Originally Posted by Fanboyz

Tried it both in LPCM and in DTS-HD Master Audio Bitstreaming, the L-Surround channel is very quiet. Or simply never not used by the mixer much...

I've got my Panasonic BMT 300 set up with analog outs...don't know if that will make any difference, but I'll let you know.

Thanks for the heads up...

[TriuneImpurityRites]

can't wait to watch....

[pro-bassoonist]

Originally Posted by DionJP

Hey Pro-B', the snobs over at CriterionForum are talking all kinds of crud about you. Just thought you should know, this isn't the first time also. You should go over and defend your honor.

I know. The same couple of people have been bashing Blu-ray.com as well for quite some time now. I'd rather talk and write about cinema.

Thank you for your note

Pro-B

[retablo]

Originally Posted by DLizzle

That is a good point. Most of the time it's the other way around, where the longer cut comes later. Now I'm not sure what to watch first!

Watch the original version. I guarantee it's the superior version.

[nathan_393]

Originally Posted by retablo

Watch the original version. I guarantee it's the superior version.

I almost always prefer the original versions of any film to the updated director's cut/extended edition, regardless of the whether the later versions of the film are shorter or longer. The only directors whose later cuts I tend to like more than the originals (most of the time) are Peter Jackson's and James Cameron (odd to mention them in a Criterion thread).

[nmycon]

Originally Posted by nathan_393

I almost always prefer the original versions of any film to the updated director's cut/extended edition, regardless of the whether the later versions of the film are shorter or longer. The only directors whose later cuts I tend to like more than the originals (most of the time) are Peter Jackson's and James Cameron (odd to mention them in a Criterion thread).

What about Terry Gilliam's Brazil?

[oildude]

Originally Posted by Harmonoff

Has anyone here seen Ride With the Devil? Thoughts?

I really like it. This is what I wrote on a previous post over 400 pages ago waaay back in July. Jeffrey Wright's performance alone is worth the price of admission.

The film has a western feel to it in that it depeicts mounted guerrillas in the Missouri borderlands during the Civil War. This area was home to the future James and Younger gangs after the war (they fought as Confederate irregulars like the characters depicted in Ride With the Devil). There are many details and nuances that Ang Lee and the film's writers captured exceptionally well, such as highlighting the particular visciousness of this backwater of the American Civil War, where former neighbors and friends turned on each other, killing each other with unspeakable savagery and lack of mercy for folks they knew, worshipped with, and sat at the same table with in peaceful times. It was America's own version of the 1990s Bosnia and Croatian conflicts.

The film also gets it right in its portrayal of recent European immigrant origins of many of the settlers in the Missouri-Kansas region. Irish and German immigrants made up a large number of the Northern soldiers throughout the war, in all the Union armies. This is what makes Tobey McGuire's character unique - and his loyalty suspect to some of his fellow guerrillas - in that he is born German but fights for the South, the only home he can remember. His father pays a price for this.

The depiction of the raid on Lawrence, Kansas, when the various guerrilla bands joined together to strike deep into Union territory is quite moving and haunts the viewer afterward. It is also historically accurate from what I have read, including the detail that the Confederates saw it as justified vengeance for what they percieved (mistakenly as it turned out) as an earlier atrocity. Regardless of their motives, the attack was one of the worst atrocities committed on American soil, and the movie pulls no punches in showing the ominous buildup to it, and the raid itself.

For a Hong Kong director to make such a startling and realistic period piece about one of the most savage and little known theaters of conflict in the American Civil War is remarkable in my book and I salute Ang Lee for the achievement.


-

[octagon]

Damn, I almost wish I could stomach Tobey McGuire now

[oildude]

Originally Posted by BillyJack

just picked up the "First Films of Samuel Fuller" Eclipse 3-DVD set for $12 and change using a $8 coupon.

looks from the packaging that there are no suppliments/extras on these, just the films themselves.

are any of the other Eclipse sets worth picking up?

Hey, BillyJack. I responded to this post in detail on the sale thread (post #2222) since I have also been looking into the Eclipse series for the first time during this sale. I have asked the same question here and have gotten some excellent responses. Two strong recommendations - Larissa Shepiko and Nikkatsu Noir but I have also bought others.

[oildude]

Originally Posted by jacobsever

I know it's a long shot, but I noticed Sleeping Beauty doesn't have a planned US release, and is being released February 6th in the UK. I haven't seen it, but it looks interesting. And the fact that I've been in love with Emily Browning since Series of Unfortunate Events makes this film even more desirable. Without trying to be too perverse, her being nude almost the entire film excites the 13 year old virgin in me. (not literally).
Anybody think there is a chance in Hell that Criterion would release it?

[Show spoiler]

I finally got around to buying In the Realm of the Senses after almost doing so the past couple of sales.

It's okay to be purvey as long as it is "art" erotica, right?

[drbikeshorts]

Originally Posted by Fanboyz

POSSIBLE GLITCH WITH "CARLOS"

Possible glitch with disc 2, episode 3 of "Carlos". The left surround channel is much quieter than the right one.

Can you specify a time-code or is it for the whole episode?

[TylerDurden]

I didn't notice any glitch in Carlos Ep 3. I just finished watching it and wasn't looking for anything peculiar. Great movie BTW. Very glad I own it. It really should behind the scenes what it was like to be an international freedom fighter.

[rezpekt]

Received my B&N order today - Blu-rays with leaflets asking my help to feed the starving American children and support the miserable American troops.