The Criterion Collection

[billzfan]

Originally Posted by Abdrewes

Please jump on that price. I was hesitant about blind buying it years ago. I saw it soon after and bought it at a higher price. It's just about the most beautiful film ever made.

I followed your advice and just ordered it. I'll hop back on after I've watched it

[captveg]

Originally Posted by santasangria

So is the April announcement Friday?

Probably Monday, maybe Tuesday.

[easyblu]

I saw this site posted their review for Late Spring. Can't wait for this one, so I pre-ordered it on Amazon. Looking forward to Tueday

[octagon]

I just watched A Night to Remember on TCM and while I don't think I'll be buying it (I don't see going back to it very often) I would not have been at all disappointed if I had. It was very good.

Given that it's a Brit film, the period in which it was made and the subject matter I kind of braced myself for more than a little over-the-top melodrama but it was remarkably disciplined. It definitely plucked emotional strings but very rarely did that feel cheap or manipulative.

And it made me want to know more about the actual events and players. To me that's a pretty basic requirement for any kind of fact or historical based drama but one that relatively few pull off even moderately well. If nothing else, they absolutely nailed that one.

And it looked great and that was a compressed 1080i Comcast feed. The BD must be spectacular.

Oh who am I kidding, I probably will wind up buying it

[Narcissus]

Originally Posted by octagon

Oh who am I kidding, I probably will wind up buying it

It's a stunning transfer. this is most Def the ship disaster film to get this year.



FYI:
Kate's rack is overrated and L.A. Confidential was the best Picture that year.

{Note To Self:
Certain references and statements invoking absolutes just do not work in this thread}

[P@t_Mtl]

Originally Posted by octagon

I just watched A Night to Remember on TCM and while I don't think I'll be buying it (I don't see going back to it very often) I would not have been at all disappointed if I had. It was very good.

Given that it's a Brit film, the period in which it was made and the subject matter I kind of braced myself for more than a little over-the-top melodrama but it was remarkably disciplined. It definitely plucked emotional strings but very rarely did that feel cheap or manipulative.

And it made me want to know more about the actual events and players. To me that's a pretty basic requirement for any kind of fact or historical based drama but one that relatively few pull off even moderately well. If nothing else, they absolutely nailed that one.

And it looked great and that was a compressed 1080i Comcast feed. The BD must be spectacular.

Oh who am I kidding, I probably will wind up buying it

I was thinking I would probably just keep my DVD version of it and not bother getting the Blu-ray but like you I think I will cave in during the sale and end up getting it

[mport5150]

Originally Posted by octagon

I just watched A Night to Remember on TCM and while I don't think I'll be buying it (I don't see going back to it very often) I would not have been at all disappointed if I had. It was very good.

Given that it's a Brit film, the period in which it was made and the subject matter I kind of braced myself for more than a little over-the-top melodrama but it was remarkably disciplined. It definitely plucked emotional strings but very rarely did that feel cheap or manipulative.

And it made me want to know more about the actual events and players. To me that's a pretty basic requirement for any kind of fact or historical based drama but one that relatively few pull off even moderately well. If nothing else, they absolutely nailed that one.

And it looked great and that was a compressed 1080i Comcast feed. The BD must be spectacular.

Oh who am I kidding, I probably will wind up buying it

I just picked this up on Friday and can't wait to watch it....hopefully tonight!

[Weirded Wonder]

Originally Posted by ROclockCK

I was transfixed by the Apollo program from start to finish. While some of my peers were schlepping off to Woodstock for a drug-addled musical mudbath, nothing could pry me away from the real meta-story of our age. It was a privilege to be alive while this great adventure was unfolding.


Before the first Apollo launch, the gallows humour circulating at the time was "Either the Saturn V would go up, or Florida would go down."

I've owned Criterion's For All Mankind on Laserdisc, DVD, and now Blu-ray, and it's an evergreen treasure. Great documentary, and the best possible entry point for anyone unfamiliar with NASA's Apollo Moon program.

I couldn't agree with you more. For all Mankind is one my favorite blu-rays. I've given it as a gift to several of my friends and they have walked away with an awe inspired feeling, one that returned them to their childhood when they too looked up to the stars and dreamed.

[zeroman987]

Originally Posted by Sinthetic

Anyone who hasn't seen Close-up really needs to. I went into it not knowing a thing about it and found it an amazing watch. The fact that the release comes with another movie as an Extra makes picking it up much sweeter.

I really enjoyed Close-Up. I first watched it while I was taking a comparative law class (I almost suggested it to the professor as a teaching aide). The court proceedings were incredibly enlightening.

The real gem on that disc is the second feature, the Traveler. It is a real treat for anyone who was a fanatic over sports as a child! Even though it was about a child in Iran who loves Football, I was able to identify with him easily. The only difference is that my sport of choice was (and still is) baseball.

The quality of the Traveler is the main reason I sold my AE copy of Certified Copy and will be getting the Criterion release. I can't wait to see The Report!

[ROclockCK]

Originally Posted by Beard Esquire

I couldn't agree with you more. For all Mankind is one my favorite blu-rays. I've given it as a gift to several of my friends and they have walked away with an awe inspired feeling, one that returned them to their childhood when they too looked up to the stars and dreamed.

I thought Criterion did a great job on the For All Mankind sound too. When those 1st stage Saturn V thrusters fired, it sounded just like the controlled explosion it really was. My windows rattled.

[Sinthetic]

Originally Posted by zeroman987

I really enjoyed Close-Up. I first watched it while I was taking a comparative law class (I almost suggested it to the professor as a teaching aide). The court proceedings were incredibly enlightening.

The real gem on that disc is the second feature, the Traveler. It is a real treat for anyone who was a fanatic over sports as a child! Even though it was about a child in Iran who loves Football, I was able to identify with him easily. The only difference is that my sport of choice was (and still is) baseball.

The quality of the Traveler is the main reason I sold my AE copy of Certified Copy and will be getting the Criterion release. I can't wait to see The Report!

Brilliant mate, I haven't seen the Traveler. If it's anywhere as good as Close-up was, I'm sure it'll go down well.

I have never seen anything similar to it and I always love stumbling upon different types of films.

[ROclockCK]

Originally Posted by octagon

I just watched A Night to Remember on TCM and while I don't think I'll be buying it (I don't see going back to it very often) I would not have been at all disappointed if I had. It was very good.

Given that it's a Brit film, the period in which it was made and the subject matter I kind of braced myself for more than a little over-the-top melodrama but it was remarkably disciplined. It definitely plucked emotional strings but very rarely did that feel cheap or manipulative.

And it made me want to know more about the actual events and players. To me that's a pretty basic requirement for any kind of fact or historical based drama but one that relatively few pull off even moderately well. If nothing else, they absolutely nailed that one.

And it looked great and that was a compressed 1080i Comcast feed. The BD must be spectacular.

Oh who am I kidding, I probably will wind up buying it

It did look great octagon, and I'm eating my words as I write this. My initial reaction to the perfect 5's for AQ and PQ in the site review was "how could a 2K harvest possibly yield something that good?" Well, it did. The BFI did outstanding restoration work on this title and Criterion's transfer was impeccable. I was flabbergasted.

Among the special features in this set is this wonderful interview with the last survivor Eva Hart:

Eva Hart

Plus a weird retro TV documentary from Sweden, which was one of the strangest takes I've ever seen on this subject, including poetry and folk songs. Words can't describe this thing...I thought I was watching SCTV.

[Chrysagon]

Originally Posted by octagon

I just watched A Night to Remember on TCM and while I don't think I'll be buying it (I don't see going back to it very often) I would not have been at all disappointed if I had. It was very good.

Given that it's a Brit film, the period in which it was made and the subject matter I kind of braced myself for more than a little over-the-top melodrama but it was remarkably disciplined. It definitely plucked emotional strings but very rarely did that feel cheap or manipulative.

And it made me want to know more about the actual events and players. To me that's a pretty basic requirement for any kind of fact or historical based drama but one that relatively few pull off even moderately well. If nothing else, they absolutely nailed that one.

And it looked great and that was a compressed 1080i Comcast feed. The BD must be spectacular.

Oh who am I kidding, I probably will wind up buying it

MY wife and I also watched it on TCM yesterday. It was a superb movie and looked great. We weren't sure we would remain interested before watching but we found ourselves glued to the TV. It really conveyed the drama of the event. I think the black and white photography actually added to the drama. Excellent acting -- I felt the characters were very real. I looked at the extras on the Criterion BD and they appear to be very complementary to the movie and good supplements for those interested in the sinking of the Titanic. I don't know if I will buy the movie, but for those interested in the Titanic, I'd say this is a must purchase.

[SpiderBaby]

Originally Posted by joie

A magazine article ... "The Front Row: Misreading Lena Dunham." Will Girls get into the Criterion Collection?

Breaking news update: "Why HBO Can Afford to Gamble on Girls."

Criterion has also came up with a word: Dunham-esque!

[Hawkguy]

Originally Posted by SpiderBaby

Criterion has also came up with a word: Dunham-esque!

[Narcissus]

My Criterion Collection is at least 80% blind buys {yes i may be clinically insane}, and I have not been disappointed once.
My question is this:
does anyone else do this?

[ParticleDan]

Originally Posted by Narcissus

My Criterion Collection is at least 80% blind buys {yes i may be clinically insane}, and I have not been disappointed once.
My question is this:
does anyone else do this?

Yep, I do. In fact almost all the Criterions I've bought have been blind buys (the few exceptions being more well-known titles like Thin Red Line and Rushmore). Criterion earned my confidence early on though, and my disappointment with a few titles I regret buying is far outweighed by the convenience if this exceptionally high-quality curated line of titles.

[octagon]

Originally Posted by Narcissus

My Criterion Collection is at least 80% blind buys {yes i may be clinically insane}, and I have not been disappointed once.
My question is this:
does anyone else do this?

Yup. A lot of people like to preview Criterion titles (and that's certainly understandable given both the price and the fact that they're not always easy to read) but if I'm leaning toward buying something I prefer to buy it blind. In fact, I recorded A Night to Remember with the intention of simply auditioning it.

I didn't expect to get drawn into watching the whole thing but after about twenty minutes I grabbed a cigar and settled in.

[pro-bassoonist]

La Haine Blu-ray REVIEW

[SpartanIre]

Originally Posted by Narcissus

My Criterion Collection is at least 80% blind buys {yes i may be clinically insane}, and I have not been disappointed once.
My question is this:
does anyone else do this?

[Show spoiler]Guilty...