The Criterion Collection

[ravenus]

Originally Posted by Mansinthe

why ? without story spoilers please

IMO, In The Mood for Love is one of the most successfully realized Wong-Kar Wai films, in the sense that it has the strongest emotional core. The sense of yearning between the two lead characters and the peculiar situation they are in, resonates much better than the relationships in most other WKW films. It is the only WKW film I like enough to rewatch and have in my collection. You must at least try the film out before you reject it.

[Abdrewes]

Originally Posted by ravenus

If you haven't please do check out Michael Powell's Peeping Tom which I think was released a few months before Psycho. It takes on a more difficult theme than Hitchcock's film and pulls it off with amazing incisiveness. Unfortunately during its time it was derided by many critics as a perverse film, but over the years, especially after Martin Scorsese championed its cause, PT is being regarded as one of the seminal psychological horror films. To my thinking it is superior to Psycho.

I agree. In my mind, Peeping Tom was the more forward thinking film, especially in regards to what it has to say about Cinema and cinephilia especially. Truly sick stuff

Another one in the same vein as Peeping Tom is David Holzman's Diary.

[The Great Owl]

Originally Posted by iScottie

[*]Psycho - it was one of the most important movies in film history. While most of the early horror films consisted of monsters and ghouls, this one dealt with a serial killer with a borderline dissociative identity disorder. It was actually quite frightening, especially towards the end when Norman Bates breaks in, screaming with the butcher knife.

Spoiler-heavy analysis of Psycho here, so everyone has been warned...

It must have been a real mind screw for movie audiences in 1960 that the story followed Marion Crane (Janet Leigh) for the first half of the movie and immersed us in her film noir predicament, only for her character to be abruptly murdered in a way that had absolutely nothing to do with the earlier events in her life.

For me, the real unsettling moment in Psycho is when Norman Bates is disposing of Marion Crane's car. We see the car start to sink in the bog, then we see the look of brief panic on Norman's face when the car pauses and momentarily remains still. This is not a scary movie scene in itself, and it's fairly insignificant on a surface level, but it does mark the point in the movie when the audience stops following Marion Crane's story and starts to sympathize with Norman Bates. During the entire movie up to this point, we have been following Marion Crane every step of the way, and sharing her fears, insecurities, and paranoia. When the car stops sinking for that short moment, though, we are now sharing the tensions felt by Norman Bates. The ease with which Alfred Hitchcock changes us over from Marion Crane's story to Norman Bates's story is quite chilling. From this moment on, the fascinating story of Marion Crane is only a footnote in the grisly events at the Bates Motel.

This happens in real-life news stories all of the time. Everybody knows the stories of Jeffrey Dahmer, Jack the Ripper, Ted Bundy, and other serial killers, but nobody knows about the lives, goals, and dreams of the victims. The victims probably all had fascinating lives with their own accomplishments, heartbreaks, tragedies, and struggles, but history will only recognize these people as mere footnotes in newspaper stories about their murders. The events in the life of Marion Crane were interesting enough to inspire a movie of their own, as we learn during the first half of Psycho. By the end of Psycho, however, those events are seemingly insignificant in the grand scheme of things. Hitchcock's film excels in showing us the real tragedy of a murder, because the world has not only lost a human life, but it has also lost a story as well.

It's really quite amazing what Hitchcock pulled off in Psycho with the filming techniques at hand. When I was quite young, I asked my mother to name the scariest movie that she had ever seen. She told me that Psycho was the scariest movie that she had ever seen, because there was a scene in the movie where a woman was taking a shower, and someone pulled the shower curtain open and stabbed the woman in the eye. When I saw the movie for myself a few years later, I realized that Marion Crane was never stabbed in the eye, and, in fact, we never actually see the knife blade pierce her skin. Everyone who watches that shower scene perceives something different, though, and we all think that we've seen things that we did not actually see.

[Scottie]

Originally Posted by The Great Owl

[Show spoiler]Spoiler-heavy analysis of Psycho here, so everyone has been warned...

It must have been a real mind screw for movie audiences in 1960 that the story followed Marion Crane (Janet Leigh) for the first half of the movie and immersed us in her film noir predicament, only for her character to be abruptly murdered in a way that had absolutely nothing to do with the earlier events in her life.

For me, the real unsettling moment in Psycho is when Norman Bates is disposing of Marion Crane's car. We see the car start to sink in the bog, then we see the look of brief panic on Norman's face when the car pauses and momentarily remains still. This is not a scary movie scene in itself, and it's fairly insignificant on a surface level, but it does mark the point in the movie when the audience stops following Marion Crane's story and starts to sympathize with Norman Bates. During the entire movie up to this point, we have been following Marion Crane every step of the way, and sharing her fears, insecurities, and paranoia. When the car stops sinking for that short moment, though, we are now sharing the tensions felt by Norman Bates. The ease with which Alfred Hitchcock changes us over from Marion Crane's story to Norman Bates's story is quite chilling. From this moment on, the fascinating story of Marion Crane is only a footnote in the grisly events at the Bates Motel.

This happens in real-life news stories all of the time. Everybody knows the stories of Jeffrey Dahmer, Jack the Ripper, Ted Bundy, and other serial killers, but nobody knows about the lives, goals, and dreams of the victims. The victims probably all had fascinating lives with their own accomplishments, heartbreaks, tragedies, and struggles, but history will only recognize these people as mere footnotes in newspaper stories about their murders. The events in the life of Marion Crane were interesting enough to inspire a movie of their own, as we learn during the first half of Psycho. By the end of Psycho, however, those events are seemingly insignificant in the grand scheme of things. Hitchcock's film excels in showing us the real tragedy of a murder, because the world has not only lost a human life, but it has also lost a story as well.

It's really quite amazing what Hitchcock pulled off in Psycho with the filming techniques at hand. When I was quite young, I asked my mother to name the scariest movie that she had ever seen. She told me that Psycho was the scariest movie that she had ever seen, because there was a scene in the movie where a woman was taking a shower, and someone pulled the shower curtain open and stabbed the woman in the eye. When I saw the movie for myself a few years later, I realized that Marion Crane was never stabbed in the eye, and, in fact, we never actually see the knife blade pierce her skin. Everyone who watches that shower scene perceives something different, though, and we all think that we've seen things that we did not actually see.

Very good analysis. I agree with all of your points.

The thing that made Psycho so unique was that it killed off the protagonist so quickly into the film. While the rest of the film did surround her investigation, we were all drawn into the disturbed mind of Norman Bates.

[Mansinthe]

ecplise DVD box sets ever likely to get a bluray upgrade?

im interesstet in this boxsets

Eclipse Series 37: When Horror Came to Shochiku (The X from Outer Space; Goke, Body Snatcher from Hell; The Living Skeleton; Genocide) (Criterion Collection) (1968)

Eclipse Series 28: The Warped World of Koreyoshi Kurahara (Intimidation, The Warped Ones, I Hate But Love, Black Sun, Thirst for Love) (Criterion Collection) (1967)

Eclipse Series 21: Oshima's Outlaw Sixties (The Criterion Collection)

Eclipse Series 17: Nikkatsu Noir (The Criterion Collection) (2009)


and of course both Kurosawa box sets..

[The Great Owl]

Originally Posted by Mansinthe

ecplise DVD box sets ever likely to get a bluray upgrade?

im interesstet in this boxsets

Eclipse Series 37: When Horror Came to Shochiku (The X from Outer Space; Goke, Body Snatcher from Hell; The Living Skeleton; Genocide) (Criterion Collection)
...
and of course both Kurosawa box sets..

I'd love to see high definition transfers of the movies in When Horror Came to Shochiku, especially The Living Skeleton. What a great movie!

It goes without saying that I'd love Blu-rays of those early Kurosawa films as well.

[jw007]

I am happy to say that I was able to purchase the now OOP Criterion of "Le Cercle Rouge" at B&N a week ago for $36 + tax.

I didn't have any coupons other than my 10% member discount but I still fared better than buying it for $50-60 that it is currently going for on Amazon and other online retailers.

Also there is something else I should mention. Since "Le Cercle Rouge" was out of stock in every store in my region, I had another B&N store from another state ship this blu-ray to another store in my city. This is something that could never happen normally because it is against company policy to ship from one store to another store. Yet, the store manager from my local store just happened to be at that other store (in a neighboring state) and brought the title with her personally to my store. I think this is a rarity in general and if I had a chance, I would like to personally thank her for doing this. I doubt such a favor will ever be done again.

[pro-bassoonist]

Things to Come Blu-ray Review

[*PREACHER*]

[Show spoiler]

Originally Posted by pro-bassoonist

Things to Come Blu-ray Review

Thanks for the review Pro-B...yeah I was interested and still may double dip to get the Network version of this for the commentary...love this movie and well worth it in my opinion.

[Abdrewes]

Originally Posted by pro-bassoonist

Things to Come Blu-ray Review

Thanks for the review Pro-B. that commentary track sounds very interesting.

[The Great Owl]

Originally Posted by pro-bassoonist

Things to Come Blu-ray Review

[Show spoiler]

Thanks, Pro-B! I've been looking forward to this one for a while now.

[pro-bassoonist]

You are welcome, guys. I hope you enjoy it.

And please listen to Mr. Kalat's commentary in its entirety. It is very informative.

Have a great week.

Pro-B

[The Bronx Bull]

Lately, I've been on a Jean Pierre-Melville spree. Many of you are in the same boat, I'm certain, as several of his Criterion titles recently went OOP. When these things happen, we're forced to buy, but delighted to watch.

I'm sure many here have delved deeper into his work than I, but I watched his films within the past two months or so in the following order:

Le Cercle Rouge (10/10)
Le Samourai (10/10)
Le Doulos (9/10)
Army of Shadows (10/10)
Un Flic (7/10)
Le Deuxieme Souffle (9/10)
Bob le Flambeur (8/10)

I have not yet watched Leon Morin: Priest, or another I am contemplating ordering, Les Enfants Terribles. While I feel as though Le Cercle Rouge is still the best stand-alone movie of the bunch, I find it deeply satisfying that the viewer can pinpoint different connections between the movies - whether it be actors used, stylistic camera shots, dress clothing, or locations, albeit the fact that they were made 15-20 years apart.

One thing Melville does that I absolutely love is showcase the contrast between dense cityscape in Paris or Marseilles, while later in the film bringing the viewer deep into the forests, mountains, and streams surrounding urban France. In Le Cercle Rouge, Corey brings us along for a ride between the two cities, we witness a murder in the backwoods, and we're shown the initial convict being pursued by police through a stream. In Le Deuxieme Souffle, the main heist takes place on a gorgeous, winding mountain road that is removed from the urban sprawl of Paris. And lastly, in Le Doulos, Salien's new home is gorgeously removed and tucked away - a brilliant place to stage a climax.

Another thing I love about Melville is the dress. In most of his movies, we're not dealing with the C-class criminals, but rather, professionals; as Neil McCauley of 'Heat' says: "You see me doing liquor store hold ups with a 'Born to Lose' tattoo on my chest?" The men in Cercle Rouge, Doulos, Souffle, and Samourai are seasoned professionals with a code. They walk through the streets in their ever so prevalent Burberry trench coats (I have one myself), and when we see them inside, they're always sporting French cuffs. The attention to detail is amazing, and just examining the scenery of the 1950's and 60's France is enough to keep the viewer captivated.

Lastly, a constant in these films seems to be the lack of dialogue. The heist scene in Le Cercle Rouge really had me pumped, and as I was making my way through the rest of his filmography I was savoring the moments that were long, drawn out, and suspenseful. Similar to the first ten minutes of "There Will Be Blood," Melville is a master of making scenes extremely quiet, yet absolutely stunning to watch.

In closing, I would definitely urge everyone to watch these films! Here is one gorgeous shot from Le Deuxieme Souffle that I could just not get over; I paused it and snapped a picture. Simply "badass" - and these moments are scattered throughout all of his films that I've seen. Again, the dress clothing:

[octagon]

Originally Posted by tagm

On the topic of The Tree of Life, would you guys say the current price ($11.93) is a good one to blind-buy order at?

Good price (you might be able to find it for a buck or two cheaper if you wait but it won't be on any $7.99 endcaps anytime soon), iffy blind buy.

I wound up really liking it but it took me a while to warm up to. I started it at least twice before really getting into it and a lot of people thought 'pretty but tedious'. I don't agree but I can see where they're coming from.

[octagon]

Speaking of Malick, I watched Badlands last night and really loved it.

I'm still kind of split on Malick (Tree of Life and Badlands in the plus column, The Thin Red Line in the 'eh, I dunno' column) but there's no question he has an unbelievably good eye. The guy's freaking car chases are beautiful.

Martin Sheen was shockingly good. I've definitely gotten over my 'whiny pinko douchebag' antipathy from the early 80s but still don't really think of him as all that subtle or nuanced but he really nailed this. The dialogue was very good overall but could have very easily been butchered by a cheesy or even slightly over-the-top delivery.

Sissy Spacek was pretty fantastic too but that was much less of a surprise

I also really liked the way they didn't undercut the banality of everything by making some big melodramatic point of the banality of the whole thing. It reminded me a little of Leon Morin that way. A little restraint went a looooooong way.

Oh, and it looked gorgeous.

Did I mention that?

[The Great Owl]

Originally Posted by The Bronx Bull

Lately, I've been on a Jean Pierre-Melville spree. Many of you are in the same boat, I'm certain, as several of his Criterion titles recently went OOP. When these things happen, we're forced to buy, but delighted to watch.

[Show spoiler]
I'm sure many here have delved deeper into his work than I, but I watched his films within the past two months or so in the following order:

Le Cercle Rouge (10/10)
Le Samourai (10/10)
Le Doulos (9/10)
Army of Shadows (10/10)
Un Flic (7/10)
Le Deuxieme Souffle (9/10)
Bob le Flambeur (8/10)

I have not yet watched Leon Morin: Priest, or another I am contemplating ordering, Les Enfants Terribles. While I feel as though Le Cercle Rouge is still the best stand-alone movie of the bunch, I find it deeply satisfying that the viewer can pinpoint different connections between the movies - whether it be actors used, stylistic camera shots, dress clothing, or locations, albeit the fact that they were made 15-20 years apart.

One thing Melville does that I absolutely love is showcase the contrast between dense cityscape in Paris or Marseilles, while later in the film bringing the viewer deep into the forests, mountains, and streams surrounding urban France. In Le Cercle Rouge, Corey brings us along for a ride between the two cities, we witness a murder in the backwoods, and we're shown the initial convict being pursued by police through a stream. In Le Deuxieme Souffle, the main heist takes place on a gorgeous, winding mountain road that is removed from the urban sprawl of Paris. And lastly, in Le Doulos, Salien's new home is gorgeously removed and tucked away - a brilliant place to stage a climax.

Another thing I love about Melville is the dress. In most of his movies, we're not dealing with the C-class criminals, but rather, professionals; as Neil McCauley of 'Heat' says: "You see me doing liquor store hold ups with a 'Born to Lose' tattoo on my chest?" The men in Cercle Rouge, Doulos, Souffle, and Samourai are seasoned professionals with a code. They walk through the streets in their ever so prevalent Burberry trench coats (I have one myself), and when we see them inside, they're always sporting French cuffs. The attention to detail is amazing, and just examining the scenery of the 1950's and 60's France is enough to keep the viewer captivated.

Lastly, a constant in these films seems to be the lack of dialogue. The heist scene in Le Cercle Rouge really had me pumped, and as I was making my way through the rest of his filmography I was savoring the moments that were long, drawn out, and suspenseful. Similar to the first ten minutes of "There Will Be Blood," Melville is a master of making scenes extremely quiet, yet absolutely stunning to watch.

In closing, I would definitely urge everyone to watch these films! Here is one gorgeous shot from Le Deuxieme Souffle that I could just not get over; I paused it and snapped a picture. Simply "badass" - and these moments are scattered throughout all of his films that I've seen. Again, the dress clothing:

I loved reading this post. Thanks for sharing.

Le Samouraï is my all-time favorite film, but Army of Shadows and Le Cercle Rouge are both in my top five as well.

I also love the dress styles. It's worth noting that Jef Costello's trenchcoat style in Le Samouraï is deliberately anachronistic, as it emulates the gangster look of American films from earlier decades, but his style nonetheless ended up being imitated in its own right.

The sparseness of dialogue in the Melville films is what drew me into that world and got me hooked. Le Samouraï, in particular, plays almost like a silent film.

Léon Morin, Priest is a wonderful film that brushes with French Resistance behaviors, although not to the extent that Army of Shadows does. It's an understated masterpiece that takes more viewings to absorb than the other Melville films, but it's fun and engrossing nonetheless. Several forum posters here prefer this movie to the other Melville films.

Les Enfants Terribles is my least favorite Melville film, and it's quite removed from the others, but it's a fantastic adaptation of a Jean Cocteau novel, and it features some unforgettable images.

Your next Melville film should be Le Silence de la Mer. It's another WWII-era Melville film that is available in a region free Blu-ray from the United Kingdom.

[The Bronx Bull]

Originally Posted by The Great Owl

I loved reading this post. Thanks for sharing.

Le Samouraï is my all-time favorite film, but Army of Shadows and Le Cercle Rouge are both in my top five as well.

I also love the dress styles. It's worth noting that Jef Costello's trenchcoat style in Le Samouraï is deliberately anachronistic, as it emulates the gangster look of American films from earlier decades, but his style nonetheless ended up being imitated in its own right.

The sparseness of dialogue in the Melville films is what drew me into that world and got me hooked. Le Samouraï, in particular, plays almost like a silent film.

Léon Morin, Priest is a wonderful film that brushes with French Resistance behaviors, although not to the extent that Army of Shadows does. It's an understated masterpiece that takes more viewings to absorb than the other Melville films, but it's fun and engrossing nonetheless. Several forum posters here prefer this movie to the other Melville films.

Les Enfants Terribles is my least favorite Melville film, and it's quite removed from the others, but it's a fantastic adaptation of a Jean Cocteau novel, and it features some unforgettable images.

Your next Melville film should be Le Silence de la Mer. It's another WWII-era Melville film that is available in a region free Blu-ray from the United Kingdom.

Thanks Great Owl! I can see that you appreciate the films in the same manner that I do. Leon Morin is probably next on the list, as the synopsis, while not gangster-esque, really drew me in. I will then search for Le Silence de la Mer.

Below is my Jef Costello coat. I do remember reading about how the fedora's and trenches in late '60's Paris was not true to the times; anachronistic or not, though, I can sport this classic trench.

[DenOfEarth]

I have some Criterion blu-rays like Island of Lost Souls, Brazil, Videodrome, Rosemary's Baby, Seven Samurai, Godzilla, Repo Man, AntiChrist and Cronos, all great blu-rays with quality picture and sound.

I also say that i'm glad Island of Lost Souls FINALLY made it on DVD and even better, BLU-RAY! i loved that movie for 27 years since i was 4 when i saw it on TV and thought it was cool as it was one of those horror films that got me hooked into the genre and i had it on a blank tape for years with other stuff on it since i was a teen and i yearned over the years for a DVD. Yet when i heard Criterion is gonna do a blu-ray i threw my old tape in the trash and i was satisfied with the blu. Great picture for an 81 year old movie and fantastic extras too.

Rosemary's Baby is a big improvement over the Paramount DVD and i did sold my old DVDs of Videodrome, Rosemary's Baby, Godzilla and Repo Man with Seven Samurai and Brazil with Cronos for store credit on my re-usable giftcard at hastings.

Rosemary's baby is one of the best transfers on a 60's movie i've ever seen on blu-ray and the extras are fine as well.

[Edward J Grug III]

Watched The Music Room and Blow Out of the weekend.

Due to our three month old baby, we have to watch all movies in a couple of sittings, which is unfortunate, but better than no movies :P

Anyway, I think it hurt our viewing of The Music Room a little bit, but luckily we had time to watch the interview with Satyajit Ray biographer Andrew Robinson when we finished, and it actually cemented how great the film was for us. Sort of compressed the film and reminded us of the early half.

Much more interested in the two upcoming Ray films now.

Blow Out was just incredible fun. And I couldn't believe the transfer. Probably the best 80s transfer I've seen on Blu Ray so far. Pretty much better than I thought it could look.

[The Great Owl]

Originally Posted by The Bronx Bull

Below is my Jef Costello coat. I do remember reading about how the fedora's and trenches in late '60's Paris was not true to the times; anachronistic or not, though, I can sport this classic trench.

[Show spoiler]

Nice! A ring of car keys will complete the picture nicely.

I have a couple good non-Melville recommendations if you enjoyed the acting of Lino Ventura and Jean-Paul Belmondo in the Melville films. I recently submitted user reviews of two Olive Films Blu-rays, Greed in the Sun and Taxi for Tobruk. Greed in the Sun is the best of the two, and it stars Lino Ventura and Jean-Paul Belmondo in an intense, but good-natured action film about a truck theft in Morocco. Taxi for Tobruk stars Lino Ventura in an understated, but serious war film.

Melville's Un Flic needs to be released on Blu-ray. I love that movie, model helicopter and all.