The Criterion Collection

[andyk69]

Originally Posted by Tin Drum

Don't forget his best film (IMO) - The Year of Living Dangerously!

you are so right!! I forgot that one and a top favorite too,
there you have 4 amazing film Criterio ( are you listening? ) that haven't been release in bluray

[Abdrewes]

Originally Posted by JJJ225

I explained what I liked and didn't like about (not terribly in depth, I will admit), and said almost as an afterthought that much of the hype was hyperbole. It's not like I offered a one sentence review of "Gravity was overrated."

The scene that sticks out to me is when she's

[Show spoiler]"talking" to the dead Matt about her daughter.

There were also 1 or 2 more scenes that I don't remember the content of, but it was just so unnecessary when the there are so many beautiful awe-inspiring moments of silence. Someone said to me that there's an 80-minute near silent masterpiece in Gravity. I totally agree.

[Show spoiler]But without those stretches and everything revolving around Ryan confronting the loss of her daughter, the film would lose some of its emotional impact. I view it less as a space spectacle and more of a tale of subjugating life's many misfortunes to one's benefit. She had to deal with that part of her past before she could move on. Before she could muster the resolve to enact her survival plan. Ghost George was just the catalyst for her to realize what she needs to do to progress. And it totally makes sense that he would be the one in her fantasy too. Just from Bullock's committed in habitation of the character, you know that he's the first person to really look deep within her bruised soul.

[shadedpain4]

It's amazing how much digging you have to do just to find Criterion discussion in this thread. Isn't there a whole thread on this site dedicated to discussing Gravity (i mean aside from this one)?

[Abdrewes]

Originally Posted by shadedpain4

It's amazing how much digging you have to do just to find Criterion discussion in this thread. Isn't there a whole thread on this site dedicated to discussing Gravity (i mean aside from this one)?

As a matter of fact, there is: https://forum.blu-ray.com/showthread...134458&page=22

[ElasticJimbo]

Just received my package of Criterions I ordered from the flash sale last week. Has anyone else gotten theirs yet?

[jw007]

Originally Posted by jayembee

Well, a Cro-Magnon, maybe.

Actually, as much a fan as I am of Tarkovsky, Solaris is one of my least favorites of his, and I prefer Soderbergh's version, too.

- A fellow Cro-Magnon

Count me in too, for preferring Soderbergh's version of Solaris to Tarkovsky's. I appreciate a tightly-directed/scripted sci-fi movie if it brings up existential questions and haunting imagery, especially if its a remake of an original film. There are not many remakes I know of that I prefer over the original, but Solaris is one of them.

Originally Posted by JJJ225

Comparing Gravity to 2001 is ludicrous. Gravity is a well-made thriller, but very little more. Entertaining and tense. Go see it for sure! My biggest complaint, however, is that some of the dialogue is awful. I was cringing during one or two scenes because it was so bad. It's unfortunate because there are so many amazing silent moments, and then they felt to the need to fill similar moments with that awful dialogue. Made no sense.

It seems like nowadays that you can get away with either a brilliant suspense thriller and absolutely no profound dialogue/philosophy or a brilliant philosophical movie with absolutely no suspense/action. But how does one attain both? In 2001, I think that rare film attained both because even with the silent suspense scene when Bowman was trying to get back into the Discovery (After Hal locked him out), that was very exciting to watch, while at the same time so much philosophy came up during the story. Now its extremely rare to see a film that is profound on all levels and themes (from thoughts to action). It seems like Gravity will just be devoid (like the void of space) of anything intellectual/existential. I plan on seeing this film this week. Okay, I am done with talking about this now.... on to more Criterion talk.

[TJS_Blu]

Originally Posted by ElasticJimbo

Just received my package of Criterions I ordered from the flash sale last week. Has anyone else gotten theirs yet?

Yes. Quite a few, I would think.

[Carletty]

Originally Posted by ElasticJimbo

Just received my package of Criterions I ordered from the flash sale last week. Has anyone else gotten theirs yet?

I'm still waiting for my packages from the B2G1F sale. It's been over a month now.

[jw007]

Okay, what is more exciting right now?

The January titles to be announced next week or the 50% Barnes & Noble November Criterion sale?

[RipleyLV426]

Originally Posted by jw007

Okay, what is more exciting right now?

The January titles to be announced next week or the 50% Barnes & Noble November Criterion sale?

Because, like Veruca Salt, "I want them now!!"

[smoss469]

Originally Posted by ElasticJimbo

Just received my package of Criterions I ordered from the flash sale last week. Has anyone else gotten theirs yet?

After a 5 state journey getting from KY to WV, mine arrived today.

[t4t3r]

Originally Posted by smoss469

After a 5 state journey getting from KY to WV, mine arrived today.

Ouch. I'm I'm WV and mine arrived last Friday.

[BLOFELD]

"gravity" looks like a complete copy of "marooned" 1969 starring gene hackman and greg peck.

i'll screen it, but of course won't go to the theater.

not to sound over cynical but too many elements in modern film are "borrowed" these days without giving proper credit.

since the late 70's the amount of fresh material being churned out is few and far between.

Originally Posted by lemonski

Yeah, it's certainly an excellent thriller, but not in the class of those two films.

[The Great Owl]

Normally, I would rather put on a frozen fish suit and walk into a polar bear den than watch a legal drama that clocks in at almost three hours. Otto Preminger's 1959 masterpiece, Anatomy of a Murder, defied my expectations when I saw it on DVD in 2012, though, and I was captivated by this story where not a single second of film is wasted. This fast-paced mix of character study and authentic courtroom proceedings will win over most viewers from the first sequence, where the endearingly rough-around-the-edges rural attorney Paul Biegler, played by the quintessential everyman actor Jimmy Stewart, in the company of his boozy retired lawyer friend, Parnell Emmett McCarthy, and his feisty secretary, Maida Rutledge, accepts a request to defend Army Lieutenant Frederick Manion, who is in jail for shooting a man whom he believed raped his wife, Laura. Since Lieutenant Manion and his wife are both slippery and unlikeable characters who never convey any remote semblance of trustworthiness, one cannot help but wonder if Otto Preminger's use of Jimmy Stewart's magnetic charisma is an insidious strategy to shift the viewer's courtroom allegiances away from where they might otherwise fall. This is one of many filmmaker strategies utilized here to depict courtroom shell games in a realistic manner.

Serious film fans may recognize Ben Gazzara as Brad Wesley, the iconic villain in the 1989 movie, Road House, and his early role here as Lieutenant Manion hits all the right notes to outline the short fuse of the character. The beautiful Lee Remick, who would shine years later in the 1962 thriller, Experiment in Terror, has the perfect combination of vulnerability and manipulative sleaziness. George C. Scott exudes a calm big city sophistication in his State District Attorney role that provides a riveting counterpoint to Jimmy Stewart's "good old boy" small town mannerisms. Arthur O'Connell is eternally likeable as Parnell Emmett McCarthy, and his eagerness to redeem his legal capabilities makes him my favorite character of the film. Since I am a huge fan of The Twilight Zone original series, my eyes always light up at the inclusions of Murray Hamilton, who played Mr. Death in the the episode, 'One for the Angels', and Orson Bean, who played the lovably fumbling title character in the episode, 'Mr. Beavis.'

This Criterion Blu-ray presents a brilliant video presentation that brings out the black-and-white 1950s small town drama to life with a natural film look that sports the appropriate detail and grain. The fantastic Duke Ellington music gets a commendable nod with the audio presentation. A series of short supplementary documents discuss the work of Otto Preminger, Duke Ellington, and Saul Bass, whose talent for outstanding title sequences shines in this movie. I would have loved a commentary track for this five-star film, but the lack of one is only a minor complaint.

[jw007]

Originally Posted by BLOFELD

"gravity" looks like a complete copy of "marooned" 1969 starring gene hackman and greg peck.

i'll screen it, but of course won't go to the theater.

not to sound over cynical but too many elements in modern film are "borrowed" these days without giving proper credit.

since the late 70's the amount of fresh material being churned out is few and far between.

Yes...so what does this mean? Is originality no longer viable anymore? Has everything been shown in cinema already if we can reference elements from past films? Is the human rance coming to an end soon if original ideas are few and far between? Will there be another "dark ages" era coming with little to nothing in the way of substance and ideas (at least in cinema)? Maybe humanity needs a serious kick in the a$$ and be set back a few centuries so old ideas will become new ideas again.

I DARE ANYONE here to engage me on such questions/issues.

[Mansinthe]

Originally Posted by jw007

Okay, what is more exciting right now?

The January titles to be announced next week or the 50% Barnes & Noble November Criterion sale?

the Barnes & Nobles sale

im not sure what im gonna buy this time but probably all the Kubrick & pedobar.. erm Polanski movies i dont own yet

[Abdrewes]

Originally Posted by Mansinthe

the Barnes & Nobles sale

im not sure what im gonna buy this time but probably all the Kubrick & pedobar.. erm Polanski movies i dont own yet

BN50 for sure. I hope that Pauline Kael review doesn't completely taint my next viewing of La Notte

[The Great Owl]

Originally Posted by jw007

Okay, what is more exciting right now?

The January titles to be announced next week or the 50% Barnes & Noble November Criterion sale?

The Barnes & Noble 50% Off sale in November.

I'm thinking...
La Notte
City Lights
Tokyo Story
3 Films by Roberto Rossellini Starring Ingrid Bergman

I'll already own Eyes Without a Face by then.

Other than that, I'd like to veer my attention over to the Olive Film Blu-rays to collect more film noir titles.

[ccg1978]

Originally Posted by The Great Owl

Normally, I would rather put on a frozen fish suit and walk into a polar bear den than watch a legal drama that clocks in at almost three hours. Otto Preminger's 1959 masterpiece, Anatomy of a Murder, defied my expectations when I saw it on DVD in 2012, though, and I was captivated by this story where not a single second of film is wasted. This fast-paced mix of character study and authentic courtroom proceedings will win over most viewers from the first sequence, where the endearingly rough-around-the-edges rural attorney Paul Biegler, played by the quintessential everyman actor Jimmy Stewart, in the company of his boozy retired lawyer friend, Parnell Emmett McCarthy, and his feisty secretary, Maida Rutledge, accepts a request to defend Army Lieutenant Frederick Manion, who is in jail for shooting a man whom he believed raped his wife, Laura. Since Lieutenant Manion and his wife are both slippery and unlikeable characters who never convey any remote semblance of trustworthiness, one cannot help but wonder if Otto Preminger's use of Jimmy Stewart's magnetic charisma is an insidious strategy to shift the viewer's courtroom allegiances away from where they might otherwise fall. This is one of many filmmaker strategies utilized here to depict courtroom shell games in a realistic manner.

Serious film fans may recognize Ben Gazzara as Brad Wesley, the iconic villain in the 1989 movie, Road House, and his early role here as Lieutenant Manion hits all the right notes to outline the short fuse of the character. The beautiful Lee Remick, who would shine years later in the 1962 thriller, Experiment in Terror, has the perfect combination of vulnerability and manipulative sleaziness. George C. Scott exudes a calm big city sophistication in his State District Attorney role that provides a riveting counterpoint to Jimmy Stewart's "good old boy" small town mannerisms. Arthur O'Connell is eternally likeable as Parnell Emmett McCarthy, and his eagerness to redeem his legal capabilities makes him my favorite character of the film. Since I am a huge fan of The Twilight Zone original series, my eyes always light up at the inclusions of Murray Hamilton, who played Mr. Death in the the episode, 'One for the Angels', and Orson Bean, who played the lovably fumbling title character in the episode, 'Mr. Beavis.'

This Criterion Blu-ray presents a brilliant video presentation that brings out the black-and-white 1950s small town drama to life with a natural film look that sports the appropriate detail and grain. The fantastic Duke Ellington music gets a commendable nod with the audio presentation. A series of short supplementary documents discuss the work of Otto Preminger, Duke Ellington, and Saul Bass, whose talent for outstanding title sequences shines in this movie. I would have loved a commentary track for this five-star film, but the lack of one is only a minor complaint.

nice write-up. I didn't even realize the film was close to 3 hours long until I read this! It went by quick IMO and didn't seem to have any filler at all. One of my top 5 Criterions.

[ccg1978]

Originally Posted by The Great Owl

The Barnes & Noble 50% Off sale in November.

I'm thinking...
La Notte
City Lights
Tokyo Story
3 Films by Roberto Rossellini Starring Ingrid Bergman

I'll already own Eyes Without a Face by then.

Other than that, I'd like to veer my attention over to the Olive Film Blu-rays to collect more film noir titles.

I'm hoping for an Amazon sale as I'm not a B&N member and I'm a Amazon Prime member to boot.