The Criterion Collection

[smoss469]

Originally Posted by momaw

Yes. I'm a bit torn. On one hand I feel I should contact them and let them know they have arrived, on the other they weren't very helpful in that they wouldn't replace or honor the price if I reordered. I almost bit the bullet yesterday to reorder through Amazon at their higher price. Glad I didn't. Zatoichi is still sitting in my amazon cart.

Did they refund your $$ when you called? I remember they said they wouldn't ship more and you'd have to buy them outside of the sale IIRC.

[momaw]

Originally Posted by smoss469

Did they refund your $$ when you called? I remember they said they wouldn't ship more and you'd have to buy them outside of the sale IIRC.

They did, which is why I am torn.

[pedromvu]

Originally Posted by dwk

StudioCanal does have, outside of France, the worldwide rights to Tati's catalog but Criterion confirmed in emails to multiple people that they got the US home video rights back:


It is not entirely clear if they got Trafic back, but they have the rest. (It is also unclear how they got the rights back, but the speculation is that the Tati estate arranged it.)

With sets already a few weeks away on France and UK containing all 6 films, here's hoping Criterion has all the rights to do the same, otherwise it would be very hard to to justify the Criterion edition for anyone with a region free player.

[smoss469]

Originally Posted by momaw

They did, which is why I am torn.

I've had that happen a few times, when I contact the website, (normally Amazon) after it arrives weeks after it's gone missing they tell me they cannot take the payment from me again. Basically they have insurance that covers it.

You might be stuck with both, not that it's a bad place to be in but I'd still offer if it were me.

[momaw]

Originally Posted by smoss469

I've had that happen a few times, when I contact the website, (normally Amazon) after it arrives weeks after it's gone missing they tell me they cannot take the payment from me again. Basically they have insurance that covers it.

You might be stuck with both, not that it's a bad place to be in but I'd still offer if it were me.

Thanks. I'll look into that.

[pro-bassoonist]

The Long Day Closes Blu-ray REVIEW



Pro-B

[hustlermane]

Originally Posted by The Great Owl

Anatomy of a Murder is a perfect Criterion title, and the transfer really brings out the best in the amazing music.

Otto Preminger directed my favorite Blu-ray release of 2013, Laura, and he also directed one of my favorite Marilyn Monroe movies, River of No Return.

In fact, Otto Preminger's 1950 movie, Where the Sidewalk Ends, is on its way to me right now from Amazon. As much as I'd like to see some of these classic film noirs hit Blu-ray, I'm not holding my breath for them, and I've ordered a few key standouts (Criss Cross, Where the Sidewalk Ends, Nightmare Alley, etc.) on DVD to tide me over, since the discs are so cheap nowadays.


I'm glad that you enjoyed 12 Angry Men. I love the use of props in the limited setting, like the busted fan, the windows, the rainstorm outside, etc.

I suspect you'll love Where The Sidewalk Ends - I managed to see it on 35mm at an art gallery and it looked astonishing; if and when the blu-ray is released I'll be all over it; it's one of my favourite noirs. Criss Cross is great as well, perhaps even better than the more known Siodmak-Lancaster collab The Killers. Back to Preminger, make sure you see Angel Face if you can as well.

Interesting you say Laura is your favourite BR release of 2013, it's a film I love and have held off from buying. Not sure if you've done so already, but do you have a top 10 favourite blu-rays from 2013? I only ask because you seem to be a solid blu-ray buyer/watcher and your taste seems pretty trustworthy here :P

[octagon]

The Laura release is an Ultimate Collector's Edition without the swag and the high price. Fox did a really, really good job with that one. (The Vincent Price bio is a great supplement and actually kind of helped sell me on Shout's VP Collection)

[The Great Owl]

Originally Posted by hustlermane

Interesting you say Laura is your favourite BR release of 2013, it's a film I love and have held off from buying. Not sure if you've done so already, but do you have a top 10 favourite blu-rays from 2013? I only ask because you seem to be a solid blu-ray buyer/watcher and your taste seems pretty trustworthy here

Here's my Top 10 Blu-ray releases of 2013, with the disclaimer that this list could be quite different the next time I post it...

Laura
On the Waterfront
Skyfall
The Enforcer (1951)
The Big Combo
La Notte
Niagara
Ultimate Gangsters Collection: Classics (Little Caesar / The Public Enemy / The Petrified Forest / White Heat)
The Right Stuff
The Spy Who Came in from the Cold

10 Honorable mentions:

Ministry of Fear
The Hitch-Hiker
Seconds
Eyes Without a Face
Hell's Half Acre
To the Wonder
Two Men in Manhattan
City That Never Sleeps
A Man Escaped
Investigation of a Citizen Above Suspicion

[Abdrewes]

Originally Posted by TJS_Blu

Never seen Boogie Man, does it have his 1981 comments on the Southern strategy?

Oh no! This was only hinted at when it covered the Willy Horton/"Revolving Door" controversy and his connection with Strom Thurmond.

[Joe Dalek]

Originally Posted by jonschmidt

Quick question guys. Based on past history, when would the next 50 or 40% off sale for Criterions be?

February - usually a one-day 50% flash sale on Criterion.com around Valentine's Day or later in the month

July & November - B&N 50% sales, usually 3-4 weeks

September - usually a one-day 50% flash sale on Criterion.com late in the month (this year it was on one of the first days of October)

December - Best Buy has been having 50% sales the past few years, usually for 2 weeks; Amazon also has random sales and usually price-matches Best Buy

Criterion.com sales earn you points towards a gift certificate, but they don't ship outside of North America and S&H can be expensive (free in US for orders over $50)

B&N sales tend to have coupons associated with them and most of their media stores stock the full range of Criterions for instant gratification, and they ship worldwide as long as you're willing to wait...and wait...and wait...

Best Buy sales are good because Amazon price matches, so you can avoid dealing with Best Buy altogether

[smoss469]

Originally Posted by The Great Owl

Here's my Top 10 Blu-ray releases of 2013, with the disclaimer that this list could be quite different the next time I post it...

Laura
On the Waterfront
Skyfall
The Enforcer (1951)
The Big Combo
La Notte
Niagara
Ultimate Gangsters Collection: Classics (Little Caesar / The Public Enemy / The Petrified Forest / White Heat)
The Right Stuff
The Spy Who Came in from the Cold

10 Honorable mentions:

Ministry of Fear
The Hitch-Hiker
Seconds
Eyes Without a Face
Hell's Half Acre
To the Wonder
Two Men in Manhattan
City That Never Sleeps
A Man Escaped
Investigation of a Citizen Above Suspicion

Got a decent amount of those. From those you listed, I'd say The Enforcer, Ministry of Fear or A Man Escaped would take #1 for me. Not sure which one of those 3 would get it off your list but it'd be close.

[TJS_Blu]

Beaver has reviews up for Bernard's Les Miserable (1932) on french Pathe label as well as Foreign Correspondent.

Hope Criterion will upgrade the Eclipse release of Les Mis this year. Looking forward to Dr. A's reviews.

[Clare2904]

Originally Posted by momaw

I've had a good day criterion wise. A month overdue B&N package arrived containing Tokyo Story, Gate of Hell and Late Spring. Another month overdue B&N package containing the Zatoichi box set arrived. I was very happy to get this as I'd resigned myself to having to reorder at a higher price and a lower $AUD. I also received from amazon Throne of Blood. Looks like I'll be occupied for quite a while.

Originally Posted by smoss469

Were you the one where they refused to re-ship it because of the international fees and would only refund your $$?

Originally Posted by momaw

Yes. I'm a bit torn. On one hand I feel I should contact them and let them know they have arrived, on the other they weren't very helpful in that they wouldn't replace or honor the price if I reordered. I almost bit the bullet yesterday to reorder through Amazon at their higher price. Glad I didn't. Zatoichi is still sitting in my amazon cart.

I had a similar experience in the summer from B&N with a delivery to Canada. Got the usual BS customer service and after a fight, a refund for a way overdue order. Sods law, it arrived the next day. I never said anything as they frankly didn't deserve the energy it would have taken to contact them again.

Another similar situation was with an independent seller, item was a no show. Almost instant replies, very helpful, money refunded. Had the order arrived I would have repaid the money without question. Big companies need to realise that we do actually matter, especially one so in the financial crapper as B&N.

[andsoitgoes]

Owl, you list skyfall but don't even have To Be or Not to Be, The Life and Death of colonel Blimp, Autumn Sonata, City Lights or Tokyo Story on that list?

I don't know if we can be friends any longer :P

On a serious note, 4K

I know it may have been mentioned here before, but with the grim realization of how much I have invested in blu-ray, specifically in my Criterion films, and I honestly don't believe I can fathom upgrading beyond what I have now. There's no way I could justify repurchasing even a fraction of my collection.

The big question I have, and I apologize if I'm beating a horse that's already been kicked, spit on and wait... Why the hell is that phrase even in our vernacular? Who in their right mind would beat a horse to death to begin with? Further to that point, what kind of psychopath would then continue to beat the horse, only to be told to stop the beating of...

I digress.

Will Anatomy of a Murder REALLY look that much better in 4K?

When I look at DVD counterparts, most of the criterion films weren't even able to be properly restored until recently. I understand that many of the films actually are natively 4K due to film resolution in general, even some older films. Where do we draw that line?

I know my excitement lies in the ability to have better motion technology (I literally want to cry every time there is panning in a film, because on my 2 yr old tv, it looks like garbage.) and full resolution passive 3D, but the thought of investing thousands upon thousands when I sit an easy 14' from my tv. Heck, with my vision and comparing the charts, I can barely see the benefit of 720p on my 55" TV.

[jw007]

Originally Posted by The Great Owl

Anatomy of a Murder is a perfect Criterion title, and the transfer really brings out the best in the amazing music.

Otto Preminger directed my favorite Blu-ray release of 2013, Laura, and he also directed one of my favorite Marilyn Monroe movies, River of No Return.

In fact, Otto Preminger's 1950 movie, Where the Sidewalk Ends, is on its way to me right now from Amazon. As much as I'd like to see some of these classic film noirs hit Blu-ray, I'm not holding my breath for them, and I've ordered a few key standouts (Criss Cross, Where the Sidewalk Ends, Nightmare Alley, etc.) on DVD to tide me over, since the discs are so cheap nowadays.


I'm glad that you enjoyed 12 Angry Men. I love the use of props in the limited setting, like the busted fan, the windows, the rainstorm outside, etc.

Yes, I loved that thunderstorm that was recreated. It was realistic and it had to be since there was very little mise-en-scene outside of the jury room.

As for Preminger, its time I discover him now.

Originally Posted by octagon

It's been a long time since I've seen it but the Friedkin version is very good.

It's funny, it's not just a shot-for-shot do-over but they don't try to reinvent the wheel either. You can tell everybody involved has a lot of respect for the Lumet film.

It's more an homage than a remake.

Originally Posted by smoss469

It's an amazing movie. Stewart plays up the over-matched small town lawyer perfectly and George C Scott is an equally perfect foil as the too smart for his own good big city lawyer. The movie is paced very well and the dialog and conflict are perfectly done. I'm normally wary of longer films and normally I walk away thinking the film would've been better served with 15 minutes less screen time but the time on Anatomy of a Murder just flew by!

You're really whetting my appetite here for this film. I might have to walk down to the local library to borrow this sooner than ever.

[Oblivion138]

Originally Posted by octagon

It's been a long time since I've seen it but the Friedkin version is very good.

It's funny, it's not just a shot-for-shot do-over but they don't try to reinvent the wheel either. You can tell everybody involved has a lot of respect for the Lumet film.

It's more an homage than a remake.

Also interesting to note that Friedkin cast George C. Scott in the Lee J. Cobb role for the 12 Angry Men remake...just a few years after his Exorcist collaborator, William Peter Blatty, cast Scott as Detective Kinderman (played by Cobb in the original film) for The Exorcist III.

Originally Posted by Joe Dalek

February - usually a one-day 50% flash sale on Criterion.com around Valentine's Day or later in the month

During which the Criterion website traditionally crashes. haha

[K1NG J0RDAN]

Excited for that flash sale. Many titles I want to pick up.

[MitchA17]

I know this is quite a ways off, but based on the reception it's been getting, and the fact that it's with IFC Films, it seems like Richard Linklater's Boyhood, which has just premiered at Sundance, would be a good candidate for a Criterion release. For those who are unaware of the film, it follows a young boy as he goes through adolescence and into young adulthood. What's really cool is that Linklater used the same actors to play the boy and his family, and filmed scenes every year for 14 years, starting in 2002.

It's one of my most anticipated 2014 films, and again, though this would be quite a ways off, a Criterion release would be excellent. The film sounds great, and the supplements would obviously be incredibly interesting.

I also support any more Linklater being added to the collection. Waking Life is one of the top films I'd love to see added to the Collection.

[JoeBuck]

I'm $200 worth of loyalty points away from getting that $50 gift certificate from Criterion. Now I just need to save up $200 for this sale and I'll be one happy camper!
I desperately need that Zatoichi set