The Criterion Collection

[bwdowiak]

Originally Posted by ejm69

So I'm trying to complete my Louis Malle collection. I've been holding off on Murmur of the Heart and Lacombe, Lucien on Blu. Anybody have any insight as to why Au Revoir Les Enfants is the only Malle film to get the Blu treatment? If all hope is lost for his other films I was thinking of picking them up on DVD during the BN sale.

Considering how good the other two films are, I wouldn't say that "all hope is lost" for an eventual blu-ray. At the same time, the DVD transfers are pretty solid for both. Might just be a personal preference, but I am more demanding of an HD transfer for a film shot in color than for a B & W film. Even with that being said, these look pretty good.

Did I say that these movies are really good? It seems that very few people have taken the time to see these other two films. Especially for those of you who have an interest in France during the German occupation. (A topic in film that I can not get enough of) See Lacombe, Lucien if you share that interest!

[bwdowiak]

Originally Posted by iScottie

If the tracking shot during the traffic jam sequence in Godard's Week End is not one of the most impressive things to ever be filmed, then I truly do not know what is.

Originally Posted by iScottie

I actually just finished it and out of the five films of his that I've seen, it is probably my least favorite. That being said, it was still good overall!

My favorite film is Pierrot Le Fou, followed by Breathless, Vivre Sa Vie, and Band of Outsiders.

I still haven't seen PLF. Here's how I'd rank them:

Breathless
Vivre sa Vie
Band of Outsiders
A Woman is a Woman
Alphaville (probably needs another viewing)
Made in U.S.A.

...and Weekend which I did have between BoO and AWiaW... I'm a bit unsure of my feelings about this film. parts are definitely brilliant, but it is kind of a painful watch. to say that parts of it are difficult to understand (and I'm not talking about

[Show spoiler]the vague artsy stuff at the end which is actually one of the best parts of the film

) would be an understatement. it deserves another look, but I don't know if I'm planning on giving it one.

[ShellOilJunior]

Made in the U.S.A. is a bad film.

I'm not sure if people pretend to like it because it's JLG but it's an incoherent mess. This coming from someone that owns all JLG Criterion blu-rays.

[bwdowiak]

Originally Posted by ShellOilJunior

Made in the U.S.A. is a bad film.

I'm not sure if people pretend to like it because it's JLG but it's an incoherent mess. This coming from someone that owns all JLG Criterion blu-rays.

it's a wonderful looking film with moments that almost feel like they have resonance. "an incoherent mess" is probably pretty fair, though, as I suspect multiple viewings will lead nowhere.

[aes3728]

Originally Posted by iScottie

I actually just finished it and out of the five films of his that I've seen, it is probably my least favorite. That being said, it was still good overall!

My favorite film is Pierrot Le Fou, followed by Breathless, Vivre Sa Vie, and Band of Outsiders.

Weekend
Breathless
Band of Outsiders
Contempt
Vivre Sa Vie
Masculin Feminin
Pierrot Le Fou
Made in USA
2 or 3 Things I Know About Her

I need to track down his later films. Pretty much clueless when it comes to anything past Weekend.

[CinemaBlu]

Originally Posted by aes3728

Pretty much clueless when it comes to anything past Weekend.

So was Godard.

[jayembee]

Originally Posted by aes3728

Don't know what this does to your classification but it seems Rialto has pbtained the rights of distribution to Hiroshima, Mon Amour.

http://www.indiewire.com/article/exc...mmanuelle-riva

Originally Posted by adamhopelies

I don't think that matters. They tend to release their home video releases thru Criterion. http://www.rialtopictures.com/dvd.html

It does matter. Criterion used to have a deal with Rialto, but they don't anymore. That's why most of the Rialto titles that Criterion has released (like The Third Man and Army of Shadows) are OOP. I believe that the Rialto catalog is under StudioCanal's control now.

[Scottie]

Originally Posted by bwdowiak

I still haven't seen PLF. Here's how I'd rank them:

[Show spoiler]Breathless
Vivre sa Vie
Band of Outsiders
A Woman is a Woman
Alphaville (probably needs another viewing)
Made in U.S.A.

...and Weekend which I did have between BoO and AWiaW... I'm a bit unsure of my feelings about this film. parts are definitely brilliant, but it is kind of a painful watch. to say that parts of it are difficult to understand (and I'm not talking about

[Show spoiler]the vague artsy stuff at the end which is actually one of the best parts of the film

) would be an understatement. it deserves another look, but I don't know if I'm planning on giving it one.

Originally Posted by aes3728

[Show spoiler]Weekend
Breathless
Band of Outsiders
Contempt
Vivre Sa Vie
Masculin Feminin
Pierrot Le Fou
Made in USA
2 or 3 Things I Know About Her

I need to track down his later films. Pretty much clueless when it comes to anything past Weekend.

I still have my regular Blu-rays of Contempt and Une Femme Mariee to watch.

Now that I've discovered the luxury of Hulu+ via a PlayStation 4, I will be watching more of Godard's catalogue on there.

[Mansinthe]

Originally Posted by starman15317

All of the talk of In the Mood For Love makes me want to see it

ordered a DVD of 2046 yesterday. feel like revisiting some wong kar wai movies over the weekend. starting with the HK cut of the Grandmaster

[adamhopelies]

Originally Posted by jayembee

It does matter. Criterion used to have a deal with Rialto, but they don't anymore. That's why most of the Rialto titles that Criterion has released (like The Third Man and Army of Shadows) are OOP. I believe that the Rialto catalog is under StudioCanal's control now.

I don't think it's that simple. Rather than Rialto's catalogue being under the control of Studio Canal, Rialto represent Studio Canal (as per the front page of Rialto's own website). There are still plenty of Rialto titles in print with Criterion, some of them only recently released.

[adamhopelies]

Originally Posted by aes3728

I need to track down his later films. Pretty much clueless when it comes to anything past Weekend.

The period between Weekend and Every Man For Himself is pretty difficult to get in to, but those years aside the rest is nowhere near as impenetrable as the reputation suggests. EMFH kicked off an accessible few years, with highlights for me being Passion and his Lear, but I really like everything he made during that era. Histoire(s) du cinéma is the capper for this period of his career, which is as great as movies get. His more recent work is really exciting too. Some balked at Film Socialisme, but I'm a fan, and the same goes for Notre Musique and In Praise Of Love.

Godard is my favourite filmmaker. I'd probably recommend that one contextualises a venture in to his later work with a book like Richard Brody's Everything Is Cinema, if you want to get the most out of it, but the 1970s aside I don't think there's anything that's particularly hard going.

[adamhopelies]

Originally Posted by bwdowiak

it's a wonderful looking film with moments that almost feel like they have resonance. "an incoherent mess" is probably pretty fair, though, as I suspect multiple viewings will lead nowhere.

Many of the contemporaneous political and cultural reference points are lost in time and translation with Made In USA (the story of Ben Barka, which fascinated Godard, the state of G's relationship with Karina at the time etc). While I'd usually scoff at the idea of one having to read a book to fully understand what's going on in a movie ("a piece of art should stand on its own merits" etc) I'd make an exception with much of Godard's work, given how rich and layered a subtext (and even a text in many cases) the films carry. Reading Godard movies is akin to learning a new language at times, but that's what I love about his work.

[bwdowiak]

Originally Posted by adamhopelies

Many of the contemporaneous political and cultural reference points are lost in time and translation with Made In USA (the story of Ben Barka, which fascinated Godard, the state of G's relationship with Karina at the time etc). While I'd usually scoff at the idea of one having to read a book to fully understand what's going on in a movie ("a piece of art should stand on its own merits" etc) I'd make an exception with much of Godard's work, given how rich and layered a subtext (and even a text in many cases) the films carry. Reading Godard movies is akin to learning a new language at times, but that's what I love about his work.

what book would that be? I'd love to have a better understanding of that film and Weekend, too, for that matter. don't know if I'd actually get around to it (reading the book, that is,) but the ideas, themes (whatever is going on in this film - whatever you want to call it) are presented in such a colorful, kinda fun way that watching it, I felt mildly disappointed that I couldn't connect with it.

[aes3728]

Originally Posted by bwdowiak

what book would that be? I'd love to have a better understanding of that film and Weekend, too, for that matter. don't know if I'd actually get around to it (reading the book, that is,) but the ideas, themes (whatever is going on in this film - whatever you want to call it) are presented in such a colorful, kinda fun way that watching it, I felt mildly disappointed that I couldn't connect with it.

I don't know if this is the exact book he is referencing but Everything is Cinema by Brody is an excellent companion piece to Godard's body of work

[adamhopelies]

Originally Posted by bwdowiak

what book would that be? I'd love to have a better understanding of that film and Weekend, too, for that matter. don't know if I'd actually get around to it (reading the book, that is,) but the ideas, themes (whatever is going on in this film - whatever you want to call it) are presented in such a colorful, kinda fun way that watching it, I felt mildly disappointed that I couldn't connect with it.

There are a number of great books on Godard's work that I'd recommend, but for a great overview I'd go with Aes3728's recommendation of Everything Is Cinema, by Richard Brody. As he says, it's the perfect companion, with each film given a chapter of focus. Another great companion is For Ever Godard, which is a compendium of great writing, and is richly illustrated.

[jw007]

I tried to watch ALL THAT JAZZ last night but I was falling asleep around the 1 hour mark. Will try to finish it later tonight. But I borrowed it from the library in hopes of deciding whether or not I should buy this film when it comes out on Criterion in August. It is released after the 50% off sale but I think its good to "try before you buy" in case I wanted to blind buy this in the November sale.

I'm not crazy about musicals... this film does seem to be remind me of Rob Marshall's Chicago a bit. I think it must have influenced his film.

Does anyone know about All That Jazz too and actually like this film?

[bwdowiak]

Originally Posted by adamhopelies

There are a number of great books on Godard's work that I'd recommend, but for a great overview I'd go with Aes3728's recommendation of Everything Is Cinema, by Richard Brody. As he says, it's the perfect companion, with each film given a chapter of focus. Another great companion is For Ever Godard, which is a compendium of great writing, and is richly illustrated.

awesome.. a chapter per film? I like that approach. more easily digestible!! I might have to pick this up.

Thanks, guys!!

[bwdowiak]

Originally Posted by aes3728

I don't know if this is the exact book he is referencing but Everything is Cinema by Brody is an excellent companion piece to Godard's body of work

Originally Posted by adamhopelies

There are a number of great books on Godard's work that I'd recommend, but for a great overview I'd go with Aes3728's recommendation of Everything Is Cinema, by Richard Brody. As he says, it's the perfect companion, with each film given a chapter of focus. Another great companion is For Ever Godard, which is a compendium of great writing, and is richly illustrated.

wow! $5.10 brand new and shipped. just bought the book. that was a no-brainer.

thanks, again!

[aes3728]

Originally Posted by bwdowiak

wow! $5.10 brand new and shipped. just bought the book. that was a no-brainer.

thanks, again!

Solid deal! Glad to have helped out!

[duggie walker]

Originally Posted by jw007

I tried to watch ALL THAT JAZZ last night but I was falling asleep around the 1 hour mark. Will try to finish it later tonight. But I borrowed it from the library in hopes of deciding whether or not I should buy this film when it comes out on Criterion in August. It is released after the 50% off sale but I think its good to "try before you buy" in case I wanted to blind buy this in the November sale.

I'm not crazy about musicals... this film does seem to be remind me of Rob Marshall's Chicago a bit. I think it must have influenced his film.

Does anyone know about All That Jazz too and actually like this film?

I'm not a big fan of musicals - there's only a handful I really like - but I think ALL THAT JAZZ is brilliant. It's kind-of the DARK KNIGHT of musicals, imo, though you could argue that it's not really a musical at all.

It's bound to feel a bit dated now due to the 70s fashion and Bob Fosse (this film is all but his autobiography) was hugely influential, so you'll have seen echoes of his style in lesser films; but this is essentially a story about a choreographer facing his own death and looking back( fairly mercilessly) on how he's lived his life, warts and all; so the musical numbers have a context and seem absolutely right for the film. It's closer to Fellini's 8 AND A HALF or the work of Dennis Potter, if you know who that is, than CHICAGO.

It's moving, blackly comic and actually quite shocking in some ways, especially the climactic number. Roy Scheider gives the best performance of his career too. Give it another shot and think of it more as a drama than a musical.