The Criterion Collection

[bwdowiak]

Originally Posted by GentleGiant

Sad news coming from Lithuania...
Donatas Banionis has passed away today at the age of 90. Anyone who watched Andrey Tarkovsky's Solaris have known him well as a great actor.
RIP.
http://dialmformovies.net/2014/09/04...-died-aged-90/

which would have made him around 47 at the time of filming. a very good and demanding film, to be sure, but the casting of the two leads threw me off a bit. he seemed a bit old. (she would have been around 21 at the time)

[Norbie]

Does one have to see L'AVVENTURA and LA NOTTE to know what's going on/understand in L'ECLISSE?

Also, are Criterion planning to axe "Dual-Format" Editions?

Along with L'ECLISSE I got ALL THAT HEAVEN ALLOWS and HEARTS AND MINDS at the recent B&N sale, and I like the slightly wider case.

[aes3728]

Originally Posted by Norbie

Does one have to see L'AVVENTURA and LA NOTTE to know what's going on/understand in L'ECLISSE?

No you do not. They are all separate films, just thematically/atmospherically linked in what is called the Alienation trilogy. No chronological viewing necessary.

[jayembee]

Originally Posted by Norbie

Does one have to see L'AVVENTURA and LA NOTTE to know what's going on/understand in L'ECLISSE?

No.

Also, are Criterion planning to axe "Dual-Format" Editions?

Yes. Starting with this month's titles, they're going back to separate BD and DVD editions.

[bwdowiak]

got the Jacques Demy set from the library! interest has really piqued for Cherbourg... only saw the first 10 minutes one other time and turned it off. I think I have a more open mind for musicals now and this time around I'm expecting greatness.

..and really looking forward to Bay of Angels, too!

which is the 3rd best? or your 2nd best if not BoA?

[themp3000]

Originally Posted by bwdowiak

got the Jacques Demy set from the library! interest has really piqued for Cherbourg... only saw the first 10 minutes one other time and turned it off. I think I have a more open mind for musicals now and this time around I'm expecting greatness.

..and really looking forward to Bay of Angels, too!

which is the 3rd best? or your 2nd best if not BoA?

The Umbrellas of Cherbourg and The Young Girls of Rochefort are easily the best of the Demy set. I think my third favorite is Une Chamber en Ville. Bay of Angels and Lola after those. Donkey Skin is probably the weakest but in general, the Demy set is one of the strongest sets in the Collection.

[Scottie]

Originally Posted by pro-bassoonist

All That Jazz Blu-ray REVIEW



I think it is very easy to tell that this release was meant to be the definitive home video release of Bob Fosse's masterpiece. It should be a mandatory purchase for everyone

Pro-B

Well, this review has certainly given me a desire to revisit the film (which I ironically just saw a few weeks ago and felt lukewarm towards).

I really enjoyed the write-up of the synopsis, especially the comparisons to Fellini and the struggles to make it on Broadway.

Originally Posted by bwdowiak

got the Jacques Demy set from the library! interest has really piqued for Cherbourg... only saw the first 10 minutes one other time and turned it off. I think I have a more open mind for musicals now and this time around I'm expecting greatness.

..and really looking forward to Bay of Angels, too!

which is the 3rd best? or your 2nd best if not BoA?

You are certainly in for a treat.

The Young Girls of Rochefort is my favorite film from the set, but I really, really, really admire The Umbrellas of Cherbourg, as well. All of the films in the set are great though, even the later Demy works.

Have fun!

[Judex]

I've just finished watching Love Streams. Another superb piece of film making from Cassavetes.

However I did notice a couple of things that struck me as odd.
At around 1.57.12 the picture goes black for one second, there's still audio.
It does the same at 1.59.28 again only for one second, again there's still audio.
Anyone else experienced this?

[pro-bassoonist]

Hello everyone

I would like to leave a small note.

A member PM-ed me asking which BFI version of The Innocents I was referring to in the review of the Criterion release. Well, as far as I know there is only one version on the market (we certainly have only one listing in the database). I am unsure if the BFI changed the packaging design, but the version I have in my library is the very first version (I am posting a picture below). These releases -- Criterion and BFI -- use very different transfers.

I thought this was pretty clear, but I will make sure to include the photo below with the final packaging photos of the Criterion release.

I hope everyone is well

Originally Posted by Judex

Anyone else experienced this?

Judex, this is part of the ON.

Pro-B

[mrjohnnyb]

Originally Posted by The Great Owl

This brings me to my own home turf. My favorite movies set in Atlanta...

Gone with the Wind
Sharky's Machine

My favorite film set in Georgia: Deliverance

[thecalm_7]

Originally Posted by pro-bassoonist

Hello everyone



Judex, this is part of the ON.

Pro-B

Not Judex, but what is "ON"? I have yet to watch my copy

[The Great Owl]

Originally Posted by mrjohnnyb

My favorite film set in Georgia: Deliverance

I deliberately left Deliverance off my list, since it was not set in the city of Atlanta, but it's one of my favorite films as well, and it was one of the first Blu-rays that I purchased back in 2012 when I got my first player.

[the sordid sentinel]

The Big Easy is an excellent movie shot in N.O. A large portion of Manhunter was shot in ATL.

[jlk5844]

We watched The Seventh Seal in class today. My first time seeing it.

Hmm. That was way different than I was expecting. I thought it was only about him talking with Death while playing chess, or at least a majority of the movie, but no that's actually a side story, and there's way more characters and much going on involving the black plague. Surprisingly, there were several moments of comedy, and they all were funny.

I can see why it's a landmark film: there is some interesting dialogue about God and life and death; Max von Sydow, Gunnar Björnstrand, and the rest of the cast are great; there's iconic shots and scenes that just feel classic, intense, and very well done (i.e. when Antonius Block is talking to the woman

[Show spoiler]who is to be burned to death for having Satan in her

).

I wanted to like it a little more, but I still liked it. It was rather slow and got dry here and there. It's a movie I respect more than I enjoy at this point. It's something you need to be in the appropriate mood to watch, and you need to see it multiple times to fully understand and appreciate it, because there's a lot going on thematically and under the surface. I wasn't too satisfied with the ending, but this isn't a film to be entertained by so much as intellectually stimulated. I need to research it and figure out the meaning of it all and everything it's trying to say. Wish I had my Criterion BD so I could watch the extras.

In the end, like with Summer with Monika, I'd give it about a 4/5.

[cakefactory]

The Seventh Seal has a rep as a serious art movie that's more "good for you" and "important" than entertaining. This rep is undeserved. I am struck every time I watch it by how lively the characters are and by how droll it is. It's good that it's still so widely shown, but I feel like it should be more engaged with as a movie than spoken about in reverential tones. I think most people go in expecting to be bored and treated to long ruminations on the meaning of life or something.

[The Great Owl]

Double-posting my thoughts on Bergman's The Seventh Seal that I posted a while back in this thread...

I am probably misinterpreting The Seventh Seal on a grand scale, but the movie always makes me laugh, and leaves me with a smile and a feeling of blissful tranquility. Much of this is probably due to the circumstances surrounding my first viewing of the film. I blind-bought the old Criterion DVD copy a few years ago (the DVD with Death on the cover), and watched it on a cloudless Saturday in the fall when the sun was shining through my windows, and I was in a pleasant mood from enjoying time with friends the night before and enjoying an early run with my training group earlier in the morning. Despite the heavyweight "big big questions" subject matter of The Seventh Seal, my first viewing took place on a perfect day when I was perfectly happy, so I sort of hovered over the movie on a buoyant cloud in the same way that one might watch a Will Ferrell comedy. The comedic aspects of the film were magnified a dozen times, and, although I did not try to understand the film on that first viewing, I took home a general idea that, although life itself is often a skewed tragedy of missed opportunities, poor timing, struggle, and loss, the best thing that we can usually do is simply to laugh about it all.
There's a scene in The Seventh Seal when Antonius Block is enjoying a picnic of strawberries and fresh milk with great company, and he savors the moment to let that happiness sink in. This scene strikes me as one of those times when I look around and realize that, at that particular moment in time, I am truly happy, even if it's for no tangible reason. I always feel the same way during each subsequent viewing of the film, and those good feelings reverberate each time.
It's a wondrous work of cinema.

[Scottie]

At this point in time, I've seen 1/4 of Bergman's film catalogue, and I personally think that The Seventh Seal is his most difficult one.

I haven't seen it the film in a couple of years so I don't feel too comfortable discussing specific details of it. I do recall it being incredibly dark and mentally draining, though. That being said, the final image of the dance is still burned into my brain. It has to be one of the most memorable scenes from any film.

[jlk5844]

Originally Posted by The Great Owl

Double-posting my thoughts on Bergman's The Seventh Seal that I posted a while back in this thread...

I am probably misinterpreting The Seventh Seal on a grand scale, but the movie always makes me laugh, and leaves me with a smile and a feeling of blissful tranquility. Much of this is probably due to the circumstances surrounding my first viewing of the film. I blind-bought the old Criterion DVD copy a few years ago (the DVD with Death on the cover), and watched it on a cloudless Saturday in the fall when the sun was shining through my windows, and I was in a pleasant mood from enjoying time with friends the night before and enjoying an early run with my training group earlier in the morning. Despite the heavyweight "big big questions" subject matter of The Seventh Seal, my first viewing took place on a perfect day when I was perfectly happy, so I sort of hovered over the movie on a buoyant cloud in the same way that one might watch a Will Ferrell comedy. The comedic aspects of the film were magnified a dozen times, and, although I did not try to understand the film on that first viewing, I took home a general idea that, although life itself is often a skewed tragedy of missed opportunities, poor timing, struggle, and loss, the best thing that we can usually do is simply to laugh about it all.
There's a scene in The Seventh Seal when Antonius Block is enjoying a picnic of strawberries and fresh milk with great company, and he savors the moment to let that happiness sink in. This scene strikes me as one of those times when I look around and realize that, at that particular moment in time, I am truly happy, even if it's for no tangible reason. I always feel the same way during each subsequent viewing of the film, and those good feelings reverberate each time.
It's a wondrous work of cinema.

I really liked that scene too. It's one of the lighter and happier scenes in the movie.

[jlk5844]

Is The Seventh Seal Bergman at his most artistic and complex? I found Summer with Monika very simple narratively by comparison, and thematically. It was easier on the mind.

[cakefactory]

Originally Posted by jlk5844

Is The Seventh Seal Bergman at his most artistic and complex? I found Summer with Monika very simple narratively by comparison, and thematically. It was easier on the mind.

I think it's far more accessible than virtually anything he did after, but I guess it depends how you define complex. Persona is probably his most out-there movie in terms of people not understanding it, but the later stuff like Cries and Whispers or Autumn Sonata is probably the hardest for the average filmgoer to deal with. Then he has Fanny and Alexander and Scenes from a Marriage which are less lacerating but way too long for most to handle. I think seventh seal is his most accessible movie other than Wild Strawberries to someone in a film class.