The Criterion Collection

[jscoggins]

Originally Posted by BLUgrass

Hey everybody. I apologize in advance for dumbing down the conversation for a moment with a question that I'm sure has been asked a hundred times (I happen to be inept with the search function - can never find a damn thing).

Does or has Criterion ever offered a replacement case/cover art for Benjamin Button?

My gut tells me no and that it has something to do with a different company owning distribution rights, but I just thought I'd ask.

Also, assuming they have not, has anyone bought a Criterion replacement case from casetopia or where ever and put in custom art? If so, I'd love to see how that looks.

Thanks guys. Don't mean to be so ignorant on this. I often feel like I'm in over my head when I visit this thread; the conversation on some of the films makes me feel like such a film novice. I do love reading what you all have to say. It has led me to some great Criterion titles that I probably never would have considered before.

It's a legit question.

That's actually handled by Paramount in the US. The only thing that makes it "Criterion" is the branding. Otherwise, the movie was essentially handled in-house by Paramount.

So, it's supposed to be in a regular keepcase.

[The Great Owl]

Originally Posted by BLUgrass

Does or has Criterion ever offered a replacement case/cover art for Benjamin Button?
...
Thanks guys. Don't mean to be so ignorant on this. I often feel like I'm in over my head when I visit this thread; the conversation on some of the films makes me feel like such a film novice. I do love reading what you all have to say. It has led me to some great Criterion titles that I probably never would have considered before.

I do not have an answer for the The Curious Case of Benjamin Button question, sadly. I do not see a replacement case on the site.

There's no need to feel that you're in over your head here. All of us are novices when it comes to certain genres and certain directors, so most of us just stick to posting about the things with which we're familiar. Feel free to chime in whenever you have opinions about a certain Criterion title, because all of the viewpoints are welcome!

[Fellini912]

Originally Posted by bwdowiak

using the word "masterpiece" to describe Hiroshima mon amour indicates to me that the author of this article is not averse to a little hyperbole, so I'd take his (her?) word with a grain of salt.

Hiroshima mon amour is a mix bag for me.

The cinematography and film editing are superb. I really enjoyed the framing of the scenes.

Resnais political view is naive to say the least treating Japan as a victim by showing us the aftermath of the atomic bomb. He totally leaves out the monstrosities Japanese fascists did in China, concentration camps or Pearl Harbor. I cannot say that the US was completely faultless, but Japan is not like Poland. Kurosawa also has this incorrect view (Rhapsody in August).

The general civilians were the ones that suffered the most because of these outrageous political systems (Japan included).

Sansho the Bailiff by Mizoguchi is probably one of the few insightful films.

[BLUgrass]

Thanks for the feedback, guys.

To be honest, when it comes to Benjamin Button, it has never bothered me until I noticed in the 'My Movies' blu-ray.com app that it shows up under Criterion in the studios filter. So essentially, it's a bizarre OCD type thing.


As far as discussion, I'm kind of curious how you guys each got into the Criterion Collection. Was it because a certain film you wanted was only available via Criterion? Was it more because of the treatment the films get via special features and new transfers? Was it for a particular director or genre?

For myself, to be honest, it was perhaps the most weird and superficial reason; I was curious why these particular movies had such different cases, unique artwork, and perhaps most of all, why they were $40. However, these were things that mainly just sparked my curiosity.

My first Criterion (besides Benjamin Button) was Cronos. I was listening to one of Kevin Smith's podcasts and he was talking to someone who did scores for a lot of animated Batman shows/movies. The name of the guest escapes me, but he brought up that on his own, he had made a new score for Cronos and Smith blurted out "YOU SCORED CRONOS???"

The guest went on to explain that he didn't, but Smith's enthusiasm for Cronos made me want to check it out. I looked it up and saw that it was only available via the Criterion Collection and it happened to be on sale at Amazon for like $18. I ordered it and kind of fell in love with the artwork, the treatment of the film, the special features, and the booklet. It felt like a throwback to when home releases of DVD's had a lot of work and effort put into the entire package that you purchase.

Shortly after, I picked up Rosemary's Baby and around the same time discovered Terrence Malick. I found that most of his films were put out by Criterion, and my sub collection of Criterion blu rays was born.

To me, in some ways they kind of feel like a status symbol and kind of make me feel more cultured than I am haha. I just love the work and effort that is put into the entire package and I have been introduced to some fantastic classic and foreign films thanks to Criterion. I have more of a modest Criterion collection and would love to expand it, but the sale happens but twice a year and it usually coincides with a time that I don't have a ton of money to spend!

[The Great Owl]

Originally Posted by Fellini912

Resnais political view is naive to say the least treating Japan as a victim by showing us the aftermath of the atomic bomb. He totally leaves out the monstrosities Japanese fascists did in China, concentration camps or Pearl Harbor.

Or the small-scale "fire balloon" attacks on U.S. soil. In all fairness, this phenomenon was covered up at the time to prevent hysteria and to prevent the Japanese from gauging the success of the project, and it's still not a widely-known facet of World War II history, since the attacks only claimed six civilian fatalities. Its significance, however, lies in the fact that the Japanese did, indeed, launch an attack on the American civilian population.

In terms of politics, I think that the original 1954 version of Godzilla implies an honest admission by the Japanese that they would have used atom bomb technology against the U.S. had they had the access to the technology first. The scenario of the "oxygen destroyer" and the need to prevent it from being used again is indicative of the sentiment that the technologies of mass destruction are a tragedy regardless of who invents or uses them.

[spargs]

Originally Posted by BLUgrass

Thanks for the feedback, guys.

To be honest, when it comes to Benjamin Button, it has never bothered me until I noticed in the 'My Movies' blu-ray.com app that it shows up under Criterion in the studios filter. So essentially, it's a bizarre OCD type thing.


As far as discussion, I'm kind of curious how you guys each got into the Criterion Collection. Was it because a certain film you wanted was only available via Criterion? Was it more because of the treatment the films get via special features and new transfers? Was it for a particular director or genre?

For myself, to be honest, it was perhaps the most weird and superficial reason; I was curious why these particular movies had such different cases, unique artwork, and perhaps most of all, why they were $40. However, these were things that mainly just sparked my curiosity.

My first Criterion (besides Benjamin Button) was Cronos. I was listening to one of Kevin Smith's podcasts and he was talking to someone who did scores for a lot of animated Batman shows/movies. The name of the guest escapes me, but he brought up that on his own, he had made a new score for Cronos and Smith blurted out "YOU SCORED CRONOS???"

The guest went on to explain that he didn't, but Smith's enthusiasm for Cronos made me want to check it out. I looked it up and saw that it was only available via the Criterion Collection and it happened to be on sale at Amazon for like $18. I ordered it and kind of fell in love with the artwork, the treatment of the film, the special features, and the booklet. It felt like a throwback to when home releases of DVD's had a lot of work and effort put into the entire package that you purchase.

Shortly after, I picked up Rosemary's Baby and around the same time discovered Terrence Malick. I found that most of his films were put out by Criterion, and my sub collection of Criterion blu rays was born.

To me, in some ways they kind of feel like a status symbol and kind of make me feel more cultured than I am haha. I just love the work and effort that is put into the entire package and I have been introduced to some fantastic classic and foreign films thanks to Criterion. I have more of a modest Criterion collection and would love to expand it, but the sale happens but twice a year and it usually coincides with a time that I don't have a ton of money to spend!

I discovered Criterion in the DVD days, as they released a handful of more "mainstream" films that I wanted to own... I believe my first couple of Criterions purchased were Brazil, Monty Python's Life of Brian, The Last Temptation of Christ, and Chasing Amy. I had no idea what the Criterion Collection was all about then. I would discover Kurosawa's films upon learning that The Magnificent Seven and A Fistful of Dollars were remakes of films of his, and it was all over from there.

[The Great Owl]

Originally Posted by BLUgrass

As far as discussion, I'm kind of curious how you guys each got into the Criterion Collection. Was it because a certain film you wanted was only available via Criterion? Was it more because of the treatment the films get via special features and new transfers? Was it for a particular director or genre?

When I was younger, I would occasionally read or hear references to Akira Kurosawa's Seven Samurai. When the Internet Movie Database started becoming ubiquitous, I noticed that Seven Samurai would occasionally appear in the top 10 of the Top 250 list, and I became genuinely intrigued at the notion that one of the 10 most popular movies in the world was a foreign film from the 1950s. A friend of mine who owned the Criterion DVD of the movie recommended that edition to me, as well as several other Kurosawa Criterions.

I bought Seven Samurai and Rashomon at the same time, and loved both films.

My third Criterion purchase was The Vanishing (1988). I had seen this film during the early 1990s, and I even owned another DVD edition, but I quickly upgraded to the Criterion DVD because, by that time, I knew that the Criterion presentation would not let me down.

Shortly after that, I bought Melville's Le Samouraï, and I was instantly blown away by that film. I started collecting French gangster films with a fervent passion (Touchez Pas Au Grisbi, Pepe Le Moko, etc.), and this led to an interest in French New Wave cinema.

Now that I think about it, I also developed an interest in The Criterion Collection because Walkabout, a film that I had rented a couple of decades ago, was only available for purchase through Criterion.

[zoodermin]

Originally Posted by BLUgrass

As far as discussion, I'm kind of curious how you guys each got into the Criterion Collection. Was it because a certain film you wanted was only available via Criterion? Was it more because of the treatment the films get via special features and new transfers? Was it for a particular director or genre?

For me it was The Red Shoes. It wasn't because I heard of it but, at the time, I just saw Black Swan and it said that it had some similarities to The Red Shoes so I started digging and found out it was available through Criterion. It was summer 2011 and the B&N sale was ongoing so I took a risk and bought it without knowing much about it. I also bought Seven Samurai, Yojimbo/Sanjuro, M, The Great Dictator, The Night of the Hunter and Diabolique. Since then, I've become a massive Criterion fan and I don't regret it.

[Andrew13]

Question for the potentially upcoming flash sale. I'm about $80 away from a $50 certificate, what's the turnaround time for that certificate? Is it plausible to place one order for $80, get the certificate immediately, and be able to place a second order during the flash sale using the certificate?

[aes3728]

Originally Posted by Andrew13

Question for the potentially upcoming flash sale. I'm about $80 away from a $50 certificate, what's the turnaround time for that certificate? Is it plausible to place one order for $80, get the certificate immediately, and be able to place a second order during the flash sale using the certificate?

It comes near immediately. I did that last sale in February. Spent $60 to go over, then minutes later had my code which I immediately used.

[Andrew13]

Originally Posted by BLUgrass

As far as discussion, I'm kind of curious how you guys each got into the Criterion Collection. Was it because a certain film you wanted was only available via Criterion? Was it more because of the treatment the films get via special features and new transfers? Was it for a particular director or genre?

Three summers ago I finally decided to really dig into Kubrick's filmography
(a bit late to the party, I know) and picked up the Criterion blu-rays of Paths of Glory and The Killing. This happened concurrently with B&N's 50% sale, so I decided to blind buy the three staples of foreign cinema, at least to the underexposed American viewer: The Seventh Seal, Seven Samurai, and 8 1/2. While I'm still waiting to be fully taken by 8 1/2, The Seventh Seal and Seven Samurai immediately become two of my all time favorite pictures, leading me to immediately seek out the other Bergman and Kurosawa blu-rays. Since then my collection has expanded exponentially in quantity and diversity, and I think it's fairly safe to say discovering Criterion was the most important moment in my cinematic "career".

[Andrew13]

Originally Posted by aes3728

It comes near immediately. I did that last sale in February. Spent $60 to go over, then minutes later had my code which I immediately used.

Awesome, good to know!

[jw007]

In continuing my exploration through the Criterion Collection and of challenging movie-watching, I discovered William Greaves tonight, the great William Greaves that is, the man behind Symbiopsychotaxiplasm, the groundbreaking avant-garde experimental film from 1968. This is a film that blurred the illusions of acting, characters, filmmaking and reality, and to this day is still ahead of its time.

I am astounded, simply astounded, that I never knew about this director. And add to that fact, he just died a month ago in Manhattan, or 5 days after I left Manhattan at the time, not even knowing of William Greaves. Here is a man who was truly one of the earliest, completely independent, African-American filmmakers of modern society. And Symbiopsychotaxiplasm: Take One, is a mind-boggling experiment in adventurous filmmaking. I have yet to see its followup, produced in 2003 with the help of Steven Soderbergh named Take 2 and a half, but I plan to shortly.

[Polaroid]

Originally Posted by jw007

In continuing my exploration through the Criterion Collection and of challenging movie-watching, I discovered William Greaves tonight, the great William Greaves that is, the man behind Symbiopsychotaxiplasm, the groundbreaking avant-garde experimental film from 1968. This is a film that blurred the illusions of acting, characters, filmmaking and reality, and to this day is still ahead of its time.

I am astounded, simply astounded, that I never knew about this director. And add to that fact, he just died a month ago in Manhattan, or 5 days after I left Manhattan at the time, not even knowing of William Greaves. Here is a man who was truly one of the earliest, completely independent, African-American filmmakers of modern society. And Symbiopsychotaxiplasm: Take One, is a mind-boggling experiment in adventurous filmmaking. I have yet to see its followup, produced in 2003 with the help of Steven Soderbergh named Take 2 and a half, but I plan to shortly.

I avoided this, I wanted so badly but all I heard were negative things :S

Will have to try catch it

[jw007]

Originally Posted by Polaroid

I avoided this, I wanted so badly but all I heard were negative things :S

Will have to try catch it

I borrowed this from the library because I just couldn't do a blind-buy of this. I still have no plans of adding this to my collection, but, it was pretty cool finally getting to watch this bizarre "film".

[tenia]

Originally Posted by BLUgrass

As far as discussion, I'm kind of curious how you guys each got into the Criterion Collection. Was it because a certain film you wanted was only available via Criterion? Was it more because of the treatment the films get via special features and new transfers? Was it for a particular director or genre?

Completely by chance while in the US, I picked Chasing Amy on DVD because I was doing a Kevin Smith binge watch back at the time.
Only a few weeks later, I found out that Criterion was mostly releasing catalog movies from directors I was looking to discover : Kurosawa, Fellini, Godard, etc. It was during summer so I took advantage of the -50% B&N sale at a B&N nearby and bought Short Cuts (with the book), Seven Samurai, Two Lane Blacktop (with the script) and The Man Who Fell To Earth (with the book).

I then started to go more and more into what they ware releasing and when they started releasing BDs, I started to buy almost all of them.
I've only been a very few times disappointed by the movies within the collection, so I'm happy to have found such a "trustful pool" of movies I can dig in.

[ShellOilJunior]

Originally Posted by BLUgrass

As far as discussion, I'm kind of curious how you guys each got into the Criterion Collection. Was it because a certain film you wanted was only available via Criterion? Was it more because of the treatment the films get via special features and new transfers? Was it for a particular director or genre?

My entry point was the first DVD issued of Seven Samurai. I would then buy the 2-disc re-issue and then the blu-ray. One of my all-time favorite films.

[shadedpain4]

Hoping the semi secret semi annual Criterion.com flash sale is next Tuesday and not today. Anyone know of any hints/news/gut feelings out there regarding it?

[Feiereisel]

Originally Posted by shadedpain4

Hoping the semi secret semi annual Criterion.com flash sale is next Tuesday and not today. Anyone know of any hints/news/gut feelings out there regarding it?

My gut feeling is that it won't happen until the Eraserhead replacement discs are in stock at the site store. Just seems logical.

[UNCMT9]

Originally Posted by shadedpain4

Hoping the semi secret semi annual Criterion.com flash sale is next Tuesday and not today. Anyone know of any hints/news/gut feelings out there regarding it?

I sure hope so. I need to pick up some horror titles in time for Halloween!