The Criterion Collection

[Yami]

Originally Posted by malakaheso

Conventional wisdom goes that Godard became less interesting and/or accessible after the 60's. He was pretty much ignored in the 90's and made his 'big' comeback with Notre Musique which put him back on people's radars again 10 years ago.

I admittedly don't know how it was received at the time, but was Histoire(s) du cinema ignored? It's now considered to be one of his most important works - perhaps the most important other than Breathless.

[The Great Owl]

Originally Posted by jrsl76

What a worthless "sale".

The sale is a good opportunity for those of you who do not yet own Skyfall to buy it at long last. Cinematographer Roger Deakins for the win!

Great avatar, by the way. I wish that Criterion would release a box set of Christina Lindberg movies.

[ShellOilJunior]

Originally Posted by pro-bassoonist

Watership Down Blu-ray REVIEW





With two excellent new interviews with Martin Rosen and Guillermo del Toro.

Pro-B

p.s.
I am sorry for the delay. Due to medical issues, I have not been able to view screeners or write during the last 2 1/2 days. Let's hope that all is back to normal this week.

I hope you're feeling better. Thanks for the review. I'm very excited about this release!

[jhiggy23]

Originally Posted by AaronJ

Please do yourself a favor, and see Contempt. I think it's Godard's best film, and as big of a fan as I am, that's saying something.

I agree. Contempt is an amazing film.

[SlickDamian]

I watched In the Mood for Love for the first time yesterday. Loved the cinematography. Very beautiful film. The story was very basic, I like how understated it was. A nice package from Criterion.

[adamhopelies]

Originally Posted by iScottie

Every Man for Himself was certainly...different...

I'm not sure if I really liked it, but I certainly didn't dislike it. There was something about it that kept me going, although nothing that I saw was anything particularly special, in my opinion.

I'm glad I was able to rent it on iTunes before committing to a purchase.

I actually think this will greatly benefit from the contextualising supplements on the Criterion release. It's one of my favourite films, hoping my copy arrives tomorrow.

[adamhopelies]

Originally Posted by Yami

I admittedly don't know how it was received at the time, but was Histoire(s) du cinema ignored? It's now considered to be one of his most important works - perhaps the most important other than Breathless.

It might be a bit different in the States but that's certainly not the case in Europe and here in the UK. The commercial resurgence that began in the early 1980s thanks to Every Man For Himself and Hail Mary continued on through the mid-90s. As you say, Histoire(s) is arguably his most important project of all, and that was certainly a major event upon release (which, given the nature of the project took place over a number of years).

The only real point where he was out of view was during the peak political years of the 70s, but even then we had films like Tout Va Bien which are now considered to be major works.

Just looking over the list of films he released in the 80s and 90s highlights how prolific he was at this time too, with each of these films given decent platforms over here at least.

1980 Every Man for Himself
1982 Passion
1983 First Name: Carmen
1985 Hail Mary
1985 Détective
1987 King Lear
1987 Keep Your Right Up
1990 New Wave
1991 Germany Year 90 Nine Zero
1994 JLG/JLG – Self-Portrait in December
1996 For Ever Mozart
2001 In Praise of Love

Originally Posted by AaronJ

As time went on, he obviously became more didactic in his approach. Stuff like Film Socialisme is likely to completely, utterly not work for a viewer. We're talking about stuff with absolutely ZERO narrative structure. Personally, I ... kinda ... liked it. I didn't hate it, but I'm still not really sure how I felt about it. I very much need to see it again.

I've said this before, and while I understand and accept that some folk disagree with the idea of a film having to be supported by contextualising material such as programme notes ("a film should be able to stand on it's own" etc) but I would recommend doing so with Godard's later period, especially when approaching it for the first time. That being said, there's much joy to be had from just letting a movie like Film Socialisme wash over you.

Originally Posted by AaronJ

As to Femme Mariee I can't believe that I'm going to say this, but -- I haven't seen it. That's something that needs to be rectified, clearly.

I wrote my MA thesis on Une Femme Mariee, so I'm kind of biased, but I think this is one of the best films he made during the 60s run. It's also one of the most complex from the era too, and has been known to put quite a few of my friends off of Godard!

Originally Posted by AaronJ

And I've been waiting for Criterion to upgrade Contempt forever. The DVD is pretty damned good, when you think about it. But I just wonder how truly awesome a full-out, majestic BD release would be.

I don't have a problem with the existing Blu-ray. It's certainly a preferable option to the DVD (I have both).

Originally Posted by malakaheso

Is this a bad thing? I must admit that I prefer some of his later films to his earlier ones. For example, I'd rather watch Goodbye To Language than Band Of Outsiders, but I understand that I'm in a minority.

I'm not sure you are in the minority to be honest, Goodbye To Language is on the verge of phenomenon status within cinephile circles and is selling out shows on both coasts of the US. It's topped polls all over the world too.

I'm going to close off this lengthy, rambling post with a photograph of Godard, my Boston Terrier, who, as the ecstatic expression on his face clearly shows, is positively bursting with excitement over today's release of his namesake's Every Man For Himself.

[bwdowiak]

I didn’t know of this video’s existence until I saw Ginette Vinendeau mention it on the supplements for Studio Canal’s release of Last Year at Marienbad. Blur is one of my all-time favorite bands, so even more surprising that I wasn’t aware. Well, with that being said, I thought this was pretty cool.

Not that it spoils anything because there are technically zero shots from the actual film, but if you’ve never seen LYaM, don’t bother.

Great song, though!

Blur - To The End - YouTube

[AaronJ]

Originally Posted by bwdowiak

I didn’t know of this video’s existence until I saw Ginette Vinendeau mention it on the supplements for Studio Canal’s release of Last Year at Marienbad. Blur is one of my all-time favorite bands, so even more surprising that I wasn’t aware. Well, with that being said, I thought this was pretty cool.

Not that it spoils anything because there are technically zero shots from the actual film, but if you’ve never seen LYaM, don’t bother.

Great song, though!

[Show spoiler]Blur - To The End - YouTube

I think a solid argument can be made that it's not actually POSSIBLE to spoil Last Year At Marienbad.

[bwdowiak]

Originally Posted by AaronJ

I think a solid argument can be made that it's not actually POSSIBLE to spoil Last Year At Marienbad.

I agree 1000% and I nearly said as much!

[callahan09]

Does anybody think it's worth dipping into Amazon's (I guess you could call it a) sale of Criterion Blu-Rays? Lots of them are going for about $22 right now, less than the average of probably around $28 that they normally charge, but still not as good as the $20 during the B&N 50% sale. But the 50% off sale won't be until the summer, right? Assuming they do it twice again this year? 2 dollars isn't that big of a deal, I suppose. I'm thinking of expanding my collection, but I haven't decided yet.

[Andrew13]

Originally Posted by callahan09

Does anybody think it's worth dipping into Amazon's (I guess you could call it a) sale of Criterion Blu-Rays? Lots of them are going for about $22 right now, less than the average of probably around $28 that they normally charge, but still not as good as the $20 during the B&N 50% sale. But the 50% off sale won't be until the summer, right? Assuming they do it twice again this year? 2 dollars isn't that big of a deal, I suppose. I'm thinking of expanding my collection, but I haven't decided yet.

Some pretty good prices, but one thing to consider is that Criterion will likely have a 24-hour flash sale sometime in the next 2-4 weeks, at least based on past years' practices.

[callahan09]

Originally Posted by Andrew13

Some pretty good prices, but one thing to consider is that Criterion will likely have a 24-hour flash sale sometime in the next 2-4 weeks, at least based on past years' practices.

Oh really? I just started buying Criterion blu rays last year so I'm not aware of this flash sale they have done jn the past. What was it like last year? All titles or just some? What kind of prices? Will they email the newsletter subscribers about it starting?

[jmclick]

Originally Posted by callahan09

Does anybody think it's worth dipping into Amazon's (I guess you could call it a) sale of Criterion Blu-Rays? Lots of them are going for about $22 right now, less than the average of probably around $28 that they normally charge, but still not as good as the $20 during the B&N 50% sale. But the 50% off sale won't be until the summer, right? Assuming they do it twice again this year? 2 dollars isn't that big of a deal, I suppose. I'm thinking of expanding my collection, but I haven't decided yet.

I hope you're a Barnes & Noble "member". It costs $25 for a year, and for that sum you get an extra 10% off everything you buy in-store for 12 months or free shipping when you order online. But the best part is that throughout the year, you get coupons ... lots of coupons ... via email and snail mail, usually for an additional 20% off, but sometimes for 30% or 40% off. Here's how the math works for a Criterion blu-ray bought in store during the July and November 50% off sales:

$39.99 Criterion SRP
(20.00) less 50% off 39.99 = 19.99 new price
( 2.00) less 10% off 19.99 = 17.99 new price
( 3.60) less 20% off 17.99 = 14.39 new price
$14.39 + tax = final price

And then there are other coupons that you can sometimes add on top of those for additional discounts. My best deal was the Criterion blu-ray of It Happened One Night for $9.99 in-store, purchased during the November 50% off sale, less my 10% member's discount and an extra $8.00 off coupon.

Just something for you to think about ...

[AaronJ]

Originally Posted by jmclick

I hope you're a Barnes & Noble "member". It costs $25 for a year, and for that sum you get an extra 10% off everything you buy in-store for 12 months or free shipping when you order online. But the best part is that throughout the year, you get coupons ... lots of coupons ... via email and snail mail, usually for an additional 20% off, but sometimes for 30% or 40% off. Here's how the math works for a Criterion blu-ray bought in store during the July and November 50% off sales:

$39.99 Criterion SRP
(20.00) less 50% off 39.99 = 19.99 new price
( 2.00) less 10% off 19.99 = 17.99 new price
( 3.60) less 20% off 17.99 = 14.39 new price
$14.39 + tax = final price

And then there are other coupons that you can sometimes add on top of those for additional discounts. My best deal was the Criterion blu-ray of It Happened One Night for $9.99 in-store, purchased during the November 50% off sale, less my 10% member's discount and an extra $8.00 off coupon.

Just something for you to think about ...

I really need to look into this.

Thanks a ton for the info.

[Andrew13]

Originally Posted by callahan09

Oh really? I just started buying Criterion blu rays last year so I'm not aware of this flash sale they have done jn the past. What was it like last year? All titles or just some? What kind of prices? Will they email the newsletter subscribers about it starting?

In past years there have been semi-annual sales, one in February and one in September. They usually start at noon EST, and it's 50% off the entire collection. They'll send out an email usually within 10-15 minutes of the sale starting, and will also let us know via Facebook and Twitter.

[shadedpain4]

There should be a Criterion.com 50% off flash sale in the next 3-4 weeks. 50% off msrp, free shipping over $50, loyalty points earned toward gift certificates (every $500 spent gets you a $50 gift cert). Dunno if they charge tax to NJ.

Edit: Everyone else beat me to it. Nice to know there are so many helpful people around.

[Andrew13]

So, BFI just announced a blu-ray box set release of Dreyer flicks. Could be a good sign for a future Criterion upgrade to the Day of Wrath/Ordet/Gertrud set.

http://www.bfi.org.uk/news-opinion/n...ampaign=buffer

[jhiggy23]

Just announced: Malick's The Voyage of Time. Details can be found by way of a simple google search. No release date. 40 minute version in IMAX narrated by Brad Pitt. Feature length also to be released in 35 mm with Cate Blanchett narrating.

And Knight of Cups premiers this weekend in Berlin, of course.

[AaronJ]

Originally Posted by Andrew13

So, BFI just announced a blu-ray box set release of Dreyer flicks. Could be a good sign for a future Criterion upgrade to the Day of Wrath/Ordet/Gertrud set.

http://www.bfi.org.uk/news-opinion/n...ampaign=buffer

I love that set, have had it forever it seems. An update would be welcome, as always.

Originally Posted by jhiggy23

Just announced: Malick's The Voyage of Time. Details can be found by way of a simple google search. No release date. 40 minute version in IMAX narrated by Brad Pitt. Feature length also to be released in 35 mm with Cate Blanchett narrating.

And Knight of Cups premiers this weekend in Berlin, of course.

Yum.

BTW, anyone want to buy me plane fare to Berlin for Sunday's premier of Knight of Cups? Anyone?