The Criterion Collection

[MifuneFan]

Originally Posted by aes3728

In Cold Blood! Motel = Inn. Popsicle = Cold. Vampire = Blood.

You win the Internet!

[The Great Owl]

Originally Posted by MifuneFan

Ouch. It's a really well made horror movie in my opinion. Still haven't seen the remake, but I hear it's good too. Have you seen the Brood btw? I kind of get the same creepy vibe about that as I do with Let the Right One In, just moreso.

I really enjoyed the original Let the Right One In, and I actually saw it at for the first time at an indie theater here in Atlanta.

The remake benefitted from great casting, but it was too dark. I mean, the movie was literally too dark. During several scenes, I could not tell what was really going on, because of the deliberate lack of lighting.

[octagon]

Let the Right One In and Only Lovers Left Alive are both fantastic films. I walked away from both with that giddy 'wow' feeling that keeps us all coming back.

[deepbreathsanddeath]

I wish the clue was for Let the Right One In or Only Lovers Left Alive lol

[oildude]

I recall this being mentioned here a few days ago, but it was also in the Criterion newsletter I got today - a notice that a selection of the final films of several directors are free to view on hulu for a limited time.

http://www.hulu.com/browse/picks/cri...ks-final-films

I checked it out and there are some real winners here. Three Colors Red gets lots of mention and praise, but I wanted to give a big thumbs up to two that are in the Eclipse series and available as part of this package:

The Ascent by Larisa Shepitko
Street of Shame by Kenji Mizoguchi

These are both incredible films, two of the best in the Eclipse series as well as two of the most memorable films I have ever seen. It has been awhile, but I have championed and written about both of these movies here in this thread in the past, and encourage anyone who has not seen these yet to jump on over to hulu and take advantage of this opportunity to see two masterpieces of cinema.

The Ascent (1977)- No one explores WWII themes consistently as good as the Russians. Shepitko is tops on my list of directors who died before they had a chance to really break onto the world stage (she was killed in a car accident after making only four films while scouting locations for her planned fifth feature).

The Ascent is her final and most acclaimed film; it is grim, intelligently written, immensely moving, lovely to behold, and a testament to the human ability to endure and find peace in the direst of circumstances. Set against a stark winter world captured in beautiful black and white, it is a story about two Russian soldiers-turned-partisans who find themselves trapped in a very bad situation and the choices each man must make. It is a very realistic look at the risks and terrors of being a partisan behind German lines in Belorussia (most were former Red Army soldiers cut-off by the German advance in 1941). The film explores the fragility of the human psyche and has some well done allegorical elements that elevate the story beyond the standard war movie. The ending is truly unforgettable. Another plus is the terrific musical score. It is one of my favorite pieces of music in a film; used sparingly, it builds at just the right moments to underline events with dramatic impact.

Street of Shame (1956) - Absolutely brilliant!! A masterpiece of Japanese cinema. Street of Shame does not focus on one main character; instead, it is an ensemble piece letting us peek into the lives of five prostitutes working in the same brothel. This occurs during a time when Japanese society is changing in its views toward prostitution, becoming less accepting and even debating laws to close the “comfort” houses. The debate is part morality campaign and part attempt to improve the standing of women in Japanese society by making prostitutes seek more useful and what is seen as less degrading employment. Mizoguchi's subtle direction shows how misguided these attempts are, that while seemingly well intentioned they are in fact causing misery and even greater despair and hardship in the lives of the women.

Mizoguchi also shows us a theme of social consciousness driven by a male dominated interpretation of female morality, making us understand that not much will change in these women’s prospects even if the law passes. The women themselves recognize they have no skills that can gain them employment that pays anything close to prostitution, and yet they are trapped in a world of exploitation, perpetually in debt to men, whether it is the brothel owner, a husband who is unable to work, or a father who has enormous financial burdens.

There is so much depth of character in this film that each of the women stands on her own. One is a she-devil who uses her customers for financial gain to the point of ruining their lives, yet she is coldly calculating and perhaps the smartest of them all. Another is older, aware of her fading looks, and trying to maintain a relationship with a teenage son who cannot understand what she has gone through in life and hates her for being a prostitute despite all she has sacrificed for him. Another is a loving mother and wife, forced to make as much money as she can with her limited job prospects to support an unemployed husband and their baby. The husband is mentally defeated in his outlook on life, suicidal, and suffering from a sickness requiring expensive medicine. His problems are not specifically diagnosed, but he appears to be a war veteran suffering from malaria and post-traumatic stress.

The ending of Street of Shame is one of the greatest I have ever seen in a film. Simply devastating in its quiet, dramatic impact.

[cakefactory]

Originally Posted by deepbreathsanddeath

I wish the clue was for Let the Right One In or Only Lovers Left Alive lol

I could see them possibly doing Let the Right One In, but not something that just came out on blu-ray in the US about two months ago! Though maybe this is just more escalation from the Dressed to Kill incident. Or they're pulling a Wes Anderson with Jim Jarmusch.

In Cold Blood is probably what it is out of those three options, unfortunately. Let the Right One In is my second favorite movie of all time (hence the AV) and while I don't mind the existing blu-ray I'd like a bunch of extra features on it. :P

The remake is good and was done with respect, but it's definitely worse. The fact that Eli (Abby in the remake) is

[Show spoiler]given a gender back

to avoid scaring American audiences and also is turned into an idiotic bouncy CGI cartoon every time she goes on the prowl takes it down several notches. The removal of the cat scene and the addition of the car scene takes it back up a few, though. I'd give the original a 10/10 and the remake about an 8.5/10. Definitely one of the best horror remakes out there (which is not really a compliment given how few horror remakes are even average, but it's quite good).

[movieben1138]

With FYE's new promotion (used Buy 1, Get 1 for $1), I was able to snag a great deal on some Criterion blu-rays. Plus, I stacked a 20% off coupon on top of that and my 10% member discount!

Walked out with CERTIFIED COPY, LES COUSINS, THE DOUBLE LIFE OF VERONIQUE, and GRAY'S ANATOMY for $40. That's better than the B&N sale! (Which I'm anxiously awaiting...)

[Fabs]

Originally Posted by oildude

The ending of Street of Shame is one of the greatest I have ever seen in a film. Simply devastating in its quiet, dramatic impact.

Agreed. Sadly, I didn't feel what you felt for the entire film. It's a good work, but I think it's one of my least favorite Mizoguchis. Still, I love the words you wrote about it.

[Blu-Velvet]

Originally Posted by oildude

Street of Shame (1956) - Absolutely brilliant!! A masterpiece of Japanese cinema. Street of Shame does not focus on one main character; instead, it is an ensemble piece letting us peek into the lives of five prostitutes working in the same brothel. This occurs during a time when Japanese society is changing in its views toward prostitution, becoming less accepting and even debating laws to close the “comfort” houses. The debate is part morality campaign and part attempt to improve the standing of women in Japanese society by making prostitutes seek more useful and what is seen as less degrading employment. Mizoguchi's subtle direction shows how misguided these attempts are, that while seemingly well intentioned they are in fact causing misery and even greater despair and hardship in the lives of the women.

Mizoguchi also shows us a theme of social consciousness driven by a male dominated interpretation of female morality, making us understand that not much will change in these women’s prospects even if the law passes. The women themselves recognize they have no skills that can gain them employment that pays anything close to prostitution, and yet they are trapped in a world of exploitation, perpetually in debt to men, whether it is the brothel owner, a husband who is unable to work, or a father who has enormous financial burdens.

There is so much depth of character in this film that each of the women stands on her own. One is a she-devil who uses her customers for financial gain to the point of ruining their lives, yet she is coldly calculating and perhaps the smartest of them all. Another is older, aware of her fading looks, and trying to maintain a relationship with a teenage son who cannot understand what she has gone through in life and hates her for being a prostitute despite all she has sacrificed for him. Another is a loving mother and wife, forced to make as much money as she can with her limited job prospects to support an unemployed husband and their baby. The husband is mentally defeated in his outlook on life, suicidal, and suffering from a sickness requiring expensive medicine. His problems are not specifically diagnosed, but he appears to be a war veteran suffering from malaria and post-traumatic stress.

The ending of Street of Shame is one of the greatest I have ever seen in a film. Simply devastating in its quiet, dramatic impact.

Great review! By odd coincidence, I just finished watching this about an hour ago, along with SISTERS OF THE GION (1936) and WOMEN OF THE NIGHT (1948), the other two films I hadn't gotten around to seeing in the "Mizoguchi's Fallen Women" Eclipse box set (I watched OSAKA ELEGY some time ago, also quite good). I heartily agree STREET OF SHAME is an excellent film, as well as probably the best-looking for picture quality in the set, nearly Blu-ray quality at times. All four are very strong dramatically and cinematically, but I think that the raw and sometimes brutal WOMEN OF THE NIGHT is possibly the most powerful, though also has the lowest picture quality of the bunch, partly due to its Italian Neo-realism influence and lack of good film stock (which in some ways adds to its gritty intensity). WOMEN OF THE NIGHT and STREET OF SHAME in many ways are even better than the better-known LIFE OF OHARU or UGETSU.

[jw007]

I bought Only Lovers Left Alive on blu-ray already but have yet to open the sealed blu-ray case.

I'm bittersweet about having a Criterion edition. I spent money on the blu-ray already so I'd rather not double dip, but at the same time I would love to see this movie in the Criterion collection. Jarmusch is one of my favorite directors ever so this release would be quite special.

[ravenus]

Originally Posted by octagon

Let the Right One In and Only Lovers Left Alive are both fantastic films. I walked away from both with that giddy 'wow' feeling that keeps us all coming back.

I liked LTROI but OLLA was a huge bore for me - solid digital cinematography and a fantastic score, but I found the film on the whole rather...anemic. Friend of mine who's a big Jarmusch fan claimed he found it hard to sit awake through this one.

[octagon]

Originally Posted by ravenus

I liked LTROI but OLLA was a huge bore for me - solid digital cinematography and a fantastic score, but I found the film on the whole rather...anemic. Friend of mine who's a big Jarmusch fan claimed he found it hard to sit awake through this one.

Yeah, I can understand that. I could have very easily walked away thinking it was two hours of very pretty hipster fan service but for some reason it really worked for me. Even the decades-out-of-date tech didn't seem forced or pretentious and that kind of stuff is usually a pretty big red flag for me.

And I really, really, really loved both the night exteriors (well, I guess night could have gone without saying all things considered) and the way they used the broken-down brownstone as a contemporary Carfax Abbey stand-in.

[ShellOilJunior]

When in doubt guess Il Sorpasso...


Oh, I see it's been solved.

[silverlakephil]

Originally Posted by aes3728

In Cold Blood! Motel = Inn. Popsicle = Cold. Vampire = Blood.

Hope this is true. I have the already released version and it's great.

[Joshitaka]

Hey, does anyone know if Barnes and Noble is doing the 50% off Criterion sale for July again? I don't see anything on their website about it.

[MifuneFan]

Originally Posted by Joshitaka

Hey, does anyone know if Barnes and Noble is doing the 50% off Criterion sale for July again? I don't see anything on their website about it.

7/7 - 7/27

https://forum.blu-ray.com/showthread.php?t=263906

[adamhopelies]

Originally Posted by Rich Pure Doom

The plot was completely unbelievable. A company would never pit it's workers against another worker. This is the film's way of trying to manipulate your emotions by way of a silly plot device.

It's based on a real incident.

https://film.list.co.uk/article/6402...ays-one-night/

[Scottie]

Originally Posted by silverlakephil

Hope this is true. I have the already released version and it's great.

It was confirmed at a festival that Criterion will indeed be releasing the film.

[Namuhana]

It looks like Death of a Cyclist is coming to Criterion's iTunes channel at the end of the month. I quite liked the film when I saw it a year or so ago on Hulu, and would gladly buy the Blu-ray if/when we seen an upgrade of the DVD.

[jmclick]

Originally Posted by Polaroid

I've been reconsidering this, and I'm thinking it could be LIT (the glowing sign) THE RIGHT ONE (the popsicle he's about to eat, from his perspective) INN (No / Vacancy).

Lit the Right One Inn ... get it? Okay, I'll be quiet now.