The Criterion Collection

[SkyAntoine]

Originally Posted by Ray Jackson

It's too late...I've already added it to my list.

Just one more small step towards bankruptcy and alcoholism.

...and it's all your fault.

1. Kwaidan
2. Mulholland Drive
3. Ikiru
4. In Cold Blood
5. The Devil's Backbone
6. The Thin Blue Line

Solid list. I finished Kwaidan last night and it will be an annual October view from now until I die.
Thin Blue Line is great if you like the crime dramatizations you see on TV now (Dateline, 48 Hours, etc.). This film was the front-runner and Morris is the best at editing together a docudrama. However, it is so common today that some may not see it that earth shattering. IMO it's a must own.

Ikiru isn't released until 11/24. Will the sale last until the end of the month? Seems like sometimes they end it before the last titles are available.

[Ray Jackson]

Originally Posted by SkyAntoine

Solid list. I finished Kwaidan last night and it will be an annual October view from now until I die.
Thin Blue Line is great if you like the crime dramatizations you see on TV now (Dateline, 48 Hours, etc.). This film was the front-runner and Morris is the best at editing together a docudrama. However, it is so common today that some may not see it that earth shattering. IMO it's a must own.

Ikiru isn't released until 11/24. Will the sale last until the end of the month? Seems like sometimes they end it before the last titles are available.

I think both annual 50% sales last for a month.

...three weeks at least.

[tenia]

Originally Posted by jw007

I watched The Thin Blue Line last night for the first time.

I was effin' blown away by this film.

I wasn't blown away by the movie (I found it slightly too static), but the work on the editing and the lighting was particularly exceptional.

The Criterion leaflet explains wery well the nuances of colours and I wouldn't have caught those entirely if it wasn't for this explanation.

[WinkDinkerson]

For amazon.ca do they ever have Criterion deals? I check almost daily from the last year but no such luck.

[MifuneFan]

Originally Posted by hariseldon

Nov B&N 50% sale 11/10 through end of the day 11/30.

I guess there always has to the 1st Tuesday release after the end of the sale though there aren't any Dec 1 releases on the the calendar. Of course if there is a December release you just can't hold off on, the preXmas 40% sale (with extras) works pretty well.

Plus, online don't the November releases get discounted regardless of whether they're out yet or not?

[Ray Jackson]

Originally Posted by hariseldon

Nov B&N 50% sale 11/10 through end of the day 11/30.

I guess there always has to the 1st Tuesday release after the end of the sale though there aren't any Dec 1 releases on the the calendar. Of course if there is a December release you just can't hold off on, the preXmas 40% sale (with extras) works pretty well.

[bwdowiak]

Originally Posted by Ray Jackson

It's too late...I've already added it to my list.

Just one more small step towards bankruptcy and alcoholism.

...and it's all your fault.

1. Kwaidan
2. Mulholland Drive
3. Ikiru
4. In Cold Blood
5. The Devil's Backbone
6. The Thin Blue Line

That's a good list, Ray. From what I have come to know about you, I think you'll enjoy all of those films.

...and JW007's hyperbolic post? all justified. my #2 documentary of all time and has been for years... Hoop Dreams is my #1 doc, btw... and I'm w/ Pedro on Grizzly Man, too. really good stuff.

I'd highly recommend a documentary called The Imposter. Man on Wire is really good, too. those 2 are available on Netflix streaming

[ShellOilJunior]

Originally Posted by Ray Jackson

It's too late...I've already added it to my list.

Just one more small step towards bankruptcy and alcoholism.

...and it's all your fault.

1. Kwaidan
2. Mulholland Drive
3. Ikiru
4. In Cold Blood
5. The Devil's Backbone
6. The Thin Blue Line

If you want to get it back to 5 then I'd drop In Cold Blood.

[LPMA]

Originally Posted by WinkDinkerson

For amazon.ca do they ever have Criterion deals? I check almost daily from the last year but no such luck.

Never.

[WinkDinkerson]

Originally Posted by WinkDinkerson

For amazon.ca do they ever have Criterion deals? I check almost daily from the last year but no such luck.

Originally Posted by LPMA

Never.

Bummer

[bwdowiak]

Originally Posted by Banned User

I think that is mainly a result of growing as a film lover. I know for me I've seen so many films that most mainstream movies leave me rolling my eyes. The flashy camera work, Same tracking shots & angles, Same over used blocking and tons of other techniques, that were at one time fresh, I've seen done a million times and now bore me to tears.

Movies for the mainstream, since the beginning, have played down to the audience. So many movies spell everything out for audience members and even then go beyond that to make every point and motivation blatantly obvious. through exhibition, narration and setting stuff up early on to pay off later in the most unsubtle ways.

I know when I was younger I loved a lot of films I can't stand anymore. They are shallow and boring to me. On the flip side films I had no patience for or considered slow seem much deeper to me now. I don't need actions and motivations spelled out. Actually I prefer having to think and question characters intentions and motives. As in real life people are extremely complicated and almost always aren't cut and dry evil/good. The same goes for endings that are left open to interpretation which are usually far better then typical hollywood fair: good guy wins bad guy loses etc.

I think the more films you watch the more you learn to appreciate uniqueness and freshness. Hollywood gets one hit and tries to copy the same formula verbatim until audience members themselves grow tired and box office returns tank. Then its on to the next thing. There are so many standard camera moves/techniques in mainstream movies that just make me cringe everytime I see them and don't even get me started on the overuse of CGI. Most movies should have taglines "Leave intelligence at the door, no thought required"

Oh, man! I agree with ALL of this. I just had this discussion with my wife the other night. I told her that since I’ve been hanging around with you good people and expanding my cinematic horizons, I can see through just about everything in a Hollywood film. My favorite thing to spot is the musical cue telling you EXACTLY how you should be feeling right now.

My wife ends up enjoying most of what I do. There are some films that she is not ready for. She will frequently ask a question that doesn’t have any real relevance to a theme that a director is trying to convey. She is perhaps still accustomed to having plot points wrapped up in an easily digestible way. She is still in training.

[Jr7936]

they had the price mistake in june, where i got the tati collection shipped to the USA for 20.38 CAD
People were buying mad quantities of movies like 60 at a time. That has been the only deal I have noticed on amazon.ca

Originally Posted by WinkDinkerson

For amazon.ca do they ever have Criterion deals? I check almost daily from the last year but no such luck.

[pedromvu]

Originally Posted by Jr7936

they had the price mistake in june, where i got the tati collection shipped to the USA for 20.38 CAD
People were buying mad quantities of movies like 60 at a time. That has been the only deal I have noticed on amazon.ca

Originally Posted by WinkDinkerson

For amazon.ca do they ever have Criterion deals? I check almost daily from the last year but no such luck.

To make you feel less bad if you missed it, take into account that since it was a mistake, not all orders were honored, I was able to grab Tie Me Up! Tie Me Down! for $11.75 though

[The Great Owl]

Originally Posted by Banned User

I think that is mainly a result of growing as a film lover. I know for me I've seen so many films that most mainstream movies leave me rolling my eyes. The flashy camera work, Same tracking shots & angles, Same over used blocking and tons of other techniques, that were at one time fresh, I've seen done a million times and now bore me to tears.

Movies for the mainstream, since the beginning, have played down to the audience. So many movies spell everything out for audience members and even then go beyond that to make every point and motivation blatantly obvious. through exhibition, narration and setting stuff up early on to pay off later in the most unsubtle ways.

I know when I was younger I loved a lot of films I can't stand anymore. They are shallow and boring to me. On the flip side films I had no patience for or considered slow seem much deeper to me now. I don't need actions and motivations spelled out. Actually I prefer having to think and question characters intentions and motives. As in real life people are extremely complicated and almost always aren't cut and dry evil/good. The same goes for endings that are left open to interpretation which are usually far better then typical hollywood fair: good guy wins bad guy loses etc.

I think the more films you watch the more you learn to appreciate uniqueness and freshness. Hollywood gets one hit and tries to copy the same formula verbatim until audience members themselves grow tired and box office returns tank. Then its on to the next thing. There are so many standard camera moves/techniques in mainstream movies that just make me cringe every time I see them and don't even get me started on the overuse of CGI. Most movies should have taglines "Leave intelligence at the door, no thought required"

I balance it out.

When I first started collecting Blu-rays, I fancied the idea of a "mature" collection that was solely devoted to thought-provoking cinematic masterpieces, in the vein of Vertigo, Last Year at Marienbad, Army of Shadows, The Third Man, Seven Samurai, L'Avventura, and such.

For every one of those critically-acclaimed masterpieces, though, I've also ended up owning films like San Andreas, Empire of the Ants, Friday the 13th: Part 4, Kinjite: Forbidden Subjects, Octopussy, My Tutor, or The Pom Pom Girls.

My collection initially leaned toward Criterion and Kino fare, but my natural inclinations have since steered me toward Scream Factory, Kino Lorber, Scorpion Releasing, Vinegar Syndrome, Code Red, and others as well.

Of course, there are a lot of cinematic trends these days that compel me to roll my eyes. I have no use for the endless comedies from the likes of Judd Apatow, Seth Rogan, and Melissa McCarthy. I'm tired of watching scenes where a car, an airplane, a helicopter, or a spaceship is fleeing from a big explosion just in time to escape with only minor disruption from the explosion shockwaves. I also try to look out for the big summer films that barrage me with expensive computer effects only for me to walk outside the theater having already forgotten about everything that happened in these films.

In the end, though, I happily embrace a lot of dumb films along with the cerebral films. Sometimes, I don't mind sitting down to films with obvious musical cues, predictable plots, and such.

As the title character in Tommy Boy (another film in my Blu-ray collection) says, "Don't run from your feelings!"

[D2Girls]

Originally Posted by WinkDinkerson

Bummer

These guys are completely wrong, tho.
There was a sale earlier this year, in the spring.

[WinkDinkerson]

Originally Posted by The Great Owl

As the title character in Tommy Boy (another film in my Blu-ray collection) says, "Don't run from your feelings!"

And I always say "Quit playing with your dinghy!"


edit: Sorry, I wasn't referring it to you. I'm usually quoting films in person but I couldn't resist. .

[shadedpain4]

Originally Posted by WinkDinkerson

Bummer

If it makes you feel any better you can get a really good deal on the Kubrick Masterpiece Collection on Amazon.ca today.

So, there's that.

[Ray Jackson]

Originally Posted by ShellOilJunior

If you want to get it back to 5 then I'd drop In Cold Blood.

In Cold Blood is one of my favorite movies.

...I don't see how anyone could not like it.

[ShellOilJunior]

Originally Posted by Ray Jackson

In Cold Blood is one of my favorite movies.

...I don't see how anyone could not like it.

It's a middling film. The book is much, much better, imo.

[Ray Jackson]

Originally Posted by ShellOilJunior

It's a middling film. The book is much, much better, imo.

How is it middling?

The photography, the acting, the dialogue and the editing are all outstanding imo.

...and that last shot is one of the most powerful last shots in movie history.