The Criterion Collection

[shadedpain4]

Originally Posted by Ray Jackson

The Double Life of Veronique isn't even in your top ten?

I thought that was one of your favorite films?

...I thought you were some sort of Kieslowski super fan?

We were picking top 10? I was picking 10 for a desert island. Different criteria.

[bwdowiak]

Originally Posted by shadedpain4

We were picking top 10? I was picking 10 for a desert island. Different criteria.

yes, definitely.

I have a mental list accumulating of films that I'll want to watch when and if I knew I was going to be leaving this planet. ...and those films are all ones that deal w/ the beauty of life, love, relationships etc.

films like An Autumn Afternoon, Heaven Can Wait, Yi Yi, In The Mood For Love...

those probably would be the same bunch I'd take to my desert island.

[jbieste]

Originally Posted by Polaroid

My lovely new pictures

I also have a Judex one in my dining room but too lazy to take a pic







I was going to say the exact same thing lol!

I like House peeking out from the hall. Don't make that turn!

[SuperFlyHighGuy]

Could you fix the Diabolique one, it's crooked and bothering me. seriously love the Qatsi ones though, and House of course! Been looking everywhere for a poster of that, very envious.

[Ray Jackson]

Originally Posted by Polaroid

My lovely new pictures

I also have a Judex one in my dining room but too lazy to take a pic







I was going to say the exact same thing lol!

I want to make love to that wall.

[Ray Jackson]

Originally Posted by shadedpain4

We were picking top 10? I was picking 10 for a desert island. Different criteria.

Explain that distinction.

Give me two different lists...Top Ten favorite vs. Ten Deserted island picks.

[shadedpain4]

Originally Posted by Ray Jackson

I want to make love to that wall.

Some things are ok to keep to yourself.

[Ray Jackson]

Originally Posted by shadedpain4

Some things are ok to keep to yourself.

I'm not ashamed of who I am.

[shadedpain4]

Originally Posted by Ray Jackson

Explain that distinction.

Give me two different lists...Top Ten favorite vs. Ten Deserted island picks.

Look at It this way. Rushmore is on my list, but I'm not sure it would make my top 10. My "favorite" movies don't tend to be films that make me laugh, but Rushmore makes me laugh, and if I'm stuck on an island, I'm going to need a laugh now and then.

[ShellOilJunior]

Originally Posted by SkyAntoine

Did you get Zatoichi or other box sets? My Berlin Alexanderplatz was the only one that shipped.

I received a shipping notice for Zatoichi which was the only thing I ordered.

[lordmorpheus72]

So on my first trip to BN for the 50% sale, I picked up:

Y Tu Mama Tambien
An Autumn Afternoon
Night and the City

I had two 20% coupons that helped as well. Hoping I get some more before the end of the sale... I really want to pick up the Zatoichi box set. I know I should've with those, but need another pay check first. Anyone get that box set sent to them from BN? How did arrive? They say they can have it sent to the store and it'll be in better shape.

[ajburke]

[Show spoiler]

Originally Posted by cakefactory

I would VERY, VERY strongly advise against Scanners, it's probably the most flawed of his early films. The lead performance is famously bland and the plot is a bit haphazard and it doesn't have the same thematic richness as all his other major pictures from Shivers through Naked Lunch. It seems like he got halfway through writing the script and then was told he had to film it before he could polish it. Ironically, I think that he actually was writing Videodrome as that was being filmed and that turned out amazingly.

The Fly is his biggest "hit" and is probably my favorite. It's more accessible than most of his other stuff, naturally, but it is VERY gruesome so be ready for that.

Videodrome is quite a bit more complex than The Fly plotwise, if you're fine with movies where reality is intentionally ambiguous then it's a fine starting point.

A History of Violence is the one that's probably the most accessible to mainstream audiences, it's far less disgusting than The Fly. I like it a fair amount, but I would rate it about in the middle of his catalog. It got great reviews when it came out but seems to have faded in the minds of Cronenberg fans over time. It might be a good starting point, though.

Dead Ringers has a lot of people who consider it his masterwork, it's where he really started getting away from goriness and horror. "Crash" also has quite a following of people who consider it his best - that one is famous for how much it offended people, it is extremely sexually explicit.

I'd highly recommend The Dead Zone, but that one is SO accessible that it barely feels like a Cronenberg movie. It's one of my favorite horror movies of the 80s, though.

Ones to avoid at first would be Map to the Stars (yuck), Cosmopolis (INCREDIBLY divisive), Shivers/Rabid (I love both, but they are a bit less mature than later ones), The Brood (if you're not a big horror fan you might want to be careful with this one, but it's a big step up in quality and thematic richness from Shivers/Rabid), A Dangerous Method/Spider/Eastern Promises (not Cronenbergy enough), M Butterfly (widely considered his weakest, it's alright), Scanners (I have watched this 5 or 6 times now and still don't understand how it can be considered anything other than one of his worst movies), and probably Naked Lunch, which is good but pretty wild and fairly non-essential in the grand scheme of his catalog.

This is a very good overview for someone looking for a starting place in Cronenberg's filmography . I tend to agree with those who suggested The Fly, and I think Videodrome and The Dead Zone are similarly accessible. I'm also seconding that Scanners is NOT the place to start. If for some reason you feel compelled to start with something more recent, A History of Violence is also a strong choice. I've seen most of his films, and have yet to be disappointed. I think if you make it through two or three of these and still want more, then you probably can't go wrong from there.

[adamhopelies]

Originally Posted by SkyAntoine

After BN cancelled my eBay order of four Zatoichi sets and one Les Blank set, I sent them a message...

Why did you want four copies of Zatoichi?

[adamhopelies]

Originally Posted by Ray Jackson

Some of you seem to be obsessed with this Zatoichi set.

Is it really that good?

I like the Lone Wolf and Cub series.

...is it better than Lone Wolf and Cub?

I don't know anyone who has made it the whole way thru the set myself! I've seen a couple of them but don't think they're anything special.

[shadedpain4]

Originally Posted by adamhopelies

Why did you want four copies of Zatoichi?

Maybe he wanted to be beloved at Christmastime?

[SkyAntoine]

Originally Posted by adamhopelies

Why did you want four copies of Zatoichi?

Greed. I was going to make $50 or so a pop on eBay. I have to pay for my Criterion addiction somehow.

[Scottie]

Originally Posted by adamhopelies

I don't know anyone who has made it the whole way thru the set myself! I've seen a couple of them but don't think they're anything special.

I watched all of the films over a month last year or so.

[octagon]

Originally Posted by shadedpain4

Look at It this way. Rushmore is on my list, but I'm not sure it would make my top 10. My "favorite" movies don't tend to be films that make me laugh, but Rushmore makes me laugh, and if I'm stuck on an island, I'm going to need a laugh now and then.

Yeah, if I were going to be stuck on an island I would go crazy without at least one movie about food. Something like Babette's Feast or Blue is the Warmest Color. Secret of the Grain, maybe. Or Blue is the Warmest Color.

[shadedpain4]

Originally Posted by iScottie

I watched all of the films over a month last year or so.

I stretched it out over a slightly longer period than that but I got them all in last year as well. I added the final not-in-the-set film as well, but somehow never got around to watching the documentary included in the set. I'll have to rectify that.

[Ray Jackson]

Well here's my list:

1. Badlands
2. Days of Heaven
3. The Thin Red Line
4. Picnic at Hanging Rock
5 Hiroshima Mon Amour
6. Red
7. Harakiri
8. High and Low
9. Ikiru
10. Fear and Loathing In Las Vegas