The Criterion Collection

[AaronJ]

Originally Posted by Polaroid

Changing the subject... how the hell did The Martian get put in and win Golden Globe for Comedy? guess they knew it codlin win in other categories so they stuck it there.

Weird.

It comes down to the fact that, unlike the Oscars, the Globes have a set limit of five films for each of the two Best Picture categories. And there was no way that they were going to bump The Revenant, Mad Max, Room, Spotlight, or Carol.

So if they hadn't put it into the Comedy category, it wouldn't have been nominated at all.

Though, to be honest, having finally seen Mad Max, if it were up to me and I had to decide which film -- The Martian or Mad Max -- to kick to the comedy section, it would have been Mad Max. Then again, they don't ask me my opinion.

[Polaroid]

Originally Posted by AaronJ

It comes down to the fact that, unlike the Oscars, the Globes have a set limit of five films for each of the two Best Picture categories. And there was no way that they were going to bump The Revenant, Mad Max, Room, Spotlight, or Carol.

So if they hadn't put it into the Comedy category, it wouldn't have been nominated at all.

Though, to be honest, having finally seen Mad Max, if it were up to me and I had to decide which film -- The Martian or Mad Max -- to kick to the comedy section, it would have been Mad Max. Then again, they don't ask me my opinion.

I agree tbh Mad Max was more comical in terms of how silly the stunts were (as awesome and well done they were they were outrageous lol) and defo more fitting for that category.

Ah well!

[AaronJ]

Originally Posted by Polaroid

I agree tbh Mad Max was more comical in terms of how silly the stunts were (as awesome and well done they were they were outrageous lol) and defo more fitting for that category.

Ah well!

I haven't seen The Martian, but from what I hear and read it is a solid film. At least it got it's due, even if it was in an odd category.

Actually, of the now 16 films that I've seen from 2015, only 3 qualify as non-indie entires (assuming that we can still determine what is an indie and what isn't!): Mad Max: Fury Road, Pitch Perfect 2, and The Man from U.N.C.L.E. The other 13 have mostly been small movies like Queen of Earth and It Follows.

Of the 10 nominees last night, the only one I had seen was Mad Max. And I had only watched that two nights ago.

[octagon]

okay, I jut took an ambien and I need to ask a question in what I hope is a friendly envirornment: are there really like a dozen The Martian covers littering much of the first page or am I having a weird drug interaction.

[AaronJ]

Originally Posted by octagon

okay, I jut took an ambien and I need to ask a question in what I hope is a friendly envirornment: are there really like a dozen The Martian covers littering much of the first page or am I having a weird drug interaction.

As many horror stories as I've heard about Ambien (which is why I don't take it, even though I often can't sleep at all) -- no, you're not imagining things.

[Vinyl]

RIP to Bowie. He was a great actor, even if he was best known for a few cult films. He was a great artist who could do so much so well.

For the last few days I have been thinking I need to listen to Ziggy Stardust again. Odd that it popped up with this and his new album being released.

Also, might just have to watch the Prestige again. Loved his portrayal of Tesla.

[SammyJankis]

Damn. I thought it was a joke. Now have the urge to watch his Roeg.

RIP

[The Great Owl]

I first heard David Bowie back in 1983, when I was 11 years old. Back then, I was often teased by others at school because of my lazy eye in my right eye. When I saw Bowie's video for "Let's Dance", I noticed that his eyes did not match (He had a permanently dilated left eye.), and I instantly felt a kinship to him, because I was encouraged by the fact that someone with a similar eye problem could be a cool music star. Since I already thought that "Let's Dance", "China Girl", and "Modern Love" were awesome songs, my lifelong fascination with Bowie's career had begun. David Bowie was always an outsider of sorts, and, since I have felt like an outsider all my life, his songs and his overall mystique appealed to me.

As I grew older, I delved into Bowie's music more and more. Bowie's earlier albums were not readily available in most music stores back in the late 1980s, but I treasured everything that I could find, and I was fascinated with all of the different guises that the artist employed from one album to the next. During the spring of 1990, when I was a senior in high school, David Bowie played in Atlanta for his Sound + Vision Tour, a greatest hits tour in support of a career-spanning box set. I could not talk any friends into attending the show with me, because most of them were uneasy about all of the jokes about Bowie's sexuality. I stubbornly bought one ticket for myself, drove to Atlanta alone, and enjoyed one of the most incredible concerts of my entire life. A highlight of that night was when Bowie played "Heroes", a song about lovers on opposite sides of the Berlin Wall, and we could all see the smiling spark in his eyes in light of the fact that the Wall had come down just weeks before. When Bowie emerged from a 10-year hiatus back in 2013 with a new album, I rediscovered his older albums that I had listened to so much during my youth, and I have spent a lot of time immersing myself in all of that great music.

Everyone has seen the news stories from this morning, about Bowie's death at the age of 69, after he had been secretly battling cancer. I was saddened when I woke up late this morning, on my flex day off from work, to hear the news, but I am also grateful for all of the wondrous tunes that Bowie has given us, and I am grateful for having related to him at a young age.

David Bowie left some final parting gifts to us, in the form of his astonishingly good album, Blackstar, which I've been playing nonstop all weekend since I bought it on its Friday release date. Bowie also released the below music video for "Lazarus." I was mystified by the images in the video when I watched it on Thursday, and I did not quite understand what he was trying to say. Sadly, I now understand. Rest in peace, David Bowie.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y-JqH1M4Ya8

[Polaroid]

Originally Posted by AaronJ

I haven't seen The Martian, but from what I hear and read it is a solid film. At least it got it's due, even if it was in an odd category.

Actually, of the now 16 films that I've seen from 2015, only 3 qualify as non-indie entires (assuming that we can still determine what is an indie and what isn't!): Mad Max: Fury Road, Pitch Perfect 2, and The Man from U.N.C.L.E. The other 13 have mostly been small movies like Queen of Earth and It Follows.

Of the 10 nominees last night, the only one I had seen was Mad Max. And I had only watched that two nights ago.

I thought it was a very poor film tbh - I can't even remember most of it lol

[ShellOilJunior]

Bowie had a great presence in The Phantom Pain. Kojima is a huge fan of his.

[bwdowiak]

I dreamt it last night. I swear on my life that I did. In the dream, I was actually reaching for my iPhone to document the fact that I was there so that I could post here about it. Really weird.. although, I am sure that somehow, subconsciously I heard about Bowie's passing before I literally yelled out "what the f***?" here at work sitting at my cubicle when pulling up allmusic.com to check the discography of another band. Such a surprise.

I saw Bowie 10 years ago and recall thinking, "my God, this is the coolest 59 year old man walking the planet." he wore perfectly weathered Converse all-stars and I recall him wearing a scarf of some kind.

favorite Bowie in the movies:
as Andy Warhol in Basquiat

top 5 Bowie songs (off the top of my head) and in no order:
Five Years
Rock & Roll Suicide
All The Young Dudes
Life on Mars?
Queen B##ch

[joie]

The NY Times obituary is at:

http://mobile.nytimes.com/2016/01/12...ogle.com/&_r=5

[silverlakephil]

Being a Bowie fan, I did shed some tears this morning. Maybe from the shock of it all, maybe just feeling more human empathy then usual whenever somebody famous passes away. Such a massive talent, a huge light has dimmed, but he'll never fade away.

[Scottie]

Originally Posted by silverlakephil

Being a Bowie fan, I did shed some tears this morning. Maybe from the shock of it all, maybe just feeling more human empathy then usual whenever somebody famous passes away. Such a massive talent, a huge light has dimmed, but he'll never fade away.

I got teary eyed while laying in bed in shock at 4 o'clock this morning.

He was one of the largest and most influential talents of all time and we are fortunate to have been alive throughout the process.

I haven't been a Bowie fan as long as many others, but I've always admired the man for most of my life. It wasn't until the past year or two that I truly got into his music and each subsequent album that I listened to felt like a strange familiarity that I knew all of my life.

He was diagnosed with liver cancer 18 months ago and during that time he managed to record his 25th studio album and create a Broadway musical. Not many people can do that while healthy, let alone sick, and it's remarkable to look back over his career and see his influence on the world. I'm just really happy knowing that he was able to live long enough to see the release of Blackstar, his farewell gift to the world.

The whole thing just sucks through and through. I'm glad he kept his cancer a secret, but this comes as a complete and utterly shocking surprise that I don't think anyone was prepared to read.

[The Great Owl]

I've been listening to David Bowie's Blackstar all weekend, and I kept thinking to myself, "This would make such a great swan song album."

It was sad to wake up this morning and find out that the album was, indeed, intended that way all along.

I'm still processing all of this.


Last night, I watched my Criterion Blu-ray of Harakiri, and I was absolutely blown away by the movie. I'll add to what others have said here in this thread about it being possibly the best samurai film. It's a work of perfection, from beginning to end.

I woke up this morning intending to write a longer review of Harakiri, but the news of David Bowie's death overshadowed all of that.

[bwdowiak]

Originally Posted by The Great Owl

Last night, I watched my Criterion Blu-ray of Harakiri, and I was absolutely blown away by the movie. I'll add to what others have said here in this thread about it being possibly the best samurai film. It's a work of perfection, from beginning to end.

I woke up this morning intending to write a longer review of Harakiri, but the news of David Bowie's death overshadowed all of that.

Harakiri is a great film.

I had intended to listen to the Happy Mondays. Instead it's a sad Monday... but listening to a youtube mix of Bowie - Rebel Rebel playing right now, so it ain't all that bad. We used to play it in a cover band I was in.

[Zen_Amako]

This past weekend, I watched Sleeping with Other People (a new romantic comedy, it was decent), and the highlight of that film was a setpiece set to Bowie's "Modern Love" (which was also used to memorable effect in Mauvais Sang and Francis Ha). Bowie will definitely be missed. I may have to watch Labyrinth or The Hunger again tonight.

[silverlakephil]

Let's not forget D.A. Pennebaker's "Ziggy Stardust and The Spiders From Mars" (1973), a worthy addition if Criterion has the rights and decides to release it.

[SkyAntoine]

Excited to get a couple of OOP shipments today. The Rialto set isn't in the best shape, but it is incredibly hard to find at a decent price. Won it on eBay for $71. I've seen it go for close to $200.
I traded blu-ray copies of Three Colors Trilogy, Repo Man and Lady Snowblood for the other 3 sealed OOPs.

[Al_The_Strange]

The recent passing of David Bowie makes me wish I got The Man Who Fell To Earth when it was still in-print.

Anybody know how the import versions are? I'm kinda leaning towards ordering the Italian version if it's region-free.

Might have to rewatch Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence when I get home.