The Criterion Collection

[Abdrewes]

[Show spoiler]

Originally Posted by jmclick

I just placed an order at Barnes & Noble online, taking advantage of the 40% sale and the extra 30% off coupon code. (Thank you so very much, forum member hariseldon!) I ordered nine Criterion titles (which means I will go into the July sale lacking only 30 titles to become Criterion blu-ray complete):

Bicycle Thieves (1948)
Hearts and Minds (1971)
The Kennedy Films of Robert Drew and Associates (1960-1964)
La Chienne (1931)
La Notte (1961)
Le Amiche (1955)
Only Angels Have Wings (1939)
The Palm Beach Story (1942)
Phoenix (2014)

I also purchased 6 catalog titles that I've been wanting for a while, but didn't want to pay more than $10 each to obtain; happily, with the discounts, they ended up being $8.40 each:

American Graffiti (1973)
Black Book (2006)
Dark Victory (1939)
Dodge City (1939)
Kiss Me Kate 3D (1953)
The Postman Always Rings Twice (1946)

I paid for it all via PayPal Credit, which means I won't have to pay interest until December! And just to make sure that I enter my retirement years with absolutely no savings or security whatsoever, I also applied for a Barnes & Noble Rewards MasterCard, which will earn me 5% back on all future Barnes & Noble purchases plus other goodies like gift cards, etc. I was approved for $6,500 credit, and my card should arrive just in time for the July sale. Please add my name to your prayer list.

As did I. Great sale! Double Indemnity is $11.99 before the 30% off code as well

As for me, I'm missing 18 to be CC complete (plus Third Man and Man Who Fell to Earth).

jshaide: The code is BNJUNE30 (30% off $150)

[cakefactory]

Only Angels Have Wings is evidently not available? Lame.

[Bates_Motel]

Originally Posted by Abdrewes

[Show spoiler]

As did I. Great sale! Double Indemnity is $11.99 before the 30% off code as well

As for me, I'm missing 18 to be CC complete (plus Third Man and Man Who Fell to Earth).

jshaide: The code is BNJUNE30 (30% off $150)

It's too bad titles like In a Lonely Place, Manchurian Candidate, and Brighter Summer Day are not available.

[pedromvu]

Too bad I couldn't order Manchurian Candidate or Brighter Summer Day, they will have to wait for the next flash sale.

Got:

Bicycle Thieves
Umberto D.
Moonrise Kingdom
The Player
La Promesse
Night and Fog

and

My Left Foot
We Are the Best!
The Constant Gardener
Duel

For $113.15 thanks to the $100 B&N gift card from eBay for $73

Note that while the percent off counts towards any movie, it appears that the movies not released yet don't count towards the $ amount to enter a promo bracket $0-50 $50-100 $100-150

[jmclick]

Originally Posted by cakefactory

Only Angels Have Wings is evidently not available? Lame.

Originally Posted by Bates_Motel

It's too bad titles like In a Lonely Place, Manchurian Candidate, and Brighter Summer Day are not available.

Originally Posted by pedromvu

Too bad I couldn't order Manchurian Candidate or Brighter Summer Day, they will have to wait for the next flash sale.

I think these titles, along with a couple of others including Watership Down, are currently out of stock in the Barnes and Noble warehouse; thus, their temporary unavailability.

[theater dreamer]

Oy, my wallet is going to be taking a royal beating in the next few months.

[the sordid sentinel]

Originally Posted by Bates_Motel

It's too bad titles like In a Lonely Place, Manchurian Candidate, and Brighter Summer Day are not available.

Seems like about 1/2 my wishlist is unavailable. Oh well, some other time I guess.

[thatguamguy]

Originally Posted by Bates_Motel

That's funny, because most indie distributors WANT features under 80-90 minutes because it guarantees them more viewings per day and the chance to make more money. In fact, most indie films are requested to be that length.

I think there is a general rule that a distributor would always like to cut ten minutes out of any movie because it would add an extra screening a day. Indie movies suffer from it because they're already likely to be shorter because they're going to be as tight as possible because of budgets. But, yeah, it's a balance between what an audience expects as a bare minimum and how they can maximize their profits, and it can shift.

[thatguamguy]

Originally Posted by jayembee

Still, you're talking about current theatrical distribution. This tangent (that I started without really intending to) about short films vs. feature films isn't about current theatrical distribution. It's about looking at what was considered the difference was between short and feature over the long term, and whether a particular film included as an extra is a feature or a short.

It seemed like relevant context as to why some people set the bar for what a feature is higher than 40 minutes, but I'm sorry if it was derailing anything, I thought it seemed like a fun side topic.

[Cocophone]

Yesterday I bought Only Angels Have Wings, In a Lonely Place & The Manchurian Candidate at Costco for $19.99 each. Decent prices.

[theater dreamer]

Originally Posted by the sordid sentinel

Seems like about 1/2 my wishlist is unavailable. Oh well, some other time I guess.

My suggestion? Wait about a week until after the sale has started. The last time I bought from Barnes & Noble, they were out of some of the movies I wanted. I checked a few days later, and they'd gotten some more stock in.

Good luck. May we all get what we want.

[theater dreamer]

Originally Posted by Cocophone

Yesterday I bought Only Angels Have Wings, In a Lonely Place & The Manchurian Candidate at Costco for $19.99 each. Decent prices.

That is a good price; that's 50% off of MSRP, what we'll get single films during the sale without any further coupons. Plus, you have a chance to look the films over for any dings to the cases, or artwork inside.

[Richard--W]

Is the 50% off sale in July still definite? or has it been replaced with this 40% sale?

[pedromvu]

Originally Posted by Richard--W

Is the 50% off sale in July still definite? or has it been replaced with this 40% sale?

40% sale always happen before the 50% off sale (at least for the July one), there is even a thread about the 50% it has been confirmed for a while.

[zoodermin]

I just checked and it's been almost a year since the last "three reasons" video (Five Easy Pieces). I wonder why Criterion stopped making those because they were great.

[joie]

Originally Posted by zoodermin

I just checked and it's been almost a year since the last "three reasons" video (Five Easy Pieces). I wonder why Criterion stopped making those because they were great.

Because three or more reasons can be found not to buy? But I think if someone needs reasons they're skeptical and not easily sold. Even Criterion may have doubts, if they've got to offer reasons to buy.

[MifuneFan]

....

[jayembee]

Originally Posted by joie

Because three or more reasons can be found not to buy? But I think if someone needs reasons they're skeptical and not easily sold. Even Criterion may have doubts, if they've got to offer reasons to buy.

I think that's rather the point. They're trying to overcome customer skepticism.

I see so many comments on this site (not necessarily in this thread, but often in the Criterion announcement posts in the News section) that dismiss announced titles because "I never heard of it". These people seem not to want to do a little checking around to see if it's something they might like anyway (after all, every single movie ever made is, at one point or another, one that you've never heard of before).

The "Three Reasons..." releases seem to be an attempt to try and interest that sort of person into checking a film out. It's probably a futile gesture, as I expect that the the people who are indulging in the "Three Reasons" are ones who are already interested.

[polsk_aus90]

I don't suppose anybody has had some issues with payment? I attempted to pay with paypal, but I received an error saying the paypal account couldn't be authorised and going by the B&N page the order didn't go through. However I got a confirmation email from Paypal saying that it had been submitted. But there is no order listed in my B&N account. Any ideas/similar experiences?

[belcherman]

So, the two Criterions I most wanted were sold out today at B&N (Manchurian Candidate and Only Angels Have Wings). I guess those will have to wait for the July sale. In the meantime, I ordered a mix of things, including two Criterions:

Item Qty Price

Operation Petticoat
1 $17.99

Father Goose
1 $17.99

Meet Me in St. Louis
1 $20.99

Star Is Born
1 $16.79

Mutiny on the Bounty
1 $14.99

Here Comes Mr. Jordan
1 $23.99

Man Who Would Be King
1 $14.99

Downhill Racer
1 $23.99
Sub Total: $151.72
Shipping & Processing: $0.00
Tax: $7.43
Discount: -$45.52
Total Price: $113.63

Not bad. Two Criterions, a couple of late-period Cary Grants (nobody does light comedy better), and four Warner digibooks. I was holding off on the latter hoping that they would get standard releases, but I guess that's not happening. I don't like digibooks but you gotta do what you gotta do.