The Criterion Collection

[Ray Jackson]

Originally Posted by SammyJankis

That little opening in the cover recalls the transition from various designs in the credits - at least, I thought it did.

Interesting.

[MeMynonsense]

Saw Alberto Lattuada’s Mafioso. Apart from all its signature Commedia all'italiana trappings, it tells a fascinating narrative of a Milanese car factory executive who visits his southern hometown of Catanao and unsuspectingly gets embroiled with the Sicilian Cosa Nostra, courtesy one “magnanimous” local Don Vincenzo.
Alberto Sordi is outstanding as Nino Badalamenti as he navigates his way through this seemingly endless nightmare while performing a domestic balancing act between his cosmopolitan northern-Italian wife and his orthodox, repressed Sicilian relatives.
Mafioso starts out as another harmless, observational south-Italian social satire but gradually transforms into an intensely dark and cynical crime fable with an enthralling, almost sweat-inducing climatic sequence.

It should especially intrigue most of the Sopranos aficionados, as it gives a harrowing first-hand account of a reluctant “relative from the other side” dispatched from the old-country for a quick, covert American assignment.

Although a BD upgrade seems unlikely (since the dvd is OOP), Criterion deserves a big creamy cannoli for incorporating it into the collection and rescuing it from obscurity.

[theater dreamer]

You know, even with the little newspaper clipping, that cover art, and the overall design aesthetic, is drool-worthy. I'm not going to complain about one little spot. Is it perfect? No. Is it pretty damned close? Yeah. And, next to the hundreds of non-Criterions I have, it's a Picasso.

And, since it goes on sale the 26th, I'll be able to pick it up during the B&N 50% off sale. I'll make my big purchases after the 12th, when the 25% off online coupon goes into effect, and then make one more small purchase of three or four more individual films on the 26th in store. Maybe do the New World, The Manchurian Candidate, and a couple others that I wasn't expecting.

Have we confirmed if The Last Metro, as it's being sold now, is a Digi, or a Scanavo? When, and where I order it, will depend on the kind of packaging. No way I'm ordering that online if it's a DigiPack. I'll get the Cassavetes set, the Rossellini-Bergman set, The New World, and The Last Metro in store.

[Bates_Motel]

Originally Posted by belcherman

There are a lot of great 30s comedies that need some blu ray love. Among them, My Man Godfrey, The Awful Truth, and Bringing Up Baby stand out as classics of screwball comedy, but there are plenty of others. It's criminal that we don't have ANY of the great films from this period by Mae West, W.C. Fields or the Marx Brothers on blu ray. Duck Soup, please!

Universal has already announced restorations on most of the Marx Bros films.

[octagon]

Originally Posted by Bates_Motel

Universal has already announced restorations on most of the Marx Bros films.

Ohhhh yeah, those were mentioned in the same story/release/whatever that talked about them working on more of the classic Monster stuff, wasn't it? I had totally forgotten about that.

[English Patient]

Originally Posted by SammyJankis

Michael Cimino has died at the age of 77.

RIP

This furthers my need to watch Heaven's Gate again.

It's definitely worth another look. The cinematography and production design alone are unforgettable. There are some shots that are as beautiful as anything ever filmed. If only the script had been better developed. The opening graduation sequence is breathtaking, and there's a wonderful shot of a lovely girl peering out of a window by candlelight at the graduating boys - it's one of the most beautiful moments I've ever seen on film. Cimino had a real gift for visuals.

[Bates_Motel]

Originally Posted by octagon

Ohhhh yeah, those were mentioned in the same story/release/whatever that talked about them working on more of the classic Monster stuff, wasn't it? I had totally forgotten about that.

Yeah, I don't remember what all titles were included but I remember seeing The Coconuts, Duck Soup, and A Night at the Opera I think, among others.

[Brad1963]

Originally Posted by Bates_Motel

Yeah, I don't remember what all titles were included but I remember seeing The Coconuts, Duck Soup, and A Night at the Opera I think, among others.

Animal Crackers, Duck Soup, The Coconuts, Horse Feathers and Monkey Business.

[abouttreefitty]

This was posted by the artist Paul Pope on his Instagram! @criterioncollection...

https://www.instagram.com/p/BHXe88Agx4Z/

[Ray Jackson]

Originally Posted by abouttreefitty

This was posted by the artist Paul Pope on his Instagram! @criterioncollection...

https://www.instagram.com/p/BHXe88Agx4Z/

[Show spoiler]

Choose the sword and you join me.

Choose the ball...and you join your mother...in death.

[I KEEL YOU]

Damn, didn't even know Cimino was 77. I was sure that he was at least 15 years younger. R.I.P. The movies he made will live on.

[malakaheso]

When does the B+N sale start?

[jayembee]

Originally Posted by malakaheso

When does the B+N sale start?

I would imagine 3:01am EDT on Tuesday, July 5th.

[jayembee]

Another notable film-related death happened on Friday: Robin Hardy, best known as director of the 1973 version of The Wicker Man.

http://www.bbc.com/news/entertainment-arts-36693545

[Ray Jackson]

Do you think if you found out that you were going to die, that movies would mean more or less to you?

I know that some people view cinema as a collection of stories which reflect a deeper existential truth about life and humanity in general. That we see ourselves and/or our experiences in certain films that are important to us and thus derive a sense of meaning and purpose from them.

But sometimes I think that's what we tell ourselves to justify our addiction.

Sometimes I think movies are just an elaborate distraction from reality.

Myself, if I found out that I had six months to live, I'm not sure that movies would be anywhere near the top of the list of my priorities.

...I'm not sure they would mean anything at all.

[AaronJ]

If I found out I would be dying in 6 months, my priorities wouldn't change at all. I mean, I already know I'm going to die at some point. Whether it's 6 months from now or 30 years from now, it's the same thing.

Film is art. Just like poetry or painting or architecture or literature or anything else. If it's important to me now, I can't see how or why that would change in the least when I learned when I was going to die.

The only thing that would change, as far as I can think of, is that I'd sell the stock I have -- since obviously it increasing in value isn't going to make any difference now -- and I'd visit a few of the places I've always wanted to see: London, Australia, and the like. I'd re-visit Paris and Venice and Florence and Rome for sure.

But that doesn't mean that I wouldn't be watching, thinking about, reading about film during that time.

[prior]

Originally Posted by Ray Jackson

Do you think if you found out that you were going to die, that movies would mean more or less to you?

I know that some people view cinema as a collection of stories which reflect a deeper existential truth about life and humanity in general. That we see ourselves and/or our experiences in certain films that are important to us and thus derive a sense of meaning and purpose from them.

But sometimes I think that's what we tell ourselves to justify our addiction.

Sometimes I think movies are just an elaborate distraction from reality.

Myself, if I found out that I had six months to live, I'm not sure that movies would be anywhere near the top of the list of my priorities.

...I'm not sure they would mean anything at all.

Interesting question.

I can only tell you my personal truth.

When I went through something life-threatening: Films meant more. Music. Everything that gave me meaning and hope and ideas.
Having survived: Films mean less. Feel the need to live rather than sit down watching other people do it.

[theater dreamer]

I went through something life-threatening, too. Three years ago today, after nearly three weeks, I was being transferred from Presbyterian Hospital Flower Mound to a rehabilitation hospital where I'd spend most of the next week. I'd fallen off the bottom stair at my folk's house, and shattered the femur in my left leg into six pieces. I spent nearly six hours in surgery with three orthopedic surgeons rebuilding my leg. Because of my bones, an already complicated procedure became an exercise in caution. I now have a foot long titanium plate, and twelve titanium screws keeping my leg together.

While in the hospital, immediately after surgery, I tested positive for MRSA. A day after surgery, my fever shot up to nearly 105, and they began broad spectrum antibiotics. I was fighting sepsis, and for nearly a week, one antibiotic after another failed to arrest the infection. I was quarantined, and had an infectious disease doctor checking on me three times a day. Finally, one of the most powerful antibiotics they had did the trick. I was deemed stable, and transferred to the rehab hospital. 12 hours after arriving there, my fever shot back up to 104, and my WBC count was at some ridiculous level (I think they said 40,000 +, if my memory is correct). They had to send me back to the first hospital via ambulance, and again I was back on that antibiotic. I lost 15 pounds, as I was unable to keep food down. And, trust me, having to "run to the bathroom" when your leg has been shattered....is not fun.

I've been through a lot, medically, but that's the first time I remember ever seeing actual fear in the face of my doctor. I was getting blood thinners injected into my abdomen twice a day; ultrasound three times a day to make sure that the break didn't let loose a fatty embolism. They were really concerned that the fracture might cause a massive blood clot. Now, I look back on this episode, and I'm glad to be alive. Sepsis is not something you screw around with, and the doctors that treated me, and helped get me healthy, are heroes. My orthopedic surgeon, Dr. Goodhart, has been taking care of me since I first destroyed my ACL in college. The man has put me back together more times than I can remember. Six surgeries in all, and counting...

Did that experience change my life? No, because I appreciate every day of life that I have. I already knew that it all could end in the blink of an eye. If anything, I enjoy movies more now than ever. Why? Because life is a gift, and movies allow me the opportunity to see life in different parts of the world, places I may never visit. They help me to appreciate just how diverse the human race is, and how tolerance is so vitally important. Instead of fearing people that are different, we should be embracing our differences.

[StingingVelvet]

I've spent most of my life traveling and watching movies and I doubt any kind of new time limit would change those two interests. Though I probably would really focus on traveling to the places I really want to see and haven't gotten to yet.

[jayembee]

Originally Posted by Ray Jackson

Do you think if you found out that you were going to die, that movies would mean more or less to you?

I know that some people view cinema as a collection of stories which reflect a deeper existential truth about life and humanity in general. That we see ourselves and/or our experiences in certain films that are important to us and thus derive a sense of meaning and purpose from them.

But sometimes I think that's what we tell ourselves to justify our addiction.

Sometimes I think movies are just an elaborate distraction from reality.

Myself, if I found out that I had six months to live, I'm not sure that movies would be anywhere near the top of the list of my priorities.

...I'm not sure they would mean anything at all.

I suppose it would depend on the specific circumstances. If whatever I was dying from made me housebound, I'd probably spend more time watching movies. On the other hand, I'm a cancer survivor, and after surgery and during chemo, when I was trying to stay positive, but still not being sure how things were going to turn out, I don't recall spend extra time watching movies. My wife and I spent more time just driving around, seeing the sights and spending more time together (sometimes just us, sometimes with friends).

Some time ago, I had come to the conclusion that I'm never going to read all of the books worth reading, see all of the movies worth seeing, watch all of the TV shows worth watching, listen to all of the music worth listening to. So I've figured that whatever of those things I get to, I'll get to, and whatever I don't get to...well, I guess in the end, I won't miss it.