The Criterion Collection - Page 7611 - Blu-ray Forum

bwdowiak · 07-28-2016, 01:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by meggs2011

That book is tremendously funny and outrageous. I believe, sadly, that the author committed suicide at 32, and the book didn't appear until 6 years later. I've often thought what a good movie it would make, and I've just discovered via IMDb that one is in the works! I hope they do it justice, and make it as long as needed.

I'm in the camp of loving long films, even if I watch over two nights.

David Gordon Green was supposed to direct it some years back and the plans fell apart. Will Ferrell was going to play the main character.

Yes, John Kennedy Toole killed himself supposedly over despair that he couldn't get the book published. It is referenced at the end of Sideways when THC is trying to cheer up Paul Giamatti late in the film. The Giamatti character, if you recall, was trying to do just that - get a book published.

bwdowiak · 07-28-2016, 01:13 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by iScottie

I haven't seen the film in quite some time and I'm wondering if it have the same effect on me that it did on my first couple watches.

I've slowly but surely become a picky film viewer. There are a lot of films that I like, but I'm now narrowing it down to those films that I love and cannot live without. It's really difficult because I'm always asking myself, "Do I love this as much as Lost in Translation? Paris, Texas? In the Mood for Love? etc."

I rewatched and removed The Kid from my collection last night. Charlie Chaplin is one of my favorite filmmakers. I consider Modern Times to be one of the greatest films of all-time. I really enjoy his entire catalogue aside from The Circus. However, after four or five viewings, I still cannot get into The Kid like I can his other titles. Perhaps the runtime is too short to establish anything for me. Perhaps I'm just not feeling connected to anything in any scene. A good movie, undoubtedly, but one I can live without seeing again.

Wow! 5 times? All in the past year or so since it came out?

It's interesting because the films I considered as my favorites when I was your age (I think I know how old you are. You don't have to say here.) are quite different than what I like now. Granted, your favs are more mature, artful films than what I liked then.

I think it takes longer for tastes to evolve and develop. Seems like you got itchy trigger finger, Scottie.

Of course, it is to all our benefit as your like new discs for sale are just about always 'better than new.'

Scottie · 07-28-2016, 02:18 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bwdowiak

Wow! 5 times? All in the past year or so since it came out?

It's interesting because the films I considered as my favorites when I was your age (I think I know how old you are. You don't have to say here.) are quite different than what I like now. Granted, your favs are more mature, artful films than what I liked then.

I think it takes longer for tastes to evolve and develop. Seems like you got itchy trigger finger, Scottie.

Of course, it is to all our benefit as your like new discs for sale are just about always 'better than new.'

Haha, well thank you for the compliment. I'm 24.

And I've only seen The Kid once on Blu-ray. The other times were on Hulu, TCM, or when I was enrolled in film classes while in college.

bwdowiak · 07-28-2016, 02:57 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by iScottie

Haha, well thank you for the compliment. I'm 24.

And I've only seen The Kid once on Blu-ray. The other times were on Hulu, TCM, or when I was enrolled in film classes while in college.

sure is interesting how tastes differ, though. I've only seen 3 Chaplin - City Lights, Modern Times, and The Gold Rush and Modern Times was my least favorite. I was thinking about parting with it recently. Usually if I "think about" getting rid of a title, I will, so it's a goner.

llj · 07-28-2016, 02:59 PM

I probably have a smaller BD/DVD collection than everyone in this forum, let alone thread, and I *still* think I have too many discs. In general, I still rent/borrow more than I buy and this allows me to weed out movies I don't want to own. I usually like most of the movies I choose, and I still blind-buy, but most of my blind purchases are educated guesses based on research and knowing my own tastes than just actual "No idea what this movie is about" purchases. I'm only wrong about 15% of the time, maybe only 1 out of 10-13 purchases would I consider getting rid of it because "I don't like it enough."

A bunch of other factors also factor into my purchasing habits. If it is a movie I believe will always be in circulation in my country, I'm more likely to pass it up even if I quite like the movie. But if it's a rather rarely seen movie or something that has not seen many releases previously, I'm much more likely to buy it. Thus, I'm more likely to pass up something like On the Waterfront--as great as it is--for A Brighter Summer Day which has never seen a NA release before and doesn't seem like a film that will consistently be available in the future.

Thus, I don't consider myself picky at all since I bat a very good percentage because I know exactly what I want.

bwdowiak · 07-28-2016, 03:10 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by llj

I probably have a smaller BD/DVD collection than everyone in this forum, let alone thread, and I *still* think I have too many discs. In general, I still rent/borrow more than I buy and this allows me to weed out movies I don't want to own. I usually like most of the movies I choose, and I still blind-buy, but most of my blind purchases are educated guesses based on research and knowing my own tastes than just actual "No idea what this movie is about" purchases. I'm only wrong about 15% of the time, maybe only 1 out of 10-13 purchases would I consider getting rid of it because "I don't like it enough."

A bunch of other factors also factor into my purchasing habits. If it is a movie I believe will always be in circulation in my country, I'm more likely to pass it up even if I quite like the movie. But if it's a rather rarely seen movie or something that has not seen many releases previously, I'm much more likely to buy it. Thus, I'm more likely to pass up something like On the Waterfront--as great as it is--for A Brighter Summer Day which has never seen a NA release before and doesn't seem like a film that will consistently be available in the future.

Thus, I don't consider myself picky at all since I bat a very good percentage because I know exactly what I want.

every word of this post could have been mine - all the way down to the On The Waterfront / A Brighter Summer Day (don't own / own) philosophy

I don't even own several of my favorite movies on Blu-ray - The Conversation, Dog Day Afternoon, On The Waterfront.

theater dreamer · 07-28-2016, 04:07 PM

We've had this kind of conversation before. Never a bad thing to re-address it.

I'm on the exact opposite end of the spectrum. I want to own all the movies I love, and from there, I buy ones that I know I will enjoy. My mood varies greatly from one night to the next, or even within a single day. I love knowing that any film I might want to watch is just a walk across the room. And it's not hard to find more films to add, because I do my research. Criterion's site is great because it offers everything I need to make an educated assessment. Then, if I have questions, I can just fire away here.

I'm on a real Bergman kick right now (both of them). If I buy a movie that Ingmar directed, or Ingrid acted in, I know I'm going to like it. So, buying these films is a no-brainer. I will have certain films within their filmographies that I will love more than others, sure, but I rarely dislike any film I purchase, because I don't buy crap, and I don't blind buy.

shadedpain4 · 07-28-2016, 04:11 PM

For the people who get rid of films in your collection, what is the motivation. Space? Money? I almost never have a desire to remove something from my collection. I'm not trying to be critical of those who do, I'm just curious of the motivation.

bwdowiak · 07-28-2016, 04:26 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by shadedpain4

For the people who get rid of films in your collection, what is the motivation. Space? Money? I almost never have a desire to remove something from my collection. I'm not trying to be critical of those who do, I'm just curious of the motivation.

the reality that there just isn't enough time to revisit all of these films even if the intention is there. I'd rather the money for whatever the disc is worth go in my retirement savings rather than sitting on a shelf until you can't even give them away like my baseball card and DVD collections.

buffetfroid · 07-28-2016, 04:28 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by shadedpain4

For the people who get rid of films in your collection, what is the motivation. Space? Money? I almost never have a desire to remove something from my collection. I'm not trying to be critical of those who do, I'm just curious of the motivation.

Space and money and coming to the realization and, more importantly, acceptance, that I'm not going to rewatch most of this stuff. I've been collecting movies for 20 years (first on VHS, got rid of most of those a number of years ago) and a lot of stuff I have, at this stage of my life, I don't really care about watching again, or if I do, I can find it somewhere to rent or stream. I don't have the free time to watch as much as I used to. As the years pass, you become more confident about what you like and dislike. These days I mostly just want to own noir or crime films because those are the ones I always have a desire to rewatch. Some westerns too. But a lot of Criterions I've bought over the years?

Same with a lot of other stuff. I've always kept things for that "what if I want to watch it" mentality, but now I'm more in the "screw it" mind set. We're remodeling our bathrooms and kitchen, I can sell some of this stuff to help cover costs. Priorities change.

pedromvu · 07-28-2016, 04:32 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by shadedpain4

For the people who get rid of films in your collection, what is the motivation. Space? Money? I almost never have a desire to remove something from my collection. I'm not trying to be critical of those who do, I'm just curious of the motivation.

I do get rid of some films, some are blind buys that backfire, but mostly they are repeated films because I got a better edition.

Also few are movies I just bought on a whim because I liked and were too cheap to pass, but then after watching I decide it is not good enough to keep, I guess I kind of factor the space too on my decision since I am running out of it.

I never really thought of having such a big collection, my original idea was to buy all the films I gave a 9/10 or more, but then I started getting certain 8/10, mostly because they have some fantastic scenes and I can see myself growing to love them more in future viewings, especially the Criterion discs, since they usually have great supplements.

llj · 07-28-2016, 04:34 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by shadedpain4

For the people who get rid of films in your collection, what is the motivation. Space? Money? I almost never have a desire to remove something from my collection. I'm not trying to be critical of those who do, I'm just curious of the motivation.

Space and sometimes money. Sometimes just a blind buy gone wrong or not as good as I wanted.

Scottie · 07-28-2016, 04:36 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by shadedpain4

For the people who get rid of films in your collection, what is the motivation. Space? Money? I almost never have a desire to remove something from my collection. I'm not trying to be critical of those who do, I'm just curious of the motivation.

I would say peace of mind, which, in my case, is having as few things as possible in my life.

I've been rewatching my entire Blu-ray collection since the beginning of the year in order to narrow down my likes and dislikes. I have 203 UPCs left to go through and so far I've kept the following films (I still feel that I could do a better job and remove some more).

[Show spoiler]

shadedpain4 · 07-28-2016, 04:44 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by iScottie

I would say peace of mind, which, in my case, is having as few things as possible in my life.

I've been rewatching my entire Blu-ray collection since the beginning of the year in order to narrow down my likes and dislikes. I have 203 UPCs left to go through and so far I've kept the following films (I still feel that I could do a better job and remove some more).

[Show spoiler]

Interesting! Not sure I understand the relationship between peace of mind and having as few things as possible. Is that something you could explain?

Scottie · 07-28-2016, 04:51 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by shadedpain4

Interesting! Not sure I understand the relationship between peace of mind and having as few things as possible. Is that something you could explain?

It's difficult to explain, but I think it's a combination of having OCD and enjoying simplicity.

I used to have a lot of movies and just a lot of things, in general, and I felt like they took over my life to a large extent. By only keeping the "essentials," I have less to focus on and worry about.

shadedpain4 · 07-28-2016, 05:04 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by iScottie

It's difficult to explain, but I think it's a combination of having OCD and enjoying simplicity.

I used to have a lot of movies and just a lot of things, in general, and I felt like they took over my life to a large extent. By only keeping the "essentials," I have less to focus on and worry about.

Gotcha. I know people who find contentment, in part, with exercising minimalism in their lIves. Not something that works for me, but it's certainly something I've seen in other.

Glad it works for you! Plus you get to give to others which is a bonus.

Scottie · 07-28-2016, 05:07 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by shadedpain4

Gotcha. I know people who find contentment, in part, with exercising minimalism in their lIves. Not something that works for me, but it's certainly something I've seen in other.

Glad it works for you! Plus you get to give to others which is a bonus.

I try to help as best as I can.

llj · 07-28-2016, 05:34 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by iScottie

It's difficult to explain, but I think it's a combination of having OCD and enjoying simplicity.

I used to have a lot of movies and just a lot of things, in general, and I felt like they took over my life to a large extent. By only keeping the "essentials," I have less to focus on and worry about.

People say that hoarding is something people do to attempt to fill some sort emotional void.

I wouldn't say I'm a full-blown hoarder, but I do sometimes wonder if all the things I've collected speak to something else. There are just some things I do not "need" to keep, but still keep around for who knows what reason.

I have a lot more books/comic books than DVDs/BDs. I also have a decent collection of video games and retro consoles, but for that I usually exercise much better self control (retro video game prices being ridiculously high nowadays also helps keeps the collection down).

jw007 · 07-28-2016, 06:11 PM

I find this latest bit of discussion to be interesting as I too wonder often why I spend so much money on Criterion blu-rays. I have 2 steel cabinets that house all of my films, and 1 of the cabinets is strictly for Criterion films (blu-ray and DVD), so pretty much at least half of my movie collection comes from the Criterion Collection.

What does something like this say about a person? Is the person a snob for choosing films from an arthouse label like Criterion more than other label? I don't think so. But then again, I can't dismiss this possibility too. My tastes have become more refined in recent decades so I only am becoming more selective with what I purchase.

To me, its all psychological and nothing more. Once we get it in our heads that we need to continue collecting something, whether we want to complete the collection, or just build a collection that equates to a "serious film library", it all feeds into a collecting obsession that is hard to break. This is definitely a form of addiction without question.

As I look back at my collection of films housed in 2 x 6 foot tall open air steel cabinets, I often wonder how many times I'm going to have to continue dusting these plastic cases and paper digipacks and box sets over the next few years. How often am I going to re-watch these films? How often do I want to re-watch these films? With my current preference to watching films and TV shows on Netflix, and going digital, I'm starting to wonder if the future is only going to hold a non-physical media world? My vinyl collection, which I spent thousands of dollars on, is sitting in cute, bright yellow IKEA storage boxes. I never play my vinyl and 90% of the vinyl I've purchased is still sealed. I find it so much more efficient to listen to music digitally now.

It's a conundrum of what I'm going to eventually do regarding my vast blu-ray collection of films, but for now, I'm not going to sell anything off, despite the space and money issues.

MifuneFan · 07-28-2016, 06:17 PM

I collect movies that I know like, or movies that I think I'll like. That's it

07-28-2016, 02:59 PM	#152205
llj Power Member Member since:Sep 2012	I probably have a smaller BD/DVD collection than everyone in this forum, let alone thread, and I still think I have too many discs. In general, I still rent/borrow more than I buy and this allows me to weed out movies I don't want to own. I usually like most of the movies I choose, and I still blind-buy, but most of my blind purchases are educated guesses based on research and knowing my own tastes than just actual "No idea what this movie is about" purchases. I'm only wrong about 15% of the time, maybe only 1 out of 10-13 purchases would I consider getting rid of it because "I don't like it enough." A bunch of other factors also factor into my purchasing habits. If it is a movie I believe will always be in circulation in my country, I'm more likely to pass it up even if I quite like the movie. But if it's a rather rarely seen movie or something that has not seen many releases previously, I'm much more likely to buy it. Thus, I'm more likely to pass up something like On the Waterfront--as great as it is--for A Brighter Summer Day which has never seen a NA release before and doesn't seem like a film that will consistently be available in the future. Thus, I don't consider myself picky at all since I bat a very good percentage because I know exactly what I want. Last edited by llj; 07-28-2016 at 03:06 PM.

07-28-2016, 04:07 PM	#152207
theater dreamer Blu-ray Samurai Top contributor Member since:Jan 2015 Location:Flower Mound, TX 4K collection:40 Blu-ray collection:2403 DVD collection:202 Digital collection:274 Trading Score:13	We've had this kind of conversation before. Never a bad thing to re-address it. I'm on the exact opposite end of the spectrum. I want to own all the movies I love, and from there, I buy ones that I know I will enjoy. My mood varies greatly from one night to the next, or even within a single day. I love knowing that any film I might want to watch is just a walk across the room. And it's not hard to find more films to add, because I do my research. Criterion's site is great because it offers everything I need to make an educated assessment. Then, if I have questions, I can just fire away here. I'm on a real Bergman kick right now (both of them). If I buy a movie that Ingmar directed, or Ingrid acted in, I know I'm going to like it. So, buying these films is a no-brainer. I will have certain films within their filmographies that I will love more than others, sure, but I rarely dislike any film I purchase, because I don't buy crap, and I don't blind buy. Last edited by theater dreamer; 07-28-2016 at 04:20 PM.

Similar Threads
thread	Forum	Thread Starter	Replies	Last Post
Criterion Collection	Wish Lists	Chushajo	26	08-14-2025 12:45 PM
Criterion Collection?	Newbie Discussion	ChitoAD	68	01-02-2019 10:14 PM
Criterion Collection Question. . .	Blu-ray Movies - North America	billypoe	31	01-18-2009 02:52 PM
The Criterion Collection goes Blu!	Blu-ray Technology and Future Technology	bferr1	164	05-10-2008 02:59 PM

07-28-2016, 04:11 PM	#152208
shadedpain4 Blu-ray Guru Top contributor Member since:Dec 2010 4K collection:90 Blu-ray collection:2749 DVD collection:94 Trading Score:6	For the people who get rid of films in your collection, what is the motivation. Space? Money? I almost never have a desire to remove something from my collection. I'm not trying to be critical of those who do, I'm just curious of the motivation.

07-28-2016, 06:11 PM	#152219
jw007 Blu-ray Samurai Member since:Jul 2012 Location:Between PA, NJ, FL, and the Middle East Blu-ray collection:628 Blu-ray reviews:2 Trading Score:5	I find this latest bit of discussion to be interesting as I too wonder often why I spend so much money on Criterion blu-rays. I have 2 steel cabinets that house all of my films, and 1 of the cabinets is strictly for Criterion films (blu-ray and DVD), so pretty much at least half of my movie collection comes from the Criterion Collection. What does something like this say about a person? Is the person a snob for choosing films from an arthouse label like Criterion more than other label? I don't think so. But then again, I can't dismiss this possibility too. My tastes have become more refined in recent decades so I only am becoming more selective with what I purchase. To me, its all psychological and nothing more. Once we get it in our heads that we need to continue collecting something, whether we want to complete the collection, or just build a collection that equates to a "serious film library", it all feeds into a collecting obsession that is hard to break. This is definitely a form of addiction without question. As I look back at my collection of films housed in 2 x 6 foot tall open air steel cabinets, I often wonder how many times I'm going to have to continue dusting these plastic cases and paper digipacks and box sets over the next few years. How often am I going to re-watch these films? How often do I want to re-watch these films? With my current preference to watching films and TV shows on Netflix, and going digital, I'm starting to wonder if the future is only going to hold a non-physical media world? My vinyl collection, which I spent thousands of dollars on, is sitting in cute, bright yellow IKEA storage boxes. I never play my vinyl and 90% of the vinyl I've purchased is still sealed. I find it so much more efficient to listen to music digitally now. It's a conundrum of what I'm going to eventually do regarding my vast blu-ray collection of films, but for now, I'm not going to sell anything off, despite the space and money issues.

07-28-2016, 06:17 PM	#152220
MifuneFan Blu-ray Emperor Top contributor Member since:Mar 2012 Location:New York City 4K collection:27 Blu-ray collection:1143 Trading Score:69	I collect movies that I know like, or movies that I think I'll like. That's it

Best Blu-ray Movie Deals