The Criterion Collection

[silverlakephil]

Originally Posted by iScottie

I try to stay up to date with watching all of the films released or announced to be released by Criterion on Blu-ray. As many of you know, I used to blind buy these films. However, for the past couple of years I've been opting to rent or stream the films instead (it saves me a lot of money, especially when I find most of them to have little replay value).

I've been lucky enough to see everything released from December 2008 (their start) until June 2016. Now I just need to get through my backlog and watch the remaining films already released or announced to be released.

Any of you see these? Any recommendations on the best ones to start with?

1. Le Amiche
2. Black Girl
3. Cameraperson
4. La Chienne
5. Chimes at Midnight
6. Dreams
7. The Executioner
8. Ingrid Bergman: In Her Own Words
9. Lone Wolf and Cub (all six movies)
10. Mildred Pierce
11. One-Eyed Jacks
12. Roma
13. Something Wild
14. A Taste of Honey
15. A Touch of Zen
16. The Tree of Wooden Clogs
17. Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown

I saw Jean Renoir's La Chienne last night. If you've seen Fritz Lang's Scarlet Street, then you'll pretty much will know the plot of La Chienne since both are based on the same novel. I liked both, with a personal preference for Lang's version though.

[Show spoiler]The ending on Lang's version is different then Renoir's, much more bleak.

[The Great Owl]

Originally Posted by iScottie

[Show spoiler]1. Le Amiche
2. Black Girl
3. Cameraperson
4. La Chienne
5. Chimes at Midnight
6. Dreams
7. The Executioner
8. Ingrid Bergman: In Her Own Words
9. Lone Wolf and Cub (all six movies)
10. Mildred Pierce
11. One-Eyed Jacks
12. Roma
13. Something Wild
14. A Taste of Honey
15. A Touch of Zen
16. The Tree of Wooden Clogs
17. Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown

Mildred Pierce and Something Wild for the win!

[Scottie]

Originally Posted by silverlakephil

I saw Jean Renoir's La Chienne last night. If you've seen Fritz Lang's Scarlet Street, then you'll pretty much will know the plot of La Chienne since both are based on the same novel. I liked both, with a personal preference for Lang's version though.

[Show spoiler]The ending on Lang's version is different then Renoir's, much more bleak.

I didn't know that. Thanks for that information.

Scarlet Street is the film with the drama involving paintings, right? If so, I've seen it.

[silverlakephil]

Originally Posted by iScottie

I didn't know that. Thanks for that information.

Scarlet Street is the film with the drama involving paintings, right? If so, I've seen it.

Yes, same plot elements.La Chienne is still worth watching. The B&W transfer looks good, plus as an extra, the Blu-ray has Renoir's first sound film, On purge bébé. I still need to see that one.

[The Great Owl]

Originally Posted by iScottie

Scarlet Street is the film with the drama involving paintings, right? If so, I've seen it.

Scarlet Street is one of the bleakest films ever made. The legendary Edward G. Robinson plays an "average frustrated chump" amateur painter who is taken advantage of by Joan Bennett and Dan Duryea.

Joan Bennett is quite gorgeous, and she somewhat resembles the contemporary singer, Katy Perry. Dan Duryea played smug jerkholes like nobody else could, but he was reportedly one of the kindest and coolest people in real life.

It's a great, great film noir, but it won't make you feel any better about the world.

Then again, I guess that most films noir don't.

[joie]

Originally Posted by iScottie

I try to stay up to date with watching all of the films released or announced to be released by Criterion on Blu-ray. As many of you know, I used to blind buy these films. However, for the past couple of years I've been opting to rent or stream the films instead (it saves me a lot of money, especially when I find most of them to have little replay value).

I've been lucky enough to see everything released from December 2008 (their start) until June 2016. Now I just need to get through my backlog and watch the remaining films already released or announced to be released.

Any of you see these? Any recommendations on the best ones to start with?

1. Le Amiche
2. Black Girl
3. Cameraperson
4. La Chienne
5. Chimes at Midnight
6. Dreams
7. The Executioner
8. Ingrid Bergman: In Her Own Words
9. Lone Wolf and Cub (all six movies)
10. Mildred Pierce
11. One-Eyed Jacks
12. Roma
13. Something Wild
14. A Taste of Honey
15. A Touch of Zen
16. The Tree of Wooden Clogs
17. Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown

Le Amiche is another study of the Italian upper class, with a touch of "alienation," and it is a coherent story. I have rewatched it once.

La Chienne is boring in comparison with Scarlet Street. I regret buying it.

Mildred Pierce is a very good melodrama. I saw it on DVD and will consider buying the Blu-ray if I want to rewatch it. Doubtful.

A Taste of Honey is fascinating. I have never wanted to rewatch it.

[belcherman]

Went to my local B&N to pick up Chimes at Midnight and had my 20% coupon cruelly rejected. "Criterion laughs at your 20% coupon, little man," scoffed the clerk. Well, not really. She was very nice if not very helpful. So much for membership having its benefits. Just about the only things I buy at B&N are Criterions and I don't buy enough to recoup my membership fee with the 10% member discount. It was good while it lasted.

So, only one Criterion for me in this sale. So many blu ray sales, finite funds.

[shadedpain4]

Originally Posted by belcherman

Went to my local B&N to pick up Chimes at Midnight and had my 20% coupon cruelly rejected. "Criterion laughs at your 20% coupon, little man," scoffed the clerk. Well, not really. She was very nice if not very helpful. So much for membership having its benefits. Just about the only things I buy at B&N are Criterions and I don't buy enough to recoup my membership fee with the 10% member discount. It was good while it lasted.

So, only one Criterion for me in this sale. So many blu ray sales, finite funds.

It's weird how different this is store to store. I've made 2 in store purchases this sale, each time with the mailer coupons, both times without issue or mention of the coupons.

I'm sorry not everyone is experiencing this. I buy more than 13 Criterions per year at B&N so the membership saves me money either way, but it's a shame that not everyone gets the same service.

[Purplenoon]

Originally Posted by senseabove

If y'all haven't watched Treme, I highly recommend it. I, personally, think it's better than The Wire.

Just bought Treme. Anxious to watch it. Glad to hear it's that good.

[silverlakephil]

Originally Posted by shadedpain4

It's weird how different this is store to store. I've made 2 in store purchases this sale, each time with the mailer coupons, both times without issue or mention of the coupons.

I'm sorry not everyone is experiencing this. I buy more than 13 Criterions per year at B&N so the membership saves me money either way, but it's a shame that not everyone gets the same service.

Could it be the coupon itself? I believe my previous mailer coupons mentioned that Criterions will not be honored in the fine print. I recently received a new batch in the mail (good until 12/24) and there's no mention of Criterions in the fine print for those. I may test my theory on the last day of the sale, but I think I pretty much got what I wanted.

[jmclick]

Originally Posted by The Great Owl

Scarlet Street is one of the bleakest films ever made. The legendary Edward G. Robinson plays an "average frustrated chump" amateur painter who is taken advantage of by Joan Bennett and Dan Duryea.

Joan Bennett is quite gorgeous, and she somewhat resembles the contemporary singer, Katy Perry. Dan Duryea played smug jerkholes like nobody else could, but he was reportedly one of the kindest and coolest people in real life.

It's a great, great film noir, but it won't make you feel any better about the world.

Then again, I guess that most films noir don't.

In his book "Alternate Oscars", writer Danny Peary rewrites the history of the Academy Awards by explaining his own personal choices for the categories of Best Picture, Best Actor, and Best Actress, from 1927/28 through 1992. In his opinion, Joan Bennett deserved the statuette in 1945 for her performance as Kitty "Lazy Legs" Marsh in Scarlet Street, which he considers to be the crowning achievement of her long, distinguished career.

Joan Bennett is my third favorite actress of all time, right behind Gene Tierney and Barbara Stanwyck, and I agree that her performance in Scarlet Street is note-perfect, although I think she was also superb in Me and My Gal (1932) opposite Spencer Tracy, and especially in the 1947 screen adaptation of Ernest Hemingway's The Short Happy Life of Francis Macomber, The Macomber Affair, an unfairly neglected film co-starring Gregory Peck and Robert Preston, which would make a fantastic addition to the Criterion Collection. The New York Times critic summed up her performance in Macomber as being "completely hydrochloric", and I think that was a fitting tribute to the *****y character that she created so memorably.

I had the honor of meeting Miss Bennett in Houston, Texas, in 1983. She was a startlingly tiny woman, quite gracious and still lovely at the age of 73, and she exuded star quality from every pore. Her career lasted more than half a century; it's a shame that she was so often taken for granted by filmgoers and critics alike. She deserved to win many accolades; it's shocking to me that she was never even nominated for any of them.

[belcherman]

Originally Posted by silverlakephil

Could it be the coupon itself? I believe my previous mailer coupons mentioned that Criterions will not be honored in the fine print. I recently received a new batch in the mail (good until 12/24) and there's no mention of Criterions in the fine print for those. I may test my theory on the last day of the sale, but I think I pretty much got what I wanted.

I think I have the same coupons, expiring on the 24th. There's no mention in the fine print that Criterions are among the long list of exclusions, but still no dice. In the past, they've over-ridden it for me, but not today. I wasn't going to argue for $4 -- 50% is still a good deal, but I would have been tempted to use both of my coupons.

YMMV, as they say.

[bwdowiak]

I stumbled onto Scarlet Street not knowing its reputation and not knowing anything about its plot. One of the most pleasant blind watch surprises ever. Really darn good.

Someone above asked about Here Comes Mr. Jordan... It is light and pleasant, but I much prefer Ride The Pink Horse for Robert Montgomery films in the collection. I had bought HCMJ and sold it after one watch.

Re: The Wire
I know I should have given it more of a chance, but I had a copy of the series in my possession and sold it after seeing only the first episode. Not a discussion for this thread as myself and others demonstrated last time the topic came up, but I just have a terrible time getting invested in a TV series.

[octagon]

Scarlet Street is very good, Woman in the Window is even better.

I expected to like Here Comes Mr. Jordan but was surprised by just how close to flawless I found it. That doesn't necessarily mean I would heartily recommend it to anybody and everybody as a blind buy. That sort of Capra-esque sentimentality isn't for everybody.

But just about every element falls perfectly into place.

What else...

Oh! Something of a sleeper for 'awesome black-and-white movies'...I watched Advise and Consent recently. Now, I'd seen it before including at a local revival theater a few years back so I went into it knowing it was a damn good movie. But I don't think I ever really noticed how freaking awesome it looks. It looks great overall but some of the night exteriors are just breathtaking.

That Otto Preminger fellow really knew his stuff.

(Including how to make two-and-a-half hours feel a lot shorter)

[Reddington]

Originally Posted by ravenus

It's a very good one to start with. It has philosophical chewing material, a sense of humor (bleak, with some slapstick mixed in) and even a bit of horror element. It has some of the most iconic images, including the get-up of the Reaper. Congratulate yourself on a wise decision

Thanks! Hopefully, I'll get some quiet time over the holiday weekend to watch it.

Originally Posted by Arch Stanton

Have you seen Sweet Smell of Success? It's the best looking black and white film I've ever seen.

I have not. But I'll be certain to make it a priority now. Thanks!

[fdm]

Originally Posted by bwdowiak

Re: The Wire
I know I should have given it more of a chance, but I had a copy of the series in my possession and sold it after seeing only the first episode. Not a discussion for this thread as myself and others demonstrated last time the topic came up, but I just have a terrible time getting invested in a TV series.

Yeah, I have a feeling I'm going to regret blind buying The Walking Dead seasons; think I need to watch at least one of them before I buy any more.

(The Wire, The Sopranos, etc who has time for all that stuff anyway, can barely keep up with what I got already. Let me re-phrase that: I can't even begin to keep up with what I got already. )

[Currently watching on disc Homeland s5, and next will probably be Game Of Thrones s5 & s6.]

[Ray Jackson]

Originally Posted by bwdowiak

I stumbled onto Scarlet Street not knowing its reputation and not knowing anything about its plot. One of the most pleasant blind watch surprises ever. Really darn good.

Someone above asked about Here Comes Mr. Jordan... It is light and pleasant, but I much prefer Ride The Pink Horse for Robert Montgomery films in the collection. I had bought HCMJ and sold it after one watch.

Re: The Wire
I know I should have given it more of a chance, but I had a copy of the series in my possession and sold it after seeing only the first episode. Not a discussion for this thread as myself and others demonstrated last time the topic came up, but I just have a terrible time getting invested in a TV series.

The Wire, perhaps more than any other television show I've ever seen, requires a long-term commitment in order for the magic to reveal itself.

Very few people I've ever spoken to have been "hooked" after the first episode...even after the first three or four...I know I wasn't.

But many of those same people end up viewing it as the greatest show ever made.

...it's top five for me, easily.

[jayembee]

Originally Posted by Ray Jackson

The Wire, perhaps more than any other television show I've ever seen, requires a long-term commitment in order for the magic to reveal itself.

Very few people I've ever spoken to have been "hooked" after the first episode...even after the first three or four...I know I wasn't.

But many of those same people end up viewing it as the greatest show ever made.

...it's top five for me, easily.

I wasn't hooked after the first episode. I was hooked after the first scene in the first episode: that cautionary tale of poor old Snotboogie.

[octagon]

Originally Posted by jayembee

I wasn't hooked after the first episode. I was hooked after the first scene in the first episode: that cautionary tale of poor old Snotboogie.

Got to. It's America, man.

Hooooooooked.

[Ray Jackson]

Originally Posted by octagon

Got to. It's America, man.

Hooooooooked.

Dammit!

...I was gonna post that.