The Criterion Collection

[hoytereden]

Originally Posted by senseabove

If I can find an affordable copy, I may spring for it. Seems to be out of print, though with plenty of second-hand copies available. I wouldn't expect Criterion to release the complete set, but if they'd hinted at, say, some Robson/Lewton films, I would probably hold off for that. Someone over at criterionforum seems to suggest that around the time of Cat People teasers they hinted at a Robson/Lewton film coming out, but doesn't say what that hint was.

If I had to guess a Robson title, I'd say The 7th Victim.


Yeah! I was surprised. Given that folks mostly talk about the Tourneur collaborations, which do, admittedly, have a bit more visual flair, the two Robson ones I saw have something a little more sinister and subtle to them. I'm very curious to see Ghost Ship, now.

While I Walked With a Zombie is my favorite of the Lewton titles, close behind it are The Leopard Man, Isle of the Dead and Ghost Ship. I really like the last one since I'm a big fan of Richard Dix and it's a showcase for him.

[jayembee]

Regarding the Lewton horror films, my preference is for the Wise films, followed by Tourneur, with Robson last. Not that I don't like Robson; I just prefer the other two's films.

(1) Curse of the Cat People
(2) The Body Snatcher
(3) I Walked with a Zombie
(4) Cat People
(5) The Leopard Man
(6) The Seventh Victim
(7) Bedlam
(8) The Ghost Ship
(9) Isle of the Dead

[theater dreamer]

I'm watching the Studio Canal 4K restoration of Akira Kurosawa's Ran, and without having seen prior releases as a point of reference, I think the film looks beautiful, even on my laptop (yes, I know, I need to finally decide on my hardware modified player for region free). I'd love it if Criterion could re-acquire the rights for this. I'd buy it in a heartbeat, and would gladly loan it to friends so they could see his last epic.

[silverlakephil]

I just watched the French release of Douglas Sirk's Written On The Wind (region free) and it looks great. I can only hope Criterion releases it here in North America since a sole release by Universal seems highly unlikely.

[octagon]

Originally Posted by AaronJ

Thank you very much. Believe me: It's nice to BE back.

Try to control yourself this time. I have 72 hours in the pool.

[AaronJ]

Originally Posted by octagon

Try to control yourself this time. I have 72 hours in the pool.

LOL

I don't know what to tell you, but that sounds like a l-o-n-g time.


As to July titles, it looks like I'm getting everything but Lost America, and that's a really good movie! Any of us who grew up in the 80s understand that fully. But I don't think I can get that and the rest. I mean, Stalker is obvious. The Rossellini trilogy is obvious. L'Argent is obvious.

I've actually never seen L'Argent -- I want to see it, it will be a blind-buy. I'm sure it will work out.

[kaykaysud]

Watched Pan's Labyrinth from Criterion's Guillermo Del Toro Trilogy set.



The film's a rather odd - but very effective and coherent - blend of fantasy, horror and wartime drama set during the onset of Francoist regime in Spain, and follows a little girl Ofelia who embarks on a rather unlikely adventure at the unlikeliest of places - a military outpost commanded by Captain Vidal, a sadistic loony who also happens to be her stepfather.

Counting the spoilery prologue out, the film begins with Ofelia accompanying her very pregnant mother to the said outpost and once they reach there, it's made very clear that the Captain cares only about annihilating the rebel factions and having his heir born male. And apart from her mom herself, Ofelia finds another maternal figure in Mercedes, the domestic help for the Captain who also covertly assists the rebels. One night, she encounters a fairy and is led to the titular labyrinth, where she meets a mysterious humanoid being who calls himself Faun, and claims that Ofelia herself happens to be the princess of a fantastical netherworld, reincarnated as a human who should complete a set of death-defying tasks to attain immortality and reclaim her former title. Meanwhile, her mom's health gets worse and her stepdad grows more homicidal with each passing day. And then there are those rebels, hiding in the woods and waiting for the right moment to strike the army.

Del Toro revels in bringing his inner child (who seems rather crazed ) out with all those fantasy segments - stick insects that metamorphosise into fairies, an oversized frog with a hilariously unusual way to die, magical chalks that draw portals, the Faun himself and that horrific Pale Man sequence. However, the real world that Ofelia inhabits is quite a terrible place to live, and Del Toro doesn't flinch a bit when it comes to portraying the brutalities therein. There are many moments that flat out establish Vidal as such an evil force - much bigger than all those monstrous fantastical creatures combined - that even his troubled backstory and the rare slivers of humanity within him do not justify his deeds. The film also shows how hard it is to deal with such repulsive individuals without resorting to violence

[Show spoiler] - something that Mercedes gloriously does when captured

. And then there's another interpretation of the whole story

[Show spoiler]- thankfully refuted by the filmmaker himself - that the fantasies were products of Ophelia's own imagination, which makes the end less cathartic and downright tragic

. The performances throughout are spot-on, with Ivana Banquero, Sergio Lopez, Maribel Verdú and Doug Jones shining in the principal roles of Ofelia, Vidal, Mercedes and Faun repectively.

The dark, moody and oftentimes dreadful atmosphere that permeates the film is reinforced further by its production values, and Criterion, with participation from GDT himself, recreates those aspects on their Blu-ray release of this wonderful film. The video - a re-graded version of the 2k theatrical DI - is lush with color and detail, and the lossless 5.1 audio is very active and dynamic in that it lends itself very well to the multiple genres incorporated into the film. There are special features aplenty, featuring most of the extras from the previous New Line release as well as a few made exclusively for this one. And last but not the least, those English subtitles are perfect.

[lemonski]

Originally Posted by jayembee

Regarding the Lewton horror films, my preference is for the Wise films, followed by Tourneur, with Robson last. Not that I don't like Robson; I just prefer the other two's films.

(1) Curse of the Cat People
(2) The Body Snatcher
(3) I Walked with a Zombie
(4) Cat People
(5) The Leopard Man
(6) The Seventh Victim
(7) Bedlam
(8) The Ghost Ship
(9) Isle of the Dead

The only one I couldn't really get into was Bedlam, Boris Karloff and his powdered wig was too weird. All the rest are fantastic, each in their own way. If I had to choose a favourite, on one day it might be I Walked with a Zombie.

[MassiveMovieBuff]

Just watched Rumble Fish and the review on this site definitely wasn't lying. The transfer is stunning and the 2.0 audio option packs a hell of a punch. This is a great release.

[The Great Owl]

Originally Posted by kaykaysud

Watched Pan's Labyrinth from Criterion's Guillermo Del Toro Trilogy set.

I've had the Pan's Labyrinth stand-alone Blu-ray in my unwatched stack for several months now.

I have to get my courage up to watch that giant toad scene again. *shudders*

When I was four or five years old, I used to have these nightmares about a giant frog in my backyard, and I would wake up covered in sweat. When I saw Pan's Labyrinth at the theater, movie brought back all of those memories in a big way.

[Roninblues]

Originally Posted by theater dreamer

I'm watching the Studio Canal 4K restoration of Akira Kurosawa's Ran, and without having seen prior releases as a point of reference, I think the film looks beautiful, even on my laptop (yes, I know, I need to finally decide on my hardware modified player for region free). I'd love it if Criterion could re-acquire the rights for this. I'd buy it in a heartbeat, and would gladly loan it to friends so they could see his last epic.

The best looking one so far.....

[The Great Owl]

I just used a 20% off coupon to order Rumble Fish from Barnes & Noble for $22.39.

I was going to wait this one for the next big sale, but the price is right today.

[bornthisway]

I need a flash sale soon! Preferably after Ghost World...

[jshaide]

Originally Posted by bornthisway

I need a flash sale soon! Preferably after Ghost World...

The BN sale should be in July, so that's the next best thing.

[xxnomad]

Got the Leopard from a user for an amazing price.

Turns out it's not the digipack but that's okay. I'm not missing much besides a thicker booklet, right?

Film is too good not to own anyways.

[theater dreamer]

I seem to remember some negative comments about the color timing. For a film done over three decades ago, thus far, I'm very happy with this release.

Originally Posted by Roninblues

The best looking one so far.....

[shadedpain4]

Originally Posted by theater dreamer

I seem to remember some negative comments about the color timing. For a film done over three decades ago, thus far, I'm very happy with this release.

If i see the word "teal" in a post that's my signal to stop reading and skip to the next post.

[MifuneFan]

Ran's color is no doubt altered from how it originally looked, but it still looks fine. It looked great projected at a screening I saw a year or two ago too.

[SammyJankis]

Jonhathan Demme passed away at 73.

The cause was esophageal cancer and complications from heart disease, according to a source close to the family. He was originally treated for the disease in 2010, but suffered from a recurrence in 2015, and his condition deteriorated in recent weeks.

RIP.

Looks like I'm watching Something Wild tonight.

[MifuneFan]

Wow that's sad. I didn't realize he was that old too. RIP