The Criterion Collection

[Burt Lancaster]

BRD Trilogy upgrade makes me hopeful for an upgrade of The Adventures of Antoine Doinel box set. I own the Artificial Eye Blu-ray set, it is pretty good overall, though each film could use a fresh scan. And I'm irritated those wonderful films have no US blu release.

[Scottie]

July 2019 pre-orders are live on Amazon

[theater dreamer]

Originally Posted by StarDestroyer52

Same. It would be an epic month if Pandora's Box and The Lady Eve would come out in the same month.

My head would explode if both those got upgrade announcements at the same time.

Since I'm about to go region free (ordering my player within this next week), I wouldn't need to be all that particular about where I'd get Pandora's Box from, as I don't see any of my friends chomping at the bit to get into Pabst or Louise Brooks. I likely wouldn't need to lend it out. Should MoC issue it, it would pair nicely with my Diary of a Lost Girl. However, if Criterion issued both, I'd double dip on Diary, and pick up Pandora's Box. There would be a great deal of overlapping on the extras, but there seems to always be one or two unique to a release, and I'd want them all (which would, of course, necessitate owning both Criterion and MoC releases for Pandora's Box and Diary of a Lost Girl). Additionally, being able to play the disc anywhere, and lend the movies out, should a friend's curiosity be piqued, would be definite pluses.

Pabst is worth double dipping on. His films need a greater appreciation in the states, even among classic film lovers. Now that TCM is having Alicia Malone host the TCM Imports segment on weekends, I'm hoping works from Pabst, Murnau, Dreyer and von Sternberg, and foreign films, in general, will get higher profiles. I'll be watching beginning this weekend to see what they do. I know films from Ingmar Bergman, Jacques Tati (God, I need to get into him, already), Jean-Pierre Melville and Keisuke Kinoshita have already been in rotation, several of which are premiers for the station.

Originally Posted by MifuneFan

I don't see why anyone should be upset about an OOP title coming back in print..How is allowing more people to get the chance to enjoy the film on BD a bad thing? Because it might lessen the value, and/or rarity of your release? Give me a break. I hope Criterion can license as many OOP Twilight Time titles as possible. A title like Leave Her to Heaven for instance badly needs a re-release.

Hear, hear! I've got 34 Twilight Time blu-rays. A good number of them are now out of print. If somebody like Criterion acquires rights to these films, and that means more people get to enjoy the movies I already own, fantastic! If the Criterion issue substantially improves on my copy, I'll eventually buy the new release. If their 1984 issue includes both soundtracks, I'll have no reason to hang on to the Twilight Time copy. That can be donated to my library so more people can enjoy it. Am I going to lament the fact that Criterion's new release devalued my out of print copy? LOL, no. I enjoyed the Twilight Time release immensely. I got my money's worth out of it, and it would be time for it to find a new home. I want Leave it to Heaven, as I love Gene Tierney (Laura being one of my absolute favorite noirs). But I'm not going to go overboard buying the OOP Twilight Time release from somebody charging an exorbitant price. I've got it saved on my DVR, and there it shall stay until somebody provides me with an affordable option.

Originally Posted by BluRayBuddy98

Are Klute and BRD trilogy worth checking out? I’m seeing everyone go crazy over them but haven’t ever heard of them.

I just started getting into Fassbinder, so I cannot comment on the trilogy beyond its reputation, but Klute is absolutely fantastic. Jane Fonda got a lot of crap for her anti-war activism during Vietnam, but her skills as a dramatic actress are beyond question. She gives one of her best performances in Klute, and the film, itself, is outstanding. Fonda didn't shy away from the subject matter. From a certain perspective, it's a distant relative to the Pre-code era: the general treatment and objectification of women, strong sexual themes, yet powerful female protagonists.

Klute came out in 1971; while Hollywood censorship was changing in certain ways, with the end of the Hays Code and the implementation of the MPAA rating system (Think Bonnie and Clyde's more overt, realistic depiction of gun violence in 1967, as an example), frankness about sexuality was slow to come along. It had only been eight years since Jayne Mansfield disrobed in Promises...Promises!, and even that raised quite an uproar. I would imagine the ideals of prostitution and women that were assertive about their sexuality still made the general public a tad uncomfortable in 1971. Yet, Fonda's performance is unflinching. Klute is a welcome addition to the Criterion Collection.

For the record, I'll be buying both it and the BRD Trilogy.

Originally Posted by StarDestroyer52

It and baseball are the only reasons I have cable. I haven't yet seen As You Desire Me. The other Garbo's I've yet to see are The Joyless Street, The Single Standard, Romance, Inspiration, As You Desire Me, The Painted Veil, Conquest, and Two-Faced Woman.

Originally Posted by The Grey Wolf

I have seen them all except "Inspiration" which I can't find on DVD or the internet.
You never know someday somebody might find one of her lost films in the garage or the attic.

I checked to see what I had yet to watch on the DVR from TCM's showing of Garbo's films to start the month. Conquest is one of them, along with Queen Christina, A Woman of Affairs, Anna Karenina and Mata Hari. I've got my work cut out for me, but every one of the films I've seen her in has resonated with me. The final scene of Camille just punched me in the gut.

Originally Posted by AwkwardBoner

Really pleasantly surprised to see 1984. Never seen it but I reread the book recently. Still one of my favorites.

I can unequivocally recommend the theatrical 1984. That's one worthy of a blind buy when Criterion releases it.

I'm baffled that John Hurt didn't get even an Academy Award nom for this. Actually, I'm flummoxed that Hurt never took home a statue. I've not yet seen The Elephant Man (that's the first import I'm gleefully popping in when my region free player gets hooked up), but his bravura performance in Midnight Express was clearly deserving. I'd have been more than okay with a tie from that year; Christopher Walken just killed it in The Deer Hunter. The roulette scene with De Niro gave me nightmares.

Originally Posted by javy

I haven't seen anything by Fassbinder, and The BRD Trilogy sounds very interesting to me so I just might start there.

In for Klute.

"Hi, my name is Bill. I'm a Fassbinder newbie."

Put me down for Ali: Fear Eats the Soul as an immersive introduction to his style. As has already been alluded to several times on blu-ray.com, it's Fassbinder's riff on Douglass Sirk's All That Heaven Allows. The dramatic tension in Sirk's film comes from the age discrepancy between Jane Wyman and Rock Hudson's characters, as well as the gap in their socioeconomic standings; Fassbinder's film places a greater emphasis on the cultural differences between Emmi (Brigitte Mira) and Ali (El Hedi ben Salem). Fassbinder's lyrical side is on full display in scenes between Emmi and Ali, while his disgust is palpable in scenes where the xenophobia of Emmi's family and co-workers come into the frame.

I admit to being a bit overwhelmed by Ali, even though I knew going in what to expect, thematically. I'm hyper-sensitive when it comes to prejudice in any form, and had a visceral reaction to a few of the scenes. But I loved it so much that I didn't hesitate to grab The Bitter Tears of Petra von Kant as a blind buy during the last Flash Sale. I'll be getting Ali during the next Barnes & Noble sale, as I not only want to own it, but want to go back and study it.

I can already tell I'm going to love Fassbinder's body of work. Forget, for a moment, his flourishes as an auteur. Forget that he worked at a near breakneck pace, amassing over forty credits as a director by the time he died at age 37. Fassbinder was an artist with something to say; he's also infinitely compelling as this complex dichotomy-an extreme risk taker in his personal life, yet the consummate professional on the set. It's been suggested that Ali: Fear Eats the Soul looks somewhat outdated, but I didn't notice any visual patina, as I was completely absorbed by the narrative, and the performances.

Originally Posted by ShellOilJunior

Nineteen Eighty-Four is the most terrifying work of fiction I've read.

The line that gives me chills: "Power is not a means, it is an end."

The movie is a welcome addition to the collection.

I'm always looking for dystopian fiction that's on the same level as Nineteen Eighty-Four. A few of my favorites: Huxley's Brave New World, David Karp's One and The Scarlet Empire by David Parry. The latter two don't get nearly the attention they deserve for being great.

It is terrifying, and eminently relevant right now with what's going on in our country. I'm not wanting to invite a political discussion, but there are frightening parallels.

While it's not truly a dystopian work, per se, as George Lucas has stated the film is more a commentary on our surrender to commercialism and corporate interests, THX1138 has always felt a hell of a lot like 1984, to me; the omnipotent, oppressive "Big Brother" presence that dehumanizes inhabitants. The mandatory use of drugs, repressed sexuality. Watching 1984 and THX1138 back-to-back would make for a heck of a study. Add in another John Hurt work, V For Vendetta, and the next morning, the dysfunction in Washington won't seem so bad.

Originally Posted by jshaide

****! That would be AWESOME.

3 by Lee Set!

ThrLEE.

Originally Posted by ShellOilJunior

That's a lot of joints.

"Fo' shizzle, my nizzle."

So much, so, that Snoop Dogg just showed up grinning like the Cheshire Cat.

[theater dreamer]

As for the announced films, I know nothing about The Baker's Wife, or Europa Europa (though the synopsis of this one, in particular, interests me). I have plenty of time to read up on, and examine the discussion here, before they go live.

As I alluded, I already own 1984 (and Do The Right Thing), but I expect both releases will represent substantial upgrades, necessitating my buying them. And Fassbinder's trilogy is a no brainer, for me. I've wanted to see The Marriage of Maria Braun for some time.

All in all, July is going to be a wallet breaker.


"I'm not a wealthy man, but I know what a worthy double dip is."

[Arawn]

Everyone's saying that 1984 will be an upgrade, but what was wrong with the TT disc?

[latehong]

Originally Posted by Arawn

Everyone's saying that 1984 will be an upgrade, but what was wrong with the TT disc?

Nothing's "wrong." It's just that Criterion will use a new 4K restoration of the film and add some supplements.

[Jaymole]

Originally Posted by latehong

Nothing's "wrong." It's just that Criterion will use a new 4K restoration of the film and add some supplements.

For me, if they do not include both soundtracks, it is a major plus for the TT release.

[Reddington]

Originally Posted by Jaymole

For me, if they do not include both soundtracks, it is a major plus for the TT release.

An important point. A brilliant film that I’ll double-dip in any event as I want to see the Deakins-approved restoration. Would have been amazing if Criterion could have got the Peter Cushing version from 1954 as an extra.

[ShellOilJunior]

Criterion could've included a short interview with Jon Mulvaney on Emmanuel Goldstein. A missed opportunity.

[Akibiyori]

Originally Posted by theater dreamer

Pabst is worth double dipping on. His films need a greater appreciation in the states, even among classic film lovers. Now that TCM is having Alicia Malone host the TCM Imports segment on weekends, I'm hoping works from Pabst, Murnau, Dreyer and von Sternberg, and foreign films, in general, will get higher profiles. I'll be watching beginning this weekend to see what they do. I know films from Ingmar Bergman, Jacques Tati (God, I need to get into him, already), Jean-Pierre Melville and Keisuke Kinoshita have already been in rotation, several of which are premiers for the station.

TCM has already shown a lot of Pabst (both Brooks silents, 3 Penny, Kameradschaft, and Westfront, even one of his American films - pretty much everything that is available) and I don’t think the other guys need any more exposure than they already have (all pretty thorough as well.)

Von Sternberg made Blue Angel but the guy was essentially an American director, spoke unaccented English, and made American films in Hollywood. Almost all of his stuff has already been on the channel (including his awful MGM for hire work in the mid-late 30s.)

You make it sound like TCM doesn’t show a lot of this stuff but they do. Nearly all of Kurosawa one month a decade ago, Truffaut about five years ago, Most of the Bergman set save the earliest films, most of Ozu has been on the channel, that’s just the big stuff, I can’t tell you how much of the Criterion Collection I’ve seen on TCM, also including the not on disc stuff known about since the Hulu days.

[CQD84]

Has Criterion ever released an IFC title before? If so, I hope that WILDLIFE (one of the best movies of 2018) gets a Blu-ray release by the end of the year. Oddly, it doesn't have a physical media release here in the U.S. yet.

The movie is so good that I'd even settle for a barebones Blu-ray release.

[Xtempo]

Originally Posted by Jaymole

For me, if they do not include both soundtracks, it is a major plus for the TT release.

They better. I've only heard the Eurthymics one and it kinda felt out of place and didn't know about the other soundtrack until now. If they don't I might have to track down the TT. Wished I knew about that release before.

[BluProofie]

Originally Posted by CQD84

Has Criterion ever released an IFC title before? If so, I hope that WILDLIFE (one of the best movies of 2018) gets a Blu-ray release by the end of the year. Oddly, it doesn't have a physical media release here in the U.S. yet.

The movie is so good that I'd even settle for a barebones Blu-ray release.

They have with Personal Shopper and Clouds of Sils Maria. Shout! apparently has a deal with IFC to release their films, but the lack of a Wildlife blu leads me to believe it might be with Criterion.

If you can’t wait, the UK release is Region A compatible.

[Jaymole]

Originally Posted by Xtempo

They better. I've only heard the Eurthymics one and it kinda felt out of place and didn't know about the other soundtrack until now. If they don't I might have to track down the TT. Wished I knew about that release before.

I saw this in the theaters back in 1984 with the Eurthymics soundtrack. I remember before the titles came on it was just a black screen with the song "Sexcrime" playing like an overture.

[chidecki]

Klute has been on my most wanted list forever, thank you Criterion!

[theater dreamer]

Originally Posted by Akibiyori

TCM has already shown a lot of Pabst (both Brooks silents, 3 Penny, Kameradschaft, and Westfront, even one of his American films - pretty much everything that is available) and I don’t think the other guys need any more exposure than they already have (all pretty thorough as well.)

Von Sternberg made Blue Angel but the guy was essentially an American director, spoke unaccented English, and made American films in Hollywood. Almost all of his stuff has already been on the channel (including his awful MGM for hire work in the mid-late 30s.)

You make it sound like TCM doesn’t show a lot of this stuff but they do. Nearly all of Kurosawa one month a decade ago, Truffaut about five years ago, Most of the Bergman set save the earliest films, most of Ozu has been on the channel, that’s just the big stuff, I can’t tell you how much of the Criterion Collection I’ve seen on TCM, also including the not on disc stuff known about since the Hulu days.

I know the channel does show all those guys. Many of the films and directors you mentioned are on my DVR, or have been recently, taped from TCM. By more exposure, I meant that I'd like to see these movies played in slots where they'd get more viewership. Prime time, occasionally. Most of the movies and filmmakers I'm referring to are played on Sunday mornings, or in the wee hours of the morning where, unless a person is purposely looking for them, or they're an insomniac, they're not going to see these films. Bergman's The Passion of Anna was shown on April 1st at 3 am CT. Michelangelo Antonioni's Blow-up on February 19th at 11pm CT. Pabst's Pandora's Box played at 11 pm CT. Gustaf Molander's version of A Woman's Face, one of Ingrid Bergman's films before she came to America, played at midnight CT.

I've watched TCM religiously for the last five years, looking at every single film that's being played on their schedule. I'm not proposing that these foreign films take over the prime time slots. But mixing in the occasional Bergman, or Ozu, on prime time might just spark some interest where there wasn't before simply because the viewer didn't know to look for them. I know that when I'm looking at my HBO, Showtime and Starz listings, I'll often watch a movie I wasn't looking for simply because it showed on my Directv schedule menu, and the synopsis looked interesting.

[dkelly26666]

Originally Posted by CQD84

Has Criterion ever released an IFC title before? If so, I hope that WILDLIFE (one of the best movies of 2018) gets a Blu-ray release by the end of the year. Oddly, it doesn't have a physical media release here in the U.S. yet.

The movie is so good that I'd even settle for a barebones Blu-ray release.

They've released quite a few, actually, including Lars von Trier's "Antichrist". As well as "Clouds of Sils Maria", "Personal Shopper", "Tiny Furniture", "A Christmas Tale", "Gomorrah", "Hunger", "Summer Hours", "Everlasting Moments", "Che", "The Secret of the Grain", and quite a few others.

[dancerslegs]

Originally Posted by Scottie

July 2019 pre-orders are live on Amazon

Not my favorite month. The Pagnol is probably the most appealing for me. The Pakula has amazing atmosphere, but is definitely my least favorite of his "Paranoia Trilogy". As for the Lee, it has a powerful theme, but there's not really much directorial skill here--even the outdoor shots feel stagebound. The Fassbinder I'm totally lukewarm on. 1984 is, of course, a timeless work of literature. But I always found the Radford adaptation uninspired.

Oh well. Can't have a sensational month every time. (June will be one of my favorite release months ever.)

[yoloswegmaster420]

1984 spine has changed to #984

[Mr. Yellow]

Ah, the wait for Godzilla continues.