The Criterion Collection

[dancerslegs]

Heck with it, I'll join in this month.

Wish List
Woyzeck (1994)
Twilight/Szürkület (1990)
Days of the Eclipse/Дни затмения
The Cremator/Spalovač mrtvol (from recent 4K restoration)
Forest of the Hanged/Pădurea spânzuraților

Predictions
None of the above (unfortunately)

[Gacivory]

Originally Posted by DaBargainHunta

Not sure if you mean me, but I could have sworn I read an article that said The Irishman wasn't getting a theatrical release. Either the source I read was incorrect or I somehow missed the word "wide" in the headline "not getting a wide theatrical release." Glad to be wrong. No anti-Netflix agenda here (after all, I did say Roma was miles ahead of Oscar winner Green Book).

Netflix's decisions do continue to frustrate me and I've decided to drop my steady membership and just subscribe for 1-2 months out of the year, but I am not one of those Luddites who thinks a movie should be barred from winning an Oscar because it was made by a streaming company.

It wasn’t directed at you, to the other poster. It seemed like he just wanted to start the conversation to then get to a Netflix complaint. I don’t mind Netflix, because some of those movies wouldn’t get made otherwise. I’m more frustrated by studios essentially ignoring non tentpole movies and letting the mid budget movie die. Netflix movies get smaller releases. I’m sure the headline was purposely misleading. I wish AMC would get past their Netflix bias and show movies. I don’t understand why they demand the 90 days, but allow some movies like Dragged Across Concrete that got a theatrical and digital release same day. I’m sure there have been others, but it seems like AMC takes a stand against Netflix. Also why can’t Netflix just let the 90 days happen for their more prestige films. I’m also probably biased and have a couple of theaters that show Netflix movies so I never have an issue seeing them in theaters. I don’t care about what streaming movies are and if they should be up for Oscars.

[JulesAndJim]

My predictions:

The Plea (1968)
María Candelaria (1943)
Kaagaz Ke Phool (1959)
The Cremator (1968)
It All Came True (1940)

[bonehica]

Originally Posted by traths

The best part about that movie is the dialogue.

My favorite part, after watching it recently for the first time, was hearing this:

[Show spoiler]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p9E4t3VqL_M

And immediately thinking of this, a scene from one of my favorite movies of all time:

[Show spoiler]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WxP4CRW7XB0

Mind. Blown.

[andantelise]

Speaking of Roma, I'd like to see more Mexican cinema on the label. I know there are a couple already on there, but I'd like more obscure/ hard to get titles (La Llorona from 1933, for example).

[themp3000]

Going to hope for what I always hope for on Criterion announcement day, Come and See. Sigh. One day, one day.

[theater dreamer]

I don’t have anything against Netflix. I’ve been a longtime subscriber, and I never have difficulty finding something interesting to watch when I feel like streaming for the night. I’ll discover a documentary that piques my interest, maybe an old show or movie that I’ve not seen in a long while, and a good deal of the new content they are providing, either new releases they’ve simply acquired streaming license for, or programming they are actually creating (like Hulu and Amazon) is quite welcome, indeed. Stranger Things, Narcos, The Handmaid’s Tale, House of Cards, etc-bingeworthy additions to my tv rotation.

That being said, I do not like that they refuse to offer physical releases for films like Roma. The whole “you’ve got to subscribe to see it” thing becomes old fast. I have every Best Picture winner that’s available on blu-Ray (save for Tom Jones, if my memory serves correct-and that will be rectified soon). I’m also working on owning all the Best Picture nominees. One of the things I want to write about are the individual years in film, comparing current events at the time of these releases against the films, themselves. Well, I want Roma on my shelf, and I’d be shocked if a new Martin Scorsese flick with De Niro, Pacino, Pesci, Anna Paquin and Harvey Keitel doesn’t nab a plethora of noms, including one for the top prize. I want the physical media release with all the extras.

What Netflix fails to understand is that a good number of people wanting to own these releases on blu-Ray and UHD are already Netflix subscribers. By forcing people to subscribe to see the movie, they are not gaining new members-I would argue that they are alienating long time supporters. And, they are costing themselves revenue. It’s not an either-or proposition for me: they can continue to get my monthly subscription fee, as they have for years, and, get money from me for physical releases.

Netflix likely views someone like me as a dinosaur. Well, maybe they’re right. But this dinosaur spends more money on entertainment than 99% of their other subscribers. That I guarantee. In terms of monies spent, this dinosaur is a T Rex, and before that damned asteroid came along, the T Rex was the king of the jungle! They would be wise not to marginalize those of us that spend big. My arms might be little, but they reach into my back pocket, pull out a credit card, and type in numbers just fine.

[DaBargainHunta]

Isn't Criterion rumored to be releasing Roma or was that either wild speculation or already debunked?

[perrinjuve]

Wishlist for December:

Come and See
Roma
Irreversible
After Hours
Happiness
Lars Von Trier's E Trilogy
Riget
Dersu Uzala
Eyes Wide Shut
Hard Eight (and pretty much every PTA film)

Predictions for December of the above

Roma
After Hours

I would love Come and See the most, but Criterion disappoints me every month by not releasing it. It is a good sign that a 2K restoration in France was just released. Hopefully, this means Criterion, Kino, Eureka! or Arrow Academy snap it up within the next few months for a way overdue release.

Have a sneaky feeling that we are finally getting After Hours and Roma would be a lovely Christmas present.

[145gtw]

Come and See
The Mirror
Dogville
Le hussard sur le toit
À Nos Amours (upgrade)
Diva

[nitin]

Roma isn’t a Netflix original btw, they bought the distribution rights after the film was completed and then bid on.

[nitin]

Also I rewatched The Thin Red Line via the Criterion blu and boy was I previously wrong about this one!

It’s the only Malick (outside of his last 3 which I am still yet to see) that previously did not click with me but I was much more on its wavelength this time. It’s still a little rambling and unfocused but I was especially enthralled with the last 1/3 after the bunker is taken, which is the section that seems to be the most different to other war films and particularly unforgettable to me.

And good lord John Toll’s ground level cinematography is something to behold here, incredible work from him.

[ravenus]

Originally Posted by nitin

Also I rewatched The Thin Red Line via the Criterion blu and boy was I previously wrong about this one!

It’s the only Malick (outside of his last 3 which I am still yet to see) that previously did not click with me but I was much more on its wavelength this time.

Whaaaat?! You mean TRL didn't click with you and The New World did?

I saw it at the cinema in its year of release and was totally blown away. Here was a film that genuinely captured the fear and disconnect of the individual soldier, and it's brilliant contrast between natural beauty and the brutality of combat. For me it thoroughly surpassed the "other" war film of that year.

[hanz0]

wishlist

A Better Tomorrow (1986)
A City of Sadness (1989)
Akira Kurosawa (boxset)
Antarctica (1983)
Days of Being Wild (1990)
Eat Drink Man Woman (1994)
Hard Boiled (1992)
Memories of Murder (2003)
Sonatine (1993)
The Killer (1989)
The Hole (1998) (Ming-liang Tsai)
Wong Ka-wai (boxset)

[145gtw]

Originally Posted by hanz0

wishlist

A Better Tomorrow (1986)
A City of Sadness (1989)
Akira Kurosawa (boxset)
Antarctica (1983)
Days of Being Wild (1990)
Eat Drink Man Woman (1994)
Hard Boiled (1992)
Memories of Murder (2003)
Sonatine (1993)
The Killer (1989)
The Hole (1998) (Ming-liang Tsai)
Wong Ka-wai (boxset)

Takeshi Kitano being entered into the collection would be magnificent.

[koberulz]

Originally Posted by theater dreamer

What Netflix fails to understand is that a good number of people wanting to own these releases on blu-Ray and UHD are already Netflix subscribers. By forcing people to subscribe to see the movie, they are not gaining new members-I would argue that they are alienating long time supporters. And, they are costing themselves revenue. It’s not an either-or proposition for me: they can continue to get my monthly subscription fee, as they have for years, and, get money from me for physical releases.

Even if they only offered physical through a store they ran that required a Netflix account to access, it'd be a start.

I want Hush on Blu, dammit.

[AnamorphicWidescreen]

-The Thin Red Line is a masterpiece. I didn't appreciate this too much when I first saw it on DVD years ago, and felt it dragged. However, when I re-watched it more recently on Blu - I really enjoyed the film (I've noticed that in many cases, I need to re-watch a film I'm initially lackluster about in order to really appreciate this). The philosophical reflections about war & suffering were very moving; the action sequences were solid as well. I definitely felt this was more "cerebral" than most other war films I've seen, and I mean that as a compliment.

- Come and See is amazing, and one of the best war films I've seen. However, it is very disturbing & tough to get through.

[Show spoiler]One one of the most realistic sequences I've seen in any movie is when the young soldier (the lead) experiences extreme but temporary hearing loss, due to the bombing/gunfire. And, when this happens - the sound is intentionally muffled in the film, so that the viewer pseudo-experiences this as well - brilliant!

I haven't caught this since the old DVD around 10-12 years ago, so it would be great if the CC would pick this up & release it on Blu. I've never owned the DVD, and as far as I know it's OOP.

[Doctorossi]

Originally Posted by perrinjuve

Have a sneaky feeling that we are finally getting After Hours

That'd be ace.

[belcherman]

Originally Posted by traths

The best part about that movie is the dialogue.

My first exposure to The Sweet Smell of Success was via the movie Diner. I had never heard of TSSoS before then, but there's a character in Diner that claims to have memorized all of the dialog in TSSoS and goes around randomly spouting lines from that film. So, I had to seek it out and have loved it ever since.

There's really nothing that's not perfect about the film. The dialog crackles with memorable lines and the two leads give career defining (or re-defining) performances. Tony Curtis as the oleaginous Sidney Falco, the all-American hustler who'll do anything to get ahead, and Burt Lancaster as JJ Hunsecker, the master puller of strings who finds that there are some strings he can't pull. I love Lancaster's performance, it's full of quiet menace. I don't think he ever raises his voice or even gets out of his chair, but you know he's a powerful and dangerous man. I think this film was a turning point in his career where he began to take on more thoughtful, mature roles.

I'm a big James Wong Howe fan, and I'll sit through otherwise forgettable movies just to watch his work, but TSSoS is not forgettable and he does a great job of capturing a specific mood of New York City. It's interesting to contrast his noir-ish vision of New York City here, where it was shot on location, with his picture post-card vision of New York City in Bell, Book and Candle, shot on a Hollywood sound stage one year later.

I don't think enough credit is given to the direction of Alexander Mackendrick. Mackendrick is best known for directing some of the great Ealing Studios comedies, but those films only give a hint of the brilliance he would achieve with this film. Sadly, he only directed a few films after this and nothing came close to its level of perfection.

And of course, the music. Not just the great Elmer Bernstein score, but also the jazz pieces contributed by Chico Hamilton. What a combination!

That's why this is my favorite Criterion film.

[Doctorossi]

Originally Posted by hanz0

Akira Kurosawa (boxset)
Wong Ka-wai (boxset)

Let's save these until Criterion is doing UHD.

That said, Criterion... any time you want to start...