The Criterion Collection

[Reddington]

Originally Posted by steel_breeze

Anyone else SLIGHTLY bugged that the highest quality "feature presentation" version of ON THE WATERFRONT on disc is in the 1.66:1 ratio? Lol, it's not the end of the world AT ALL, but for a purist like me it just bugs me ever so slightly every time I go to watch it... like right now. ON THE WATERFRONT was originally framed for the new 1.85:1 widescreen ratio, but kept the whole Academy aperture safe for unmasking to 1.37:1, for all theaters still not equipped for widescreen gates... and to Criterion's credit, both these ratios (1.85:1 and 1.37:1) are available as "extras" on the bonus disc. But the 1.66:1, as far as I know, was created entirely by Criterion for this release as a "best of both worlds" kinda thing. It has the highest bit-rate of all the versions... and I'm certainly more than happy to have it looking so good... but, y'know... it didn't actually ever exist in this form. Okay, mini-rant over; I'm gonna go enjoy the hell outta the 1.66:1 version of this flick.

The short "aspect ratio" video essay supplement suggests that it was likely exhibited in 1.66:1 in some theaters - especially as Columbia indicated it could be projected from 1.33 to 1.85. But yes, a Criterion decision for home video.

https://youtu.be/s7-aMi4Rr-4

[nitin]

Originally Posted by Cremildo

From Guillermo del Toro's Twitter:

Mexican Bunuel boxset would be release of the year in a year already filled with great releases!

[RCRochester]

Originally Posted by Reddington

The short "aspect ratio" video essay supplement suggests that it was likely exhibited in 1.66:1 in some theaters - especially as Columbia indicated it could be projected from 1.33 to 1.85. But yes, a Criterion decision for home video.

[Show spoiler]
https://youtu.be/s7-aMi4Rr-4

I don't know if it was strictly a "Criterion decision". Sony has released this film themselves in several international markets all with the 1.66 ratio. The Criterion is the only release that also includes the 1.33 and 1.85 versions.

[MifuneFan]

Criterion posted an update yesterday to their efforts to help fund Art-house/independent theaters. Netflix donated 75K to it. They are now at 543K, which is amazing.

Dear Criterion Community,

At the start of this month, when we launched the Art-House America Campaign to help independent, local movie theaters survive this challenging time, thousands of you stepped up, giving what you could or spreading the word. You got the campaign off to a fantastic start, and we are grateful to every one of you.

Within days, we were joined by an array of filmmakers and passionate film lovers, including Christopher Nolan and Emma Thomas, Atom Egoyan, Wes Anderson, Lulu Wang, Barry Jenkins, Edward Norton, Alexander Payne, Ari Aster, John Waters, Greta Gerwig, Noah Baumbach, Bill Hader, Sofia Coppola, and Richard Linklater, whose generous public support raised the campaign’s profile. In a little over two weeks, more than 3,500 donors had contributed over $400,000 to the campaign.

By Friday evening, when the application deadline passed, 185 theaters had applied for aid, far more than initially expected. The first 52 approved grants are already on their way, but the high volume of applications makes it critical that we exceed our goal and raise as much as we can before the end of the campaign on April 30.

Today, thanks to an extraordinary donation of $75,000 from Netflix, the campaign is within $25,000 of its original $500,000 goal. We are so close—95 percent of the way there! Will you help put us over the top? Even if you are not in a position to give right now, you can still contribute by sharing the Art-House America Campaign page on social media and celebrating local, independent art-house movie theaters. We’re going to want them back when all this is over.

Thank you for helping in any way you can!

Peter Becker, Jonathan Turell
& the Criterion and Janus teams

DONATE

[Ray Jackson]

Has anyone here ever bought one of the Criterion t-shirts?

What’s the quality like?

How do they fit?

The description for the men’s classic shirt says, “Heavyweight jersey cotton...Don’t like your t-shirts fitted? This shirt is for you.”

...I don’t know what that means.

[The Great Owl]

The site review here states that differences between the new transfer of Army of Shadows and the previous transfer are inconsequential. This indicates that I can just stick with my 2011 Blu-ray.

This is one of my all-time favorite movies, though, so I'm still debating on whether or not to spring for the update on general principle.

[Reddington]

Originally Posted by Ray Jackson

Has anyone here ever bought one of the Criterion t-shirts?

What’s the quality like?

How do they fit?

The description for the men’s classic shirt says, “Heavyweight jersey cotton...Don’t like your t-shirts fitted? This shirt is for you.”

...I don’t know what that means.

Ray, haven't bought one but "fitted" usually means a slightly tighter cut where the waist is not as wide as the chest. A "classic" fit means the shirt it is about the same width all the way down and is therefore a bit looser (i.e., the traditional T-shirt cut).

[Reddington]

Originally Posted by The Great Owl

The site review here states that differences between the new transfer of Army of Shadows and the previous transfer are inconsequential. This indicates that I can just stick with my 2011 Blu-ray.

This is one of my all-time favorite movies, though, so I'm still debating on whether or not to spring for the update on general principle.

Do you already have a back-up copy? If not, then $20 at the next B&N event seems like a reasonable proposition.

[CinemaBlu]

Originally Posted by Cremildo

From Guillermo del Toro's Twitter:

Awesome! This news, along with the fact that the World Cinema Project recently worked on Los Olvidados, pretty much guarantees that Criterion will at the very least release that film.

Hopefully Viridiana and Simon of the Desert also get BD releases soon.

[Knaldskalle]

Originally Posted by CinemaBlu

Awesome! This news, along with the fact that the World Cinema Project recently worked on Los Olvidados, pretty much guarantees that Criterion will at the very least release that film.

Hopefully Viridiana and Simon of the Desert also get BD releases soon.

I wouldn't mind if more people had the chance to see Susana (1951), one of Bunuel's most... impish movies.

[mande2013]

Originally Posted by The Great Owl

The site review here states that differences between the new transfer of Army of Shadows and the previous transfer are inconsequential. This indicates that I can just stick with my 2011 Blu-ray.

This is one of my all-time favorite movies, though, so I'm still debating on whether or not to spring for the update on general principle.

DvdBeaver detected a difference while CriterionForum.org suggested they're exactly the same, so I don't know who to believe. I suppose in the former case, viewing on different systems could have conceivably accounted for the minor discrepancies discerned between the two discs. Who knows.

[mande2013]

Originally Posted by Reddington

Do you already have a back-up copy? If not, then $20 at the next B&N event seems like a reasonable proposition.

I really don't see the point of double dipping within formats unless a film receives a new release that's a massive improvement over what you already have (i.e. Criterion version of Stalker vs. the Artificial Eye). Unless you're a completist I suppose.

I'm presuming people didn't replace their 2010 and 2009 blu-rays of Breathless and The 400 Blows, respectively, with dual format editions.

And the backup copy argument seems moot assuming Army of Shadows isn't in danger of going out of print again.

[Reddington]

Originally Posted by mande2013

I really don't see the point of double dipping within formats unless a film receives a new release that's a massive improvement over what you already have (i.e. Criterion version of Stalker vs. the Artificial Eye). Unless you're a completist I suppose.

I'm presuming people didn't replace their 2010 and 2009 blu-rays of Breathless and The 400 Blows, respectively, with dual format editions.

And the backup copy argument seems moot assuming Army of Shadows isn't in danger of going out of print again.

It was more of a nod to those of us who buy two copies of our absolute favourite films, just in case...

[regeyer]

Originally Posted by mande2013

I really don't see the point of double dipping within formats unless a film receives a new release that's a massive improvement over what you already have (i.e. Criterion version of Stalker vs. the Artificial Eye). Unless you're a completist I suppose.

I'm presuming people didn't replace their 2010 and 2009 blu-rays of Breathless and The 400 Blows, respectively, with dual format editions.

And the backup copy argument seems moot assuming Army of Shadows isn't in danger of going out of print again.

I tend to agree, unless there is a significant improvement. I have the MGM version of Rebecca on Blu-Ray, but decided to pick up the Criterion release because of the reported improvement. To my eyes, there was no improvement. It was subtle at best. If I had to do it over again I would not have purchased the Criterion release. I should note that Rebecca is amongst my favorite films, which is why I purchased the Criterion release. If it had not been amongst my favorites I would not have even considered it. For example, I did not upgrade my MGM Blu-Rays of Spellbound or Notorious. I realize the Criterion releases of these are reported bto show more improvement than the release of Rebecca. But these films are not amongst my favorites, so an improvement isn't all that important to me.

[borntorun_intheusa]

Originally Posted by Ray Jackson

Has anyone here ever bought one of the Criterion t-shirts?

What’s the quality like?

How do they fit?

The description for the men’s classic shirt says, “Heavyweight jersey cotton...Don’t like your t-shirts fitted? This shirt is for you.”

...I don’t know what that means.

I wonder the same. I was interested in the Janus Films long sleeve but I'm hoping the logo and design are bigger than they are in the photo.

[blurayisnice]

Originally Posted by Ray Jackson

Has anyone here ever bought one of the Criterion t-shirts?

What’s the quality like?

How do they fit?

The description for the men’s classic shirt says, “Heavyweight jersey cotton...Don’t like your t-shirts fitted? This shirt is for you.”

...I don’t know what that means.

The description gives off the hipster shirt vibe:

[The Great Owl]

Originally Posted by Ray Jackson

Has anyone here ever bought one of the Criterion t-shirts?

What’s the quality like?

How do they fit?

The description for the men’s classic shirt says, “Heavyweight jersey cotton...Don’t like your t-shirts fitted? This shirt is for you.”

Good question.

I weighed in at 158 pounds this morning. I'm 48 years old, and this is the lowest that I've weighed since...sixth grade.

I'm presently wearing medium-size T-shirts from most brands and loose-fitting size 32 jeans. If I decide to buy a Criterion shirt, then I'll probably buy true to size, but I don't want any surprises.

Judging from the photos in the post above mine, I get the impression that a Criterion shirt in my normal size may make me look like Sanjuro. That's not a bad thing.

[Mike0284]

YouTube

[Ray Jackson]

Originally Posted by The Great Owl

Good question.

I weighed in at 158 pounds this morning. I'm 48 years old, and this is the lowest that I've weighed since...sixth grade.

I'm presently wearing medium-size T-shirts from most brands and loose-fitting size 32 jeans. If I decide to buy a Criterion shirt, then I'll probably buy true to size, but I don't want any surprises.

Judging from the photos in the post above mine, I get the impression that a Criterion shirt in my normal size may make me look like Sanjuro. That's not a bad thing.

I’m 6’1”...180-185 lbs...depending on the week and my snack situation.

I dig Levi 511s and t-shirts that don’t make me look like a 90s skater dude.

At the same time, I’m not into muscle shirts.

Finding that perfect t-shirt that’s neither too baggy nor too tight fitting is so damn tough.

...it’s taken years off the end of my life.

[Ray Jackson]

Zatoichi set is now out of stock pretty much everywhere.

Maybe some small online site has it.

But none of the major players do.

And with everything going on right now, I’m not confident that will change by this summer.

...I always want what I can’t have.