The Criterion Channel

[regeyer]

Originally Posted by regeyer

Thanks for the review. I really like Disney's remake, with Danny Glover and Tony Danza. I'm a little skeptical to watch the original, as I've heard the special effects are really poor. But after reading your review I'll give it a go.

BTW, I love watching baseball games, but I also love Baseball movies. My favorite is Field of Dreams which, ironically, really isn't about baseball, but is about fathers and sons.

I watched it last night. I enjoyed it very much. It's hard to believe that they could pull that off without once showing an angel. And I really liked the cameo appearances of stars playing themselves.

[DaBargainHunta]

Originally Posted by regeyer

I watched it last night. I enjoyed it very much. It's hard to believe that they could pull that off without once showing an angel. And I really liked the cameo appearances of stars playing themselves.

Glad you enjoyed it. I watched Patty Hearst last night (see previous post). Not sure if I'll have time for one more tonight. If this is it for me, Angels in the Outfield was easily my favorite out of all the movies I watched that are expiring. I wasn't expecting that to be the case, but it's so light, joyous, and just plain fun to watch.

[fdm]

I squeezed in two expiring Criterion Channel films last night/this morning: The Day Of The Locust and Hollywood Shuffle. Locust was pretty bad, but I watched all the way through. Shuffle was fairly good, some pretty funny parts, glad I finally saw it anyway.

The previous night I watched Look At Me (Jaoui). A bit more to my liking, more or less.

I will try to squeeze in a couple more yet, the other Jaoui film (The Taste of Others) and Patty Hearst, and perhaps another one or two if time allows.

Angels in the Outfield I recall seeing on tv a long (long long) time ago. I'll probably just give it a watch next time it shows up on TCM. Or pull out the dvd I never quite got around to.

[DaBargainHunta]

Originally Posted by fdm

Angels in the Outfield I recall seeing on tv a long (long long) time ago. I'll probably just give it a watch next time it shows up on TCM. Or pull out the dvd I never quite got around to.

If I have the movie physically, even if it's just DVD, I don't make it a priority on Criterion Channel if it's expiring - Hollywood Shuffle, for example. Too many expiring movies every month and only so much time to watch them.

[fdm]

I try that too, but sometimes one forgets.

Ended up squeezing in The Taste Of Others and Brother John (with Sidney Poitier), both quite good.

Could have kept going since CC was still allowing 3/31 content at 2am (local time, 4am eastern) or so, but decided to call it a night.

Now back to my filled up dvr for a while… And a few discs.

[DaBargainHunta]

Originally Posted by fdm

Could have kept going since CC was still allowing 3/31 content at 2am (local time, 4am eastern) or so, but decided to call it a night.

That is definitely YMMV. The expiring movies usually last past midnight, but they have definitely disappeared earlier than 4 a.m. in previous months.

If I have to watch a movie on the final day of the month, I make sure to start around 8 p.m. or so to give myself plenty of time.

[fdm]

I was kinda surprised and glad, as I got a late start.

The wife (now working from home) last night informed me that I can't watch anything loud until after 10pm when she finishes up. So looks like I will be getting the 10pm to 6am shift for a while. (Although she informed me of that around 6:30pm and then the internet failed shortly thereafter for the rest of the night so I got a one day reprieve. Her paycheck won't though...)

[DaBargainHunta]

Originally Posted by fdm

I was kinda surprised and glad, as I got a late start.

The wife (now working from home) last night informed me that I can't watch anything loud until after 10pm when she finishes up. So looks like I will be getting the 10pm to 6am shift for a while. (Although she informed me of that around 6:30pm and then the internet failed shortly thereafter for the rest of the night so I got a one day reprieve. Her paycheck won't though...)

Roku has an earpiece you can connect to your remote that should cancel out all noise. I have no idea how good it is though.

[fdm]

Originally Posted by DaBargainHunta

Roku has an earpiece you can connect to your remote that should cancel out all noise. I have no idea how good it is though.

Actually that's a pretty good idea,

But we're somewhat bandwidth limited so I don't want to do anything in the way of streaming more than a minute here or a minute there while she's working.

(Also I've never been particularly fond of listening to movies on headphones, although with CC's lack of real multichannel audio I suppose it's not such a big sacrifice compared to most other movie/tv watching activities. And once you give that one inch... )

[RCRochester]

I need to post in this thread more, it's tough because the Streaming threads don't get much traffic so I forget about it.

Anyway, I watched A PATCH OF BLUE last night which expires at the end of April. I was apprehensive at first because I was worried it might be a bit cloying seeing as it's about a blind girl falling in love with a black man. And it sort of is at some points, but overall it was very honest, watchable and engrossing. Sidney Poitier is always a class act and although her character's extreme naivete could be a bit annoying at times, Elizabeth Hartmann was good too. Shelley Winters won an Oscar for playing type as the obnoxious and abusive mother. There were a few scenes in the movie involving the blind girl's home life that were surprisingly uncensored, particularly in terms of language, for a film of its era.

[regeyer]

I use a Roku to watch the Criterion Channel. Does anyone know how I can delete movies listed under "Continue Watching"? It just keeps building and is a real pain. I also connect with the Criterion Channel on my laptop, so if there's a way to delete things that way I can do that as well. Thanks.

[DaBargainHunta]

Originally Posted by regeyer

I use a Roku to watch the Criterion Channel. Does anyone know how I can delete movies listed under "Continue Watching"? It just keeps building and is a real pain. I also connect with the Criterion Channel on my laptop, so if there's a way to delete things that way I can do that as well. Thanks.

No way to delete them that I know of. Just go to the end of the movie and they should disappear. If you're already at the end, I'm not sure. Maybe try "rewinding" and "fast-forwarding" to the end again?

[thebalconyfool]

Originally Posted by regeyer

I use a Roku to watch the Criterion Channel. Does anyone know how I can delete movies listed under "Continue Watching"? It just keeps building and is a real pain. I also connect with the Criterion Channel on my laptop, so if there's a way to delete things that way I can do that as well. Thanks.

This bothers me as well, it can really build up. I even wrote them about it once asking if they could implement a delete option. The only thing you can do is fast forward close to the end of the movie and then let the last couple of minutes play (more is better) normally until the very end. That usually works for me, but not always. Just fast forwarding won't do it. Also, this only seems to work for me when forwarding on the Roku app on my TV, not on my laptop.

[regeyer]

Originally Posted by DaBargainHunta

No way to delete them that I know of. Just go to the end of the movie and they should disappear. If you're already at the end, I'm not sure. Maybe try "rewinding" and "fast-forwarding" to the end again?

Originally Posted by thebalconyfool

This bothers me as well, it can really build up. I even wrote them about it once asking if they could implement a delete option. The only thing you can do is fast forward close to the end of the movie and then let the last couple of minutes play (more is better) normally until the very end. That usually works for me, but not always. Just fast forwarding won't do it. Also, this only seems to work for me when forwarding on the Roku app on my TV, not on my laptop.

Sometimes this works and sometimes it doesn't. A real pain. And no excuse for not fixing it.

[RCRochester]

Originally Posted by thebalconyfool

This bothers me as well, it can really build up. I even wrote them about it once asking if they could implement a delete option. The only thing you can do is fast forward close to the end of the movie and then let the last couple of minutes play (more is better) normally until the very end. That usually works for me, but not always. Just fast forwarding won't do it. Also, this only seems to work for me when forwarding on the Roku app on my TV, not on my laptop.

That's the only solution I found in the past. Now I just let all of the films play right through to the very end and I don't get anything popping up anymore. It's usually not a problem because most of the older films on Criterion don't have a lot of credits anyway.

Just wanted to say I watched The Harder They Come this past weekend, a great film that is ending its run at the end of the month. Subtitles wouldn't work for me when using Airplay to stream to my Apple TV but I was able to understand most of the dialogue because I have a good ear for it, but most people are going to want to use them because that Jamaican slang can be tough to understand.

I also watched Wanda for the first time. Another gem from a great era of independent filmmaking.

[DaBargainHunta]

Starring and directed by Sidney Poitier, I've always been curious about Uptown Saturday Night because it seems like such a different role for him - and it is. He and an almost unrecognizable Bill Cosby play more streetwise characters. (Cliff Huxtable this ain't!) This is a generally light, fun comedy about two friends chasing criminals to retrieve a stolen lottery ticket.

Sidney and Cosby honestly seem like odd fits for material like this. Therefore, it comes as no surprise to find out that this was actually written with Redd Foxx and Richard Pryor in mind (Pryor does appear in a cameo), and I think it would've been a much better movie with them in the lead roles. Sidney tried, but this was probably outside his wheelhouse, and I've never, ever found Cosby funny. Harry Belafonte doesn't help matters either by spoofing Don Corleone from The Godfather. His character was jarring, distracting, and completely took me out of the movie. It also would've been better if 20 minutes had been shaven off the running time (and it's not a long movie to begin with!) - particularly those never-ending church scenes with Flip Wilson that kept going and going and going...

Still, despite many flaws, I ultimately liked Uptown Saturday Night. I didn't love it, but I liked it. It has its charms.

DaBargainHunta's Decree: As usual with The Criterion Channel, 99% of the content is at least "good."

[DaBargainHunta]

Ever since seeing The Main Event with Barbra Streisand and Ryan O'Neal a few years ago, I've wanted to go back and watch their earlier pairing, What's Up, Doc? I was not disappointed. This is pure absurdity from beginning to end, and I loved every minute of it.

I've never considered Ryan O'Neal a particularly great actor - when I first saw Barry Lyndon, I honestly confused him with Buddy Lembeck from Charles in Charge (the acting was about equivalent!) - but I can't deny that he picks his roles well and is somehow appealing in them despite not being all that appealing himself. In this movie, he plays an uncharismatic bore, which suits him perfectly. Meanwhile, Babs is at her cutest and pitch-perfect as the character who sets all of these events into motion.

It's probably pointless to describe the premise for something so zany and madcap, but I'll try anyway: At a San Francisco hotel, Babs's character takes an unusual interest in Ryan O'Neal, while several guests travel with the same suitcase - and mix-ups and switcheroos ensue all around.

Unless I missed something, Babs's motivations are never explained - she remains a cipher throughout the film - but that ultimately doesn't matter. What really drives the movie are the characters and situations - such as an absolutely amazing chase scene near the end and the hilariously winking final line of dialogue.

DaBargainHunta's Decree: What's Up, Doc? is pure joyful zaniness from beginning to end and an absolute blast to watch.

[DaBargainHunta]

Samuel Fuller's 1959 film The Crimson Kimono begins with a stripper being murdered. On stage, she portrayed a geisha, which was patterned after a painting she commissioned and had hanging up. The two cops assigned to the case - Joe Kojaku (James Shigeta) and Charlie Bancroft (Glenn Corbett) - are best friends and war veterans. Kojaku is of Japanese descent but was born and raised in the U.S. Their first step, of course, is to look for the painter that inspired the stripper's act. Finding and getting close the artist, Chris (Victoria Shaw), leads to its own set of complications...

The murder mystery element of the story is fairly pedestrian. Truthfully, the case they're investigating is almost beside the point. What the movie is really interested is in the relationships with the two detectives have - with each other, the beautiful painter helping them solve the murder, racial issues, and the country as it was at that time.

The Crimson Kimono was ahead of its time when it came out in the late-1950s, not only in its exploration of race and identity, but by casting actual Japanese actors in these roles instead of, say, putting Mickey Rooney in embarrassing yellowface.

DaBargainHunta's Decree: Like Chris's painting, something is missing that prevents it from becoming a "great movie" - but it is a good and unique one that's worth watching.

[regeyer]

Does anyone know how to reach Customer Service at The Criterion Channel? I'm having a problem with one movie - Shaft. The English subtitles are not displaying at all. As a deaf person I rely on the subtitles. I'm sure it's an easy fix, as everything else on the channel - at least the movies - has subtitles/captioning. Thanks.

[DaBargainHunta]

Originally Posted by regeyer

Does anyone know how to reach Customer Service at The Criterion Channel? I'm having a problem with one movie - Shaft. The English subtitles are not displaying at all. As a deaf person I rely on the subtitles. I'm sure it's an easy fix, as everything else on the channel - at least the movies - has subtitles/captioning. Thanks.

Unfortunately, a small handful of movies on The Criterion Channel still don't have subtitles - I ran into the same issue with What's Up, Doc? the other night. I think it happens occasionally with these movies the Channel only gets for a month or two.

But to answer your question:

https://www.criterionchannel.com/contact/support

Unfortunately, with Shaft expiring soon, they may not get back to you in time.

I really wish subtitles were supported on The Criterion Channel 100% across the board. Not that it's much comfort, but the situation is at least far better now than it was in the first few months.