The Criterion Collection

[ccg1978]

just added Rushmore and Paths of Glory to my Christmas list!

[Yami]

I'll be surprised if Criterion include as many viewing options as MoC do or the 100 page booklet but they probably will have Voices of Light and perhaps some other extras.

[blkhrt]

Originally Posted by Joe Dalek

You can always buy the Voices of Light CD and play it along with the MoC Blu-ray...

I am patient. I will hold onto my Criterion DVD until they announce a blu-ray, and then I will decide which one I want to get, especially since I would have to get a new player for the MOC version.

[italy12]

Originally Posted by Joe Dalek

You can always buy the Voices of Light CD and play it along with the MoC Blu-ray...

I did that with The Wizard of Oz and Dark Side of the Moon...

[ccg1978]

Originally Posted by ccg1978

it's obvious that most of the people in this thread are huge film buffs! I've started adding titles from the Criterion collection to my Netflix queue. I've watched about 10 and can say some have been hit or miss. Walkabout, La Haine, Paths of Glory, Hunger and Days of Heaven were great.

Down By Law, 8 1/2 not so much. So overall a I've enjoyed most of what I have seen. I realize I'm just delving into these films but are there any that are recommended by people in this forum?

Can anyone else respond? *bump*

[Scottie]

Originally Posted by ccg1978

Can anyone else respond? *bump*

Watch The Game and Traffic.

[italy12]

Originally Posted by ccg1978

Can anyone else respond? *bump*

Some of the "staples", if you will, include:

Paris, Texas
Days of Heaven
Seven Samurai
Charade
The Wages of Fear
The 39 Steps
The Lady Vanishes
The Rules of the Game
Army of Shadows
Le cercle rouge
Repulsion
Carlos
Stagecoach
The Thin Red Line
Night of the Hunter
Paths of Glory
Sweet Smell of Success
Three Colors: Blue, White, Red
12 Angry Men

lots more!!

[kndy]

Just for precaution since many of us take advantage of the B&N Criterion Collection sale...there was a data breach.

[BAMJoe]

Originally Posted by kndy

Just for precaution since many of us take advantage of the B&N Criterion Collection sale...there was a data breach.

Ughh...damn it people, life is a big enough pain in the ass as it is, can't we please not screw each other over.

[rkish]

Originally Posted by kndy

Just for precaution since many of us take advantage of the B&N Criterion Collection sale...there was a data breach.

Thanks kndy! I got flagged by my bank within the last month about "unusual usage" on my debit card. I wouldn't be surprised if this was the reason why.

[retablo]

Originally Posted by drbikeshorts

Can you elaborate a bit more on this?
Are Gaumont currently working on a new restoration?
MoC restored their own version and have provided it in both 20fps and a 24fps.
Again, this is the problem with Criterion - they should be letting their customers and fans know if they are working on this. Otherwise, many of us will jump on the MoC version...
As usual, this dilemma is a first-world problem

Well, if Gaumont is doing a full restoration, it will most likely best whatever presentation MOC ended up with.

[rock, stone]

Originally Posted by retablo

Well, if Gaumont is doing a full restoration, it will most likely best whatever presentation MOC ended up with.

I'll reserve judgement till they are both out, but I suspect that for a title like this whose releases that will have different soundtracks (among other things), this will be a rare instance where double dipping will be the best way to go.

[JHas]

Originally Posted by iScottie

Watch The Game and Traffic.

If you want to watch two of the worst films in the collection...

I would recommend everything Italy12 listed, also, I can't recommend "Kiss Me Deadly" enough.

[captveg]

Originally Posted by Lino11

Anyone know of a list, or maybe just off the top of your head, which Criterion DVD's are likely to *NOT* receive a blu-ray treatment?

Aside from OOP titles, Hoop Dreams was shot on SD video so a BD upgrade would be very unlikely. The Golden Age of Television set is unlikely since the source for the shows is so poor. I believe Fishing with John was also shot on SD video, but I don't know that for a fact.

[Scottie]

Originally Posted by JHas

If you want to watch two of the worst films in the collection...

I would recommend everything Italy12 listed, also, I can't recommend "Kiss Me Deadly" enough.

Everyone's entitled to their own opinions

[EddieLarkin]

Originally Posted by retablo

Well, if Gaumont is doing a full restoration, it will most likely best whatever presentation MOC ended up with.

What makes you say that? MoC worked directly from the Oslo print (the best surviving print of the film), and looking at the caps, they have gone above and beyond in making this look as good as possible. Indeed, in the booklet for the release, they have stated:

Throughout the restoration process, work was performed carefully to ensure that the film's original grain structure remained unaffected. Although every effort has been made to present The Passion of Joan of Arc in the highest quality possible for this release, some picture issues remain, in keeping with the age and condition of the original film materials. Some incidences of damage or film wear proved too difficult to remove without creating unwanted digital artefacts, so these areas have been left intact.

So I can't image they will have produced anything less than the best possible result. I'm sure the Gaumont restoration will look different, but I doubt it will be any better.

*information above taken from criterionforum, here: http://criterionforum.org/forum/view...1892&start=125

MoC decided not to wait for Gaumont to restore the film, I imagine due to their previous experience with Die Nibelungen. The film is finally being released this month something like a decade after FWMS first announced their intention to restore it.

Practically every year since MoC's founding they said Die Nibelungen would be released that year, only for it to be delayed by the restorers again and again, and it has only now materialised in their 8th year as DVD/BD producers.

Maybe it's just me, but possibly waiting until the 2020s for a restoration that will almost certainly be no better than the one that is available next month, is a bit daft. Obviously, I don't realistically expect it to take that long, but it's not like the length of time is unprecedented.

For a film like Passion of Joan (9th best ever film according to S&S/BFI!), I don't think it's worth waiting.

[joie]

So I got "The Tin Drum" DVD, first printing 2004, from a library. This has a runtime of about 142 minutes, about 20 minutes less than the recently announced DVD/Blu-ray, which should appear on Jan 15 of next year.

On the supplements disc, under "Deleted Scenes," Criterion writes:

These rare deleted clips and scenes were found attached to the feature negative during the telecine transfer. Although they have no soundtrack, director Volker Schlöndorff provides a newly recorded audio commentary discussing them and the reasons for their eventual removal from the film.

At the outset of the director's commentary, he says:

[inaudible] the cut of the picture was some ten, fifteen, maybe twenty minutes longer than the verson released. But I was the one who made those cuts for reasons of rhythm and storytelling, and, therefore, I never felt like adding them back in again. The shorter version in my case is the director's cut. ...

Are we getting a new "director's cut" next year? Criterion calls it a " ... complete version, approved by director Volker Schlöndorff." Does it simply add the scenes deleted from the previous cut? Did the director forget why he made the cuts, earlier? Some of that cut material isn't faithful to the novel.

Also, the film to be released has spine number 234. Is that the same spine number as the 2004 release? Even though they are different films? And a different transfer?, because Criterion writes of a , "New, restored high-definition digital transfer of the complete version ... ."

[ParticleDan]

Originally Posted by iScottie

Everyone's entitled to their own opinions

The original comment may have been a bit harsh, but there's an element of truth in it. Personally I don't think it makes that much sense to seek out a boutique label like Criterion/Kino/Twilight Time/Olve.... and then just stick to the more 'mainstream' titles they've released.

Some titles I'd recommend:

- 3 Women
- 400 Blows
- Christmas Tale
- Amarcord
- Au Revoir Les Enfants
- Beauty and the Beast
- Belle de Jour
- Certified Copy (one of my favourite films of all time!)
- Complete Jean Vigo
- Everlasting Moments
- Le Havre
- Kes
- La Jetee/Sans Soleil
- Last Year at Marienbad
- Lonesome
- Metropolitan
- Music Room
- The Organizer
- Paths of Glory
- Samurai Trilogy
- Still Walking
- Summer Hours
- Summer Interlude
- Three Colors
- Vanya on 42nd St
- Walkabout
- Wings of Desire

[EricJ]

Originally Posted by captveg

Aside from OOP titles, Hoop Dreams was shot on SD video so a BD upgrade would be very unlikely. The Golden Age of Television set is unlikely since the source for the shows is so poor.

More specifically, the source for TGAoT was taken from 80's TV PBS-station re-airings of the original kinescopes, with host segment and interviews.
If they had located the original film kinescopes, maybe, but that's not the case here.

As for my perpetual hopes for Bergman's "The Magic Flute", I know that was made for Swedish television, but was shown theatrically in the US....Er, wasn't it?
(And although they use the later 50's Hal Roach sources for the otherwise-PD "WC Fields: 6 Short Films", that's on film too, isn't it, not syndicated video?)

[Scottie]

Originally Posted by ParticleDan

The original comment may have been a bit harsh, but there's an element of truth in it. Personally I don't think it makes that much sense to seek out a boutique label like Criterion/Kino/Twilight Time/Olve.... and then just stick to the more 'mainstream' titles they've released.

I haven't gotten around to watching many of my Criterions, so I was just going by the ones I enjoyed the most (from what I've seen).