The Criterion Collection

[P@t_Mtl]

Originally Posted by jcs913

Pat, I just read this and am very sorry for your loss. That's a very tough loss and I hope all gets better for you and the family...

Thank you, very nice of you

[drbikeshorts]

Originally Posted by JohnWayne

Quick question, do you guys peel off the blue sticker from the wrapper and stick it on the criterion case itself?

If it's an "approved by the director" type of sticker, I will peel it off and stick it inside the cover (such as for Two-Lane Blacktop or the Wes Anderson films).
For regular stickers, I just rip off the packaging and through it out.

[P@t_Mtl]

Originally Posted by Abdrewes

Yes, but thankfully it doesn't take itself too seriously. It also zipps along in an enjoyably linear rat tat tat way.

Yes that is true, it does move or feel moving very quickly. I really enjoyed it, it's one of those movie you start watching and you don't know what to expect but by the end get pleasanttly surprise by how much fun you actually had watching it. These type of moment in movie watching really stick with me

[drbikeshorts]

Originally Posted by Abdrewes

I just cracked open my Nikkatsu Noir set and I regret not doing so earlier. I wouldn't make the case that I am Waiting is a great film, nor is it a great noir, but it has its merits. First of all it has fair performances, although lead Yujiro Ishihara is pretty uninteresting, a predictable but sturdy plot and pretty good cinematography.

On a cold night, down at the docks, former boxer (Ishihara) meets a distressed night club singer (a canary whose lost its tune), he takes her in and allows her to wait tables at his restaurant. He tries to get through (via mail) to his brother over in Brazil, while her gangster boss tries to wrangle her back into her prior job.

Once can see the resolution coming a mile away, yet I was still fairly engaged. Koreyoshi Kurahara proved himself a capable genre craftsman in his first film and I'd like to see more of his work. It's not on par with the furious and incoherent Branded to Kill, but then again, what is?
On to the next one

Well, you won't regret getting Eclipse Series 28: The Warped World of Koreyoshi Kurahara either

[P@t_Mtl]

Originally Posted by drbikeshorts

My condolences to you.
If it's any consolation, I lost both parents in recent years and both suffered long, drawn-out (and painful, in my mother's case) declines before they eventually passed away.
I wished they could have passed quickly and relatively painlessly.

Thank you

It's been one of the thing that I have at least been thanking God, he probably did not have time to see what was happening and I hope did not suffer too much as well. What happen to your parents is just difficult as you see them slowly getting worst and you see them suffer for long period. The samething happen to my wife's grand father, its hard for them and difficult for us who are helpless in doing anything to make them feel better.

[P@t_Mtl]

Originally Posted by drbikeshorts

Well, you won't regret getting Eclipse Series 28: The Warped World of Koreyoshi Kurahara either

That is a very good set as well. When I got it I did not know much about Koreyoshi Kurahara except for the 1995 movie Hiroshima. I really enjoyed watching the movies in that set

[Abdrewes]

Originally Posted by drbikeshorts

Well, you won't regret getting Eclipse Series 28: The Warped World of Koreyoshi Kurahara either

I will get this one and the Oshima set come B&N50%

[Scottie]

Do you guys think that Criterion will ever release a Walter Hill film?

I just finished watching The Warriors and all I can say is wow. I wasn't sure how I was going to like it, but I absolutely loved it. I can definitely see how it is a cult classic. Also, I can't believe how young James Remar was in that film. I'm so used to how he looks on Dexter that I couldn't believe that it was him in this film!

I'm really looking forward to picking up The Driver and Hard Times via Twilight Time this summer.

[ElliesDad]

Originally Posted by Abdrewes

Well, this may sound trite but, life experience does change the way we look at movies. So talking about it makes sense. Initially we may only appreciate Chaplin films for their energy and antics, but later fall for their purity and timelessness. Furthermore, how will I view Wild Strawberries when I'm in my seventies?

Probably not a great deal differently than you do now. The bitter-sweet nostalgia of the Victor Sjostrom character, as he approaches the end of his life, is something that everyone, at any age, can instinctively relate to and appreciate. I'm closer to my seventies now than I am to my twenties (when I first saw the film) and can recall being no less affected by the sad reality and inevitability of mortality then than I was on seeing it recently. Some things just really do transcend age.

Originally Posted by BohemianGraham

My heart goes out to you P@t. I haven't lost any close relatives yet, but my favourite uncle currently has alzheimer's, and sometimes he can't even remember where he is.

[Show spoiler]

To get back to the subject of unsafe blind buys:
Hausu (love, love, LOVE the film, but seriously, I wouldn't recommend blind buying it)
BBS box set (was on the fence about this, but seeing as most people only buy it for 2-3 films out of the set, it can be a potential risk, I had no issues essentially blind buying it, as 3/7 films are top notch (although the best film was one that I've seen many, many, many times), 3/4 remaining films are pretty good, while only one film in the set is horrible)
The Tin Drum (I just couldn't get into it personally, glad I watched it, but even gladder I didn;t buy it)
Week End (I did blind buy it, but I can't say it's one of my favourite Godard films)
Lola Montes (also a blind buy for me, based of Peter Ustinov being in it, it's a fantastic film, but it's a film where you have to be in a certain mood to watch it)
Black Moon (so glad I watched it before I bought it, as it's another one I dropped from my wishlist)
Tiny Furniture
3 women
antichrist
insignificance
salo
solaris

So sorry for your loss Pat! Probably not much comfort at this point in time but it is true, sadly, that there are worse ways to lose a parent. I lost my father to Alzheimer's a couple of years ago and wouldn't wish the ordeal of dealing with that on anyone...Thank God we do usually have the strength and resilience to weather whatever life throws at us.

[P@t_Mtl]

Originally Posted by ElliesDad

So sorry for your loss Pat! Probably not much comfort at this point in time but it is true, sadly, that there are worse ways to lose a parent. I lost my father to Alzheimer's a couple of years ago and wouldn't wish the ordeal of dealing with that on anyone...Thank God we do usually have the strength and resilience to weather whatever life throws at us.

Thanks to everyone for you kind words, if I miss your post I am really, truly sorry for not replying to it properly. The thread is moving fast again today with lot's of new posts happening.

On the subject of blind buy, I think that blind buys are never a good idea but I am divided on Criterion.

First a blind buy can be a safe thing with Criterion due to the quality of the movies they release. You can be sure that you are not getting Twillight New Moon when you are getting one. I am not knocking Twillight I am just using it as example so if any fans of this series are in this thread don't kill me

Second I also think that blind buy for Criterion is a dangerous thing. The range of movies is so larger, so different in style that you can take a serious chance every time you go for a blind buy

[mrjohnnyb]

Originally Posted by The Great Owl

Risky blind buys, eh?

I am going to go out on a limb and name David Cronenberg's Videodrome as a risky blind buy, but not necessarily because of the movie itself.

The Criterion Main Menu screen for Videodrome, though... Oh, man...

I had seen Videodrome several times over throughout my life before Criterion got hold of it, so it was never a Criterion blind buy for me, but the menu screen surprised me. I thought to myself, "WTF?" I then started laughing. Finally, I thought, "WTF?", again.

For the people out there who did blind buy the Criterion release of Videodrome, what did you think that you were in for when you saw that main menu screen?

I thought, "WTF!"

[Page14]

Originally Posted by P@t_Mtl

Thanks to everyone for you kind words, if I miss your post I am really, truly sorry for not replying to it properly. The thread is moving fast again today with lot's of new posts happening.

On the subject of blind buy, I think that blind buys are never a good idea but I am divided on Criterion.

First a blind buy can be a safe thing with Criterion due to the quality of the movies they release. You can be sure that you are not getting Twillight New Moon when you are getting one. I am not knocking Twillight I am just using it as example so if any fans of this series are in this thread don't kill me

Second I also think that blind buy for Criterion is a dangerous thing. The range of movies is so larger, so different in style that you can take a serious chance every time you go for a blind buy

Most of the Criterions I've purchased so far have been blind buys ... and I've found each one that I've watched to be worthwhile in some way. That being said, I'm on the fence on whether to pull the trigger on any of the recently announced OOP titles. I feel like I'd like to buy them all (just to see what they're all about ... and also because, well, they're OOP), but without any sales prices going on, it gets to be a little pricey ... for a blind buy. ???

[P@t_Mtl]

Originally Posted by Page14

Most of the Criterions I've purchased so far have been blind buys ... and I've found each one that I've watched to be worthwhile in some way. That being said, I'm on the fence on whether to pull the trigger on any of the recently announced OOP titles. I feel like I'd like to buy them all (just to see what they're all about ... and also because, well, they're OOP), but without any sales prices going on, it gets to be a little pricey ... for a blind buy. ???

The OOP always become a serious problem for many. Due to price a lot of time you hold off on certain titles thinking I will get them later cause too many others I want now. Then they end up OOP and the prices become a serious issue quickly for those. To go for them or not, that is hard to say. So far myself ony one OOP I regret not going for when I should The Third Man. At the time I had the DVD and I figured I will keep that. Then the Blu-ray went OOP and I took too much time in making my mind up. The priced just quickly went to high and so I decided not to go for it but I regret it now.

[jasonjl]

Does anyone know when A Woman Under the Influence will get a release here in the US? They currently only have Region B from the UK.

[Lino11]

Well I lucked out and was able to get all three OOP releases I didn't have yet.

Army of Shadows and Le Circle Rouge were already on my about-to-get list and I was still able to get them at $30 each. I waited a few days and snagged Leon Morin, Priest at $35.

Only a few days later and these things are at like $80-$150 on amazon?? How the hell did I get so lucky?



I'm sure it's been said already, it's hard to keep up with this forum, but I guess this means we won't see an upgrade to Le Samourai anytime soon...?


(Also, can anyone recommend Le Doulos? It looks fantastic, worth the hunt?)

[Scottie]

Originally Posted by Lino11

Well I lucked out and was able to get all three OOP releases I didn't have yet.

Army of Shadows and Le Circle Rouge were already on my about-to-get list and I was still able to get them at $30 each. I waited a few days and snagged Leon Morin, Priest at $35.

Only a few days later and these things are at like $80-$150 on amazon?? How the hell did I get so lucky?



I'm sure it's been said already, it's hard to keep up with this forum, but I guess this means we won't see an upgrade to Le Samourai anytime soon...?


(Also, can anyone recommend Le Doulos? It looks fantastic, worth the hunt?)

Glad you got the titles before they really went up in price. I'm sure Le Doulos is worth it as there really isn't a bad Melville film from what I've seen so far! I'm still waiting for my copy to ship from Amazon.

I don't think Criterion lost the rights to ALL of the Melville films as there are still a few in DVD format that Criterion has in print. Also, Le Samourai was hinted at getting a Blu-ray release this year (via the 2013 New Years Newsletter)

[ultlife2013]

Adding to my Criterion Collection:



I now have 4 CC titles.

[Page14]

Originally Posted by P@t_Mtl

The OOP always become a serious problem for many. Due to price a lot of time you hold off on certain titles thinking I will get them later cause too many others I want now. Then they end up OOP and the prices become a serious issue quickly for those. To go for them or not, that is hard to say. So far myself ony one OOP I regret not going for when I should The Third Man. At the time I had the DVD and I figured I will keep that. Then the Blu-ray went OOP and I took too much time in making my mind up. The priced just quickly went to high and so I decided not to go for it but I regret it now.

Thanks P@t. I have the Third Man DVD also. While I would love to have the bluray, I'm not beating myself up over it because I don't. Then again, I didn't own a bluray player until after The Third Man went OOP, so it wasn't a decision I was forced to make (... that is, to buy the bluray over the DVD).

Peace to you P@t!

[metaridley]

Speaking of OOP titles, Chungking Express is an example of a movie I'd probably own if it wasn't ridiculously overpriced.

[metaridley]

Hmmm... my Nic Cage conversation didn't end up going anywhere... oh, well. I enjoyed making the posts.