The Criterion Collection

[hoytereden]

Originally Posted by SammyJankis

The Conversation is Coppola and Hackman's best.

I remember when it came out post-Watergate and how it really captured the paranoia the country was feeling after all the revelations of the Watergate Hearings. Isn't it amazing that here we are, nearly 40 years later, and it's more topical than ever!

[The Great Owl]

Here is my review of Taxi Driver.

It took me long enough to see this movie, but I now have a new favorite Martin Scorsese film. (This is not saying much, because Scorsese movies have never really been my cup of tea, but I do believe that this is one incredible film.)


I am happily ignoring all of the above posts about The Conversation until I get a chance to see it, but the discussion is great to see!

(Apologies for the side road off of Criterion-relevant discussion, by the way.)

[SammyJankis]

Originally Posted by The Great Owl

Here is my review of Taxi Driver.

It took me long enough to see this movie, but I now have a new favorite Martin Scorsese film. (This is not saying much, because Scorsese movies have never really been my cup of tea, but I do believe that this is one incredible film.)

What? This just baffles me. I figured you had seen this one multiple times by now. It seems to be one of those films that was a gateway for cinephiles into "serious" films. I know it was for me.

Glad you loved it. It's his best, I think, and it's also De Niro's best. Probably the greatest performance I've seen from a male actor.

[The Great Owl]

Originally Posted by SammyJankis

What? This just baffles me. I figured you had seen this one multiple times by now. It seems to be one of those films that was a gateway for cinephiles into "serious" films. I know it was for me.

These things happen. I have heard great things about Taxi Driver since I was a teenager, but nothing about the film ever really screamed out for me to see it. It's quite amusing, in retrospect, that I saw Straw Dogs, Deliverance, and The Deer Hunter while I was in high school during the 1980s, but never saw Taxi Driver at the time.

My subdued reaction to Martin Scorsese films over the years has been another deterrent to seeing the movie, but Taxi Driver goes above and beyond any of his other works, in my opinion.

[SilentDawn]

Originally Posted by The Great Owl

Here is my review of Taxi Driver.

It took me long enough to see this movie, but I now have a new favorite Martin Scorsese film. (This is not saying much, because Scorsese movies have never really been my cup of tea, but I do believe that this is one incredible film.)


I am happily ignoring all of the above posts about The Conversation until I get a chance to see it, but the discussion is great to see!

(Apologies for the side road off of Criterion-relevant discussion, by the way.)

Glad you enjoyed Taxi Driver Owl! I only liked it the three or four times I have seen it. I prefer Mean Streets and Raging Bull but I'm glad you liked one of Scorsese's defining works.

[jayembee]

Originally Posted by SammyJankis

I dunno. I'd place Hackman above every other nominee (Carney shouldn't even be on there), save maybe for Nicholson.

Have you actually seen Harry and Tonto? People think of Art Carney, and they think of Ed Norton from The Honeymooners. Carney was a much better actor than that alone would suggest, and his performance in Harry and Tonto was terrific, and surprised the hell out of a lot of people.

[Scottie]

Originally Posted by SammyJankis

What? This just baffles me. I figured you had seen this one multiple times by now. It seems to be one of those films that was a gateway for cinephiles into "serious" films. I know it was for me.

Glad you loved it. It's his best, I think, and it's also De Niro's best. Probably the greatest performance I've seen from a male actor.

Agreed on all points. I haven't seen a TON TON of older films, but I would have thought our boi Owl would have seen it at least a dozen times.

[The Great Owl]

Originally Posted by SilentxStatik24

Glad you enjoyed Taxi Driver Owl! I only liked it the three or four times I have seen it. I prefer Mean Streets and Raging Bull but I'm glad you liked one of Scorsese's defining works.

Maybe it's because I grew up in the rural South, but Scorsese's stories do not usually blow me out of the water. Taxi Driver amazed me, though.
I will say that I'm glad that I waited to see it on this outstanding Blu-ray release, though. The look of this film really struck a chord with me.

I plan to watch The Conversation tomorrow evening. I'm really excited to see it at long last.

Right now while it's late night, though, I'm turning my brain off to enjoy my Weird Science Blu-ray.
(I am not as harsh on the picture quality of this disc as the site review is, but it's definitely not amazing. Watching this transfer after watching the "Mastered in 4K" Taxi Driver is like eating a year-old Twinkie for dessert on the way home from a meal at the best steakhouse in the city. Still, I have always had a madly unapologetic love for this flick.)

[mrjohnnyb]

Originally Posted by SammyJankis

I dunno. I'd place Hackman above every other nominee (Carney shouldn't even be on there), save maybe for Nicholson.

And Cazale's role was impressive, but hardly award worthy. If any of his performances deserved accolades, it's Dog Day.

An interesting fact about Cazale: every film he was in was nominated for Best Picture at the Academy Awards- The Godfather, The Conversation, The Godfather Part II, Dog Day Afternoon, and The Deer Hunter.

[ravenus]

Originally Posted by The Great Owl

I divulged in the Top 20 of the 1970s poll in the other forum that I had never seen The Conversation, Taxi Driver, or Chinatown

The Conversation was a pretty riveting watch for me...and not just "watch", because it's a movie where sound is as important, or perhaps more. Chinatown is a movie that I thought was a tad overrated, it's a little funny when you enjoy a MAD magazine spoof more than the source material. Btw there was an Indian film in 2007 called Manorama 6 Feet Under, which riffed on Chinatown's plot (and even references the movie in a scene) and it worked a little better for me than the original film, in that I felt more empathy towards the lead character (which is played quite differently from the Jack Nicholson role).

[octagon]

Originally Posted by mrjohnnyb

An interesting fact about Cazale: every film he was in was nominated for Best Picture at the Academy Awards- The Godfather, The Conversation, The Godfather Part II, Dog Day Afternoon, and The Deer Hunter.

You can add The Godfather Part III to that list too.

The guy was dead for ten years and he still couldn't make a film that didn't get a best picture nod.

[blue_streak]

Do Criterion movies ever get reissued? I'd like to own The Third Man.

[The Great Owl]

Originally Posted by ravenus

The Conversation was a pretty riveting watch for me...and not just "watch", because it's a movie where sound is as important, or perhaps more. Chinatown is a movie that I thought was a tad overrated, it's a little funny when you enjoy a MAD magazine spoof more than the source material. Btw there was an Indian film in 2007 called Manorama 6 Feet Under, which riffed on Chinatown's plot (and even references the movie in a scene) and it worked a little better for me than the original film, in that I felt more empathy towards the lead character (which is played quite differently from the Jack Nicholson role).

I'll see Chinatown at some point soon, because I've always heard that it's a strong neo-noir, but Taxi Driver and The Conversation have priority. I appreciate your take on the movie.

On the subject of Criterions, I did give the Rosselini/Ingrid Bergman box set a good look in the store today, but it will have to wait for the November sale.

[Scottie]

What are the chances of David Lean's Oliver Twist getting a Blu-ray upgrade?

We had a test today in my film class and our teacher used the first five minutes or so from Oliver Twist as the model for our analysis. I really enjoyed what I saw.

[jayembee]

Originally Posted by blue_streak

Do Criterion movies ever get reissued? I'd like to own The Third Man.

Criterion does occasionally reacquire rights to movies they've done before. It depends on who owns the films themselves.

The Criterion edition of The Third Man is not likely to come back into print for the foreseeable future, as it's owned by StudioCanal, who currently has a contract with Lionsgate for DVDs and BDs of the films they own. If that contract comes up for renewal, and Lionsgate doesn't want to renew it, it's possible that StudioCanal will license their films to Criterion again.

[Abdrewes]

Originally Posted by SilentxStatik24

Glad you enjoyed Taxi Driver Owl! I only liked it the three or four times I have seen it. I prefer Mean Streets and Raging Bull but I'm glad you liked one of Scorsese's defining works.

I'm tempted to say I like a few a bit more than Taxi Driver (which is still an absolute masterpiece): The Last Temptation of Christ & Raging Bull tied for the first spot, with, maybe, Casino & Goodfellas vying for the next two spots.

I seem to be one of the few champions of Bringing Out The Dead. It's an obvious companion piece to Taxi Driver in more ways than one. The first being the knack Scorsese has to show us the warped world view of his left-of-center protagonist in crystal-clarity. Mark it up as another dream Criterion title. I'm sure a bunch of you old fogeys would appreciate it for the soundtrack alone: The Who, REM, Van Morrison, Stevie Wonder, 10,000 Maniacs, The Clash, Frank Sinatra, and many more.

[blue_streak]

Originally Posted by jayembee

Criterion does occasionally reacquire rights to movies they've done before. It depends on who owns the films themselves.

The Criterion edition of The Third Man is not likely to come back into print for the foreseeable future, as it's owned by StudioCanal, who currently has a contract with Lionsgate for DVDs and BDs of the films they own. If that contract comes up for renewal, and Lionsgate doesn't want to renew it, it's possible that StudioCanal will license their films to Criterion again.

Ah, makes sense. There's no list of titles that are about to go out of print, right? :P

[jayembee]

Originally Posted by blue_streak

Ah, makes sense. There's no list of titles that are about to go out of print, right? :P

Criterion does tend to announce when titles are about to go OOP. I don't think there have been any such announcements for several months. I think the last such announcement was when they lost the rights to the Merchant Ivory films.

There have been rumors about The 400 Blows and Breathless being OOP since criterionforum.org listed them both as being so, but there's been no indication from Criterion itself.

[blue_streak]

Originally Posted by jayembee

Criterion does tend to announce when titles are about to go OOP. I don't think there have been any such announcements for several months. I think the last such announcement was when they lost the rights to the Merchant Ivory films.

There have been rumors about The 400 Blows and Breathless being OOP since criterionforum.org listed them both as being so, but there's been no indication from Criterion itself.

Good to know, thanks!

[jw007]

Originally Posted by jayembee

I can't argue with that, but Netflix is my way of checking out films I haven't seen instead of blind-buying them. I could see if the library has it, but they are unlikely to have it on Blu-ray, and Netflix has it in HD.

Originally Posted by bwdowiak

have not decided which is preferable... I have been tempted to make a few blind buys, but am now content to see a film I am interested in on DVD if I can get a hold of a copy at the library. Netflix certainly has its limitations. Obviously, the audio quality doesn't compare to a BD... Not sure how it stacks up against a DVD. and even with a good internet connection, the pic will get blotchy for stretches of the movie.

I am fortunate that the local library is 5 blocks from my house (which is a 5 minute walk). So I have access to a world class library system that can "order" any item I want from other local branches (including the major main branch) within a few days via their local system. Additionally, I think the "try before you buy" approach using DVDs is great because it is a teaser for seeing it in high definition blu-ray later on. If I liked the movie, then I'll be so excited to see this again on blu-ray when I get around to buying the film. Funny how I was displeased with Criterion's decision to create dual format releases with DVDs and BDs and now I see the only bonus of them releasing DVDs still is that I can obtain them from the library that is a 5 minute walk from my house. Obviously, I'm lucky to have such convenience, so if most of you had this option, you might just opt for the library over Netflix too.