The Criterion Collection

[Reeniop5]

Get ready to be excited for another country to enter the Criterion Collection!

[Polaroid]

Originally Posted by Reeniop5

Get ready to be excited for another country to enter the Criterion Collection!

Thought you meant they were releasing their collection in another country... was about to say don't get too excited! UK launch is a mess! haha.

But this is good news !

[Ray Jackson]

Originally Posted by bwdowiak

I sorta miss those days of unbridled enthusiasm. Every now and then someone would come along and try to break their spirit, but Polariod, Ray J, and filmmusic definitely keep the conversation going.

We've still got Ray J, though!

Not anymore bro.

...not anymore.

[Show spoiler]

Not after what they done to Polaroid.

...they killed his spirit.

[Show spoiler]

After that I threatened to start posting gifs four and five at a time, with no spoiler tags. But oildude and iscottie weren't having any of that. They shut that down real quick.

I was suspended for an entire month.

...longest stretch I ever heard of.

After it was over I received a PM from Scottie. He threatened to pull me out of my one-bunk Hilton and cast me down with the Sodomites. No more protection from the moderators. Said I'd feel like I had been banned by a train. And all my threads that I had ever started...gone. They'd have a little thread-deleting party and dance around like wild Injuns.

...there was nothing obtuse about it.

[Show spoiler]

After that I was never the same.

...they broke me.

[Show spoiler]

[SkyAntoine]

Originally Posted by Gambit1138

Hey, everyone. According to a representative at Criterion, the company does not provide subtitles for the English Language portions of Foreign films if English does not make up 30-40% of the Dialogue. This prevents members of the Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing community from fully enjoying these films. In response, I wrote this open letter encouraging the inclusion of fully-accessible captioning on their upcoming streaming website, FilmStruck. I encourage you to take some time out of today to read this, and share this if you agree that film should be accessible to Cinephiles everywhere. Thank you for your time.

http://imgur.com/a/xvAoL

I have a really hard time following some of the dialogue especially in earlier Criterion titles that are English without subtitles. I.e. Sid and Nancy and Blood of Dracula.

I watch most of my films at night either after everyone has gone to bed or when kids are running around screaming. Rather than turn up the volume I've grown accustomed to watching everything with subtitles.

[Polaroid]

Originally Posted by Ray Jackson

Not anymore bro.

...not anymore.

[Show spoiler]

Not after what they done to Polaroid.

...they killed his spirit.

[Show spoiler]

After that I threatened to start posting gifs four and five at a time, with no spoiler tags. But oildude and iscottie weren't having any of that. They shut that down real quick.

I was suspended for an entire month.

...longest stretch I ever heard of.

After it was over I received a PM from Scottie. He threatened to pull me out of my one-bunk Hilton and cast me down with the Sodomites. No more protection from the moderators. Said I'd feel like I had been banned by a train. And all my threads that I had ever started...gone. They'd have a little thread-deleting party and dance around like wild Injuns.

...there was nothing obtuse about it.

[Show spoiler]

After that I was never the same.

...they broke me.

[Show spoiler]

Everything will be ok.

-

Any one getting really annoyed by the front page artwork for Del Toro set..... please can someone help me by using the artwork from Criterion site that fits the rest :P XD?

[Abdrewes]

Originally Posted by SammyJankis

I've seen you say that numerous times in response to In the Mood for Love, as if it somehow negates the quality of the other. I don't agree with your assessment (both films operate on a different level, I think, and I generally find Love to be more successful with its aesthetic.) I think Love is better, but that doesn't mean I don't care for Happy Together - hell, I have a poster of it in my bedroom. It's like faulting Fallen Angels because Chungking Express exists.

Agreed with Hou. Anything, really - but if they start out with Mambo, I will be ecstatic and probably flood this place with gifs, Polaroid style.

I guess this is where we differ, and that's fine. In the Mood for Love and Happy Together are much much more similar than Fallen Angels and Chungking Express. That's really ok too as I don't evaluate films in terms of what they do for said director's overall breadth. It is, however, an issue for me when beat for beat Love feels like a more tepid riff on the themes of Happy Together...just with straight characters this time.

I apologize if I came across as antagonistic because I'm really a big WKW fan (and I do think Love is a good film overall...no film with those visuals can be bad). But I must admit this is one of my deep cinematic hang-ups because In the Mood for Love is Significantly more popular (use any metric and you'll see that more people have seen Love, i.e. 77,000 imdb votes compared to 15,000) than Happy Together and that shouldn't be the case. I just simply want to encourage more film fans to go see it. It's a film that has left a deep impression on my mind.

[TJS_Blu]

Originally Posted by Reeniop5

Get ready to be excited for another country to enter the Criterion Collection!

Hmmm, World Cinema Project Vol.2?

[Popcorn_Bliss]

Originally Posted by The Great Owl

I think that In the Mood for Love is a perfect film in so many ways.

In all honesty, though, it's one of those films that I heap praise upon after my initial viewing, but that I'm not compelled to revisit on a frequent basis.

I feel the same way about Ozu's films in my collection. They're mind-blowingly good, and I always feel as though I've been through a personal journey after I see them for the first time, but I have to be in a really really specific mood to revisit them.

It's funny how certain Criterion titles in my collection, namely In a Lonely Place, The Night of the Hunter, The Vanishing, or Paris, Texas, seem to be on near constant rotation at my place, but there are others that I'll probably only revisit once a decade.

Yeah, it's interesting to contemplate why some films get replayed and others, while great, may only get watched once in a great while.

In a perfect world you'd think your "greatest" films would be the ones you'd watch most often but often it isn't the case.

In that top ten list I offered for films I own on Criterion, I probably only watch 3 on a regular basis. I still think the list is my best expression of the greatest films, yet I was basing the criteria on films I felt were the greatest from a "film study" or depth standpoint. My top ten most played films would look quite a bit different.

And then there are some films you enjoy watching frequently yet don't have any critical rationale for why!

[pedromvu]

Originally Posted by TJS_Blu

Hmmm, World Cinema Project Vol.2?

Black Girl and Borom Sarret had their own release, I doubt we will see Vol.2 of WCP, haven't heard any news about it.

[AaronJ]

Originally Posted by Popcorn_Bliss

Yeah, it's interesting to contemplate why some films get replayed and others, while great, may only get watched once in a great while.

In a perfect world you'd think your "greatest" films would be the ones you'd watch most often but often it isn't the case.

In that top ten list I offered for films I own on Criterion, I probably only watch 3 on a regular basis. I still think the list is my best expression of the greatest films, yet I was basing the criteria on films I felt were the greatest from a "film study" or depth standpoint. My top ten most played films would look quite a bit different.

And then there are some films you enjoy watching frequently yet don't have any critical rationale for why!

Well, there are 3 Criterions for which there is a very good reason why I don't watch on a regular basis:

Carlos (5 hours)

Che (both movies: 4-1/2 hrs.)

Out 1 (almost 13 hours)



I'd say that the Criterions I watch the most -- lately anyways -- are the films from the Whit Stillman trilogy (love those), Umbrellas of Cherbourg (always been one of my favorites), Mulholland Dr. ('nuff said), and Frances Ha (love Greta's performance). Though I think that Cat People is going to join that quickly. And as I said before, I used to be totally addicted to In the Mood for Love.

[Popcorn_Bliss]

Originally Posted by AaronJ

Well, there are 3 Criterions for which there is a very good reason why I don't watch on a regular basis:

Carlos (5 hours)

Che (both movies: 4-1/2 hrs.)

Out 1 (almost 13 hours)



I'd say that the Criterions I watch the most -- lately anyways -- are the films from the Whit Stillman trilogy (love those), Umbrellas of Cherbourg (always been one of my favorites), Mulholland Dr. ('nuff said), and Frances Ha (love Greta's performance). Though I think that Cat People is going to join that quickly. And as I said before, I used to be totally addicted to In the Mood for Love.

Yeah, those are some long running times! One might need a free week to devote to those.

I suppose my most watched films are kind of a mix of shorter films and longer films. I actually discovered that as I get older, I really like longer films. Of course, it helps if they're good.

But it must be something about the "journey" or the aspect of immersing yourself for more than 2 hours that makes me appreciate the film better. I also fall into the old-school camp that believes a slow build-up in a film is an art in itself and not something that is a "fault" or boring. Although with certain long films I have to be in the mood - Gone With The Wind, Doctor Zhivago, etc.

On the other hand, films like "La Dolce Vita", "JFK", or "2001: A Space Odyssey" have a quality where I can watch them and get absorbed in them and it never feels like a chore. In fact, I discover more and more as I let the film roll.

In short, it really just depends.

[Ray Jackson]

Originally Posted by AaronJ

Well, there are 3 Criterions for which there is a very good reason why I don't watch on a regular basis:

Carlos (5 hours)

Che (both movies: 4-1/2 hrs.)

Out 1 (almost 13 hours)



I'd say that the Criterions I watch the most -- lately anyways -- are the films from the Whit Stillman trilogy (love those), Umbrellas of Cherbourg (always been one of my favorites), Mulholland Dr. ('nuff said), and Frances Ha (love Greta's performance). Though I think that Cat People is going to join that quickly. And as I said before, I used to be totally addicted to In the Mood for Love.

iscottie is batshit crazy about this.

You should see the list of Criterions that he's selling because he doesn't watch them on a regular basis.

...it's disturbing.

[ShellOilJunior]

Originally Posted by Ray Jackson

iscottie is batshit crazy about this.

You should see the list of Criterions that he's selling because he doesn't watch them on a regular basis.

...it's disturbing.

I've got 7 on eBay at the moment. All films I enjoy but I'm not inclined to watch them frequently.

[The Great Owl]

Originally Posted by Ray Jackson

iscottie is batshit crazy about this.

You should see the list of Criterions that he's selling because he doesn't watch them on a regular basis.

...it's disturbing.

I sometimes entertain the thought of selling all of my Blu-rays except for the James Bond 007 films and my top 10 film noir movies.

...but I always follow that up by thinking about how it would be an unbelievable pain in the tail to try selling the bulk of my collection at this point.

At some point in time, there was a thread in the main forum asking people what price they would put on their entire Blu-ray collection. I believe that I wrote that I would sell my collection for $40,000, as long as the buyer picks up everything here so that I don't have to lift a finger. That offer still holds.

Until then, I'm pretty sure that I'll someday be in the mood to rewatch each and every film in my collection, even the ones that are my least favorites. There's no telling what will intrigue me again in due time.

[Ray Jackson]

Originally Posted by ShellOilJunior

I've got 7 on eBay at the moment. All films I enjoy but I'm not inclined to watch them frequently.

I just sold a few myself to fellow members.

But that's only because I'm broke and the November Barnes and Noble sale is coming up.

The last week or so has been very traumatic for me.

...some really difficult choices had to be made.

[Show spoiler]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k-kvYYPYWFg

[adamhopelies]

Originally Posted by AaronJ

Well, there are 3 Criterions for which there is a very good reason why I don't watch on a regular basis:

Carlos (5 hours)

Che (both movies: 4-1/2 hrs.)

Out 1 (almost 13 hours)
.

I've watched Out 1 in its entirety twice this year. Same for a lot of Rivette's work, which more often than not stands at at least 2.5 hours a film! I put together a season of his work earlier this year, part of which involved taking Celine And Julie Go Boating on a tour of venues, so I must have watched all 190 minutes of that at least five times since his death in January.

Generally speaking I do enjoy long-films a great deal, however I'm stuck in the middle of the Emigrants set at the moment, and am struggling to find the time to fit in all six hours plus of that.

[AaronJ]

Originally Posted by adamhopelies

I've watched Out 1 in its entirety twice this year. Same for a lot of Rivette's work, which more often than not stands at at least 2.5 hours a film! I put together a season of his work earlier this year, part of which involved taking Celine And Julie Go Boating on a tour of venues, so I must have watched all 190 minutes of that at least five times since his death in January.

Generally speaking I do enjoy long-films a great deal, however I'm stuck in the middle of the Emigrants set at the moment, and am struggling to find the time to fit in all six hours plus of that.

I enjoy long films as well. But to be honest -- as sad as this is -- I've been sort of addicted to political coverage this year. Not so much because it's all that interesting, though some is, but because it's been such a ridiculously stupid campaign season. It's almost like watching some absurdist comedy, or something.

So, my time has been more limited. Just two more weeks, though.

[Abdrewes]

Originally Posted by The Great Owl

I sometimes entertain the thought of selling all of my Blu-rays except for the James Bond 007 films and my top 10 film noir movies.

...but I always follow that up by thinking about how it would be an unbelievable pain in the tail to try selling the bulk of my collection at this point.

At some point in time, there was a thread in the main forum asking people what price they would put on their entire Blu-ray collection. I believe that I wrote that I would sell my collection for $40,000, as long as the buyer picks up everything here so that I don't have to lift a finger. That offer still holds.

Until then, I'm pretty sure that I'll someday be in the mood to rewatch each and every film in my collection, even the ones that are my least favorites. There's no telling what will intrigue me again in due time.

That's how I feel. I have a bunch of fluff titles and even duplicates. It's just a pain in the ass to list and ship stuff.

And like you the itch to revisit something can strike at any time (or the itch to just play the scenes with god awful music in Jellyfish Eyes). Renting something on HD down the road is too expensive (4-5$) to just unload discs on the cheap.

[Popcorn_Bliss]

My problem is that I have the "collecting gene". And even worse I enjoy it...LOL.

The collecting of the physical films (especially Criterions or Digibooks) is as much fun as watching the films themselves! That might be a bit shallow, but I've always been one of those that likes to know I can watch, hold, or display my favorite films at a moment's notice. In effect, I think of my little collection as like a "historical library", if you will. It provides a kind of caretaker satisfaction in knowing I'm doing my part to collect and preserve these "Top 200 Films" (as I deem them), or however many I end up at. In the end, they might just sit here forever as the whole world eventually turns to streaming devices, but, while I'm here they bring me enjoyment.

In short, I rarely ever sell anything I have (at least in regards to those aforementioned Criterions or Digibooks). Like many, I have sold off some older duplicate editions, or bare-bones editions that someone may enjoy who just want to watch the film itself and aren't interested in deluxe editions or bonus features.

[AaronJ]

Originally Posted by Popcorn_Bliss

My problem is that I have the "collecting gene". And even worse I enjoy it...LOL.

The collecting of the physical films (especially Criterions or Digibooks) is as much fun as watching the films themselves! That might be a bit shallow, but I've always been one of those that likes to know I can watch, hold, or display my favorite films at a moment's notice. In effect, I think of my little collection as like a "historical library", if you will. It provides a kind of caretaker satisfaction in knowing I'm doing my part to collect and preserve these "Top 200 Films" (as I deem them), or however many I end up at. In the end, they might just sit here forever as the whole world eventually turns to streaming devices, but, while I'm here they bring me enjoyment.

In short, I rarely ever sell anything I have (at least in regards to those aforementioned Criterions or Digibooks). Like many, I have sold off some older duplicate editions, or bare-bones editions that someone may enjoy who just want to watch the film itself and aren't interested in deluxe editions or bonus features.

Yeah, I'm the same way. Back when I was still reading comics, for instance, I was buying SO many every Wednesday. At first I was reading them all. Eventually, though, I found myself just buying some comics to finish out a particular writer's run, or a particular arc. I wasn't even reading some of them. Now I have I can't remember how many longboxes full of comics in the basement.

The collecting itself sometimes becomes more important than the content.

I mean, even in the extremely unlikely event that Malick's next film, Weightless, is horrible I'd still pick it up. I have all of his films on Blu, and I don't plan on that ending anytime soon. Same with Fincher. Well, I don't have Panic Room, but that's not been released on Blu yet (and it's my least favorite Fincher film anyways).

So, I know how it feels.