The Criterion Collection

[MortimerBrewstr]

I'll also throw in my wholehearted recommendation for anyone who blind bought "The Awful Truth". I'm a big Cary Grant fan, so I had picked this up earlier, however I had never seen it, and it was utterly fantastic. Irene Dunne matches Cary Grant in all aspects as both are brilliantly funny. I loved it.

Shipping to Canada and the risk of customs fees kind of negates some of the appeal of the Criterion sale, however I did take the opportunity to finally pick up the Classic Hitchcock set as well as Lewis Allen's "The Uninvited".

5 movies for $60 USD... Can't complain about that.

[bsend]

My haul was:
Eclipse Series 9: The Delirious Fictions of William Klein - DVD - $22.47
All That Heaven Allows - Blu ray - $19.97
Monsters and Madmen - DVD - $39.97
John Cassavetes: Five Films - Blu ray - $62.47

Total - $144.88, 13 movies

This was my first flash sale. I usually do Barnes and Noble, but they couldn't special order Monsters and Madmen or the John Cassavetes collection for me. Plus the copy of All that Heaven Allows at my store has been sitting around for a while and looks kind of beat up. Eclipse releases aren't as common, so I decided to grab another one I was interested in.

[softunderbelly]

Originally Posted by bsend

I have been on the fence on upgrading my Carnival of Souls DVD as well. I would be curious to see hear yours and others thoughts on the benefit picture/audio wise.

I liked the image quality of the DVD and thought it looked pretty darn good to my eyes and the audio was decent but like you, when the BD was released I debated whether I should upgrade or not.

Seeing a few screen caps convinced me to pull the trigger. The amount of detail they pulled out of the shadows along with the improved contrast sold me.

I think that I'll be very happy with the upgrade.

[Al_The_Strange]

Well, everybody else is posting their buys, so i might as well too.

Andrei Rublev
The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou
Tokyo Drifter
Branded to Kill

Rublev is a must, obviously. Wasn't always a fan of Life Aquatic, but I revisited it recently and found it charming.

I had Tokyo Drifter and BtK before, but I really wasn't sure about Seijun Suzuki and these specific films at the time and stupidly sold them off. Now that I've seen the guy's other films, I wanted them back. Hard lesson in purging my collection irresponsibly.

Because I've been on a Suzuki kick, I wound up ordering these DVDs as well. I have a bunch of his films the Arrow box sets and such, and I really enjoyed the ones I've seen. Hated the Taisho Trilogy, but I love the older films.

Story of a Prostitute
Gate of Flesh
Fighting Elegy
Youth of the Beast

[bugula]

Originally Posted by Al_The_Strange

I had Tokyo Drifter and BtK before, but I really wasn't sure about Seijun Suzuki and these specific films at the time and stupidly sold them off. Now that I've seen the guy's other films, I wanted them back. Hard lesson in purging my collection irresponsibly.

if you haven't grabbed the eclipse series release, Nikkatsu Noir, do yourself a favor and make sure you do when the next sale happens.

[Al_The_Strange]

Originally Posted by bugula

if you haven't grabbed the eclipse series release, Nikkatsu Noir, do yourself a favor and make sure you do when the next sale happens.

Got that one last sale. Haven't had a chance to explore it yet, so I have a lot of catching up to do.

[the sordid sentinel]

Dragon Inn, Moonrise, and Mildred Pierce for me. Earned a $50 gift certificate so I added The Naked Prey, A Raisin in the Sun, and Ride with The Devil.

[Sifox211]

I've only participated once before (back in the days when we had a US office) but now that B&N seems to no longer be an option, and someone recommended Shipito to me, I decided to have another punt; went for:

Andrei Rublev (it had been announced for the UK but the animal cruelty nixed that)
Colonel Blimp (a sentimental buy, as I have the UK release already but decided I want all the Criterion P&Ps)
Eclipse Series 2: The Documentaries of Louis Malle

[bugula]

Originally Posted by Al_The_Strange

Got that one last sale. Haven't had a chance to explore it yet, so I have a lot of catching up to do.

Awesome - make some time for it, it's a blast!

[Egbert Souse]

Finally upgrading a bunch of titles: Bicycle Thieves, Elevator to the Gallows, The Graduate, Make Way for Tomorrow and one new one - Medium Cool.

That leaves Some Like It Hot, The Magnificent Ambersons, True Stories, and Ingmar Bergman's Cinema for B&N.

[Jaymole]

Originally Posted by bsend

I have been on the fence on upgrading my Carnival of Souls DVD as well. I would be curious to see hear yours and others thoughts on the benefit picture/audio wise.

I will not buy the blu-ray as it is not the director's cut. The cut scenes are added as extras but I would rather watch the scenes in the film so I will stick with the Criterion DVD.

[ravenus]

Originally Posted by bsend

I have been on the fence on upgrading my Carnival of Souls DVD as well. I would be curious to see hear yours and others thoughts on the benefit picture/audio wise.

The difference between the DVD and blu-ray transfers is MASSIVE. The DVD master does not even seem to have scanned from a genuine 35mm source, it looks very video-esque. I upgraded from the DVD and am entirely happy about it.
Check out this comparison of screencaps:
https://caps-a-holic.com/c.php?d1=8548&d2=8549&c=3467

Originally Posted by Jaymole

I will not buy the blu-ray as it is not the director's cut. The cut scenes are added as extras but I would rather watch the scenes in the film so I will stick with the Criterion DVD.

There is a very relevant reason why they did it that way. The only source for the excised scenes was a tape master, which would have looked so horribly inferior to the new restoration, it would have stuck out like a sore thumb and pulled viewers out of the atmosphere of the film, entirely defeating the purpose of those shots being there (especially since they do not in any significant way define or alter the film).

[Darth Marcus]

From Criterion's Instagram:



Hopefully a disc release is on the horizon.

[Dailyan]

Originally Posted by Darth Marcus

Hopefully a disc release is on the horizon.

Same. When Canal released their new master in Germany earlier this year I've been on the fence of waiting for an English friendly release of that disc or for a possible Criterion re-release.

[Dailyan]

Originally Posted by lilouish

I promised myself that I would not double dip. Then i purchased The 1/3 man again, now i've were given Ran covered up in my points of interest for can also.
*sigh* what is a promise if it can not be broken.

Oh, and i have a non-Criterion edition of Bottle Rocket on DVD, so does that be counted as double dipping? hmm

[bwdowiak]

Originally Posted by lilouish

I promised myself that I would not double dip. Then i purchased The 1/3 man again, now i've were given Ran covered up in my points of interest for can also.
*sigh* what is a promise if it can not be broken.

Oh, and i have a non-Criterion edition of Bottle Rocket on DVD, so does that be counted as double dipping? hmm

I think you're missing 2 2/3 men there.

[MifuneFan]

It makes complete sense when read upside down guys.

[theater dreamer]

Originally Posted by lilouish

I promised myself that I would not double dip. Then i purchased The 1/3 man again, now i've were given Ran covered up in my points of interest for can also.
*sigh* what is a promise if it can not be broken.

Oh, and i have a non-Criterion edition of Bottle Rocket on DVD, so does that be counted as double dipping? hmm

[Doctor Jack]

Anyone else having flash sale regrets? There are a bunch of titles I know wish I ordered. I know the B&N sale is coming next month, but those $50 loyalty coupons are very nice.

[theater dreamer]

Originally Posted by Doctor Jack

Anyone else having flash sale regrets? There are a bunch of titles I know wish I ordered. I know the B&N sale is coming next month, but those $50 loyalty coupons are very nice.

I always have regrets. I always wish I'd bought more, but I have so many to watch yet, I'm pretty good with only getting six for now.

By the time I've even semi caught up to where I want to be, the B&N sale will be here, or the next Flash sale in the spring will be here (that's where I'll probably buy next).