DVD’s:
Alien Quadrilogy – 2 versions of each movie, onscreen markers for added/altered footage, original script for Alien, 24+ hours worth of mostly interesting extras, although the lack of the participation of David Fincher (completely understandable, given the treatment of his film by the studio) is sad
Criterion’s Rebecca – great extras, great booklet
BLURAY:
Close Encounters of the Third Kind – 3 versions of the movie, with an extra that pops up on screen and shows what the differences are between them
Blade Runner 5 Disc Collector’s Edition – all 5 versions of the movie, excellent price, good extras
Pixar’s Cars – best looking BluRay in my whole collection
The alternate ending of What Dreams May Come was the first DVD to really make me appreciate what the extra’s can provide. Bruce Campbell’s commentary on The Evil Dead is as fun as the movie and provides at lot of insight to amateur movie making.
The boxed extended cuts of The Lord of the Rings are so incredibly in depth about the making of the film, from Tolkein, to screenplay, concept art, miniatures, set design, costumes and make-up, casting, fight choreography, cinematography, visual effects, sound, editing, and the films’ initial releases. Each section is at least 20-30 minutes long and new details are discussed about all of these processes for each film. Hours upon hours worth of footage. It really gives you the idea of what it is like to construct an enormous epic in the 21st century.
Sonuvabitch, you have to be kidding me! I can’t be the first to have mentioned this.
Bicycle Thieves.
Anyone who loves films should own this.
Maybe I shouldn’t complain because I don’t own many of the films mentioned here. I shouldn’t be such an asshole, sorry.
DVDs I want a lot:
CC:
Imamura boxset
Exterminating Angel
George Washington
Tokyo Story
A Woman Is A Woman
L’Eclisse
When A Woman Ascends the Stairs
Eclipse:
Carlos Saura
Aki Kaurismaki
Hiroshi Shimizu
MoC:
La Notte
Keaton shorts
Il Grido
Une Femme Mariee
BFI:
Syndromes and A Century
Red Desert
Kino:
Lubitsch in Berlin
German Expressionism boxset
One of the Konuma titles
Wong re-releases
Cabinet of Dr. Caligari
Artificial Eye:
Historie(s) du Cinema
A Man Escaped
Mirror
Decalogue
Second Run:
Celia
Black Sun
Studio Ghibli:
Kiki’s Delivery Service
My Neighbor Totoro
Other:
Hour of the Wolf
Lady From Shanghai
Barry Lyndon
Millennium Mambo
City Lights
Another Chabrol film (most likely Les Biches or La Femme Infidele)
Sorry for the long post, but this is mostly for my benefit to have a checklist of what my priorities are.
I was quite happy with “Vampyr” and “Pandora’s Box” – lots of great extras, and even some print material!
I’d agree on the Bladerunner DVD briefcase…just fantastic.
Also, Kieslowski’s “Three Colours Trilogy” (I still have to get “The Double Life of Veronique”).
DVDs I want the most:
-Bicycle Thieves
-Breathles
-Dekalog
-Fanny and Alexander Box Set
-Scenes from a Marriage
-Three Colors Trilogy
In a few months…I will hopefully switch to BLU-RAY than I will buy the following on the new format:
-2001: A Space Odyssey
-Blade Runner
-The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
-The Last Year at Marienbad
-The Seventh Seal
-The Third Man
L.A.™
Heat in any format just for the movie alone. Michael Mann’s masterpiece is the ultimate 2 hours and 45 minutes of pure storytelling using so many conventions and great performances from the entire cast. Not to mention Deniro and Pacino! Nuff Said!