I just read “The Double” by Dostoevsky for my Russian Lit. class and I just kept thinking how great a film that could be if the director followed Dostoevsky’s imagery as close as possible. That book is such a confusing whirlwind of events that I think it could actually make for an enjoyable movie. I don’t know if a Russian filmmaker has ever attempted that, but I think it would be cool to see.
I desperately had to see a French movie for a French class last Fall and that was when Criterion had just released “Classe tous risque” and the description of the film caught my attention. So, I picked it up and I got hooked on the rest of Criterion. So, even though I now only have just six, I love this company and the work they do.
I haven’t jumped the DVD ship yet. My family and I have a pretty good-sized TV, one that would be big enough I’m sure to see the difference between a DVD and a Blu-Ray. However, we just haven’t gotten around to get a Blu-Ray player. We have a really old DVD player (it’s a 3-tier player from at least 2000!) but it works perfectly fine and movies look great on it. Even though Blu-Ray player prices are coming down, the price of a disc is still expensive. So, I don’t mind still using and buying DVDs.
1. The Beatles (plus solo)
2. Bob Dylan
3. The Beach Boys (plus solo)
4. Robert Johnson (I could listen to his complete set of recording for hours, just amazing stuff)
5. Led Zeppelin
6. Simon & Garfunkel
7. Harry Nilsson
8. The Doors
9. Bruce Springsteen
10. Creedence Clearwater Revival
…I could think of many, many more…Jimi Henrix, Badfinger, Blind Faith, The Who, The Yardbirds…sometimes I think I should have been born in a different decade…
I really don’t like to buy movies that I haven’t seen before, but since I only buy Criterion when they’re cheap or if I have a coupon, I admit that I’m more likely to buy a Criterion film that I haven’t seen before than a film released by some other company that I haven’t seen.
I try to research and read about a movie before I buy it, but sometimes the words on the back of the package attract me to make the purchase. In fact, I’ve never seen any of the Criterion films I have before I bought them! I try to get ones that are universally appreciated (like “The Third Man” and “Breathless”) or ones that just grab my attention (like “Z” and “if…”).
My grandfather was a huge movie buff. He had two rooms in his house (his bedroom and his den) where the only things on the walls were shelves and shelves of VHS tapes of his favorite ‘40s and ’50s Hollywood movies. He passed away in 1997 and I can just think about how proud of me he’d be, knowing that I love cinema almost as much as he did. I think if he knew I was buying all these obscure, great films that I’ve found out about through Criterion, he’d be proud.
My parents on the other hand…well, let’s just say they’re more ‘commecrial’. Not that there’s anything wrong with that, but my dad made me feel like it was torture to have him sit through even “The Third Man”. Everytime I tell them I got another French movie, they can’t figure it out….but at least they think it’s better than me buying more Star Wars stuff…(and I complain about them liking commercial Hollywood films too much…)
That really sucks. I finally got a hold of the Alien Quadrology set and hearing him talk about his film and how dedicated he was to it was great. (I loved that story where he initially refused to go to the premiere and drove around LA the entire day, trying to ignore it.)
I really don’t want to see it turned into a movie. Why does it have to be? Is it so hard to just re-read the book whenever you want to experience the story?
I ordered “Grand Illusion” from Barnes & Noble for $29 (used their recent 15% off coupon). I really didn’t want to get it until BN had another big sale, but I figured if I waited it would be too late.
It’s such a shame that so many of these are being taken away now all at once. I know they have films go out of print often, but this many at once is a little ridiculous.
There’s truly nothing like seeing a film on the big screen. I just enjoy being able to sit back in the middle of a theater and see a film take up a huge screen. It angers me so much that all the great films I love I will never get the opportunity to see in a theater.
If one has a big enough television set and enjoys watching films by themselves or with family, a home theater is great. I think watching a film on a mobile device should be someone’s absolute last resort. I can not imagine watching a film on my iTouch…ever.
I wish we could just go back and edit our previous posts, especially since in the last 3 months, I’ve been able to pick up quite a few…
1 Grand Illusion
54 For All Mankind (re-issue)
64 The Third Man (2 disc re-issue)
81 Variety Lights (EAH version)
140 8 1/2
157 The Royal Tenenbaums
171 Contempt
197 Night And Fog
288 F For Fake
306 Le Samourai
391 If…
408 Breathless
411 Berlin Alexanderplatz
434 Classe Tous Risque
491 Z
495 The Golden Age Of Television
There’s still quite a few I’m looking to get…as long as I can find them cheap. I had never seen any of these films before buying them and I’ve actually been quite happy with all of them, except “The Royal Tenenbaums”. I thought it was pretty good, but if I had seen it before, I don’t think I would have been compelled to buy my own copy.
My grandfather loved musicals, but that’s one area of film I can say that I’m not too familiar with (and there are a lot of areas, I assure you), but after finally seeing “Singing In The Rain” last year, I can’t imagine how I ever lived without seeing that brilliant film. It wowed me from start to finish. Gene Kelly was just amazing.
As a Beatles fan, “A Hard Day’s Night” is great, as is “Yellow Submarine”. I think “HELP!” is really for die-hards only, though. Even I get a little bored when watching it some times.
“The Wizard Of Oz” is also awesome, but I haven’t seen that in years. I only have it on VHS, actually.
I could not stand the musical “The Producers”. I thought that totally wrecked the original film. It was totally pointless to me when the film is already perfect as is.
I’m a huge Star Wars geek and I know that only “The Empire Strikes Back” (and possible “A New Hope”) can stand up against the greatest films of all time, but I enjoy them. Yes – even the prequels. Sue me. The only one I find unbearable is “Attack Of The Clones”. Sure, the acting is beyond horrid, but “Revenge of the Sith” was much better than it could have been and, after 10 years, I still like “The Phantom Menace”.
I also suggest that you watch “Star Trek: The Undiscovered Country”. It’s the last one with the original crew and a really nifty political thriller. It was directed by Nicholas Meyers who also did “The Wrath of Khan”.
Magical Mystery Tour
1967
Directed by John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison & Ringo Starr
Here’s a good screen shot: http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c72/Pezao/walrus.jpg
I’m a Sci-Fi junkie and I can imagine why someone might not like it, but I have always found it brilliant. It never seems slow to me, but that’s just because I love watching spaceships move. I’ve always thought that it was made to be more of an essay on the cycle of life than anything else.
If you really don’t get the film, I must suggest you read Clarke’s novel. He gets bogged down in explaining everything and while that makes everything make sense, I think the fact that Kubrick doesn’t feel a need to explain everything is the brilliance of the film.
This leads to why I really, REALLY love this film. It’s so open-ended to any interpretation that you can think of and I always feel that I come up with a different one every time I watch it (which is about every three months or so – I like to remind myself about how great some films are). Clarke’s novel seems to distill it to a simple Cold War-in-Space, but with the film, he and Kubrick make it completely about anything but that.
…I hope I made sense there…I’m always afraid of not making sense when talking about film.
I got “Berlin Alexanderplatz” during the last sale…managed to get it for $46 with the other coupon I had. (It was a 25% off coupon…has anyone else noticed that they only send out 10-15% ones now?) Brilliant set that was worth every penny. I never would have been able to afford it had it not been for the sale. Whenever the next time comes, the first thing I’ll get is the Rossilini War Trilogy.
I have to vouch for the great deals that can be found at MovieStop. Other than B&N, they seem to be the only store I have ever seen to have an entire section devoted to Criterion. You can get single-disc releases new for $19.99 and two-disc ones for $29.99. That’s not ridiculously cheap, but considering how expensive they are at places like Best Buy or B&N (w/o a membership), it’s not too bad. They also sell used copies very cheap. Today I picked up a used copy of “L’Avventura” for $15. The other problem with them is that there aren’t that many. They’re mostly exclusive to the East Coast.
Other than that, I really hope that B&N has another 50% off sale and soon. I gotta get the Rossilini War Trilogy…
It’s really strange that as much as I grew up around films, foreign films were…well, foreign to my family. My parents are indifferent to movies, but my uncle is and my grandfather was a huge movie buff, but their love was for the Hollywood of the 1940s and ’50s, so I had to discover foreign films myself, which makes it more fun.
Back in my senior year in high school, back in 2007, I took this silly film course where the teacher thought the only foreign film he could think that we needed to see was “Life Is Beautiful”. I hate to admit that that was probably my first exposure to a foreign film.
This is what I’ve got on a little list right now. Originally, I had the Rossilini War Trilogy as the first thing I was going to get, but after I found it used for $30 at a video store, I couldn’t pass that deal up. So, here’s my short list:
Olivier’s Shakespeare set (my new #1!!!)
Revanche
Spartacus (still debating on whether I want Universal’s new BR or not, though)
Young Mr. Lincoln (after getting “Stagecoach”, I suddenly realized that I need some Ford)
Rules Of The Game (still can’t believe I don’t have this…)
Mr. Arkadin
Ali: Fear Eats The Soul (I got Berlin Alexanderplatz during the last sale, so I think it would only be fair to get some more Fassbinder)
The Leopard (So happy the BR will be out before the sale starts. I’ve been dying to see this movie since I heard about it.)
Although, if any of my local stores have copies of some of those OOP StudioCanal titles, I would definitely grab one.
I went to a Hollywood Video the day they started the closing sale and they didn’t have a single Criterion nor a foreign film that looked interesting to me. Considering that I live in North Florida, I’m not entirely surprised. Anyway, I did walk out with a copy of Kubrick’s “The Killing” and the “Inglorious Basterds” BR, though.
I have to actually edit my last post. I went in there today and picked up a copy of Criterion’s “Do The Right Thing”. It had both discs which is awesome. Can’t wait to watch it. I’ve never seen it before, but picking up a 2-DVD Criterion for $5 is amazing.
KNDY, are you talking about the fact that they never seem to send out coupons for anything more than 15% off? When they sent out that 25% off one during the last sale, it enabled me to get “Berlin Alexanderplatz” for $42! I’m hoping they have at least a 15% one so I can get “The Leopard” even cheaper. The coupons would really help out, since I’d love to get the Antoine Doinel set.
Criterion B&N November 2009 Sale now Live! over 2 years ago
picked up “Breathless”, “Z” and “Night & Fog”
…too bad I’m not made of money.
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List/Order all Criterions you own over 2 years ago
I only discovered Criterion last year, so I’m building and that Barnes & Noble sale certainly helped…
So, I just have:
The Third Man
Night And Fog
If…
Classe Tous Risque
Breathless
Z
I’m really looking forward to Rossillini’s War Trilogy…that looks fantastic.
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What books would you like to see adapted for the screen? over 2 years ago
I just read “The Double” by Dostoevsky for my Russian Lit. class and I just kept thinking how great a film that could be if the director followed Dostoevsky’s imagery as close as possible. That book is such a confusing whirlwind of events that I think it could actually make for an enjoyable movie. I don’t know if a Russian filmmaker has ever attempted that, but I think it would be cool to see.
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What was the first Criterion movie you watched? over 2 years ago
I desperately had to see a French movie for a French class last Fall and that was when Criterion had just released “Classe tous risque” and the description of the film caught my attention. So, I picked it up and I got hooked on the rest of Criterion. So, even though I now only have just six, I love this company and the work they do.
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Criterion B&N November 2009 Sale now Live! over 2 years ago
just got back with my final purchase during the sale: “Berlin Alexanderplatz” for $45. I cannot wait to watch this.
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DVD vs. Blu Ray? over 2 years ago
I haven’t jumped the DVD ship yet. My family and I have a pretty good-sized TV, one that would be big enough I’m sure to see the difference between a DVD and a Blu-Ray. However, we just haven’t gotten around to get a Blu-Ray player. We have a really old DVD player (it’s a 3-tier player from at least 2000!) but it works perfectly fine and movies look great on it. Even though Blu-Ray player prices are coming down, the price of a disc is still expensive. So, I don’t mind still using and buying DVDs.
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Off Topic - Ten favorite bands / music artists over 2 years ago
1. The Beatles (plus solo)
2. Bob Dylan
3. The Beach Boys (plus solo)
4. Robert Johnson (I could listen to his complete set of recording for hours, just amazing stuff)
5. Led Zeppelin
6. Simon & Garfunkel
7. Harry Nilsson
8. The Doors
9. Bruce Springsteen
10. Creedence Clearwater Revival
…I could think of many, many more…Jimi Henrix, Badfinger, Blind Faith, The Who, The Yardbirds…sometimes I think I should have been born in a different decade…
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Blind Buys over 2 years ago
I really don’t like to buy movies that I haven’t seen before, but since I only buy Criterion when they’re cheap or if I have a coupon, I admit that I’m more likely to buy a Criterion film that I haven’t seen before than a film released by some other company that I haven’t seen.
I try to research and read about a movie before I buy it, but sometimes the words on the back of the package attract me to make the purchase. In fact, I’ve never seen any of the Criterion films I have before I bought them! I try to get ones that are universally appreciated (like “The Third Man” and “Breathless”) or ones that just grab my attention (like “Z” and “if…”).
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What Does Your Family Think Of Your Love of Cinema? over 2 years ago
My grandfather was a huge movie buff. He had two rooms in his house (his bedroom and his den) where the only things on the walls were shelves and shelves of VHS tapes of his favorite ‘40s and ’50s Hollywood movies. He passed away in 1997 and I can just think about how proud of me he’d be, knowing that I love cinema almost as much as he did. I think if he knew I was buying all these obscure, great films that I’ve found out about through Criterion, he’d be proud.
My parents on the other hand…well, let’s just say they’re more ‘commecrial’. Not that there’s anything wrong with that, but my dad made me feel like it was torture to have him sit through even “The Third Man”. Everytime I tell them I got another French movie, they can’t figure it out….but at least they think it’s better than me buying more Star Wars stuff…(and I complain about them liking commercial Hollywood films too much…)
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Recent Acquisitions. over 2 years ago
picked up “Le Samourai”…the cover just grabbed my attention. Loved the film and makes me wish I had more money to buy some more Melville stuff.
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Screenwriter Dan O’Bannon died. over 2 years ago
That really sucks. I finally got a hold of the Alien Quadrology set and hearing him talk about his film and how dedicated he was to it was great. (I loved that story where he initially refused to go to the premiere and drove around LA the entire day, trying to ignore it.)
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Now that Salinger is dead, Which Director could pull off Catcher in the Rye? over 2 years ago
I really don’t want to see it turned into a movie. Why does it have to be? Is it so hard to just re-read the book whenever you want to experience the story?
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Criterion Titles Going Out of Print over 2 years ago
I ordered “Grand Illusion” from Barnes & Noble for $29 (used their recent 15% off coupon). I really didn’t want to get it until BN had another big sale, but I figured if I waited it would be too late.
It’s such a shame that so many of these are being taken away now all at once. I know they have films go out of print often, but this many at once is a little ridiculous.
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great films that should be seen on a big screen vs. great films where it does not make a difference whether you watch on a laptop or in a movie theater over 2 years ago
There’s truly nothing like seeing a film on the big screen. I just enjoy being able to sit back in the middle of a theater and see a film take up a huge screen. It angers me so much that all the great films I love I will never get the opportunity to see in a theater.
If one has a big enough television set and enjoys watching films by themselves or with family, a home theater is great. I think watching a film on a mobile device should be someone’s absolute last resort. I can not imagine watching a film on my iTouch…ever.
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List/Order all Criterions you own over 2 years ago
I wish we could just go back and edit our previous posts, especially since in the last 3 months, I’ve been able to pick up quite a few…
1 Grand Illusion
54 For All Mankind (re-issue)
64 The Third Man (2 disc re-issue)
81 Variety Lights (EAH version)
140 8 1/2
157 The Royal Tenenbaums
171 Contempt
197 Night And Fog
288 F For Fake
306 Le Samourai
391 If…
408 Breathless
411 Berlin Alexanderplatz
434 Classe Tous Risque
491 Z
495 The Golden Age Of Television
There’s still quite a few I’m looking to get…as long as I can find them cheap. I had never seen any of these films before buying them and I’ve actually been quite happy with all of them, except “The Royal Tenenbaums”. I thought it was pretty good, but if I had seen it before, I don’t think I would have been compelled to buy my own copy.
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I'm looking for musicals over 2 years ago
My grandfather loved musicals, but that’s one area of film I can say that I’m not too familiar with (and there are a lot of areas, I assure you), but after finally seeing “Singing In The Rain” last year, I can’t imagine how I ever lived without seeing that brilliant film. It wowed me from start to finish. Gene Kelly was just amazing.
As a Beatles fan, “A Hard Day’s Night” is great, as is “Yellow Submarine”. I think “HELP!” is really for die-hards only, though. Even I get a little bored when watching it some times.
“The Wizard Of Oz” is also awesome, but I haven’t seen that in years. I only have it on VHS, actually.
I could not stand the musical “The Producers”. I thought that totally wrecked the original film. It was totally pointless to me when the film is already perfect as is.
I need to see more musicals, too I think.
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The Gultiest of Guilty Pleasures. about 2 years ago
I’m a huge Star Wars geek and I know that only “The Empire Strikes Back” (and possible “A New Hope”) can stand up against the greatest films of all time, but I enjoy them. Yes – even the prequels. Sue me. The only one I find unbearable is “Attack Of The Clones”. Sure, the acting is beyond horrid, but “Revenge of the Sith” was much better than it could have been and, after 10 years, I still like “The Phantom Menace”.
I also suggest that you watch “Star Trek: The Undiscovered Country”. It’s the last one with the original crew and a really nifty political thriller. It was directed by Nicholas Meyers who also did “The Wrath of Khan”.
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Film Database Submission March 2010 about 2 years ago
Magical Mystery Tour
1967
Directed by John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison & Ringo Starr
Here’s a good screen shot: http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c72/Pezao/walrus.jpg
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The Auteurs' Fake Criterion Covers about 2 years ago
That “Renaldo & Clara” is beautiful…
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Extremely overrated garbage film? about 2 years ago
I’m a Sci-Fi junkie and I can imagine why someone might not like it, but I have always found it brilliant. It never seems slow to me, but that’s just because I love watching spaceships move. I’ve always thought that it was made to be more of an essay on the cycle of life than anything else.
If you really don’t get the film, I must suggest you read Clarke’s novel. He gets bogged down in explaining everything and while that makes everything make sense, I think the fact that Kubrick doesn’t feel a need to explain everything is the brilliance of the film.
This leads to why I really, REALLY love this film. It’s so open-ended to any interpretation that you can think of and I always feel that I come up with a different one every time I watch it (which is about every three months or so – I like to remind myself about how great some films are). Clarke’s novel seems to distill it to a simple Cold War-in-Space, but with the film, he and Kubrick make it completely about anything but that.
…I hope I made sense there…I’m always afraid of not making sense when talking about film.
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What's the best first Criterion Blu-Ray? about 2 years ago
I’m making “M” my first Criterion Blu-Ray.
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Heads up!!!! 50% off Criterions about 2 years ago
I got “Berlin Alexanderplatz” during the last sale…managed to get it for $46 with the other coupon I had. (It was a 25% off coupon…has anyone else noticed that they only send out 10-15% ones now?) Brilliant set that was worth every penny. I never would have been able to afford it had it not been for the sale. Whenever the next time comes, the first thing I’ll get is the Rossilini War Trilogy.
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mubi about 2 years ago
This is really stupid. The Auteurs was great. This is just…stupid.
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The Official CRITERION COLLECTION Deals thread about 2 years ago
I have to vouch for the great deals that can be found at MovieStop. Other than B&N, they seem to be the only store I have ever seen to have an entire section devoted to Criterion. You can get single-disc releases new for $19.99 and two-disc ones for $29.99. That’s not ridiculously cheap, but considering how expensive they are at places like Best Buy or B&N (w/o a membership), it’s not too bad. They also sell used copies very cheap. Today I picked up a used copy of “L’Avventura” for $15. The other problem with them is that there aren’t that many. They’re mostly exclusive to the East Coast.
Other than that, I really hope that B&N has another 50% off sale and soon. I gotta get the Rossilini War Trilogy…
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What is the first Foreign Language film you remember seeing? about 2 years ago
It’s really strange that as much as I grew up around films, foreign films were…well, foreign to my family. My parents are indifferent to movies, but my uncle is and my grandfather was a huge movie buff, but their love was for the Hollywood of the 1940s and ’50s, so I had to discover foreign films myself, which makes it more fun.
Back in my senior year in high school, back in 2007, I took this silly film course where the teacher thought the only foreign film he could think that we needed to see was “Life Is Beautiful”. I hate to admit that that was probably my first exposure to a foreign film.
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Age / Level of education? (An informal poll) almost 2 years ago
20 – Senior at Hofstra University, getting a BA in Journalism
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SO, WHEN THAT CRITERION B&N SALE ROLLS AROUND.... almost 2 years ago
This is what I’ve got on a little list right now. Originally, I had the Rossilini War Trilogy as the first thing I was going to get, but after I found it used for $30 at a video store, I couldn’t pass that deal up. So, here’s my short list:
Olivier’s Shakespeare set (my new #1!!!)
Revanche
Spartacus (still debating on whether I want Universal’s new BR or not, though)
Young Mr. Lincoln (after getting “Stagecoach”, I suddenly realized that I need some Ford)
Rules Of The Game (still can’t believe I don’t have this…)
Mr. Arkadin
Ali: Fear Eats The Soul (I got Berlin Alexanderplatz during the last sale, so I think it would only be fair to get some more Fassbinder)
The Leopard (So happy the BR will be out before the sale starts. I’ve been dying to see this movie since I heard about it.)
Although, if any of my local stores have copies of some of those OOP StudioCanal titles, I would definitely grab one.
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With the Hollywood Video closure...are you going crazy with their Foreign Section clearance? almost 2 years ago
I went to a Hollywood Video the day they started the closing sale and they didn’t have a single Criterion nor a foreign film that looked interesting to me. Considering that I live in North Florida, I’m not entirely surprised. Anyway, I did walk out with a copy of Kubrick’s “The Killing” and the “Inglorious Basterds” BR, though.
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With the Hollywood Video closure...are you going crazy with their Foreign Section clearance? almost 2 years ago
I have to actually edit my last post. I went in there today and picked up a copy of Criterion’s “Do The Right Thing”. It had both discs which is awesome. Can’t wait to watch it. I’ve never seen it before, but picking up a 2-DVD Criterion for $5 is amazing.
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Heads up!!!! 50% off Criterions almost 2 years ago
KNDY, are you talking about the fact that they never seem to send out coupons for anything more than 15% off? When they sent out that 25% off one during the last sale, it enabled me to get “Berlin Alexanderplatz” for $42! I’m hoping they have at least a 15% one so I can get “The Leopard” even cheaper. The coupons would really help out, since I’d love to get the Antoine Doinel set.
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