Like others here, I think my first CC DVD was either the Seventh Seal or Royal Tenenbaums. I bought my copy to RT used from a Blockbuster Video clearance table. They had literally dozens of them that they were getting rid of right after the film had faded from being a “hot new release” so I got it for $5 (which is about what it goes for used on eBay these days!) Sad thing is that it didn’t include the insert so I still don’t have that one. But I did get my Criterion edition of Rushmore there too later and it had the nice fold out map inside. I think someone had traded it in. Seventh Seal was definitely the first that I bought new. I had already seen it on VHS before that. Shortly after that, I chanced upon a used DVD store where someone had apparently unloaded their Criterions and I picked up 8 1/2, Seven Samurai, Life of Brian and the three-disc version of Brazil. A pretty big splash to get my collection started and I’ve been going full blazes ever since…
If you are thinking of young as in kids or teenagers, I think the work of Terry Gilliam is a pretty accessible place to start. Holy Grail, Time Bandits, Life of Brian, Brazil, Fear and Loathing, Baron Munchausen, 12 Monkeys. All pretty cool and appealing to young guys anyway, if my (now young adult) sons are a reliable gauge.
My name is Dave and I also found this site after checking out the new criterion.com – of course I joined instantly. I have a pretty good and continually growing collection of CC DVDs (and others) and I’m definitely one of those people who enjoys watching movies I like the second or third time more than the first. I’ve been building the video library for several years now and I think this site will be a main hangout for me in the foreseeable future. I have my own blog that I started this summer < criterionreflections.blogspot.com > though I have been lazy about updating it for quite a few weeks now. But it offers a sample of what I have to say about movies when I have the floor all to myself. :o)
I may be a junkie but at least I’m functional enough to keep my job and support the habit. I like to spy out bargains on Amazon, eBay and local used DVD stores. I use credit cards to accumulate bonus points at Amazon.com and Barnes & Noble so that I can get new discs every so often for a minimal cash outlay. My collection has grown to the point where I have probably two dozen titles that I haven’t watched yet. That’s partly because I like watching a film a couple times through in order to get into it. But it’s getting to the point where I almost feel like it’s a waste of my movie watching time to step too far outside the Criterion canon (like, I’ll watch art house films that they haven’t yet released but have really fallen behind on standard Hollywood fare, new releases, popular hits, etc.) Some may consider my fixation a bit pathetic but I think I’m just catching up on a century’s worth of the greatest films ever made so why bother staying current with run-of-the-mill fare? Maybe when I get caught up a bit more I will head back to the cineplex on a more regular basis.
I think that Criterion would have really alienated a large part of their audience by releasing the same titles with different spine numbers. The move from Laserdisc to DVD seems (at least in hindsight) big enough to warrant restarting the series since DVDs caught on in a big way that LDs never really did. But now DVD collections are a staple of many people’s home libraries and I think it just makes a lot more sense for them to maintain continuity with the current collection since they will continue producing regular DVDs for the foreseeable future. With their new website, I also get the sense that they are hedging their bets a bit on Blu-ray and preparing for the emergence of downloading/streaming media as a preferred format for cinephiles of the future. I have a bit of that completist bug in me so I get what you’re saying but economic reality means that I probably will not be able to acquire the full series of CC discs (even those still in print) any time soon. If you are Blu-ray only at this point, I think you can take some satisfaction in owning all the CC B-r discs and leave it at that, even if the numbers don’t form a clear consecutive series!
I’ve read or heard that Woody Allen objects to special features, commentaries, supplements, etc. on the DVD releases of his films. That was some years ago but I haven’t seen anything to convince me that he changed his mind.
I just watched Une Femme est une Femme last night and I found it as entertaining and satisfying as I’d want it to be. Anna Karina’s performance is completely adorable and really it’s just so much fun to watch her frolic with Brialy and Belmondo. Not sure how to put a number value on it, but 90 out of a 100 seems reasonable.
“Worst Criterion DVD” makes sense to me as a premise but I can’t really go along with the “unworthy of Criterion release” notion. It’s their company and they set the criteria! I don’t know much about the inner workings of their business but it seems to me that they have gone through some ups and downs that probably necessitated (for financial reasons) both the inclusion of Michael Bay and Kevin Smith films and the release of several “bare bones” titles in the early 2000s (like Good Morning, Variety Lights, Insomnia and others) where the expense of putting decent extras together may have been more than they could muster. Nowadays it seems like Criterion is doing rather well, at least judging by the quality of their packaging and supplementary features. I think they are due to lower the list prices on some of those older editions because it’s really hard to justify paying $30 or $40 when you can get much better bang for the buck in the newer releases.
If space is truly limited, I can see the point of disposing with the cases if the packaging has nothing to offer. I have a few DVDs in my collection that match that description, but there are many other products out there besides Criterion DVDs that deserve full preservation! Like my Beatles Anthology, Looney Tunes, Matrix and Lord of the Rings sets… and many many others. It’s nice to have chapter lists in print even if there aren’t any liner notes included.
Like any library, one has to make choices! My Criterions (about 150 or so) enjoy prominence of place but I have other quality items on display in their own racks. When the space I can dedicate to showing them off gets full (as it is now when I include my books and CDs) then it’s time to start thinning out the pile (which mostly means fewer books since I am spending more time watching and listening than reading these days…)
If space is truly limited, I can see the point of disposing with the cases if the packaging has nothing to offer. I have a few DVDs in my collection that match that description, but there are many other products out there besides Criterion DVDs that deserve full preservation! Like my Beatles Anthology, Looney Tunes, Matrix and Lord of the Rings sets… and many many others. It’s nice to have chapter lists in print even if there aren’t any liner notes included.
Like any library, one has to make choices! My Criterions (about 150 or so) enjoy prominence of place but I have other quality items on display in their own racks. When the space I can dedicate to showing them off gets full (as it is now when I include my books and CDs) then it’s time to start thinning out the pile (which mostly means fewer books since I am spending more time watching and listening than reading these days…)
Several Bergman entries in the CC were originally broadcast on TV: Fanny & Alexander, Scenes from a Marriage, Magic Flute. So the precedent is clearly already established. The next step is to establish whether or not the TV show in question is an “important classic (or) contemporary film.”
I’m a Sex Pistols fan and have been since 1977 when I first heard their music as a teenager. It’s been years since I saw Sid & Nancy (when it was in it’s theatrical run) and I liked the movie quite a bit even though I recognized that it wasn’t really accurate to what I knew about the facts of the matter. It’s pretty obviously more along the lines of “inspired by” the characters and events than a straightforward biopic. I was at their last concert in San Francisco and if I recall correctly, that gig was depicted in the film – and it looked nothing at all like the scene I remember at the Winterland! I can easiliy understand why John Lydon disliked the movie, but it really doesn’t take much to provoke his ire now does it? >:o)
“Manufactured Landscapes” came out a couple years ago. It’s based on the work of a Canadian photographer who specializes in capturing the weirdly beautiful aesthetics of industrialization – including the pollution and incidental transformations of the environment that accompany humankind’s systematic extraction of resources from the earth. Filmed primarily in China, it features a very memorable tracking shot that last for over five minutes just rolling down the length of one manufacturing plant found in a large complex of such buildings in one Chinese city. Also some pretty amazing footage showing the construction of the Three Gorges Dam which required the complete dismantling of many entire cities by their inhabitant prior to their being submerged. (The cities, that is, not the inhabitants themselves! They were merely relocated.)
Sure, it’s odd, but I like it that way. I think it’s inclusion had to do with the cast, the indie sensibility of the series and the fact that it was an early Criterion release, way before most of us were collecting the discs and thinking of the CC in terms of a “canon.” It’s good to have entries like this in the series to keep the boundaries open, unpredictable and somewhat unenforceable even. Though I doubt that Criterion would be likely to release the disc at this time. I’d really like to know more about their review and selection process and particularly how it has developed over the years. My hunch is that they went through phases where they were either less selective or less able to afford the rights to release some films than they are now (though conversely, they also were able to release films in the past that they wouldn’t have a shot at today, e.g. Silence of the Lambs.)
I’m reading Ingmar Bergman’s autobiography “The Magic Lantern,” which I recently found for sale at a library used book table – hardcover 1st edition – for 10 cents! :o) It’s quite interesting so far – lots of childhood memories in the early chapters, then gets into some behind the scenes stuff and what was on his mind in making most of his great films. I have no idea how hard to find this book is nowadays – I got lucky – but I think it has to be highly recommended for anyone interested in Bergman’s works.
Ah I see someone else (Demarest) mentioned Olivier’s “Richard III” which I just happened to put in tonight (before seeing this thread.) I have no basis for saying it’s the best British film but I sure did enjoy it. Incredible acting, bright vivid technicolor and the source material is utterly top notch! Quite an entertaining film…
Cocteau’s “Beauty and the Beast” is one of the most visually enchanting films I’ve ever seen. Josette Day is luminous as Belle and the atmosphere is so lovely, so easy to get swept away…
I like the late Bunuel titles: Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie, Phantom of Liberty, That Obscure Object of Desire. They sound good, intriguing, stimulate one’s thinking as to what is he really trying to communicate with those phrases?
When I was 13 I heard an advertisement on the radio that a local theater was offering a free coconut to the first 100 people who came to see the premier screening of a new comedy film called “Monty Python and the Holy Grail.” I didn’t know anything about the Pythons at that time and I had no idea what the (now obvious) connection was between coconuts and this movie but I always liked the taste of coconut and the movie seemed like it would be funny so I decided to go. My mom dropped me off at the theater and I went in by myself since none of my friends were interested or available that day. Of course I had never seen anything like it – the mock-Norwegian titles threw me off at first, then the weirdness started from right off the bat and I was astonished. The Black Knight seen blew my hair back – I had never seen so much blood on screen and wasn’t sure that it was OK to laugh (it was a bit disturbing to me, actually.) And the ending with the policeman knocking the camera over and going straight to the white screen. I sat there thinking that the film broke and waited for a proper conclusion, until the house lights went up and I realized it was time to leave. I’ve seen a lot of good movies since then of course but can’t say that I’ve ever had my boundaries of what a movie could be expanded as radically as they were that afternoon.
Amazon.com is having a pretty big 40 – 44% off sale of many Criterion titles (mostly popular ones, not some of the more obscure selections) and they offer free shipping for orders over $25. As many have already said, there are many places to find bargains if one is serious about building a personal DVD library. I do think that Criterion should consider re-pricing some of their older titles though. There are a number of MSRP $40 discs (e.g. Great Expectations) that have no special features, commentaries and pretty meager packaging compared to what they put out nowadays.
Oasis – Dig Out Your Soul
Spiritualized – Songs from A + E
Chemical Brothers – Brotherhood (esp. the extra disc of Electronic Battle Weapons)
Raveonettes – Lust Lust Lust
I think the Criterion Seven Samurai is a clear choice for “essential DVD.” If one is looking for a pillar of world cinema in a top-quality presentation, the three-disc set sets the benchmark. Massively influential film, full slate of special features covering it from every angle, insightful commentaries… that’s how it’s done!
Christopher, I think it may be worth your while to get Armageddon and The Rock and just watch them with an open mind, read the inserts, listen to the commentaries and watch the special features and see for yourself how the Criterion treatment helps raise the experience of watching these films to a new level. I think they combine to provide a decent rationale for why these films were selected for the Collection at the time. It wouldn’t happen that way these days but as a guy who mainly focuses on acquiring and watching Criterion titles these days, I’m glad to have some fairly obvious crowd pleasing low-brow entertainment in the stack. Have a laugh at the absurdity of it all even though there is also a lot of talent and dare I say artistry that goes into the production of, say, the destructive blast wave that destroys Paris or the “Evel Kneivel on asteroida” stunts… And you can get them for cheap on eBay, like under 10 bucks, pretty easily!
OK I just went through the films on the Criterion website to see which one I actually saw first, and I discovered that The Man Who Fell to Earth is the first actual film I saw that eventually became a Criterion title. My dad took me to see it in the theater when it was first released in 1976, when I was 14 going on 15. Kinda blew my mind, since I was more used to the “Planet of the Apes” sequels and “Star Trek” reruns or late night Creature Features on TV when it came to watching science fiction. After that, I also saw Life of Brian, The Tin Drum, Time Bandits, Videodrome, Spinal Tap, Sid and Nancy and Brazil in their original theatrical releases. And I saw Monterey Pop and Jimi Plays Monterey somewhere around that time as well.
I think English subs ought to be mandatory on all CC main features. I was really bummed when I got a copy of Henry V years ago and saw no subtitles on it. Even though I speak English quite well, I still like having the words on the screen for Shakespeare or other heavily accented performances. To me, that’s really the only thing that makes for a “worst Criterion DVD” – the lack of supplements. I trust their judgment in selecting films – even if I don’t enjoy the movie so much the first time, I’m always learning and getting new insights and for the most part, the artistry and craft comes through as we begin to absorb a sense of the director’s vision that drove the project forward to begin with.
When I shop for Criterion DVDs in local stores, I’m seeing the cheaper ESSENTIAL ARTHOUSE versions filed alongside and it makes me wonder, who is passing up the full feature Criterion discs to buy these editions? I know the price is lower but that makes little difference to me. If I’m going to add these classics to my collection, I want to get all the goodies that can help me enjoy them to the fullest. So I am just wondering what is the market for these releases? And does Criterion plan to continue with that line for years ahead or is this just an experiment on their part? I’d be interested in knowing if anyone here is foregoing the CC editions for the EA versions.
Thanks for these replies. I guess it makes sense that there is a market out there of people who don’t aspire to complete the Criterion Collection themselves but just want the basic film. But I also know that I can pretty easily find a used copy of the Criterion edition for about the same price as a new EAH copy.
Ms Mouth, Some people get upset that Criterion isn’t strictly an Art House imprint, I think. Personally, I like what the various “anomalies” bring to the Collection – the inclusion of both mega-blockbusters and oddball lo-budget indie stuff establishes a broad spectrum of possibilities and keeps the discussion lively. Armageddon and The Rock have been part of the CC for so long that debate about their inclusion ought to be fairly moot by now but they continue to generate friction!
What was the first Criterion movie you watched? over 3 years ago
Like others here, I think my first CC DVD was either the Seventh Seal or Royal Tenenbaums. I bought my copy to RT used from a Blockbuster Video clearance table. They had literally dozens of them that they were getting rid of right after the film had faded from being a “hot new release” so I got it for $5 (which is about what it goes for used on eBay these days!) Sad thing is that it didn’t include the insert so I still don’t have that one. But I did get my Criterion edition of Rushmore there too later and it had the nice fold out map inside. I think someone had traded it in. Seventh Seal was definitely the first that I bought new. I had already seen it on VHS before that. Shortly after that, I chanced upon a used DVD store where someone had apparently unloaded their Criterions and I picked up 8 1/2, Seven Samurai, Life of Brian and the three-disc version of Brazil. A pretty big splash to get my collection started and I’ve been going full blazes ever since…
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Film Education over 3 years ago
If you are thinking of young as in kids or teenagers, I think the work of Terry Gilliam is a pretty accessible place to start. Holy Grail, Time Bandits, Life of Brian, Brazil, Fear and Loathing, Baron Munchausen, 12 Monkeys. All pretty cool and appealing to young guys anyway, if my (now young adult) sons are a reliable gauge.
Go to Comment
New to The Auteurs? You Belong Here over 3 years ago
My name is Dave and I also found this site after checking out the new criterion.com – of course I joined instantly. I have a pretty good and continually growing collection of CC DVDs (and others) and I’m definitely one of those people who enjoys watching movies I like the second or third time more than the first. I’ve been building the video library for several years now and I think this site will be a main hangout for me in the foreseeable future. I have my own blog that I started this summer < criterionreflections.blogspot.com > though I have been lazy about updating it for quite a few weeks now. But it offers a sample of what I have to say about movies when I have the floor all to myself. :o)
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Good Bad Films over 3 years ago
Eegah! never fails to induce lots of laughter. And I really enjoy John Carpenter’s Dark Star.
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Criterion junkies here? over 3 years ago
I may be a junkie but at least I’m functional enough to keep my job and support the habit. I like to spy out bargains on Amazon, eBay and local used DVD stores. I use credit cards to accumulate bonus points at Amazon.com and Barnes & Noble so that I can get new discs every so often for a minimal cash outlay. My collection has grown to the point where I have probably two dozen titles that I haven’t watched yet. That’s partly because I like watching a film a couple times through in order to get into it. But it’s getting to the point where I almost feel like it’s a waste of my movie watching time to step too far outside the Criterion canon (like, I’ll watch art house films that they haven’t yet released but have really fallen behind on standard Hollywood fare, new releases, popular hits, etc.) Some may consider my fixation a bit pathetic but I think I’m just catching up on a century’s worth of the greatest films ever made so why bother staying current with run-of-the-mill fare? Maybe when I get caught up a bit more I will head back to the cineplex on a more regular basis.
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Criterion Blu(e)s over 3 years ago
I think that Criterion would have really alienated a large part of their audience by releasing the same titles with different spine numbers. The move from Laserdisc to DVD seems (at least in hindsight) big enough to warrant restarting the series since DVDs caught on in a big way that LDs never really did. But now DVD collections are a staple of many people’s home libraries and I think it just makes a lot more sense for them to maintain continuity with the current collection since they will continue producing regular DVDs for the foreseeable future. With their new website, I also get the sense that they are hedging their bets a bit on Blu-ray and preparing for the emergence of downloading/streaming media as a preferred format for cinephiles of the future. I have a bit of that completist bug in me so I get what you’re saying but economic reality means that I probably will not be able to acquire the full series of CC discs (even those still in print) any time soon. If you are Blu-ray only at this point, I think you can take some satisfaction in owning all the CC B-r discs and leave it at that, even if the numbers don’t form a clear consecutive series!
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WHICH DIRECTORS...NOT...CURRENTLY REPRESENTED IN THE CRITERION COLLECTION DO YOU WANT TO SEE INCLUDED? over 3 years ago
I’ve read or heard that Woody Allen objects to special features, commentaries, supplements, etc. on the DVD releases of his films. That was some years ago but I haven’t seen anything to convince me that he changed his mind.
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Rate The Last Film You Watched over 3 years ago
I just watched Une Femme est une Femme last night and I found it as entertaining and satisfying as I’d want it to be. Anna Karina’s performance is completely adorable and really it’s just so much fun to watch her frolic with Brialy and Belmondo. Not sure how to put a number value on it, but 90 out of a 100 seems reasonable.
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Worst Criterion DVDs over 3 years ago
“Worst Criterion DVD” makes sense to me as a premise but I can’t really go along with the “unworthy of Criterion release” notion. It’s their company and they set the criteria! I don’t know much about the inner workings of their business but it seems to me that they have gone through some ups and downs that probably necessitated (for financial reasons) both the inclusion of Michael Bay and Kevin Smith films and the release of several “bare bones” titles in the early 2000s (like Good Morning, Variety Lights, Insomnia and others) where the expense of putting decent extras together may have been more than they could muster. Nowadays it seems like Criterion is doing rather well, at least judging by the quality of their packaging and supplementary features. I think they are due to lower the list prices on some of those older editions because it’s really hard to justify paying $30 or $40 when you can get much better bang for the buck in the newer releases.
Go to Comment
Solutions to the DVD storage dilema over 3 years ago
If space is truly limited, I can see the point of disposing with the cases if the packaging has nothing to offer. I have a few DVDs in my collection that match that description, but there are many other products out there besides Criterion DVDs that deserve full preservation! Like my Beatles Anthology, Looney Tunes, Matrix and Lord of the Rings sets… and many many others. It’s nice to have chapter lists in print even if there aren’t any liner notes included.
Like any library, one has to make choices! My Criterions (about 150 or so) enjoy prominence of place but I have other quality items on display in their own racks. When the space I can dedicate to showing them off gets full (as it is now when I include my books and CDs) then it’s time to start thinning out the pile (which mostly means fewer books since I am spending more time watching and listening than reading these days…)
Go to Comment
Solutions to the DVD storage dilema over 3 years ago
If space is truly limited, I can see the point of disposing with the cases if the packaging has nothing to offer. I have a few DVDs in my collection that match that description, but there are many other products out there besides Criterion DVDs that deserve full preservation! Like my Beatles Anthology, Looney Tunes, Matrix and Lord of the Rings sets… and many many others. It’s nice to have chapter lists in print even if there aren’t any liner notes included.
Like any library, one has to make choices! My Criterions (about 150 or so) enjoy prominence of place but I have other quality items on display in their own racks. When the space I can dedicate to showing them off gets full (as it is now when I include my books and CDs) then it’s time to start thinning out the pile (which mostly means fewer books since I am spending more time watching and listening than reading these days…)
Go to Comment
SHOULD THE CRITERION COLLECTION INCLUDE TELEVISION SHOWS? over 3 years ago
Several Bergman entries in the CC were originally broadcast on TV: Fanny & Alexander, Scenes from a Marriage, Magic Flute. So the precedent is clearly already established. The next step is to establish whether or not the TV show in question is an “important classic (or) contemporary film.”
Go to Comment
What do Sex Pistols fans think of this? over 3 years ago
I’m a Sex Pistols fan and have been since 1977 when I first heard their music as a teenager. It’s been years since I saw Sid & Nancy (when it was in it’s theatrical run) and I liked the movie quite a bit even though I recognized that it wasn’t really accurate to what I knew about the facts of the matter. It’s pretty obviously more along the lines of “inspired by” the characters and events than a straightforward biopic. I was at their last concert in San Francisco and if I recall correctly, that gig was depicted in the film – and it looked nothing at all like the scene I remember at the Winterland! I can easiliy understand why John Lydon disliked the movie, but it really doesn’t take much to provoke his ire now does it? >:o)
Go to Comment
Documentaries over 3 years ago
“Manufactured Landscapes” came out a couple years ago. It’s based on the work of a Canadian photographer who specializes in capturing the weirdly beautiful aesthetics of industrialization – including the pollution and incidental transformations of the environment that accompany humankind’s systematic extraction of resources from the earth. Filmed primarily in China, it features a very memorable tracking shot that last for over five minutes just rolling down the length of one manufacturing plant found in a large complex of such buildings in one Chinese city. Also some pretty amazing footage showing the construction of the Three Gorges Dam which required the complete dismantling of many entire cities by their inhabitant prior to their being submerged. (The cities, that is, not the inhabitants themselves! They were merely relocated.)
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Fishing With John (Criterion) over 3 years ago
Sure, it’s odd, but I like it that way. I think it’s inclusion had to do with the cast, the indie sensibility of the series and the fact that it was an early Criterion release, way before most of us were collecting the discs and thinking of the CC in terms of a “canon.” It’s good to have entries like this in the series to keep the boundaries open, unpredictable and somewhat unenforceable even. Though I doubt that Criterion would be likely to release the disc at this time. I’d really like to know more about their review and selection process and particularly how it has developed over the years. My hunch is that they went through phases where they were either less selective or less able to afford the rights to release some films than they are now (though conversely, they also were able to release films in the past that they wouldn’t have a shot at today, e.g. Silence of the Lambs.)
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Rate The Last Film You Watched over 3 years ago
I watched La Strada yesterday. I liked it but a bit less than A Woman is a Woman so I’ll rate it 87/100. Piqued my interest in watching more Fellini.
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When Directors Write (or Speak) over 3 years ago
I’m reading Ingmar Bergman’s autobiography “The Magic Lantern,” which I recently found for sale at a library used book table – hardcover 1st edition – for 10 cents! :o) It’s quite interesting so far – lots of childhood memories in the early chapters, then gets into some behind the scenes stuff and what was on his mind in making most of his great films. I have no idea how hard to find this book is nowadays – I got lucky – but I think it has to be highly recommended for anyone interested in Bergman’s works.
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Best British Film over 3 years ago
Ah I see someone else (Demarest) mentioned Olivier’s “Richard III” which I just happened to put in tonight (before seeing this thread.) I have no basis for saying it’s the best British film but I sure did enjoy it. Incredible acting, bright vivid technicolor and the source material is utterly top notch! Quite an entertaining film…
Go to Comment
The most beautiful films? over 3 years ago
Cocteau’s “Beauty and the Beast” is one of the most visually enchanting films I’ve ever seen. Josette Day is luminous as Belle and the atmosphere is so lovely, so easy to get swept away…
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Best title over 3 years ago
I like the late Bunuel titles: Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie, Phantom of Liberty, That Obscure Object of Desire. They sound good, intriguing, stimulate one’s thinking as to what is he really trying to communicate with those phrases?
Go to Comment
What is your most memorable film going experience? (Only one per post please!) over 3 years ago
When I was 13 I heard an advertisement on the radio that a local theater was offering a free coconut to the first 100 people who came to see the premier screening of a new comedy film called “Monty Python and the Holy Grail.” I didn’t know anything about the Pythons at that time and I had no idea what the (now obvious) connection was between coconuts and this movie but I always liked the taste of coconut and the movie seemed like it would be funny so I decided to go. My mom dropped me off at the theater and I went in by myself since none of my friends were interested or available that day. Of course I had never seen anything like it – the mock-Norwegian titles threw me off at first, then the weirdness started from right off the bat and I was astonished. The Black Knight seen blew my hair back – I had never seen so much blood on screen and wasn’t sure that it was OK to laugh (it was a bit disturbing to me, actually.) And the ending with the policeman knocking the camera over and going straight to the white screen. I sat there thinking that the film broke and waited for a proper conclusion, until the house lights went up and I realized it was time to leave. I’ve seen a lot of good movies since then of course but can’t say that I’ve ever had my boundaries of what a movie could be expanded as radically as they were that afternoon.
Go to Comment
Criterion too pricey for you? over 3 years ago
Amazon.com is having a pretty big 40 – 44% off sale of many Criterion titles (mostly popular ones, not some of the more obscure selections) and they offer free shipping for orders over $25. As many have already said, there are many places to find bargains if one is serious about building a personal DVD library. I do think that Criterion should consider re-pricing some of their older titles though. There are a number of MSRP $40 discs (e.g. Great Expectations) that have no special features, commentaries and pretty meager packaging compared to what they put out nowadays.
Go to Comment
Top Albums of the Year (aka What rocks your ipod) 2008 over 3 years ago
Not mentioned yet but I like ’em… a lot.
Oasis – Dig Out Your Soul
Spiritualized – Songs from A + E
Chemical Brothers – Brotherhood (esp. the extra disc of Electronic Battle Weapons)
Raveonettes – Lust Lust Lust
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DVD'S YOU MUST OWN over 3 years ago
I think the Criterion Seven Samurai is a clear choice for “essential DVD.” If one is looking for a pillar of world cinema in a top-quality presentation, the three-disc set sets the benchmark. Massively influential film, full slate of special features covering it from every angle, insightful commentaries… that’s how it’s done!
Go to Comment
WHY!!! over 3 years ago
Christopher, I think it may be worth your while to get Armageddon and The Rock and just watch them with an open mind, read the inserts, listen to the commentaries and watch the special features and see for yourself how the Criterion treatment helps raise the experience of watching these films to a new level. I think they combine to provide a decent rationale for why these films were selected for the Collection at the time. It wouldn’t happen that way these days but as a guy who mainly focuses on acquiring and watching Criterion titles these days, I’m glad to have some fairly obvious crowd pleasing low-brow entertainment in the stack. Have a laugh at the absurdity of it all even though there is also a lot of talent and dare I say artistry that goes into the production of, say, the destructive blast wave that destroys Paris or the “Evel Kneivel on asteroida” stunts… And you can get them for cheap on eBay, like under 10 bucks, pretty easily!
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What was the first Criterion movie you watched? over 3 years ago
OK I just went through the films on the Criterion website to see which one I actually saw first, and I discovered that The Man Who Fell to Earth is the first actual film I saw that eventually became a Criterion title. My dad took me to see it in the theater when it was first released in 1976, when I was 14 going on 15. Kinda blew my mind, since I was more used to the “Planet of the Apes” sequels and “Star Trek” reruns or late night Creature Features on TV when it came to watching science fiction. After that, I also saw Life of Brian, The Tin Drum, Time Bandits, Videodrome, Spinal Tap, Sid and Nancy and Brazil in their original theatrical releases. And I saw Monterey Pop and Jimi Plays Monterey somewhere around that time as well.
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Worst Criterion DVDs over 3 years ago
I think English subs ought to be mandatory on all CC main features. I was really bummed when I got a copy of Henry V years ago and saw no subtitles on it. Even though I speak English quite well, I still like having the words on the screen for Shakespeare or other heavily accented performances. To me, that’s really the only thing that makes for a “worst Criterion DVD” – the lack of supplements. I trust their judgment in selecting films – even if I don’t enjoy the movie so much the first time, I’m always learning and getting new insights and for the most part, the artistry and craft comes through as we begin to absorb a sense of the director’s vision that drove the project forward to begin with.
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ESSENTIAL ARTHOUSE discs - Who's buying them? over 3 years ago
When I shop for Criterion DVDs in local stores, I’m seeing the cheaper ESSENTIAL ARTHOUSE versions filed alongside and it makes me wonder, who is passing up the full feature Criterion discs to buy these editions? I know the price is lower but that makes little difference to me. If I’m going to add these classics to my collection, I want to get all the goodies that can help me enjoy them to the fullest. So I am just wondering what is the market for these releases? And does Criterion plan to continue with that line for years ahead or is this just an experiment on their part? I’d be interested in knowing if anyone here is foregoing the CC editions for the EA versions.
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ESSENTIAL ARTHOUSE discs - Who's buying them? over 3 years ago
Thanks for these replies. I guess it makes sense that there is a market out there of people who don’t aspire to complete the Criterion Collection themselves but just want the basic film. But I also know that I can pretty easily find a used copy of the Criterion edition for about the same price as a new EAH copy.
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WHY!!! over 3 years ago
Ms Mouth, Some people get upset that Criterion isn’t strictly an Art House imprint, I think. Personally, I like what the various “anomalies” bring to the Collection – the inclusion of both mega-blockbusters and oddball lo-budget indie stuff establishes a broad spectrum of possibilities and keeps the discussion lively. Armageddon and The Rock have been part of the CC for so long that debate about their inclusion ought to be fairly moot by now but they continue to generate friction!
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