The CriterionForum's recommendations for Criterion

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Jun-Dai · #1 Post by **Jun-Dai** » Wed Dec 01, 2004 12:54 am

[1] Luis Buñuel "Mexican" set - contains: Any or all of Nazarín, Simón del desierto, El Ángel exterminador, Susana (and Los Olvidados, which isn't going to be possible)
[2] Berlin Alexanderplatz set - contains: both versions: Jutzi's (1931) and Fassbinder's (1980)
tied --- Satantango
[4] Vampyr
[5] Samourai, Le
tied --- Vittorio de Sica Neorealist set - contains: Any or all of Bicycle Thieves, Shoeshine, The Children Are Watching Us, Gold of Naples, and Miracle in Milan
[7] Histoire(s) du cinéma set - contains: The complete Histoire(s) du cinéma
[8] Double Indemnity
tied --- Sansho the Bailiff
[10] Ashes of Time
tied --- Fellini's Casanova
tied --- Jacques Rivette set - contains: Any or all of Out 1, Out 1: Spectre, Paris Belongs to Us, L'Amour Fou, Duelle, Pont du Nord, Noroît
tied --- Shadows of Forgotten Ancestors

Jun-Dai · #2 Post by **Jun-Dai** » Wed Dec 01, 2004 12:55 am

I'm returning this thread to the forum. So far Criterion has mostly announced titles that aren't on this list, but I'd like to continue it anyways, as the most comprehensive poll of this forum's tastes.

So (for those who haven't voted, or have forgotten), the rules are simple:

List 5 titles (individual films, sensible pairings, or logical box sets) in ranked order of preference that you would like to see Criterion release. Things that make a title ineligible include (1) the rights are retained by New Yorker Films, Columbia/Tristar, Warner (not necessarily including New Line, it seems), Paramount, or MGM/UA (let me know if I've forgotten any); (2) the rights are retained by some other company that has just released their own special edition (e.g., La Dolce Vita); and (3) Criterion is already known to be working on the film, or at least the film is a "likely possibility" for them in the near future.

Your first eligible pick is weighted as three votes, your second as two votes, and your third as one vote. If you have more than three eligible picks, they count for nothing until one of your three eligible picks becomes ineligible (e.g., Criterion releases it).

You can see all of the votes thus far, including a ranked list of films at: http://chaumurky.net/toplist/rank-films.jsp.

You may post your list here or send it to me, and you may ask for your list to be updated at any time.

I will consolidate similar selections. If you insist, I'll probably create a separate title for yours.

Dylan · #3 Post by **Dylan** » Thu Dec 02, 2004 10:30 pm

The Stranger (Visconti)
The Passenger
Face to Face
Partner
La Chinoise

Jun-Dai · #4 Post by **Jun-Dai** » Fri Dec 03, 2004 2:12 am

Is there some connection between Godard's A Married Woman and his La Chinoise, or did you just think they would go well together?

Dylan · #5 Post by **Dylan** » Fri Dec 03, 2004 7:47 am

Neither one of the them, to the best of my knowledge, have been released in any form with English subtitles. Both are also mysterious gaps for many Godard fans (particularly "A Married Woman," which was made during, in my opinion, Godard's true prime, and yet little to nothing has been written about it...La Chinoise, on the other hand, is very popular and well-known among Godard fans, simply because of all that's been written about it...I'd go out on a limb and say that most Godard fans probably haven't seen it yet though, but it certainly looks and sounds like a great film). Since both are so ridiculously out of circulation at the moment (at least versions with English subtitles), they would go together quite well.

Dylan

mingus · #6 Post by **mingus** » Fri Dec 03, 2004 9:20 pm

1. Philippe Garrel - Early Films (La cicatrice inérieure, Les hautes solitudes, ...)

2. Jean Eustache La maman et la putain

3. Teresa Villaverde Três Irmãos

4. Slatan Dudow Kuhle Wampe
tied: Nikita Mikhalkow Anna

5. Andy Warhol Film Box (Biker Boy, The Velvet Underground & Nico, Chelsea Girls, ...)

Michael · #7 Post by **Michael** » Sun Dec 05, 2004 1:01 pm

I would like to see Criterion releasing more recent titles before they slip in the abyss eternally...

anything by Bela Tarr - especially Satantango

Eureka by Aoyama

Gregory · #8 Post by **Gregory** » Mon Dec 06, 2004 12:44 am

Annie Mall wrote:Glauber Rocha. Brazilian filmmaker. Any of his.
Criterion needs to introduce this director to the world.

I strongly agree. My pick would be Black God, White Devil (aka God and the Devil in the Land of the Sun).

the dancing kid · #9 Post by **the dancing kid** » Mon Dec 06, 2004 1:21 am

I would like to see some Ophuls out on DVD, who seems criminally underrepresented on R1 releases. Caught in particular would be nice.

Some Lindsay Anderson would be great as well, especially the Mick Travis films .I know Anchor Bay does Britannia Hospital, but does anyone know who holds If... and O Lucky Man?

From laserdiscs that haven't made it over yet, Robinson Crusoe on Mars is a personal favorite.

ellipsis7 · #10 Post by **ellipsis7** » Wed Dec 08, 2004 2:02 pm

Believe it or not, there's a reasonable Brazilian DVD with English subs of Glauber Rocha's BLACK GOD WHITE DEVIL, the first of his films I believe in a special edition series... It's a 2 discer, and of course the CC could improve on it... I asked Jon Mulvaney about Glauber Rocha about 18 months ago, but unfortunately the reply was in the negative...

Lino · #11 Post by **Lino** » Wed Dec 08, 2004 2:08 pm

I have that disc you mention and it's every bit as good as it sounds. That's why I'm urging Criterion to do something akin to that and include that or other Rocha's films in the Collection.

clutch44 · #12 Post by **clutch44** » Sat Dec 11, 2004 1:08 pm

Please change my picks to:

1. Frank Tashlin box set that included The Lieutenant Wore Skirts, The Girl Can't Help It, and Will Success Spoil Rock Hunter?
2. Viridiana
3. The Earrings of Madame de...
4. La Ciociara
5. Le Jour se lève

bjeggert82 · #13 Post by **bjeggert82** » Sat Dec 11, 2004 1:45 pm

How about The African Queen?

Doesn't Fox have the rights to this... shouldn't this be a possibility? It's criminally not on DVD yet, and it's one of my favorite films.

Pinback · #14 Post by **Pinback** » Sat Dec 11, 2004 11:37 pm

bjeggert82 wrote:How about The African Queen?

Doesn't Fox have the rights to this... shouldn't this be a possibility? It's criminally not on DVD yet, and it's one of my favorite films.

It's available on Region 2 DVD in the UK, including a commentary from Jack Cardiff (Director of Photography).

godardslave · #15 Post by **godardslave** » Sun Dec 12, 2004 12:24 am

the dancing kid wrote:I would like to see some Ophuls out on DVD, who seems criminally underrepresented on R1 releases.

So true.

A criterion Ophuls box-set would be beautiful.
who has the rights to most of Ophuls classics anyway?

Gregory · #16 Post by **Gregory** » Sun Dec 12, 2004 4:19 pm

godardslave wrote:who has the rights to most of Ophuls classics anyway?

Letter from an Unknown Woman is Universal, which is a good sign. The Reckless Moment is Columbia, which is not. Lately, Columbia is only releasing the tiny fraction of films from its vast catalog that it considers most profitable.
I'm not sure who owns the rights to La Ronde; it used to be Criterion and Home Vision. Also not sure who currently owns the rights to Madame de... . Criterion put out the LD and the VHS was from Connoisseur Video, but IMDB also lists Arlan as a rights holder in the US, so I'm not sure whether it would be possible for Criterion to license it. If anyone has better information than this, please post it.

Lino · #17 Post by **Lino** » Thu Dec 16, 2004 5:11 am

Indian cinema. Definitely. Satyajit Ray, Ritwik Ghatak or Mrinal Sen. Any of them. Or even some Bollywood - Mother India would be great!

Sai · #18 Post by **Sai** » Thu Dec 16, 2004 4:44 pm

I would also love a decent release of Kin Dza Dza. Currently unavailable with English subs.

Jun-Dai · #19 Post by **Jun-Dai** » Thu Dec 16, 2004 5:55 pm

I've added mingus, clutch44, and Hoichi's picks (and ignored everything else).

Let me know if I've overconsolidated your picks. Rather than creating new box sets containing a new permutation of a director's given films, I generally consolidate your pick to something approximating what you've listed (so that your vote will count for more--not that our votes count for anything in particular).

the dancing kid · #20 Post by **the dancing kid** » Thu Dec 16, 2004 6:09 pm

Two others I'd like to see

Yellow Earth by Chen Kaige
Two Stage Sisters by Xie Jin

Fox Lorber used to have a VHS of Yellow Earth, but I don't know who (if anyone) has the DVD rights. I've only seen Two Stage Sisters on a bootleg VHS made by a tape trader.

backstreetsbackalright · #21 Post by **backstreetsbackalright** » Fri Dec 17, 2004 7:51 pm

Dylan wrote:Neither one of the them, to the best of my knowledge, have been released in any form with English subtitles. Both are also mysterious gaps for many Godard fans (particularly "A Married Woman," which was made during, in my opinion, Godard's true prime, and yet little to nothing has been written about it...La Chinoise, on the other hand, is very popular and well-known among Godard fans, simply because of all that's been written about it...I'd go out on a limb and say that most Godard fans probably haven't seen it yet though, but it certainly looks and sounds like a great film).
Dylan

Seattle's Scarecrow Video carries a VHS rental copy of A Married Woman. It's not of the highest quality, but has legible subtitles and isn't a pain to the eyes or anything. Here's the link to it:

http://www.scarecrow.com/rental/item_re ... mber=24225

They also have several other subtitled NTSC video tapes of uncommon Godard titles, including Gai Savoir and Germany Year 90 Zero.

As regards La Chinoise, there's an import DVD (surely bootlegged) that appears on eBay periodically. I bought one a few years ago. The packaging looked nothing like what was listed. The print looked quite good, but if I recall had subtitles in a non-english language burned on the print (I may not remember this detail accurately). The real problem though was that the optional english subtitles were, far as I could tell, actually the subtitles for Henry and June!

davida2 · #22 Post by **davida2** » Mon Dec 20, 2004 3:22 am

Annie Mall wrote:Indian cinema. Definitely. Satyajit Ray, Ritwik Ghatak or Mrinal Sen. Any of them. Or even some Bollywood - Mother India would be great!

I know that Satyajit Ray isn't available to them; if there were any possibility that's where some if not all of my votes would've gone.

Having not seen any Ritwik Ghatak or Mrinal Sen, I didn't submit them as votes, but given what I hear about both, I would guess that both would be great places for Criterion to start (and they should, soon) with Indian film - given the unavailability (Sony is sitting on them) of Ray's work.

The two Guru Dutt films I've seen - "Paper Flowers" and "Pyaasa" are also remarkable (I did vote for "Pyaasa"), if they can get a Bollywood film...

swingo · #23 Post by **swingo** » Fri Dec 31, 2004 10:46 am

I've mailed Jon before asking/suggesting some Mexican Flicks I'd love to see...

Hopefully at least some of the Buñuel ones...

Axel.

stockton · #24 Post by **stockton** » Fri Dec 31, 2004 4:35 pm

OK, these are all selfish, but I guess that's the point.

1. Sawdust and Tinsel - Bergman
2. Chimes at Midnight - Welles
3. Samuel Beckett's Film - I know it's only 20 minutes...but there must be some way to make it happen - a 'Random Shorts' set or something?
4. Satantango - Tarr
5. The Virgin Spring - Bergman

Alain3000 · #25 Post by **Alain3000** » Fri Dec 31, 2004 7:15 pm

1.Bullet in the Head-John Woo
2.The Third Generation-Rainer Werner Fassbinder
3.The Assassin-Elio Petri
4.Murderer Lives at #21-Henry Georges Clouzot
5.On Fire Boxset(City, Prison 1&2, School)-Ringo Lam