I recently got Warner's The Illustrated Man in HMV (Hong Kong), two weeks before it's release date on Amazon. I wonder if Naruse is in any London shops yet.

Please understand the nature of the situation. Delays are not planned. They do not happen to spite people, they happen because a large box set is logistically difficult to produce and reliant on a lot of things coming together. It has to be guided through tricky seas if it is to be released in fine shape. Any delays are due to unforeseen circumstances, such as: a pressing plant rejection of the DVD master; a lack of the particular matte paper we require for the book; a truck not turning up on time, etc. etc.

I'm sorry some of you might not have this before Christmas, but some of you will, and at least it will be in fine shape when you eventually receive it.

We're not a sprawling corporation with limitless funds -- we are however perhaps more efficient than a sprawling corporation. There have been a handful of people here working 16 hour days to get the KEATON/NARUSE/SHOAH sets finished over the last three months. We're two down and one to go now...

I'm disappointed in Amazon not MOC.

I just hope this set won't get delivered when I'm out of town (and get lost, one way or another). ;~{

It's not amazon's fault really. None of the main etailers have it in stock yet either. The main problem is that most of these etailers have their warehouses on the island of Jersey, which is nearer France than it is to the UK -- and it takes a week for them to get there.

Obviously, too, this is the busiest time of the year -- not the time really to release a NARUSE box set when there's 1,400 articulated lorries full of PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN also trying to make it to the same tiny island.

;~}

Oh well, shikata ga nai.

MEK

I'm in America. I hope the set arrives soon, but frankly, I'm used to delays in shipping, etc. Besides, I would rather MoC be comfortable talking about releases ahead of time and give long-range "heads up" so I'll spend less time worrying about second-rate releases (consider the silents and the Mizoguchis.) Every penny I save knowing MoC will have a nice version in the near future is a penny I can put toward balancing my budget against the falling dollar's exchange rate. Criticizing a company about delays matters little when it's a delay and not a complete abandonment (Eisenstein Silents anyone?) After all, a month later your post is stranded in the thread like an uneaten matzah ball, so very soggy and disturbing to the other guests.

I was looking forward to getting the boxset in time for Christmas, but happier that I'll be holding a perfected artifact in my hands next year. Really, that's all that matters. Thanks for keeping us so informed too, Nick.

I completely agree, and remember: Naruse is for life, not just for Christmas!

I have just bought the box in Amsterdam (where it was already in stores for a couple of days), so I suppose there is a good chance it will hit your stores shortly people. I only had the chance to spot a few scenes, and I must say that the image and sound seem to be of a good quality. Since I have never seen a film by Naruse before, I am very eager to watch these films (almost every shot I saw was great) and of course very very grateful to MoC for making this available in such an attractive way!!!

Both Moviemail and play.com have the Naruse in stock now. Bensonsworld have been shipping them out for a week.

So Amazon.co.uk *are* slow on this one. I can only hope they make it live at their site in the next day or two.

HMV have just notified me that the copy I ordered has been dispatched, so they have finally got some stock!

I emailed Amazon and got an answer that their supplier hasn't been able to let them know when they will get it, I'm getting a £3 gift certificate, but still annoyed that I won't be able to get the 2 copies I ordered before I go away.

For your amusement: The order status for my Naruse box has changed to shipping soon. They even expect delivery by 12-13, still.

I have my copy. Worth the wait. Outstanding. Here's to volume 2.

Yah! Mine too. I wonder if it'll make to my New York door by Xmas if it ships Monday.

Amazon (UK) seem to have the Naruse-set in stock now. Hopefully it will be send tomorrow and reach my door in time for Christmas. I had already placed my order on Nov 11th...

Came to work this morning and had two great emails from HMV waiting for me... "Keaton set shipped on Dec. 14th," and "Naruse set shipped on Dec. 15th." It appears the Naruse has reached stores then, and I suppose at least I will receive these sets before Christmas

Sorry, I am not sure these types of mails are popular, but I just had to celebrate somehow!

Delays are becoming a norm with MoC. Harsh? OK, but it's the truth. Clearly an area for improvement. At least the lower price can be considered in some measure as 'compensation.' Oh, how we complain...

(And before people start coming at me, yes, I can appreciate the sheer quality of MoC material. But that's not the point here.)

What's the hurry? Do you have a terminal illness?

Just look at all those MoC bitches!

In good spirit, sir, in good spirit.

The point is that you feel compelled to use the Internet to air any random twinge of opinion that crosses your mind, with no regard for any human-to-human decorum that might be accorded the people who put The Masters of Cinema Series together and regularly read these boards. A fact of which you are no doubt aware, otherwise you wouldn't be so inclined to passive-aggressively cry "faster! hush!" just because a ship-date that was announced -- as a way to try and give people who care a lot about the series a general estimate of when they might expect a release they're really looking forward to (given that those folks' patronage of the MoC Series is sincerely appreciated by all who make these releases happen) -- has slipped back.

It's probably completely unnecessary to spell out the details that go into putting the MoC discs out, but be aware that on any given day, the work-load might consist of dealing with licensors via phone, fax, and email; navigating the intricacies of sales distribution; going through a slew of successive checkdiscs, noting corrections, and working with the authoring-house to get everything as perfect as possible; designing packaging/disc-art/180-page books and booklets; going back-and-forth via phone and email with the printers who are responsible for manufacturing the sleeves, boxes, and books; commissioning pieces for the books from various contributors; working with those contributors on the editing and trajectory of their pieces; writing original copy for packages, sell-sheets, and Web; editing audio and video for supplementary features on the discs; coordinating with the individuals who help shoot and record those features; editing trailers for upload to the MoC Series website and YouTube; designing/creating the menus that appear on-screen on the DVD; and discussing strategies for approaching forthcoming releases further down the pike.

Consider that 95% of this work is done by one man, which you should already know from frequenting this forum as often as you do. Then find something else to fixate upon rather than the ship-date for your next consumable. Or do the polite, even human, thing and keep the shoot-from-the-hip grousing to yourself, the same as you might in a public, face-to-face setting.

sincerely,
craig keller.

No other forum seems to feature quite the same number of awkward moments as the MoC section. I wonder why that is...

Thanks for your comments, Craig. I meant no offence - but do we no longer have the right, as loyal customers, to level honest criticism here? Are we in some sort of all-considered-equal utopia?

Besides, my frustration comes mainly due to my shelved plans to buy SHOAH as a birthday present for someone special on Jan 25.

Sorry again to have wasted anyone's time on the internet. And thank you for your lessons on "human-to-human decorum." I'll teach my kids some of it.

you didn't waste anybody's time. sometimes, i think the fuss on this forum is self-generating. sheesh.

Because nearly everyone at this forum really wants MoC to succeed completely. Feelings can run high.