Well, I have noticed that Amazon UK no longer lists the first Ray set at all. I think something similar to this happened a few months back, with Les Vampires.

Histoire(s) du Cinema is now listed as "currently unavailable".

For what it's worth (not much), Amazon UK sent me an e-mail estimating my new delivery date for this as somewhere between July 23rd and August 7th. I hope they're using the extra time to actually improve upon the release (perhaps adding some extras or additional subtitling for the HdC itself).

Histoire(s) du Cinema back on Amazon with a Sept 22 release date.

Going back to the AE "Les Vampires", is this worth getting if I already have the Shepard edition from years ago (which I have).

Amazon has a listing for California Dreamin'

September 8.

Has this version of Histoire(s) Du Cinema the interaction of the Japan Edition?
But that's a good price even if it's similar to the French version (which is listed for 50 euro and not easily available,i think).

Yes - I haven't done a direct side-by-side comparison (Beaver has, though), and I definitely preferred the AE presentation. Quite aside from anything else, it's much truer to Feuillade in that the intertitles and onscreen text are in the original French with optional subtitles.

Incidentally, both transfers are interlaced, but I understand that's an unavoidable side-effect of running the film at the correct projection speed.

Thanks, I've ordered the AE from Am. Interlaced schminterlaced, as long as I can see the thing in good quality, I don't care.

With these exchange rates, and with the negligibe dif in PQ, I wouldn't go near the AE. No contemporary intertitles exist, so the vintage spell is going to be broken anyhow by electronically recreated intertitles in either language (and I don't speak French)... the only time original language intertitles interest me is when they are from an original release print. If I spoke French it might be a different case... Some of the Image intertitles recreate the "feel" of the contemporary Gaumont titles by printing "into" an era Gaumont frame, with a black background created in the center. The improvement I do notice in the Gaumont/AE is that in some frames (especially the episodes that survived only in 16mm reductions) the tinting has obliterated the detail that survived time and reduction and contrast blasting from duping.

But these exchange rates are killing me. Christalmighty, even with backchannel assists my kevyip is nowhere near as close to my eyebrows as it should be. And I know even though the price isn't so bad (actually just checked and amazon uk has it for approx 40 dollars) I'd hafta grab some other stuff and presto! cleanout city..

But what about the short films? Aren't you dying to see what is basically a French, slapstick, circa 1908, version of the sequence in The Girl Can't Help It with Jayne Mansfield walking down the street melting the ice man's ice, breaking eyeglasses, and causing milk bottles to explode?! At least that was the connection that seemed unmistakable to me when I watched "A Very Fine Lady" on this set and had the non-purist urge to play Little Richard along with it.

I sympathize about the exchange rate, though.

I will miss the tinting, I'm a sucker for tinting, and booklets.... I do like a good booklet, which, unfortunately the AE doesn't have.
Now my problem will be in persuading my wife to watch it again...."...but look, the pictures a little sharper in this bit and the music's different. What d'you mean the last one was in colour, that was tinting for atmospheric effect and this one doesn't have it. No, I don't know why....Let's just watch the extras then..... no, they're different ones and one of them at least is tinted..."
HerrSchreck, I sympathise with you re the exchange rate, not good for traders over here, or tourism. If we want to buy from you guys though, it's much cheaper, to the point where I thought briefly about buying the Criterion "Vampyr" as well as the MOC, before deciding that that's going a bit too far for basically a different book, tempting though.

Those are actually the things (the ones that dont replicate the cool Feulliade shorts already on the Shepard) I yearn for most so dammit stop reminding me.

What amazed me most watching the Shepard / Waterbearer edition was how much better preserved the short films were than the feature! (For the Children is pristine!)

Amazon UK just sent me a delay notice on the Ray Boxset 1 for the fourth or fifth time. I've had both Boxes on preorder for many weeks now, but just cancelled both. Too bad.

Eh. It doesn't sound...that bad...I keep telling myself.

If Volume 2 is of the same quality, I may buy it at a later date, but for now, I'll skip it. I've been to eager to see volume 1 to let a little combing kill the purchase.

Hurry up, Criterion?

It looks considerably better than Mr Bongo's The Adversary - which is arguably a superior film to anything included in the new box.

Indian films are a nightmare when it comes to sourcing decent materials, which may be why Criterion's catalogue currently features nothing from that part of the world. There's a reason why normally conscientious labels like Artificial Eye, the BFI and Second Run don't seem to do that much better than the fly-by-night merchants!

Yes, that's true. The best Indian DVDs I've seen to date were the AE Apu Trilogy, and MoC's Abhijaan...nowhere near pristine. Still, I was at least hoping that the many delays would result in transfers similar to those. But I've been too eager to see Charulata in a decent form; a friend of mine who is largely responsible for my interest in movies claims its Ray's best film, and is endlessly frustrated about the lack of quality release.

BFI's DVD of Ghatak's The Cloud-Capped Star, though, is pretty good, and has moments of clarity that are among the most vivid I've seen on any SD DVD transfer. Ray fans would find that a worthwhile title to add to their collection, btw.

I'd have to see it in motion, but from Gary's caps it does look like an "as good as it gets" situation. Indifference can't be the only reason there's no Indian cinema in the Criterion catalog.


Have to disagree with this, though - the transfer might look fine, but it's one of the worst PAL->NTSC conversions I've ever seen. The unnatural "sped up" quality to the motion in the image was so bad I gave up after a few minutes -- and then cursed myself for skipping a recent theatrical screening because I figured this DVD would be OK. Does anyone know why BFI, a UK label, released only NTSC discs of this and A River Called Titas? As far as I know those are their only two releases in that format.

MOC's Abhijan is a great-looking DVD, though. It's given me a ruinous hope for more quality Satyajit Ray DVDs one day....

Does anyone one have the French hardsubbed DVD of Charulata to compare it to the new AE disc?

To say I disagree with his opinion of the film is something of an understatement (I wasn't the one who voted the film 10 in the sidebar, but I'm glad someone tried to redress the balance!), but here's DVD Times' Noel Megahey on AE's You, The Living.

I guess he just didn't get it, I saw the movie and thought it was hugely entertaining, I preferred it to "Songs From the Second Floor", and that's a great movie too. I love the "fish tank" lighting he employs and the deadpan (Beckett comes to mind) humour. I didn't vote in the sidebar either, though I may just go back to do so.

Edit....since I haven't seen the DVD, I didn't vote.

You don't have to have seen the DVD - there are two separate voting buttons, for 'Film' and 'DVD'.

He's maybe a little harsh, but I think Noel is onto something here - I had a little moan about the film in another thread a few days ago (can't remember which). All the reviews I've read have been some shade of glowing, so I'm pleased that somebody has tried to take Andersson's fussy aesthetic down a notch. Probably the most disappointing theatrical release of the year for me so far - anybody who hasn't seen much of Andersson's work should definitely pick up A Swedish Love Story on DVD first.