I got all the Swedish releases except the Leningrad Cowboy box. I already have the first of these on video -- and my impression (from reading) is that the other two films in the set are not really "essential").

BTW -- is Calmari Union being left out? (It was included in one of those Scandinavian sets).

Leningrad Cowboys Meet Moses is dire (or at least the first half is; I didn't stay for the second), but Total Balalaika Show is a work of absolute genius, and by far the greatest concert film ever made.

I even played an extract from it at my wedding (the cover version of 'Happy Together', which you can see on YouTube here)

Wow - still married?

Very much so.

I just found a rendition of "Delilah" from that concert on youtube also -- even more mind blowing than "Happy Together".

After my enquiry of the possibility for the inclusion of a CD of music by Mihaly Vig to accompany The Man From London I received this reply from Robert Beeson of Artificial Eye:

I included this info on the Satantango thread but you can get the vig cd from Tzameti in prague. I don't think The Man from London music has been released unfortunately.

DVD Times review of Kaurismäki's superb Lights in the Dusk. Bring on the boxsets!

Looks like this release has some extras that the Scandinavian release didn't have. for comparison purposes, my remarks and screen shots from the Scandinavian DVD (there seem to have been Finnish, Swedish, Norwegian and Danish releases of the same DVD).

The recent Art Eye ad in the October MovieMail catalogue says that the Kaurismaki collection 3 contains Crime and Punishment, Hamlet Goes Business, La Vie de Boheme and Calamari Union.

DVD Times Review of The Aki Kaurismäki Collection Volume 1.

DVD Times review of Kaurismäki Volume 2.

Sorry if this is posted somewhere else - I notice that AE have got two Fassbinder boxes lined up for november, both amazon preorders at £30. Very nicely they've got two rare documentary pieces, but very annoyingly one in each box.

1. LOLA, WHY DOES HERR R RUN AMOK?, MARTHA and I ONLY WANT YOU TO LOVE ME.

2. VERONIKA VOSS, IN A YEAR OF THIRTEEN MOONS, THE THIRD GENERATION and GERMANY IN AUTUMN.

Good news about the third Kaurismäki box on DVD Outsider.

Not only does it offer four (admittedly minor) films against the other sets' three apiece, but it also throws in Jonathan Ross's wonderful 1991 documentary on Kaurismäki. ("You don't move the camera very much, do you?" "Well, when you have a hangover it's hard to push it")

Curiously, I Hired A Contract Killer seems to be omitted from Artificial Eye's boxes, even though it was included in the Swedish equivalent. I suspect this is rights-related.

I Only Want You to Love Me isn't a documentary, it's a (superb) feature. Shame if it's only available in the box. Hopefully someone else will pick it up as a stand-alone title.

I second this - it is a great film and the first Fassbinder I ever saw (If you are interested it is the most recent Fassbinder film shown on terrestrial television in the UK, by BBC2 in their 1994 season of 'Lost and Found' films which also premiered Tokyo Drifter and The Ghost Ship amongst others!)

Thanks for the correction (I'd read that it was documentary-style and misremembered it) and recommendations - I might well splash out on this if it gets reduced at some point. Anyone seen Germany in Autumn?

Just noticed that AE has released a box set collecting their two Ozus and their two Mizoguchis. I know their transfers on these aren't optimal, but is there any possibility that this is a new remaster, or just a repackaging job?

And in addition to that: Does anyone know if it's the four keepcases in a box?

Slim cases according to DVD Times, it's a good deal even though I have the Criterion of Floating Weeds already.

These are all bad to marginal transfers.

I didn't say they weren't, I was just answering Apu's question. At £4 per film it's still good value, it's the only way to go for the two Mizoguchi films at the moment isn't it?

I think these (mediocre at best) DVD are (unfortunately) the only English-subbed versions of the two Mizoguchi films. But since the two Ozu DVDs are near worthless, you are actually paying about £8.50 per Mizoguchi film. ;~}

£8.50 for the Mizoguchi's is still quite good and you do get two bad Ozu's free.

The only thing (I own this set too) is that if I ever decide to buy one of the films else where I can't really get rid of the duplicate as it's a slim case and will be worthless on it's own. Something to consider when purchasing. And just to confirm these are not new masters it's a repackaging job. I don't think AE do remasters.

This isn't a particularly big deal, and certainly shouldn't put anyone off buying the third Kaurismäki volume - but I've just noticed that Artificial Eye's copy of the Jonathan Ross documentary runs more than five minutes shorter than my old taped-off-the-telly version.

Closer examination reveals that all the clips from I Hired A Contract Killer have been removed, along with the surrounding context.

I suspect rights clearance problems - which would also explain why that film is the only one missing from Artificial Eye's otherwise admirably comprehensive sets.