Age of Consent & A Matter of Life and Death (Sony)

[tojoed]

Michael Powell's Age of Consent coming in November from Sony.

[Tommaso]

Though this has been hinted at repeatedly in various threads here, you just made my day, tojoed, by the confirmation!

YEEEEEEES!!!!!!!!

Must I say again that however bad this year was for CC, it is a great year for dvd releases?

[menthymenthy]

Fantastic. I've wanted to see this film for quite a while now, and am glad that they're finally releasing.

Now if they released Wake in Fright, then we would be in heaven.

[meanwhile]

There are actually 8 titles coming from Sony in November that seem to be exclusive to MovieMail at the moment: Age of Consent, Bunny Lake is Missing, Footsteps in the Fog, Take a Girl Like You, The Front, Godspell, QB VII and Zee & Co. Info here.

[Tommaso]

That's funny, obviously Sony thinks that there's not a wider market for any of these titles in the UK or Europe. I wonder whether Moviemail have struck up a deal with Sony that will keep them exclusive to them. Anyway, not much of a problem, their shipping rates seem to be very fair, and their prices are too.

[GaryC]

Now if they released Wake in Fright, then we would be in heaven.

So would I. It's never been commercially released in the UK (censorship fears?) nor been on television. It may have turned up in festivals at the time of release, or maybe at the National Film Theatre, but I'm pretty certain I've yet to have a chance to see it.

[Ashirg]

Sony is releasing the set on January 6. As mentioned in Budd Boetticher thread, it will most likely include A Matter of Life and Death and Age of Consent. Will be part of The Collector's Choice Series, so expect some nice extras (and, I hope, better artwork than Martini Movies).

[rwaits]

Finally--do you have a link to this announcement?

[atcolomb]

And i was about to get the Region 2 dvd of A Matter of Life and Death but since i recorded the movie off of TCM last year i chose to wait. The version TCM used was a good print of the movie so after many years of rumours i hope Sony does release it.

[Tommaso]

Some detailed info on Sony's Moviemail exclusives and "Age of Consent" can be found here.

Well, I guess we better wait for the R1, as apparently the R2 misses out on what looks like some rather good extras. Of course one then has to buy AMOLAD again, but while the Carlton disc of that film isn't bad, there's room for improvement, and an Ian Christie commentary is quite something, too.

[tojoed]

Yes, it's a pity about the extras. I was hoping for something a little more substantial. Still, as you say, wait and see what the R1 brings.

[rwaits]

Now if only they'd get Repulsion out there!

[Feego]

The Digital Bits reports on the supplements:

As reported elsewhere here on The Digital Bits, long-awaited news from Sony indicates that A Matter of Life and Death (1946) will apparently finally appear under its American release title Stairway to Heaven on January 6th. It will be paired with Age of Consent (1969) in a Michael Powell double feature release. Supplements on the 2-disc set include introductions by Martin Scorsese for both films; commentaries by Ian Christie (on A Matter of Life and Death) and Kent Jones (on Age of Consent); and a making-of featurette and some cast/crew interviews for Age of Consent.

[Tommaso]

Looks wonderful, though I'm a little angry that they will use the US title. I want AMOLAD, not "Stairway to Heaven". Argh...

[atcolomb]

No Scorsese commentary?......i was wishing he would do it for A Matter of Life and Death.

[Tommaso]

No Scorsese commentary?......i was wishing he would do it for A Matter of Life and Death.

I often liked Scorsese's introductions to films of all sorts, but his full-length Powell commentaries (with or without the man himself) were not overly great, though as many of them came from Laserdisc times, his art may have improved. However, Ian Christie is not only one of the foremost authorities on Powell, but his audio commentaries normally are extremely informative and well delivered (see the new R2 "Peeping Tom", for instance). So to see him doing a commentary on AMOLAD is the very best one could wish for in my view.

[Person]

Thank fuck it's finally coming! I hope that the on-screen title won't be "Stairway to Heaven". Led Zep fans will, at best, be confused. Can't wait to see how vibrant the colours on the transfer are - the old UK DVD and recent TV presentations were poop.

[starmanof51]

I hope that the on-screen title won't be "Stairway to Heaven".

When the restored film toured America a decade or so ago, the bookings and poster/marketing materials were as Stairway to Heaven, but the film's onscreen title was AMOLAD. I would default to assuming this still holds.

[Person]

Cool.

[Svevan]

I can't say anything until I see some cover art. Double-feature discs just look stupid most of the time.

[tojoed]

Looks wonderful, though I'm a little angry that they will use the US title. I want AMOLAD, not "Stairway to Heaven". Argh...

There's a member here called "Tom Amolad". I doubt if he wants to change his name to "Tom Sth", doesn't have quite the same ring to it.

[Forrest Taft]

Press Release, with a link to the artwork, though I can´t open it. Judging from the press release, it looks as though A Matter of Life and Death is the title they´re using.

[justeleblanc]

Artwork.

[Feego]

I like that artwork. It looks much more sophisticated than I was anticipating (don't ask me why, but I was expecting something along the lines of the MGM Midnite Movies with two posters and a big "Double Feature" banner at the top). I also like that they used A MATTER OF LIFE AND DEATH as the main title and relegated STAIRWAY TO HEAVEN in parentheses.

[Tommaso]

Looks brilliant indeed! If I'm not mistaken, it's the first Powell disc that actually has a picture of the director on the front cover. He clearly deserves it, of course, but it's perhaps an indication that his name has become a bit more 'marketable' than in former times.