Criterion on Social Media

[Jean-Luc Garbo]

Regarding The Mother and the Whore, for what it's worth I recently saw a screening of the film and during the introduction beforehand, a Professor from Glasgow University I believe said yes, that the film has been caught up in rights issues for a long time, but that finally some progress is being made and we could expect it to be sorted and dvds (or Blu by then i guess?) to come in 2011

Did he say what those issues were? I thought that Boris Eustache had the rights to that film.

[domino harvey]

Doesn't New Yorker have the rights and therefore it's tied up in all that nonsense?

[justeleblanc]

Doesn't New Yorker have the rights and therefore it's tied up in all that nonsense?

New Yorker lost the rights before they went under.

[Jean-Luc Garbo]

Doesn't New Yorker have the rights and therefore it's tied up in all that nonsense?

New Yorker lost the rights before they went under.

Interesting. I wonder what happened. The movie was produced by CECRT, Cine Qua Non, Elite Films, Films du Losange, NPF, and Simar Films so I'd like to know who amongst them has the rights.

[Perkins Cobb]

Maybe they don't know either, and that's the problem....

[AisleSeat]

It was interesting to learn that Criterion's best selling DVD so far this year has been The Golden Age of Television. That was a bit of surprise as I would've considered Button or Monsoon Wedding more likely candidates.

A while back in regards to a query about A Taste of Honey, Criterion noted they "Love it, but don't have it". That's a pity. Apparently Sony controls this title, from what I can discern (Continental Distributing/Reade--->Columbia--->Sony). Does anyone have any news about a potential release?

[swo17]

Best selling on their website.

[Jeff]

It was interesting to learn that Criterion's best selling DVD so far this year has been The Golden Age of Television.

I would imagine this was purchased by tons of public and university libraries, accounting for a large portion of its sales.

[AisleSeat]

Best selling on their website.

Ah, I see that now. A subtle, but meaningful distinction. Still, it surprises to have The Golden Age at the very top of any best-selling list considering what else has been released this year.

[jaredsap]

Apparently Sony controls this title, from what I can discern (Continental Distributing/Reade--->Columbia--->Sony).

Incorrect. Sony does not have the rights to A TASTE OF HONEY.

[AisleSeat]

Apparently Sony controls this title, from what I can discern (Continental Distributing/Reade--->Columbia--->Sony).

Incorrect. Sony does not have the rights to A TASTE OF HONEY.

Okay, I stand corrected. Thanks for chiming in; actually, I'm pleased you did because if anyone on this forum would know it would be you.

So who owns the rights to A Taste of Honey?

[jaredsap]

So who owns the rights to A Taste of Honey?

At this point, I have no idea. But UCLA played it last year. They would presumably know.

[The Masked Marvel]

It was interesting to learn that Criterion's best selling DVD so far this year has been The Golden Age of Television.

I would imagine this was purchased by tons of public and university libraries, accounting for a large portion of its sales.

I would also imagine that the set's profile in the New York Times's DVD gift guide also did wonders for sales.

Either way, I'm the proud recipient of a $10 Criterion gift certificate.

[zedz]

Best selling on their website.

Ah, I see that now. A subtle, but meaningful distinction. Still, it surprises to have The Golden Age at the very top of any best-selling list considering what else has been released this year.

Last time we got a nugget like this the surprise best-seller was Science Is Fiction. I wouldn't be surprised if website sales are highest for titles with strong niche markets that mainstream stores are afraid to carry. Those who want them really want them and go straight to the source.

[ianungstad]

I asked about The Thin Red Line and The King of Comedy. Criterion replied : 50/50

So...which one do people think Criterion has in the works? It's Malick's The Thin Red Line, IMO.

[Andre Jurieu]

I asked about The Thin Red Line and The King of Comedy. Criterion replied : 50/50

So...which one do people think Criterion has in the works? It's Malick's The Thin Red Line, IMO.

I'm more inclined to think that they have King of Comedy in the works, since they need to bundle the Scorsese shorts with something.

[James]

I am a bit curious as to why Criterion seems to be dodging the "Will you release Shinji Aoyama's Eureka?" question.

[jaredsap]

I asked about The Thin Red Line and The King of Comedy. Criterion replied : 50/50

So...which one do people think Criterion has in the works? It's Malick's The Thin Red Line, IMO.

Wow. Either would be wonderful, but I'm guessing THE THIN RED LINE also. We know they probably have BADLANDS and they're hanging on to DAYS OF HEAVEN for a forthcoming Blu-ray. We also know they have a personal relationship with Malick...

[videozor]

Criterion was asked about Cabaret. The answer is Yes.

[jaredsap]

Criterion was asked about Cabaret. The answer is Yes.

Not quite. They were only agreeing with the suggestion.

[tajmahal]

Criterion was asked about Cabaret. The answer is Yes.

Not quite. They were only agreeing with the suggestion.

Computer says yes. [-X

[domino harvey]

That would be some kind of coup. There's not even an anamorphic edition out there

[Matt]

Though they are not the original distributors, Warner Bros. have had the film for a while: they released their VHS edition back in 1992 (the first VHS copies came out via CBS/Fox Video). They apparently inherited it when they bought Lorimar, who in turn inherited the film (along with Papillon and The Man Who Would Be King, among others) when they bought Allied Artists, the original distributor. If Cabaret is coming, it means that Warner is licensing or that something really screwy happened with the rights. I'm inclined to concur with jaredsap that they were just agreeing with the suggestion.

[Props55]

Matt, you're correct about CABARET being financed by ABC (and German money) but the trump connection (at least until this juncture) would appear to be that it was distributed by Allied Artists. Thus it came under the Warner umbrella with THE MAN WHO WOULD BE KING, PAPILLON (70's upscale AA) and LOVE IN THE AFTERNOON, FRIENDLY PERSUASION (50's upscale AA) along with a heaping portion of all those B level AA's we all know and love. Perhaps now the licensing rights have reverted to the original investment bloc and they are free to be courted by Criterion.

[ianungstad]

I asked about The Thin Red Line and The King of Comedy. Criterion replied : 50/50

So...which one do people think Criterion has in the works? It's Malick's The Thin Red Line, IMO.

Wow. Either would be wonderful, but I'm guessing THE THIN RED LINE also. We know they probably have BADLANDS and they're hanging on to DAYS OF HEAVEN for a forthcoming Blu-ray. We also know they have a personal relationship with Malick...

Over the course of this year, I probably asked Mulvaney about The Thin Red Line 4 or 5 times and they would just get ignored but they would reply to other email inquiries. I even asked about it on the Facebook page once before and they just skipped over it. The Fox disc has no features at all.

I asked if they were releasing Lewis Allen's The Uninvited and Fritz Lang's Ministry of Fear and they just replied "Maybe..."

I asked about both titles before and they had indicated that each was likely to be in the works. Thought I would try again for a more concrete answer. Anyways, I think these two have definitely been picked up in their recent batch of Uni acquisitions.