Criterion Discussion and Random Speculation Volume 7

[Roscoe]

There are lovely restorations of the Eisenstein Sound Films running on HBO Max, with gorgeous cleaned up pictures. The sound is an issue, and I can't find much information about it. It sounds a good deal like portions of the music and dialogue in IVAN THE TERRIBLE have been re-recorded.

[ianthemovie]

There are lovely restorations of the Eisenstein Sound Films running on HBO Max, with gorgeous cleaned up pictures. The sound is an issue, and I can't find much information about it. It sounds a good deal like portions of the music and dialogue in IVAN THE TERRIBLE have been re-recorded.

Those sound like the same restorations that are also on the Criterion Channel. If Criterion is ever able to re-release the box set it would be great if they retained the original audio tracks as an alternate option.

[dwk]

And there's not really any significant anniversary coming up either, so I'm not sure where the idea has come from that they would do a new Kurosawa box set rather than just continue to release his films individually.

It likely is because it has been 6 years since they released a Kurosawa film (Dreams in November 2016.) An unusually long stretch for a flagship director. Of course, they haven't released a lot of Japanese films lately, so it could just be down to the Japanese studios being difficult (not supplying new masters or letting Criterion do new scans themselves, holding up approval on special features, etc.)

[ryannichols7]

Stage and Spectacle and Pigs and Battleships: anyone know about restorations on these? I know more about Nikkatsu and they have been pretty good at restoring movies, so I see the latter being quite possible. I think there's a push for Renoir's films to be restored so I wouldn't be shocked if the former already were.

I'd love to know more about these as well. When Eureka released blu-rays of the other two films in the set, they skipped Intentions of Murder (my absolute favorite Imamura) because the available materials weren't up to snuff. But that was some years ago; does anyone here know if there's been any significant movement since then?

yeah, I'm curious if someone who knows better happens to see if any restoration work has been done. I will say Nikkatsu does a pretty decent job restoring stuff, they maybe aren't as frequent as Shochiku or Kadokawa are, but they're obviously leagues better than Toho. I have Intentions of Murder up next in the 60s project - looking forward to it!

Sergei Eisenstein: The Sound Years: all of these were restored in 2014-2015, and as good as Criterion was with putting out Mosfilm licenses for awhile there it's infuriating these didn't get touched in the meantime, especially since Mofilm is a no go as of now.

Damn, I had been wondering about that incredible old DVD box - it would really just need an upgrade. Completely forgot about the Mosfilm problem.

There are lovely restorations of the Eisenstein Sound Films running on HBO Max, with gorgeous cleaned up pictures. The sound is an issue, and I can't find much information about it. It sounds a good deal like portions of the music and dialogue in IVAN THE TERRIBLE have been re-recorded.

Can we expect the Mosfilm dilemma to lead to Tarkovsky's films going OOP in the future, along with other Soviet era films in the catalog? Or could there still be camaraderie between Criterion and Mosfilm in the sense of "let's cooperate with one another as arts institutions irrespective of the differences of our governments". There are after all Cuban and Iranian films in the collection, so I don't see what makes the Russia situation any different in that respect.

It's not the fact that the films are Russian, it's the fact that Mosfilm is a 'federal state unitary enterprise' which means that it's literally owned by the Russian government. Their chairman Karen Shakhnazarov has publically supported Putin and the Ukraine invasion and has said that opponents will face "sterilisation and concentration camps".

I'm not sure if dealing with Mosfilm would be covered by international sanctions but I would understand if Criterion want to distance themselves. I doubt that it will affect any titles previously acquired though.

it was an amazing early release that's unfortunately way outdated now and calling out for an update. I actually wrote to Mosfilm back in December..

Dear Sir,

Mosfilm restored IVAN THE TERRIBLE (2 parts) in 2014 (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jJmsV10MTJE ), ALEXANDER NEVSKY in 2015 (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IKskdbazW7w&t=4s ).

We are happy that the restorations of Andrei Tarkovsky's work, The Cranes are Flying, War and Peace, Viy, and other films made by Mosfilm in the recent years are now available to viewers in many countries. The films White Sun of the Desert, Mimino and many others were also restored and can be viewed on Mosfilm YouTube too, however, they have not yet won a US distributor.


Best regards,

Elena Orel

+7 499 143 9700

International Relations and Distribution Dept.

Mosfilm Cinema Concern

I doubt we will see any Mosfilm licenses go out of print, just like how we haven't seen Repulsion or Cul de Sac go out of print, etc...just have to hope this is all obviously resolved soon and we can see movement on these films, as well as Dersu Uzala and others that were known to be in the works. I was going to put Mimino and White Sun of the Desert on my Radiance wishlist but know those are a longshot as of now.

The Orphic Trilogy: does anyone know the status on these being restored? I don't see it being a UHD box but I'm sure they'd want to at least go for 4K restorations, as with almost all the other Studiocanal returns so far (poor Bunuel). I'd have to imagine this is upcoming soon, they do promote the fact that these are on the channel pretty frequently.

The restorations are streaming on the channel, orpheus might be the blu-ray master though.

perfect, can always rely on Studiocanal for restorations! Orpheus would hopefully get a new one too though, the old one is pretty good but can definitely be improved upon I'd say.

And there's not really any significant anniversary coming up either, so I'm not sure where the idea has come from that they would do a new Kurosawa box set rather than just continue to release his films individually.

It likely is because it has been 6 years since they released a Kurosawa film (Dreams in November 2016.) An unusually long stretch for a flagship director. Of course, they haven't released a lot of Japanese films lately, so it could just be down to the Japanese studios being difficult (not supplying new masters or letting Criterion do new scans themselves, holding up approval on special features, etc.)

and lastly yes, I included Kurosawa because so many (not on this site though) constantly predict a "4K box" of some kind, which is already a pipe dream to begin with. I've covered in other posts that we're more likely to see Rashomon (which was only restored in 2K), Dreams or Kagemusha 4K releases before anything else, because it's not "Japanese studios" being difficult, it's Toho who is difficult. they are specifically the issue, as any MST3K fan can attest, and they don't restore their films nearly often enough. hell, The Bad Sleep Well and Red Beard didn't even make it over here. Shochiku, Kadokawa, and Nikkatsu are all more "on the ball" than Toho, even if they take their time they've restored many films by Ozu, Mizoguchi, etc

I do think Toho is likely to roll out 4K with Seven Samurai and Yojimbo/Sanjuro, maybe Ikiru since that was already a 4K scan, albeit not a 4K restoration. they've otherwise done 2K restorations for The Hidden Fortress and Throne of Blood so I think people should temper expectations for a lot of these coming out. a Bluray boxset is the more welcomed need, but that would also require them to update "lesser" titles like I Live in Fear and One Wonderful Sunday, but either way it's a ways off

Kiarostami or Pasolini I think are the more likely "complete/semi-complete" boxes to come.

[HorseHeadBookends]

https://www.instagram.com/p/Cf7VJrCO3wg/

Thedogsofcriterion Instagram posts about recording commentary for DOG DAY AFTERNOON.

[FrauBlucher]

Nice! Keep those Warner titles coming!

[ryannichols7]

fantastic news!! wonder who's doing the track? quite a place to drop a hint

[Furstemberg]

What if it’s just a pun

[Ribs]

What if it’s just a pun

I would be inclined to believe it is this.

[ryannichols7]

because it's so far-fetched that a title from a director who has several spines already, starring a very popular actor, that got multiple Oscar nominations, has a social message that holds up really well today, from a studio the label has a really good relationship with? and not to mention the title is specifically capitalized too, since it's stated "new commentary for Dog Day Afternoon"

but sure, it's a pipe dream

[FrauBlucher]

A quirky post, yes. But I tend to believe it's legit, so time will tell

[domino harvey]

This is not a clue, this is a joke caption accompanying a picture of several dogs

[Ribs]

Yes. IThere were a lot of dogs in the office, so it is funny to say they are recording a commentary for a movie involving dogs in the title, especially given there seems to be no real reason why Criterion would possibly be recording commentarys in-office. This is not a personal attack, but it seems ludicrous to draw such offense at the extremely realistic possibility it’s actually just a joke.

[swo17]

far-fetched

Ha!

I agree the most sound interpretation of this post is that Criterion's imminent release of Dog Day Afternoon will literally include a commentary by some dogs

[FrauBlucher]

Some say Midnight Cowboy and some say Il Sorpasso.

[ryannichols7]

far-fetched

Ha!

I agree the most sound interpretation of this post is that Criterion's imminent release of Dog Day Afternoon will literally include a commentary by some dogs

thank you for catching it

now, bait and switch for Isle of Dogs

[Never Cursed]

SPECIAL FEATURES

• New 4K digital restoration, approved by cinematographer Victor J. Kemper
• New audio commentary featuring dogs Noodles, Fluffy, and Winston
• Audio commentary featuring director Sidney Lumet
• New interview with actor Al Pacino
• I Knew It Was You: Rediscovering John Cazale, a 2009 documentary about the short career of actor John Cazale
• New video essay by filmmaker Tony Zhou examining the film's phone conversation sequences
• Original theatrical trailer
• PLUS: An essay by film historian and theorist David Bordwell

[therewillbeblus]

Hey, I legit want that commentary now! In all seriousness, imagine the main cast of dogs from Isle of Dogs (Chief, Rex, King, Duke, and Boss) talking over one another for an entire commentary track in character, bringing their own distinct dynamics and personalities into it. It might get pretty tiresome, but how creative and fun in replicating their convos from the film

[Computer Raheem]

This is not a clue, this is a joke caption accompanying a picture of several dogs

LET US DREAM!!! ](*,)*

*lets just ignore the fact that i wholeheartedly agree with Domino, despite how nice a Dog Day Afternoon release from Criterion would be

SPECIAL FEATURES

• New 4K digital restoration, approved by cinematographer Victor J. Kemper
• New audio commentary featuring dogs Noodles, Fluffy, and Winston
• Audio commentary featuring director Sidney Lumet
• New interview with actor Al Pacino
• I Knew It Was You: Rediscovering John Cazale, a 2009 documentary about the short career of actor John Cazale
• New video essay by filmmaker Tony Zhou examining the film's phone conversation sequences
• Original theatrical trailer
• PLUS: An essay by film historian and theorist David Bordwell

You say this as though it wouldn't be an excellent bonus features package (dog commentary and all)

[brundlefly]

IMaybe Carmel the Dog from the commentary on Benson and Moorhead's Resolution is available. If you're going to borrow an idea may as well bring in somewoof with experience.

[rrenault]

I'm still anxious to see what Criterion will do with the Antoine Doinel series. Considering BFI opted against a 4K UHD blu-ray of The 400 Blows given what they perceived to be less than stellar elements, I wonder if Criterion will follow suit and just do a blu-ray only Doinel boxset with all new masters. In any case, I'd be very surprised if Criterion actually did native 4K discs of the three color films.

[Calvin]

I would bet on Criterion releasing the Doinel set on 4K. They have bigger budgets than the BFI so need less justification for it and, by all accounts, Ben Stoddart's skepticism was specific to The 400 Blows while reviews of the French set are pretty positive towards the later Doinel films.

[rrenault]

I would bet on Criterion releasing the Doinel set on 4K. They have bigger budgets than the BFI so need less justification for it and, by all accounts, Ben Stoddart's skepticism was specific to The 400 Blows while reviews of the French set are pretty positive towards the later Doinel films.

Since I live in France, I've been toying with just buying the Carlotta set, but I suppose I should wait and see what Criterion does first, and then make a purchase decision. :-k

However, I'd hope a standalone 4K UHD of The 400 Blows would be in the cards at some point from one party or the other. I'm not sure I really need to physically own the other films on 4K. I don't think Criterion would trap such a flagship title in a boxset for its Anglophone 4K UHD premier, but I could be wrong.

[Calvin]

The new restorations of the Antoine Doinel films are showing at the Film Forum from September 23rd so it we might not have to wait too much longer before we find out what Criterion's upgrade of the set looks like.

[ryannichols7]

I would have to imagine The 400 Blows would see an individual release outside the boxset, that's way too major of a title to exclusively release in such a format. it's clearly one of their best ever sellers as they even "upgraded" it (and Breathless) to dual format during that year. I'm a little skeptic of them doing the full set of films in UHD but as you said, deeper pockets/budget than BFI and the Doniel films are still really popular with Americans even. it would be certainly interesting to see something like Bed and Board hit UHD before I don't know, 8 1/2 but that really could be the case it seems.

Three Colors is a near certainty for Q4 2022 but I'll be impressed/pleased if we get Doniel too, especially after Criterion went almost all of 2022 without any kind of boxset at all.