Criterion Random Speculation Vol.3

[Matt]

Hey, this thread is for random speculation! Keep your stinkin' announced titles outta here!

[toiletduck!]

In the spirit of staying in the spirit of the thread, a little pointless guessing -- I'm looking for some Mizoguchi in February.

-Toilet Dcuk

[Jeff]

Hey, this thread is for random speculation!

Very well. Jeffstrodamus sees the following for February:

The 49th Parallel
Third Man Redux
Three Films by Sam Fuller

[domino harvey]

it's been like 16 months since we've seen any Godard, I speculate a boxed set might be in the near future

[bjeggert82]

Very well. Jeffstrodamus sees the following for February:

The 49th Parallel
Third Man Redux
Three Films by Sam Fuller

I'd be more than happy with that. For the most part, The 49th Parallel has been confirmed for February.

I've been sweating for that Fuller boxed set since this time last year... What the hell ever happened there?

[Mysterypez]

Image released The Emperor Jones on DVD, but with the merger, I guess CC could do an upgraded version with some extras. (It's not an entirely satisfactory movie, but it's an extremely interesting adaptation and gives Robeson one of his all-around juciest screen roles.)

I guess CC could also release one of the two British films he made: Sanders of the River and King Solomon's Mines. (I believe Sanders was one of Korda's London Film productions, and a couple of those have made their way into the collection.)

If Criterion is going to do Robeson..... Feb. seems like the natural placement.

[Tommaso]

I'd be more than happy with that. For the most part, The 49th Parallel has been confirmed for February.

Great film, of course, but not first priority considering there's the truly excellent Institut Lumière 2dvd-set of this out already. Why not "Pimpernel" or "Luna de miel", finally??!

I may say something unexcusable now, but is anyone else less than happy with their recent and upcoming releases? Either they are remakes (the Kurosawas, Grey Gardens), films already available in other good editions (Pandora, Veronique), or something not quite expected from CC (the 'Men and Monsters' Box). There's nothing wrong about the latter (I love these old horror/sci-fi movies much as everyone else here), but really: can't they release something a little bit more, say,.... important, or something not yet easily available already? Suggestions have been made enough throughout this thread....

[blindside8zao]

Given that I haven't delved too deeply into non-region 1 DVDs, (I just discovered a crack code for my player, so Kuronenko has been the only one to grace my DVD player) I am over-delighted with Nov-Jan's releases. There's usually only one release a month that I would consider getting on its release, and even then I usually choose something back catalogue. But I have both Novembers pre-ordered and afraid and amazed that I will have to break my one title per month average in January to get a whopping 7 releases. The October titles, The Fallen Idol, Symbiopsychotaxiplasm, and the Cult set should all keep you busy, no?

And besides, are you lucky enough to have all the good releases available through Criterion and other DVD publishers that you want? If so, I wish I had a wallet that thick.

[Tommaso]

And besides, are you lucky enough to have all the good releases available through Criterion and other DVD publishers that you want? If so, I wish I had a wallet that thick.

Of course I haven't, and I'm not a collector of Criterion discs just for the sake of them being Criterions. It was just the feeling that although they did release some really great things this year editionwise, there was comparatively little that filled in the sore gaps that there are regarding classic films that are not available at all, internationally, or only in bad editions. You know, the endless wait for Rossellini, Jodorowsky, Bergman's "Face to Face", to name but a few.
Probably it's just a question of personal taste, but I had the impression that Criterion has started to cater a little for the 'fringes' ("Koko" is my favourite example), whereas I would want them to continue to release those 'great classics' which inexplicably are still not available anywhere. And thus, the November-January releases did not really give me the excitement I used to feel formerly when looking at their 'coming soon' page.

[jbeall]

Well, let's not forget criterion IS limited by what they can get the rights to. I'm a little disappointed in their Jan. releases, but that's b/c I just want them to release movies catered to my taste (don't we all!).

Still, I have netflix, and all of criterion's upcoming releases are in my queue. If criterion would release the following, however, I'd pre-order, sight-unseen:

re-releases
Black Orpheus (I love this movie and am showing it to my mythology class, but I'd like some extras, and some of the subtitles are awkward.)
Alphaville

still unreleased
Powell, The 49th Parallel
Powell, The Edge of the World (there's a crappy release out there already)
John Huston's The Dead
Rossellini, La Prise de Pouvoir de Louix XIV
Mattieu Kassovitz, La Haine

[toiletduck!]

Probably it's just a question of personal taste, but I had the impression that Criterion has started to cater a little for the 'fringes' ("Koko" is my favourite example), whereas I would want them to continue to release those 'great classics' which inexplicably are still not available anywhere. And thus, the November-January releases did not really give me the excitement I used to feel formerly when looking at their 'coming soon' page.

As a proud member of the 'fringe', I'd like to say that we don't claim Koko either. That seems like an odd little one-off release. One the other hand, this year has given me plenty of thrills on the coming soon page. Seeing Equinox, Jigoku, Symbiopsychotaxiplasm, Monsters and Madmen, etc. all put a bigger smile on my face than, say, Face to Face would. Again, personal tastes... (after all, you mention Jodorowsky in your wish list -- you wanna talk fringe?)


-Toilet Dcuk

[atcolomb]

I hope Criterion will get back the rights to Kurosawa's DERSU UZALA (1975). They did release it on laserdisc just like THE 49TH PARALLEL but all versions out there dvd and laser were in bad shape and it would be nice to see DERSU UZALA get a major restoration it needs.

[Tommaso]

Powell, The Edge of the World (there's a crappy release out there already)

Ahm.... do you mean the BFI release? I find that one quite convincing: good transfer, audio commentary (by Ian Christie, if I remember correctly), nice extras. What's wrong with that one?
I would as well very much like to see CC doing Huston's "The Dead", although this is also out in the UK for several months now, but I haven't seen it yet (it's on my list for Christmas watching, though).

[Tommaso]

After all, you mention Jodorowsky in your wish list -- you wanna talk fringe?)

It's funny: of course Jodorowsky is way-out by the standards of any usual mainstream perception of film-making, but I have strangely always considered him (or his early films at least) as being one of those great, underrated 'classical' filmmakers, simply due to the praise and attention his films seem to get regularly in all sorts of film discussions (and on this forum). If you see deviation from the mainstream as a main criterion for 'fringyness', you'd probably also have to put Powell and Pressburger into that category (and it's interesting to see that a director like Derek Jarman seems to have been influenced by both Jodorowsky and P&P). But I really had "Koko" in mind when I used that word, and "Symbio..." whatever it's called (and I admit that this one indeed sounds truly interesting, and is fringy in a totally different way of course....)

[tryavna]

Powell, The Edge of the World (there's a crappy release out there already)

Ahm.... do you mean the BFI release? I find that one quite convincing: good transfer, audio commentary (by Ian Christie, if I remember correctly), nice extras. What's wrong with that one?

Even the R1 Milestone release (which may be what the OP is referring to) is far from "crappy." The main feature is non-progressive, but it's actually pretty decent. It doesn't seem to be a PAL->NTSC transfer because Milestone and BFI seem to have used different prints. See Beaver's review. It carries over most of the extras from the BFI (though the "Return" short is clearly PAL->NTSC) and one or two not to be found on the BFI, most notably Powell's short "An Airman's Letter to His Mother" (which is most definitely progressive). Not a "crappy" release by any means.

[jbeall]

Now I'll have to go and check. The dvd I watched is owned by a friend of mine, and I watched it at her house, on her dvd player & television, so all that may have had something to do with it. Perhaps I'll order it via netflix and see how it plays. But I recall thinking that it was a great movie, sloppy dvd.

[Subbuteo]

Christ Man! The BFI disc is a jewel, one of the best in the catalogue - also don't forget the age of the film.

[jbeall]

Yeah, but I definitely didn't see the BFI disc... I own a cheap dvd player, one that they haven't cracked the region coding for yet. (As a grad student, I don't have the disposable income to buy another at this particular moment.) Otherwise I'd definitely buy more non-R1 dvds.

[Cinesimilitude]

The cheap dvd players are the easiest to crack. send me a pm jbeall, with your dvd players model number and company and I'll see what I can do.

[Gordon]

DVD Beaver comparison of The Edge of the World.

[tryavna]

Ah, so it seems both BFI and Milestone used the same print. BFI just did some additional digital clean-up. Nevertheless, the time difference between the two proves that the Milestone is not PAL-sourced.

And by the way, although Gary's comments seem to suggest that the BFI outdistances the Milestone in terms of extras, they actually compare pretty favorably. Either way you go, though, you'll get a damn good disc.

[Cinephrenic]

Paris Belongs to US and his short Fool's Mate is playing a short list retrospective at the Pacific Film Archive. Paris Belongs to Us credited Janus/Criterion.

Many of the films I hoped is not in the retrospective (Duelle, The Nun, Out1/Spectre). Hopefully we'll get some Rivette because he is one of the negleged directors when it comes to DVD.

[kschell]

I just need to get out my frustrations and say: "Where the hell is 'The Milky Way'?"

In the Harold Lloyd Box Set?

[justeleblanc]

Paris Belongs to US and his short Fool's Mate is playing a short list retrospective at the Pacific Film Archive. Paris Belongs to Us credited Janus/Criterion.

Many of the films I hoped is not in the retrospective (Duelle, The Nun, Out1/Spectre). Hopefully we'll get some Rivette because he is one of the negleged directors when it comes to DVD.

I'm guessing they would like to release Rivette, it might just be a matter of materials (something that kind of irks me). I really hope Criterion doesn't just sit on releasing a great film for fear that they won't have enough bonus materials. That could be why we haven't seen Rivette, and why it took so long to finally get Rohmer. But isn't this practice a reason to why they haven't released LA NOTTE yet?

[miless]

I just need to get out my frustrations and say: "Where the hell is 'The Milky Way'?"

In the Harold Lloyd Box Set?

huh?