criterionforum.org

Best Overall Release
01 John Ford at Columbia, 1935-1958 (Indicator)
02 Made in Hong Kong (Masters of Cinema)
03 Columbia Noir #1 (Indicator)
04 Goodbye, Dragon Inn (Second Run)
05 Throw Down (Masters of Cinema)
06 Crash (Arrow)
07 America as Seen by a Frenchman (Arrow Academy)
08 The Thousand Eyes of Dr. Mabuse (Masters of Cinema)
09 Dragons Forever (88 Films)
10 Raining in the Mountain (Masters of Cinema)

Best Upgrade
01 The Shop Around the Corner (Warner Archive)
02 The Pirate (Warner Archive)
03 Angel (Kino)
04 Love Me Tonight (Kino)
05 The Great McGinty (Kino)

Best Boxset
John Ford at Columbia, 1935-1958 (Indicator)

Best Arrow Release
Crash

Best Eureka Release
Made in Hong Kong

Best Indicator Release
John Ford at Columbia, 1935-1958

Best Second Run Release
Goodbye, Dragon Inn

Best Label
Eureka

Best Bonus Film(s)
List (Grass, Cinema Guild)

Best Other On-Disc Extra
A Creation Myth: Appreciation by Neil Sinyard (Eve, Indicator)

Best Book
Dawn of the Dead (Second Sight)

Best Cover
Fu Manchu

Worst Cover
Glengarry Glen Ross

Best Packaging
Gamera: The Complete Collection (Arrow)

Best Alternative to a Criterion Release
01 Bicycle Thieves (Arrow Academy)
02 Crash (Arrow)
03 Kwaidan (Masters of Cinema)

tenia wrote: Mon Feb 01, 2021 8:45 am
Best Upgrade
01 Brick
02 Christmas in July
03 The Shop Around the Corner
04 The Great McGinty
05 The Pirate

I sadly completely forgot to post some nominees for this list, and certainly would have preferred other contenders, especially since in the end, this is quite a US-centric list (actually, a Kino and WAC centric list) that puts aside tons of things recently restored and released in Europe and France (there's not even La roue !), while on the other hand, I have no idea what Hard Eight is doing here considering it uses a pre-existing master. Oh well, my fault anyway !

While we're waiting for more ballots, you could give us a Euro-centric top 10

swo17 wrote: Mon Feb 01, 2021 4:35 pm Best Overall Release
01 Zu Warriors from the Magic Mountain (Eureka)

Thanks for boosting this title because otherwise I likely wouldn't have prioritized it until well past the deadline. I'm a bit speechless- as if I've finally discovered a masterpiece amongst the fluff that make the rounds at the Brattle's Trash Night, only to find out that everyone was ten steps ahead of me. This schizophrenic cocktail of fun feels like Karel Zeman, Nobuhiko Obayashi, and Jim Henson fought for creative control on an Indiana Jones wuxia film, only to deliver a final product that contains the best of each diverse artist. I'm really curious what Tony Rayns has to say about this one

Maltic wrote: Tue Feb 02, 2021 6:29 pmWhile we're waiting for more ballots, you could give us a Euro-centric top 10

France :
Les espions / Le jardinier d'Argenteuil (Coin de mire)
Mes meilleurs copains / Le cercle rouge (Studio Canal)
Toni / Les félins / Justice est faite / Piège pour Cendrillon / Le combat dans l'île / Les vieux de la vieille / Le cave se rebiffe (Gaumont)
La dame d'Onze heures / La ferme des péchés (Lobster)
La Carrière d'une femme de chambre (LCJ)
Les charnelles (Le chat qui fume)
Les adolescentes / Guendalina (Tamasa)
Par un beau matin d'été / La mariée est trop belle / Monsieur Hire / La roue (Pathé)
Moscou ne croit pas aux larmes / Sans soleil / Soy Cuba / The Wind Will Carry Us (Potemkine)
Floating Weeds / Coffret Chabrol (L'enfer / La cérémonie / Rien ne va plus / Merci pour le chocolat / La fleur du mal) (Carlotta)

UK :
Dragons Forever / Heart of Dragon / Armour of God II (88 Films)
Scandal / Funeral Parade of Roses / The Good Die Young (BFI)
Zu - Warriors from the Magic Mountain / Mr Vampire (MoC)
John Ford at Columbia, 1935-1958 / Fu Manchu Boxset (Indicator)
Walkabout / Dawn of the Dead (Second Sight)
Tremors / Crash (Arrow)

Also, from Arrow but in the US : The Last Starfighter (probably one of the most massive BD-to-BD upgrade on the market)

Those are some interesting French releases, to be sure, though I guess there'll be an issue for many here with the lack of English subtitles

I considered Tremors, the previous bluray being one of those notorious DNR-releases from the early days of the format, but I thought Arrow released theirs in January 2021 and not in December 2020 (turns out I was wrong).

tenia wrote: Wed Feb 03, 2021 8:37 am

Maltic wrote: Tue Feb 02, 2021 6:29 pmWhile we're waiting for more ballots, you could give us a Euro-centric top 10

France :
Les espions / Le jardinier d'Argenteuil (Coin de mire)
Mes meilleurs copains / Le cercle rouge (Studio Canal)
Toni / Les félins / Justice est faite / Piège pour Cendrillon / Le combat dans l'île / Les vieux de la vieille / Le cave se rebiffe (Gaumont)
La dame d'Onze heures / La ferme des péchés (Lobster)
La Carrière d'une femme de chambre (LCJ)
Les charnelles (Le chat qui fume)
Les adolescentes / Guendalina (Tamasa)
Par un beau matin d'été / La mariée est trop belle / Monsieur Hire / La roue (Pathé)
Moscou ne croit pas aux larmes / Sans soleil / Soy Cuba / The Wind Will Carry Us (Potemkine)
Floating Weeds / Coffret Chabrol (L'enfer / La cérémonie / Rien ne va plus / Merci pour le chocolat / La fleur du mal) (Carlotta)

Which of these are English-friendly?

swo17 wrote: Wed Feb 03, 2021 3:54 pm Which of these are English-friendly?

Le cercle rouge (Studio Canal)
Toni / Les félins / Les vieux de la vieille / Le cave se rebiffe (Gaumont)
La mariée est trop belle / Monsieur Hire / La roue (Pathé)

Les charnelles had a release through Mondo Macabro, however.

Best Overall Release
1. La flor (Absolut Medien)
2. Crash (Arrow)
3. The House That Jack Built (Shout)
4. Sweet Charity (Indicator)
5. America as Seen by a Frenchman (Arrow Academy)
6. Zu Warriors from the Magic Mountain (Eureka)
7. Survivor Ballads: Three Films by Shohei Imamura (Arrow Academy)
8. A Soldier's Story (Indicator)
9. Watermelon Man (Indicator)
10. The Thousand Eyes of Dr. Mabuse (Masters of Cinema)

Best Upgrade
1. Sgt. York (Warner Archive)
2. Lord Love a Duck (Kino)
3. Sunday in New York (Warner Archive)
4. Libeled Lady (Warner Archive)
5. Wonder Boys (Paramount)
6. Bluebeard's Eighth Wife (Kino)
7. The Good Fairy (Kino)
8. Inside Daisy Clover (Warner Archive)
9. Romance on the High Seas (Warner Archive)
10. Sweet Bird of Youth (Warner Archive)

Best Boxset
Survivor Ballads: Three Films by Shohei Imamura (Arrow Academy)

Best Arrow Release
Crash

Best Eureka Release
Zu Warriors from the Magic Mountain

Best Indicator Release
Sweet Charity

Best Second Run Release
Vitalina Varela

Best Label
1. Indicator
2. Warner Archive
3. Arrow

Best Bonus Film
List (Grass, Cinema Guild)

Best Other On-Disc Extra
The Guardian Interview with Melvin Van Peebles (Watermelon Man, Indicator)

Best Cover
Crash (Arrow)

Worst Cover
Roman Holiday

Best Criterion-Alternative
Crash (Arrow)

As a reminder, you can keep submitting ballots through the end of the month. Or I suppose if anyone would like more time, I'm open to offering an extension, these being unprecedented times

Well, I would appreciate an extension, but I know that's just going to be an excuse to further put off watching some of these. So that said, based on criteria that probably make sense in another universe:

Best Overall Release
01 Columbia Noir #1 (Indicator)
02 John Ford at Columbia, 1935-1958 (Indicator)
03 Gamera: The Complete Collection (Arrow)
04 Sweet Charity (Indicator)
05 Crash (Arrow)
06 CzechMate: In Search of Jiří Menzel (Second Run)
07 The Thousand Eyes of Dr. Mabuse (Masters of Cinema)
08 3-D Rarities II (Flicker Alley)
09 Vitalina Varela (Second Run)
10 Eve (Indicator)

Best Upgrade
01 Love Me Tonight (Kino)
02 Bluebeard’s Eighth Wife (Kino)
03 Romance on the High Seas (Warner Archive)
04 Angel (Kino)
05 Christmas in July (Kino)

Best Boxset
Columbia Noir #1 (Indicator)

Best Arrow Release
Gamera: The Complete Collection (Arrow)

Best Eureka Release
The Thousand Eyes of Dr. Mabuse (Masters of Cinema)

Best Indicator Release
Columbia Noir #1

Best Second Run Release
CzechMate: In Search of Jiří Menzel

Best Label
01 Indicator
02 Second Run
03 Warner Archive

Best Bonus Film(s)
Dream Logic: The Short Films of Curtis Harrington (Night Tide, Indicator)

Best Other On-Disc Extra
Creation Myth

Best Cover
01 John Ford at Columbia, 1935-1958
02 Goodbye, Dragon Inn

Best Packaging
Gamera: The Complete Collection (Arrow)

Best Alternative to a Criterion Release
Crash (Arrow)

There's a good chance that due to other obligations (not to mention wanting to put together my own sci-fi list) I won't get around to tabulating this until mid next-week anyway. So I might as well just extend the deadline a whole week. Feel free to post a ballot or revise your current one up until I say no more edits

Ok, for real this time, today is your last day to submit or revise a ballot so I can tabulate them tomorrow

Here now, well into the third month of 2021, what better time to revisit that banner year in all our lives...



THE OTHER CRITERIONFORUM AWARDS

BEST OVERALL RELEASE



01 Crash (Arrow)
02 John Ford at Columbia, 1935-1958 (Indicator)
03 Columbia Noir #1 (Indicator)
04 The Thousand Eyes of Dr. Mabuse (Masters of Cinema)
05 Goodbye, Dragon Inn (Second Run)
06 Dragons Forever (88 Films)
07 CzechMate: In Search of Jiří Menzel (Second Run)
08 Zu Warriors from the Magic Mountain (Eureka)
09 Walkabout (Second Sight)
10 Sweet Charity (Indicator) / America as Seen by a Frenchman (Arrow Academy) (tie)

BEST UPGRADE



01 The Shop Around the Corner (Warner Archive)
02 Christmas in July (Kino)
03 Love Me Tonight (Kino)
04 Lord Love a Duck (Kino)
05 Romance on the High Seas (Warner Archive)

BEST BOXSET (tie)



BEST ARROW RELEASE



Runner-up: Gamera: The Complete Collection

BEST EUREKA RELEASE



Runner-up: Zu Warriors from the Magic Mountain

BEST INDICATOR RELEASE



BEST SECOND RUN RELEASE



Runner-up: How You Live Your Story: Selected Works by Kevin Jerome Everson

BEST LABEL



BEST COMMENTARY



Stephen Prince (Rio Grande, Masters of Cinema)

RIP

BEST BONUS FILMS



Dream Logic: The Short Films of Curtis Harrington (Indicator)

Runner-up: List (Grass, Cinema Guild)

BEST OTHER EXTRA



A Creation Myth: appreciation by author and film historian Neil Sinyard

Runner-up: The Guardian Interview with Melvin Van Peebles (Watermelon Man, Indicator)

BEST BOOK



Runner-up: The Game (Arrow Academy)

BEST COVER



Runner-up: Crash (Arrow)

WORST COVER

Conjoined Hand Trigger Warning

BEST PACKAGING



Runner-up: Midsommar: Director's Cut (A24)

BEST LATE DISCOVERY



BEST ALTERNATIVE TO A CRITERION RELEASE



Runner-up: Walkabout (Second Sight)

Thanks for compiling, even though I forgot to submit!

Well done, swo!

Hope I never see that Roman Holiday cover again.

domino harvey wrote: Mon Mar 08, 2021 3:27 pm Thanks for compiling, even though I forgot to submit!

I am open to refiguring results if you or anyone else wants to submit a belated ballot. This list was based on only six second-round submissions

Maltic wrote: Mon Mar 08, 2021 3:32 pmHope I never see that Roman Holiday cover again.

Good point. Now spoilered to protect the children

Thanks swo! Even though it was the winner by default, hopefully this prompts more people to seek out the Mai Zetterling set (especially with the 60s project approaching)

Could we have a 2021 run for this? The UK labels had a strong year again. It'd also be nice to have a UHD column for any great discs coming from European/non-US labels.

Yes, I'll probably start that closer to the end of the year