criterionforum.org

I can't find any online comparison of the Kino release of The Milky Way with the version here. Does anyone know if the Kino is an upgrade or offers a superior presentation?

I own both but I haven't watched my Studiocanal copy, only the Kino, which I recall being pretty teal-y but good. The Kino has a commentary track from Nick Pinkerton that I've heard positive word about, and was enough reason for me to get it- though I bought the Studiocanal set later so not sure if it's worth the double dip if you have the SC box

I'm seeing positive reviews of the Kino but can't find any comparisons, or just info regarding if it's a new transfer in contrast to the SC.

Rayon Vert wrote: Fri Mar 12, 2021 6:51 pm I can't find any online comparison of the Kino release of The Milky Way with the version here. Does anyone know if the Kino is an upgrade or offers a superior presentation?

I finally got around to comparing the SC and KL discs and they look identical in presentation. I took some photos of each at timed marks, but because they are zoomed on my iPhone and I needed to pause the picture to get the same frames for comparison, they come off looking pretty awful (quality of the photo/quality of the transfers with pixilation not in-motion). I'm happy to post them if you want, but the color timing and overall picture quality is not discernible.

Wow, thanks TW. But I ended up ordering the Kino about a week ago having given up hope for a comparison - I saw the Kino includes a new commentary so that made the decision more easy.

It's unfortunate that it's hard to find comparisons for these Studio Canal boxsets and the US individual releases - I'm thinking Melville and Godard as well.

Yeah, I've double dipped for all those sets save the Godard because they've been cheap enough (pre-Covid..) on Amazon.uk to rationalize it for just a few additional films. The Godard isn't worth it for me, since I'd only be getting Une femme est une femme on blu (which I hope is coming elsewhere soon from somebody)

I went through the supplements on The Milky Way blu today, and the overlapping extras were a bit of a mixed bag. The Jean-Claude Carriere interview is underwhelming, as he mostly talks about the freedoms he's gained in not being a director and his love for Godard without really getting into anything of substance. Peter Evans's interview is much more inviting and offers an informative study on several elements of the film. It's well worth watching as complementary material.

Nick Pinkerton's commentary exclusive to the Kino disc is probably worth double dipping for, but while it's populated with plentiful and necessary scholarly analyses for the layered esoteric references strung throughout the film, he's mostly reading from someone else's work (Raymond Durgnat)- and though this may be for the best (Pinkerton admits that he doesn't feel able to offer a better examination, and he's probably right) it's a bit irritating because he speed-reads through the material, which is overwhelming and exhausting. I found myself rewinding many scenes multiple times because he's talking so fast, uttering complicated thoughts and stumbling over his own words. Again, it's really valuable stuff, but presented in a manner that was off-putting, and even if Pinkerton does occasionally build upon them a bit, he often fails to offer much value beyond what he's reading.

Sometimes his lack of significant commentary to his Durgnat elicitations evokes more frustration because such omissions reveal an absence of context demanded from a scholarly commentary (i.e. there is a moment where he could easily provide a layman's understanding of Priscillianism's heresy charges in reference to Durgnat's identification of its parody, but instead utters a flat peripheral description of vague charges... just go on google for that one, it's important). However, other times he does dig into the background on citations (i.e. Pinkerton fleshes out the heresy of Jansenism in a simplified and transparent manner, which was most welcome). Otherwise, Pinkerton issues some tedious filler, making some strange comments that are either deadpan jokes that fail in their aims or reveal an absence of social skills on his part (making a comparison of one woman's facial features to Ernest Borgnine's is a rather mean-spirited, off-the-cuff remark spouted nonchalantly). I'll definitely be revisiting the commentary frequently in bouts because of how well-stated and vital Durgnat's insights are, though this track ultimately just made me want to seek out his independent texts and read them myself rather than be read to by a monotonous guy getting paid to phone it in for at least half the time.

Thanks for the breakdown. I'll probably watch the film with the commentary just to make sure the disc works. It was my top film in the Bunuel project and should be a shoo-in for my 60s list.

Rayon Vert wrote: Sat May 22, 2021 10:15 pm Thanks for the breakdown. I'll probably watch the film with the commentary just to make sure the disc works. It was my top film in the Bunuel project and should be a shoo-in for my 60s list.

It's probably my favorite Bunuel too, and likewise for the 60s project. The commentary is interesting, just be prepared to rewind a lot. Despite its value I'm still pretty frustrated that Pinkerton felt that such incredibly-dense, occasionally opaque, analysis can just be left as-is without context or, God forbid, some original thoughts to add to these insights that he obviously found worthy enough to incorporate into the majority of his product (he also reads from Bunuel's My last sigh to fill in some of the other time).

The Tristana disc in this box has Spanish, French and German audio, is that correct? And it´s the same disc as this standalone release:
https://www.dvdclassik.com/test/blu-ray ... tudiocanal

The Spanish main titles for Tristana state "fondo sonoro Luis Bunuel". Interesting. Seems Bunuel worked on the sound mix/effects:
"In Tristana Buñuel he plays a lot with the displacement of sound: showing us an image with a sound background that is not at the same level as the diegesis – which comes, e.g., from an earlier scene. This helps to deconstruct discourses and subvert realism." (browser translation from Spanish) Wonder if this soundwork was carried over to the French and German tracks.

Source: an information-packed Bunuel blog here:
https://lbunuel.blogspot.com/2015/01/la ... as-de.html

Stefan Andersson wrote: Sun Apr 06, 2025 5:15 pm The Tristana disc in this box has Spanish, French and German audio, is that correct? And it´s the same disc as this standalone release:
https://www.dvdclassik.com/test/blu-ray ... tudiocanal

Yes.

TMDaines wrote: Fri Apr 11, 2025 11:37 am

Stefan Andersson wrote: Sun Apr 06, 2025 5:15 pm The Tristana disc in this box has Spanish, French and German audio, is that correct? And it´s the same disc as this standalone release:
https://www.dvdclassik.com/test/blu-ray ... tudiocanal

Yes.

Thank you!

Which track do the English subs translate?