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I have a theory that Criterion might upgrade Knife in the Water or any other Polanski film when he dies. Which sounds harsh but let's be honest, what is the better option?MovieBuff647 wrote: Mon Sep 07, 2026 3:30 am Look at how they haven't touched any Polanski in a while or upgraded KNIFE IN THE WATER to BD.
They shouldn't have to wait though because two things can be true at once: he should've been properly held accountable for that incident and his work, especially his work prior to that incident, is still worth recognizing. If VinSyn can go ahead and release a 4K of THE TENANT and license LAST TANGO IN PARIS 4K from MGM, then why do Criterion feel the need to be so cowardly, especially given they already released KNIFE IN THE WATER on DVD anyway? And Criterion still released their UHD upgrade of MISHIMA even two months after those allegations against Schrader came to light as opposed to canceling it, so not sure why they care so much about optics.HardNight'sDay wrote: Mon Sep 07, 2026 11:30 amI have a theory that Criterion might upgrade Knife in the Water or any other Polanski film when he dies. Which sounds harsh but let's be honest, what is the better option?MovieBuff647 wrote: Mon Sep 07, 2026 3:30 am Look at how they haven't touched any Polanski in a while or upgraded KNIFE IN THE WATER to BD.
I do think Criterion would be interested but the question is if A24 would play ball. My gut says no but TBD.bad future wrote: Mon Sep 07, 2026 5:17 amI have been hoping for this! It's a top 3 film of the 2020s for me, and I doubt A24, Lionsgate or almost any boutique label would expect it to sell well enough to justify release, but a Criterion release seems like something that really could sell.MovieBuff647 wrote: Mon Sep 07, 2026 12:36 am Also, STARS AT NOON would be great given no English-subtitled release for that one exists
As it is now, because it came and went with so little fanfare (it was one of two Denis films that year, wasn't heavily promoted or widely championed by critics, I think it went to streaming at the same time or very soon after its limited theatrical release, etc) I think being an A24 release by Claire Denis starring Margaret Qualley is weirdly working against it.. if people are aware of it they might assume there's a reason they hadn't heard of it / haven't seen it. But if Criterion released it, I think that would be the 'and it's actually good!' endorsement currently missing from its identity which would flip all those other things back into selling points.
It's really not a film that I'd expect to connect with a huge audience (I only just realized that having it star the then-current partners of Taylor Swift AND Jack Antonoff could have been a selling point to a huge audience who REALLY wouldn't connect with it) but I do expect its reputation to slowly and steadily improve, and a Criterion release could certainly speed that up.