Criterion DVD's 50% off

Discussion in 'Whatever' started by Biff, Nov 1, 2011.

  1. Rich

    Rich Die-Cast

    Joined:
    Mar 7, 2006
    Messages:
    12,339
    Criterion DVD's 50% off
    The Killer is OOP ? I grabbed mine maybe 6 months ago at Best Buy. I'm sure its not criterion, but the copy they got it from was very good.

     
  2. Ultra999

    Ultra999 Post Pimp

    Joined:
    Oct 30, 2007
    Messages:
    2,642
    Criterion DVD's 50% off
    ^ i have multiple releases of the killer on dvd, but it's the criterion release that's the holy grail.
     
  3. ultrakaiju

    ultrakaiju Die-Cast Staff Member

    Joined:
    Jan 14, 2011
    Messages:
    11,771
    Criterion DVD's 50% off
    If anyone that is interested hasn't heard of it, for film buffs, sites like DVDbeaver are are great way to choose which version of your treasured film is worth shelling out the big bucks for.

    As a sample, here is some of the synopsis on release for "The Killer"
    http://www.dvdbeaver.com/film/DVDCompare2/killer4.htm

    PS - I don't know anything about that Ultimate Edition BD, clearly the review has it pretty bad, but for 10$ on Amazon.ca, you can't really expect a whole lot. A cheap, enjoyably movie.
     
  4. Rich

    Rich Die-Cast

    Joined:
    Mar 7, 2006
    Messages:
    12,339
    Criterion DVD's 50% off
    Wow I had no clue a criterion version ever existed. Grail indeed, the hunt is now on :evil:

    Just looked over that review site and to be honest the Criterion version doenst look all that great. The Blu Ray though, that looks on the money and much better.

    Great site !
     
  5. Lixx

    Lixx Mr. Grumpy™

    Joined:
    Oct 9, 2007
    Messages:
    8,211
    Location:
    Not here
    flickr:
    lixx
    Criterion DVD's 50% off
    My g/f just asked me for a x-mas list tonight. Hmm might be all Criterion dvds...Just got Something Wild and House for my b-day.
     
  6. Rich

    Rich Die-Cast

    Joined:
    Mar 7, 2006
    Messages:
    12,339
    Criterion DVD's 50% off
    I would love to see your collection recommendations Chris. And yeah the same here, looking like a lot of us video nerds are taking advantage of this offer. I never even knew they did this every 6 months. Gotta keep me eye peeled now for the next sale.

    I just wish they made Naked Lunch on Blu Ray. That would have been awesome. On the Bright side I can get both The Killing and 12 Angry Men on Blu so that is cool.
     
  7. Lixx

    Lixx Mr. Grumpy™

    Joined:
    Oct 9, 2007
    Messages:
    8,211
    Location:
    Not here
    flickr:
    lixx
  8. Dean

    Dean Prototype

    Joined:
    Feb 18, 2007
    Messages:
    6,321
    Location:
    415
    Criterion DVD's 50% off
    It's fantastic! Especially if you like film noir. Very tight little thriller, and you can really see both Kubrick's photographic eye (he was a photographer for Life magazine) as well as his unique compositional style that matured quickly after that movie. The Criterion edition includes "Killer's Kiss," an earlier and much cruder potboiler that isn't quite as good, but you can still see the young Stanley in there. I wish Warners would let them release "Barry Lyndon." It's SK's most underrated movie and seriously deserves the high-class treatment. Warners has never really treated the Kubrick properties as well as they deserve. Allegedly they don't want to spend the money it'd take to get Barry Lyndon to blu-ray. The only DVD edition available in the USA just doesn't do the movie justice by a long shot.

    Kubrick fans who haven't seen them really owe it to themselves to see both "Lolita" and "Paths of Glory." Most people have seen his films starting with "Dr. Strangelove" but some of the earlier works are just as good. "Paths" is one of the greatest war/anti-war movies ever made. Possibly Kirk Douglas' best performance.

    In some cases, the old out-of-print titles aren't necessarily worth paying the big bucks for on eBay or whatever. Having read Ultra999's holy grail comment, maybe I'm mis-remembering this, but I thought that the two John Woo movies were low resolution ... subsequent releases on other labels probably have a sharper picture. "Silence of the Lambs" is sometimes criticized for its "reddish" picture quality, although if you're into the extras, it has some good ones, especially the director's commentary. Similarly "Spinal Tap" has some extras that aren't on any other edition, so if you're a super-fan you might want it, otherwise the later release elsewhere is just as good, quality-wise.

    It's a real shame that they lost the rights to Hitchcock's "Notorious." That's an incredible movie and their version is allegedly the best. (I think you can rent it from Netflix BTW.) They had a lot of titles on LaserDisc that they lost rights to when DVDs started selling, e.g. "Dr. No," "A Hard Day's Night" and "Star Wars." Their LD version of "Star Wars" is the best version of the original pre-"special" SW that there is. It showed that the original elements had deteriorated pretty badly in some scenes, but at least Uncle George hadn't screwed it up yet, and it was in the original theatrical aspect ratio.
     
  9. Biff

    Biff S7 Royalty

    Joined:
    Jun 16, 2006
    Messages:
    3,929
    Criterion DVD's 50% off
    I noticed some of the dvd's were the 'Kino Art House Essentials'. These are just the movies w/ no bells or whistles, but all have the Criterion remastering. BN doesn't stock all of them, but Lord of the Flies, Throne of Blood, plus more are available. I think some of these releases are from earlier remasters, like Cocteau's Beaty & the Beast. And these are dvd only. But w/ the sale they are only $10. (They had some boxed sets, too.)

    And regarding early works of Kubrick, he also did Spartacus, which is suprisingly good.
     
  10. igrrl

    igrrl Toy Prince

    Joined:
    Mar 4, 2010
    Messages:
    146
    Location:
    San Diego, CA
    Criterion DVD's 50% off
    Other titles not mentioned:

    Diabolique
    Charade
    La Belle et la Bête
    Burmese Harp
    La jetée
    Sweet Smell of Success
    Peeping Tom
    The Tales of Hoffmann
    Bicycle Thieves
    The Third Man
    Kind Hearts and Coronets

    The last two are OOP. "The Third Man" is currently available through Studio Canal but can't compare to Criterion's blu-ray. Anyone who is a fan of dark comedy should watch "Kind Hearts and Coronets". I'll parrot the earlier comment that you really can't go wrong with most of Criterion's library. Whenever there's a 50% sale, I like to pick up one or two movies that I know little of. Certain titles are only available or easier to find under the "Art House Essentials" moniker. While they only provide you with the movie, that's really all that you need.

    "Killer's Kiss" may not be as sophisticated as Kubrick's latter work but it was also his first movie. He was able to exercise complete creative control. That includes all the camera work, which was hand held. Knowing that, certain shots are even more interesting to look at and dissect.

    I have the Mei-Ah versions of "The Killer" and "Hard Boiled" and both are very well done. Steer clear of anything from Dragon Dynasty because they're notorious for cropping. It's better to stick with grey market.
     
  11. atease

    atease Super Deformed

    Joined:
    Jun 26, 2006
    Messages:
    5,388
    Location:
    Boston, MA
  12. toothaction

    toothaction Team Tsubu Staff Member

    Joined:
    Feb 10, 2011
    Messages:
    13,150
    Location:
    Detroit
    Name:
    David
    flickr:
    toothaction
    Instagram:
    thebeautifulpuffin
    Criterion DVD's 50% off
    Not beefing on Night on Earth or Mystery Train, but If we're talking Jarmush, Down By Law is the clear winner.
    Buy it for someone you love :D
     
  13. Dean

    Dean Prototype

    Joined:
    Feb 18, 2007
    Messages:
    6,321
    Location:
    415
    Criterion DVD's 50% off
    Off-topic of the sale theme, but I joined Hulu Plus last night and was amazed at the HUGE number of Criterion titles that they haven't yet released (or that they had in the past on their sub-labels.)

    All of the Hanzo Razor movies are there, and I'm pretty sure the entire original Zatoichi series is as well. I watched "Quadrophenia" last night. They should get around to releasing that on DVD/BD, it still holds up as a great English film. Tons of Japanese cinema as well as a lot of lesser-known titles by great directors. They've even got "X From Outer Space," the kaiju movie that gave us Monster Guilala. Haven't seen that since I was a kid.

    [​IMG]
     
  14. Lixx

    Lixx Mr. Grumpy™

    Joined:
    Oct 9, 2007
    Messages:
    8,211
    Location:
    Not here
    flickr:
    lixx
    Criterion DVD's 50% off
    Dean, Quadrophenia was one of the few free ones on there watched it over the summer for the first time. Always meant to watch it but it's really hard to find on DVD, so you're right it definitely needs a release. Great film, makes me want a fish tail parka :lol: Did anyone notice his rocker friend in the film is Ray Winstone (much younger version, from Sexy Beast, Departed etc):

    http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0935653/
     
  15. ultrakaiju

    ultrakaiju Die-Cast Staff Member

    Joined:
    Jan 14, 2011
    Messages:
    11,771
    Criterion DVD's 50% off
    I remember a Rhino release from a few years back that was an improvement over the first (essentially a VHS transfer), but as Chris said, these are not so common these days - as most Rhino DVDs. But the R2 release (check amazon UK) is supposed to be very decent.
     
  16. RudeBeast

    RudeBeast Line of Credit

    Joined:
    Mar 31, 2010
    Messages:
    1,955
    Name:
    Rob
    flickr:
    Rudebeast
    Criterion DVD's 50% off
    If you can watch region 2 dvds it's very easy to find in Europe (on Amazon UK at 3 quid - I can confirm good quality). And now it's being released on blue ray too!
     
  17. ShadowSpectre

    ShadowSpectre Addicted

    Joined:
    Jun 15, 2009
    Messages:
    597
    Location:
    Montebello, Ca
    Criterion DVD's 50% off
    No one has mentioned Night of the Hunter? :?

    I still get chills when the priest with "LOVE" and "HATE" tattooed to his knuckles is looking from the top of the basement and says, "I can hear you whispering children, so I know you're down there. I can feel myself getting awful mad."
     
  18. RudeBeast

    RudeBeast Line of Credit

    Joined:
    Mar 31, 2010
    Messages:
    1,955
    Name:
    Rob
    flickr:
    Rudebeast
    Criterion DVD's 50% off
    Tbh there's little or no mention of many masterpieces in the criterion collection, Bresson, Dreyer, Imamura and Godard for starters.
    Wonderful collection, reminds me of Artificial Eye or Eureka from the UK; and great to see a Raoul Coutard appear in the explore / people section, one of the most amazing cinematographers.
    http://www.criterion.com/explore/112-raoul-coutard

    Talking about amazing cinematography, I've just come across this release (not Criterion but great if you live in a region 2 country):
    http://eurekavideo.co.uk/moc/catalogue/touch-of-evil/
    Can't wait to pick this up in blue ray!!
     
  19. ultrakaiju

    ultrakaiju Die-Cast Staff Member

    Joined:
    Jan 14, 2011
    Messages:
    11,771
    Criterion DVD's 50% off
    I just read on the Criterion site that Wes Anderson is personally supervising the HD transfer of Rushmore. Such a great film. Not sure I would add an extra copy on blu-ray, as I already have the DVD criterion release, but I would highly recommend it to anyone that hasn't watched it.
     
  20. danlord

    danlord Addicted

    Joined:
    May 26, 2007
    Messages:
    865
    Location:
    baja mexico
    flickr:
    danlord
    Instagram:
    danlord
    Criterion DVD's 50% off
    the Sale is open again at barnes & noble!!

    50% off in all Criterion collection blue rays and DVD's
     
  21. Dean

    Dean Prototype

    Joined:
    Feb 18, 2007
    Messages:
    6,321
    Location:
    415
    Criterion DVD's 50% off
    [​IMG]

    Took advantage of the sale, got Inagaki's The Samurai Trilogy in the mail today. I saw Criterion's original release over ten years ago and am really excited to revisit the films again.

    Kurosawa's "Hidden Fortress" is frequently cited as a big influence on "Star Wars," but I'm willing to bet that Lucas was influenced by other Japanese films as well. As I recall there's a sequence in one of these three where a Zen priest (in robes later copied as Jedi garb) advises Musashi Myamoto something like "trust your feelings!" :)
     
  22. TiredChildren

    TiredChildren Administrator Staff Member

    Joined:
    Aug 16, 2009
    Messages:
    3,794
    Location:
    Melbourne, FL
    Name:
    James
    flickr:
    JamesLikeness
    Instagram:
    TiredChildren
    Criterion DVD's 50% off
    Too bad B&N's prices are kind of ridiculous, so 50% off puts them just a little bit below normal prices everywhere else.
     
  23. ShadowSpectre

    ShadowSpectre Addicted

    Joined:
    Jun 15, 2009
    Messages:
    597
    Location:
    Montebello, Ca
    Criterion DVD's 50% off
    This still puts them at about $5 under lowest price everywhere else. When it comes to Criterion Blu-Rays, you take advantage of what you can.

    Finally got the samurai trilogy myself. This will bring me up to 33 Criterion blu-rays. I'm still hoping to get the Third Man one day. I shouldn't have waited on that one. :(
     
  24. Lixx

    Lixx Mr. Grumpy™

    Joined:
    Oct 9, 2007
    Messages:
    8,211
    Location:
    Not here
    flickr:
    lixx
    Criterion DVD's 50% off
    Thanks for the reminder I just picked up 12 Angry Men for $15. Can't beat that. Been meaning to pick this up for awhile but the sale sold me. What a monumental film!

    If you like this movie may I also recommend a little know classic with Paul Newman called 'The Outrage'. I don't think it was ever released on DVD but I have a bootleg copy. Set in the 1870's Wild West, it's about a trial of a mexican bandit (Paul Newman in heavy make up) who is accused of murdering the husband of a southern belle. The films starts of with a very young William Shatner as a preacher talking about the trial with a con man (Edward G Robinson) and a frontiersmen (Howard Da Silva) at a lonely train station. Through the course of the movie they replay the trial and it's three outcomes based on testimony. Pretty gripping stuff. Very similar themes to 12 Angry Men.

    EDIT: I guess it is out on DVD now when I bought it years ago it still had not been released.
     
  25. Dean

    Dean Prototype

    Joined:
    Feb 18, 2007
    Messages:
    6,321
    Location:
    415
    Criterion DVD's 50% off
    Caught that recently, and yeah, it's amazing and still very relevant to this day. Aside from Henry Fonda's memorable performance I also really liked Lee J. Cobb as "the bad guy." What a difference between that role and his later well-known appearance in "The Exorcist."

    I'm half-way through "The Samurai Trilogy," thoroughly enjoying it. I'd forgotten how rich, epic, and romantic it is. Toshiro Mifune is the greatest!
     

Share This Page