2007 Criterion Forum Awards

[GringoTex]

Let me know if there are any objections to the following categories:

Release of the Year
Best Eclipse Release
Best Box Set
Best Reissue
Most Disappointing Release
Best Commentary
Best Single Supplement (not a commentary)
Best Package Design
Best Surprise
Forum Member of the Year
Richard Cranium Award

You may also PM your ballot to me if you do not want to post it.

The Criterion Forum Awards 2004-2006

2007 RESULTS

[Jeff]

Voting is now open. Thanks to GringoTex for running the show.

If you have already posted your choices in the archived discussion thread, please copy and paste them here so they will be included in the calculations.

Here are the eligible titles, courtesy of Tribe. PM me if there are any omissions or errors.

New Eligible Titles
362-Border Radio
363-Mouchette
364-Monsters and Madmen
365-The Haunted Strangler
366-Corridors of Blood
367-First Man Into Space
368-The Atomic Submarine
369-Paul Robeson: Portraits of an Artist
370-Paul Robeson--Icon:The Emperor Jones & Paul Robeson: Tribute to an Artist
371-Paul Robeson--Outsider:Body and Soul& Borderline
372-Paul Robeson--Pioneer:Sanders of the River & Jericho
373-Paul Robeson--Citizen of the World:The Proud Valley & Native Land
374-Bicycle Thieves
375-Green for Danger
376-49th Parallel
377-When a Woman Ascends the Stairs
378-Fires On the Plain
379-The Burmese Harp
380-The Naked City
381-La Haine
382-Overlord
383-Brute Force
384-Vengeance Is Mine
385-Army of Shadows
386-Sansho the Bailiff
387-La Jetee & Sans Soleil
388-The Two of Us
389-WR: Mysteries of the Organism
390-Sweet Movie
391-If...
392-Three Films by Hiroshi Teshigahara
393-Pitfall
394-Woman In the Dunes
395-The Face of Another
396-Ace In the Hole
397-Ivan's Childhood
398-Les Enfants Terribles
399-House of Games
400-Stranger Than Paradise
401-Night On Earth
402-The Milky Way
403-Cria Cuervos
404-Robinson Crusoe On Mars
405-The Threepenny Opera
406-Martha Graham: Dance On Film
407-Mala Noche
408-Breathless
409-Days of Heaven
410-Under the Volcano
411-Berlin Alexanderplatz
412-Sawdust and Tinsel
413-Drunken Angel
414-Two-Lane Blacktop

Eclipse
Early Bergman
The Documentaries of Louis Malle
Late Ozu
Raymond Bernard
The First Films of Samuel Fuller
Carlos Saura's Flamenco Trilogy

Reissues
The Lady Vanishes
The Third Man
Yojimbo
Sanjuro

[domino harvey]

We had three people backing it up before the thread got closed, add a Best Boxed Set category.

[Tribe]

Best Release:
1-Sansho the Bailiff
2-La Jetee & Sans Soleil
3-Three Films by Hiroshi Teshigahara
4-Mala Noche
5-If...

Best Eclipse Release:
The First Films of Samuel Fuller

Best Reissue:
The Lady Vanishes

Most Disappointing Release:
Monsters and Madmen

Best Commentary:
If... (David Robinson and Malcolm McDowell)

Best Single Supplement:
Phil Jutzi's Berlin Alexanderplatz

Best Package Design:
La Jetee & Sans Soleil

Best Surprise:
Ace In the Hole

Best Boxset:
Three Films by Hiroshi Teshigahara


Tribe

[criterionsnob]

Criterion Release of the Year
1. THREE FILMS BY HIROSHI TESHIGAHARA
2. MALA NOCHE
3. LA JETEE / SANS SOLEIL
4. IVAN'S CHILDHOOD
5. BERLIN ALEXANDERPLATZ
Runners up:
THE TWO OF US
DAYS OF HEAVEN
ACE IN THE HOLE
CRIA CUERVOS
LA HAINE
BREATHLESS
SANSHO THE BAILIFF
STRANGER THAN PARADISE
MOUCHETTE

Best Eclipse Release
THE DOCUMENTARIES OF LOUIS MALLE
Runners up:
ALL OTHERS

Best Reissue
THE LADY VANISHES

Most Disappointing Release
NONE

Best Commentary
DAYS OF HEAVEN

Best Single Supplement (Not a Commentary)
JAMES QUANT VIDEO ESSAYS – THREE FILMS BY HIROSHI TESHIGAHARA

Best Package Design
SANSHO THE BAILIFF

Best Surprise
CARLOS SAURA'S FLAMENCO TRILOGY

Best Boxset
THREE FILMS BY HIROSHI TESHIGAHARA

[domino harvey]

Release of the Year
01 Berlin Alexanderplatz
02 Mouchette
03 Green For Danger
04 WR: Mysteries of the Organism
05 the Milky Way

Best Eclipse Release
Louis Malle
Best Reissue
Third Man
Most Disappointing Release
Days of Heaven
Best Commentary
House of Games
Best Single Supplement (not a commentary)
Jean Seberg, Belmondo, and Godard archival interviews on Breathless
Best Package Design
Three Films
Best Surprise
Martha Graham
Best Boxed Set
Paul Robeson

[kaujot]

Release of the Year
1. If....
2. Two-Lane Blacktop
3. La Jetée & Sans Soleil
4. Days of Heaven
5. Ivan's Childhood
(Runners-up: House of Games, La Haine, Stranger Than Paradise)

Best Eclipse Release
The Documentaries of Louis Malle

Best Reissue
The Third Man

Most Disappointing Release
Monsters & Madmen

Best Commentary
House of Games (Mamet and Jay)
(Runners-up: Malcolm McDowell on If...., Stuart Cooper on Overlord, and Mathieu Kassovitz on La Haine)
(Negative marks for Allison Anders on Two-Lane Blacktop and how she said "I love it" or "I love that" in response to EVERYTHING Monte Hellman said)

Best Single Supplement
Thursday's Children (from If....)

Best Package Design
Days of Heaven

Best Surprise
Overlord

Best Boxed Set
Paul Robeson

[Jeff]

Release of the Year
1. Ace in the Hole
2. Breathless
3. Days of Heaven
4. Army of Shadows
5. Brute Force

Best Eclipse Release
The Documentaries of Louis Malle

Best Reissue
The Third Man

Most Disappointing Release
Border Radio

Best Commentary
House of Games

Best Single Supplement (non-commentary)
Portrait of a 60% Perfect Man

Best Package Design
Breathless

Best Surprise
Cría cuervos

Best Boxed Set
Three Films by Hiroshi Teshigahara

Member of the Year
zedz

Richard Cranium
125100

[godardslave]

Release of the Year
1. Three Films by Hiroshi Teshigahara
2. Bicycle Thieves
3. Sansho the Bailiff
4. Berlin Alexanderplatz
5. Days of Heaven

Best Eclipse Release
Late Ozu

Best Reissue
Sanjuro

Most Disappointing Release
the bland and uniformly boring eclipse packaging.
Sawdust and Tinsel


Best Single Supplement:
Life as it is: neorealist movement in Italy (bicycle thieves)

Best Package Design
Three Films by Hiroshi Teshigahara

Best Surprise
The Face of Another

Best Boxed Set
Three Films by Hiroshi Teshigahara

Member of the Year
HerrSchreck

[miless]

Release of the Year:
1. Stranger Than Paradise/Permanent Vacation
2. Days of Heaven
3. Ivan's Childhood
4. Mouchette
5. If....

Best Eclipse Release:
Late Ozu

Best Reissue:
The Third Man

Most Disappointing Release:
WR: Mysteries of the Organism

Best Commentary:
Days of Heaven

Best Single Supplement (not a commentary):
cast & crew interviews for Days of Heaven

Best Package Design:
Three Films by Hiroshi Teshigahara

Best Surprise:
tie between Overlord and Cria Cuervos

Best Boxed Set:
Late Ozu

[Dr. Mabuse]

Release of the Year
01 Corridors of Blood
02 Robinson Crusoe On Mars
03 Bicycle Thieves
04 The Naked City
05 Berlin Alexanderplatz

Best Eclipse Release
The First Films of Samuel Fuller

Best Reissue
The Third Man

Most Disappointing Release
Mouchette

Best Commentary
Robinson Crusoe on Mars

Best Single Supplement (not a commentary)
Destination Mars

Best Package Design
Monsters and Madmen

Best Surprise
Days of Heaven

Best Boxed Set
Monsters and Madmen

[GringoTex]

Best Release:
1. Berlin Alexanderplatz
2. Two-Lane Blacktop
3. Breathless
4. 49th Parallel
5. The ThreePenney Opera

Best Eclipse Release:
Late Ozu

Best Reissue:
Yojimbo/Sanjuro

Most Disappointing Release
Fires on the Plain

Best Commentary:
Two-Lane Blacktop (Hellman, Anders)

Best Single Supplement:
Thursday's Children (If...)

Best Package Design:
Two-Lane Blacktop

Best Surprise:
Under the Volcano

Best Boxset:
The First Films of Sam Fuller

[yoshimori]

Release of the Year: Berlin Alexanderplatz
Best Eclipse Release: Late Ozu – for the subtitles
Most Disappointing Release: All the ones I didn't want to buy – many more this year than is usual, I think.
Best Commentary: Whatever ...
Best Single Supplement (not a commentary): Fassbinder "directing" Berlin Alexanderplatz
Best Package Design: Whatever ...
Best Surprise: Maybe House of Games, since it'd already been released.
Forum Member of the Year: Modesty prohibits me from ...
Richard Cranium Award: Whoever has the largest word count

[NABOB OF NOWHERE]

Best Release:
1. Berlin Alexanderplatz
2. Two-Lane Blacktop
3. Breathless
4. 49th Parallel
5. Ace in the Hole

Best Eclipse Release:
Raymond Bernard

Best Reissue:
Third Man

Most Disappointing Release
La Jetee

Best Commentary:
House of Games


Best Package Design:
Three Films by Hiroshi Teshigahara

Best Surprise:
Days of Heaven

Best Boxset:
Three Films by Hiroshi Teshigahara

[My Man Godfrey]

Release of the Year
1. La Jetee/Sans Soleil
2. Berlin Alexanderplatz
3. Sawdust and Tinsel
4. Sansho the Bailiff
5. Ace in the Hole

Best Eclipse Release -- Documentaries of Louis Malle

Best Box Set -- Three Films by Hiroshi Teshigahara

Best Reissue -- Yojimbo/Sanjuro

Best Package Design -- Teshigahara

Best Surprise -- Carlos Saura's Flamenco Trilogy
[/code]

[Tommaso]

Release of the Year

1. The Threepenny Opera
2. WR:Mysteries of the Organism
3. 49th Parallel
4. Sawdust and Tinsel
5. Sweet Movie

Best Eclipse Release

Raymond Bernard


Most Disappointing Release

No disappointments from CC at all this year as far as I can see, apart from doubling some films already out on MoC. One could name the absence of any Tarkovsky shorts on the "Ivan" disc, but that would be unfair, probably.

Best Commentary

Bruce Eder on "49th Parallel"


Best Single Supplement (not a commentary)

Makavejev's "Hole In the Soul"(on "WR")


Best Package Design

Army of Shadows

Best Surprise

Martha Graham


Forum Member of the Year

"Mr. Numbers" or whatever he called himself for setting up that elaborate hoax about finding Murnau's "Four Devils", and getting away with it. Well done, I must admit, and too sad it's probably not true. Should it be true (unlikely), he'd really deserve the Member of the Year award.

Richard Cranium Award
to all (me included) who believed Mr. Numbers. We should have known better, really.

[What A Disgrace]

Release of the Year

1. Berlin Alexanderplatz
2. The Third Man
3. Two Lane Blacktop
4. Breathless
5. Army of Shadows

Best Eclipse Release: Raymond Bernard

Best Reissue: The Third Man

Best Boxed Set: Hiroshi Teshigahara

Most Disappointing Release: Vengeance Is Mine

Best Commentary: Eder, 49th Parallel

Best Single Supplement (not a commentary): Jarmusch Q&A on Night on Earth

Best Package Design: The Third Man

Best Surprise: Raymond Bernard

Forum Member of the Year: Peerpee, for whatever positive role he played in putting Gandahar and Les Maitres du Temps on DVD. Also for the other stuff he did.

Richard Cranium Award: Couldn't say.

[Musashi219]

Release of the Year

1. Army of Shadows
2. Ace in the Hole
3. Berlin Alexanderplatz
4. Two-Lane Blacktop
5. La Haine

Best Eclipse Release

Late Ozu

Best Box Set

Three Films by Hiroshi Teshigahara

Best Reissue

The Third Man

Most Disappointing Release

Border Radio

Best Commentary

David Mamet/Ricky Jay on House of Games

Best Single Supplement (not a commentary)

Portrait of a 60% Perfect Man (Ace in the Hole)

Best Package Design

Berlin Alexanderplatz

Best Surprise

Tie between Overlord and The Two of Us

[HerrSchreck]

Best surprise: Raymond Bernard/Eclipse

Best Eclipse: Eclipse Bernard

Best boxset: Eclipse Bernard

CC Release of the Year: Dreigroschenoper/3PENNY (seeing all the boosting/cleanup/stabilizing/degraining put into a wholeheartedly supported and glorious end-result. CC at it's best). FIRES ON THE.. & WHEN A WOMAN ASCENDS very close behind. Not to mention ENFANTS (another glorious transfer/image manip).

Best Reissue Yojimbo(/w Sanjuro box)

Most Disappointing release: Duh-- Mala Noche (as if there were even any question here... could be the dvd embarassment of the decade, especially since it's director approved and thru their negligence they made it-- almost-- seem like Gus missed it or wanted it that way; not to mention the fact that CC region-zeroes their releases to deliberately cultivate the overseas market which is of course a big part of their sales... but take overseas retail sites money but will facilitate NO RETURNS FOR THEIR OWN MISTAKES: THEFT! "go on, take the money and run... arblblblblblooo-ro... go on, take the money and run. Billy mac, is a detective down in texas..") Also R CRUSOE for the film itself. I knew Mouchette well so I knew to stay away & didn't fall into that awful trap.

Best Commentary: don't know, don't hardly listen, but WHEN A WOMAN ASCENDS and ACE were pretty good.

Best Supplement: revisiting the locations for Taxi Driver. Oh waitaminnit... Actually, though I'm not the hugest fan of the guy, I loved Spike Lee's little vid afterword of ACE ("If there's a buck to be made, regardless if you gotta.. - ... that's AMERICA." sublime. Also the quiet little extras on FIRES ON THE PLAIN with Mickey Curtis and still-plugging Ichikawa, relating actors so thin they passed out from wieght loss, rest sublime comments on one of the greatest film achievements in the medium ever.

Best Package Design: SANSHO DAYU... couldnt be better, fantastic release all around. LES ENFANTS a close second. If the discs werent housed in a vertical sleeve (as opposed to the more hold-in-your-hand friendly horizontal) making them subject to slipout, Bernard would rank too... so stately.

Forum member of year: to the quiet young man who has been driving the forum's most passionate cineastes to greater and higher hieghts by selflessly supplying them, either directly or thru global linkups, with rarities so rare many scholars and reference sites are not even sure if they are films with extant material... and he does it simply so he can have good stuff to read... and/or make it qualitatively more like The Kind of Forum He'd Like To See. I posted a partial list of some of my recent acquisitions to the owner of one of the three american dvd companies who devotes his operation almost exclusively to silents, and the man said "I am astounded by the films you claim to be receiving on disc." Those in the loop know off the bat without question who I mean, but since he's so quiet in the "post-count" background I'll leave it up to him whether or not he wants to take a bow (knowing his inbox would be blitzed with requests to trade). But we all doff our hats to you brother and wish you luck in your upcoming move to The City of Cinema!

That out of the way: in the zone of Thread POsters-- zedz, and dave hare of course.. the latter has been laying off but I hope his nicobattle is over and results in a return to form. The more they post the more I learn, and in hares case, crack me the fuck up via great totally inimitable writing style. Mention to new members markhax, chollyp (despite my little zap on the projection speed issue the cat knows his shit), and Danny Burk... these guys know their stuff and look forward to hearing more.

Special Mention: skuhn8, for the greatest avatar in the history of the internet, and for actually convincing cinephrenic that it was him. Sublime! Also Barmy, for having his possible winning the bet when everyone was having a laugh getting ready to jettison him & thought he lost. And Marty, if you're reading this pal, I didn't zap you offa the board-- not that kind of censorious guy, me-- but farewell to the occasional unintentional laughs supplied by Mr Wedge Issue himself. Though not quite the level of perfromance art of Yilmaz Guney.

Cranium of course goes to 125100 or whatever the fuck his monniker is, for embarassing me after getting Janet Bergstrom involved. Sir, you are a d.i.c.k., but you pulled it off well and got the whole world involved (is there still a chance??). Another special mention here goes to yoshimori and grimfarrow.

Speaking of Bergstrom, a hat doff to her, Dennis Doros, Dave Kehr, and all the other high profile names who along with DE jazz up the place via their presence.

Oh yeah, and a "hard-on UpDown" "letdown" mention to the two CC Dassin masterpieces.. for taking two kickass monster titles and slapping them out there with terrible supplements (both of them, the screenwriter for N CITY, and the unbearably droll job of Ursilver on FORCE... glad it seems Fox is retiring these two totally spent organisms) inviting inevitable conversation about the 40 buck srp price point for Fox transfers that otherwise go, with extras, for like eleven bucks.

Biggest letdown transfer (aside from Noche): BICYCLE THIEVES, which looks about the same as the Image Ent it pre-empted... confirming what I'd been saying for years which was that the so-called "unwatchable" Image was not all that bad.

Ponderous Commentary Dept: 3PENNY. Guys... the movie. Remember? The thing you allegedly are supposed to be here to talk about? Almost as bad as the fucking GAZE on Pandora, CC just cannot get their shit together viz the few early German projects (although the Langs were not too bad... actually the Kalat MABUSE was sublime) they manage to pull together.

And one last craniumism to Becker or Turell or whoever it was who leaked out to a board member his disappointmet (knowing it would hit these boards) over Kino's very good POTEMKIN. Not perfect but very good. Drop the ball on a project, stay miles away from any mention of silents whatsoever... then try and bitterly preempt a few sales from the dudes who are least trying to get this out at a steady regular clip. Very uncool is an understatement. With arte ramping up, with Kino accelerating the pace and continuing to beat everybody to the punch (via the Lubitsches, the gorgeously stacked release of Dartmoor/bfi silent docu, Potemkin, the I-can't-believe-they're-actually-successfully-competing-head-to-head-w-pal-sources Nosferatu stunner, now the plus the great releases announced for 08 w the Wiene, Pabst, and more Eisentstein Parajanian, plus the usual surprises expcted of Variete, the two von Gerlachs, plus so much more), the fantastic announcements coming out of Flicker Alley (Gance, baby, Gance-fever, Gancing w the stars), with Milestone hitting their stride in the as-good-as-Kline/Palazzola transfer dept, and, most importantly... with Masters of Cinema solidifying their position not as the "british Criterion", but something entirely seperate, and possibly superior, being more faithful to the visual nature of film via the absence of manipulation, plus the extras, THE BOOKS... etc... 2007-2008 is the year that Criterion lost it's dominance of the hi-end artfilm market. If not in global practice in the mass zone of sales, then in the core community, i e in the professional-academic world of cinema, and places like this board.

[GringoTex]

not to mention the fact that CC region-zeroes their releases to deliberately cultivate the overseas market which is of course a big part of their sales... but take overseas retail sites money but will facilitate NO RETURNS FOR THEIR OWN MISTAKES: THEFT!

And one last craniumism to Becker or Turell or whoever it was who leaked out to a board member his disappointmet (knowing it would hit these boards) over Kino's very good POTEMKIN. Not perfect but very good. Drop the ball on a project, stay miles away from any mention of silents whatsoever... then try and bitterly preempt a few sales from the dudes who are least trying to get this out at a steady regular clip.

These are two of the more delusional things I've read on this board.

[pauling]

Release of the Year
1. Three Films by Hiroshi Teshigahara
2. Stranger Than Paradise
3. Berlin Alexanderplatz
4. Ace In the Hole
5. La Jetee & Sans Soleil

Best Eclipse Release
The Documentaries of Louis Malle

Best Reissue
Yojimbo / Sanjuro

Most Disappointing Release
Border Radio

Best Commentary
If... (David Robinson and Malcolm McDowell)

Best Single Supplement (non-commentary)
Portrait of a 60% Perfect Man (Ace in the Hole)

Best Package Design
Three Films by Hiroshi Teshigahara

Best Surprise
The Eclipse Label

Best Boxed Set
Three Films by Hiroshi Teshigahara

Member of the Year
zedz

Richard Cranium
125100

[HerrSchreck]

not to mention the fact that CC region-zeroes their releases to deliberately cultivate the overseas market which is of course a big part of their sales... but take overseas retail sites money but will facilitate NO RETURNS FOR THEIR OWN MISTAKES: THEFT!

And one last craniumism to Becker or Turell or whoever it was who leaked out to a board member his disappointmet (knowing it would hit these boards) over Kino's very good POTEMKIN. Not perfect but very good. Drop the ball on a project, stay miles away from any mention of silents whatsoever... then try and bitterly preempt a few sales from the dudes who are least trying to get this out at a steady regular clip.

These are two of the more delusional things I've read on this board.

That's it-- ask to administer the Year End Opinionfest, and combat the entries. Classic.

(Jesus, 'Go. You know I could have bubbled up a Cranial Soup about you but outa sympathy and a sense of '..bygones' I let it drop. These are opinions Zingo (held by more than just yours truly), in the place we're supposed to post them. You trying to abort the one project nervously handed to you?)

[GringoTex]

That's it-- ask to administer the Year End Opinionfest, and combat the entries. Classic.

There is no category for "Top 10 Ways Criterion Tried to Fuck Us in 2007"

(btw- do want to make picks #2-#5 for Release of the Year? Fires on the Plain, When a Woman Ascends the Stairs and two more?)

[bjeggert82]

Release of the Year
1. Ace in the Hole
2. Army of Shadows
3. House of Games
4. Sansho the Bailiff
5. The 49th Parallel

Best Eclipse Release
The First Films of Samuel Fuller

Best Box Set
Yojimbo/Sanjuro

Best Reissue
Yojimbo

Most Disappointing Release
none

Best Commentary
The Third Man

Best Single Supplement (not a commentary)
Shadowing "The Third Man" (2005)

Best Package Design
The 49th Parallel

Best Surprise
House of Games

[jbeall]

Release of the Year
1. Army of Shadows
2. Berlin Alexanderplatz
3. W.R.: Mysteries of the Organism
4. Sansho the Bailiff
5. La Haine

Honorable mentions: Fires on the Plain, Ace in the Hole, Overlord

Best Eclipse Release
Raymond Bernard (not even close)

Best Box Set
Paul Robeson box. Even if the films are of varying quality, Robeson's an important figure and those films (esp. Native Land) need to be seen. I have yet to meet an undergrad at Rutgers who knew who Robeson was before I tell them.

Best Reissue
Yojimbo/Sanjuro (gorgeous package redesign, and the other two were fairly inessential re-releases for me)

Most Disappointing Release
Border Radio
I was going to give a dishonorable mention to La Haine over the subtitle fiasco, but the subs were done by an outside company (who subsequently riddled the subs on Wooden Crosses with typos). I hope Criterion fires them and finds someone better to do the subs from now on.

Best Commentary
Ginette Vincendeau on Army of Shadows

Best Single Supplement (not a commentary)
Jutzi's Berlin Alexanderplatz

Best Package Design
(tie) 49th Parallel and Overlord
I also loved the newspaper-style foldout on Ace in the Hole

Best Surprise
Overlord

Forum Member of the Year
HerrSchreck. If Kino had any sense, they'd pay him to write liner notes for their silent releases. I've learned more from his posts about the history of early cinema than anywhere else.