MoC Forthcoming, Wishlist, and Random Speculation

[Drucker]

Always great to get more Fuller! I wonder if China Gate will be next, since they've been releasing some of the films Olive already has out.

[TMDaines]

Rocco e i suoi fratelli on Blu-ray and Roeg's Eureka Dual Format just announced for March.

[tomN245]

I sort of noticed something the other day. Eureka's BestMediaGroup Amazon shop always puts up the price of titles that are going oop or are low on stock. Double Idemnity steelbook is £19.99, Everybody's Woman is £19.99 etc. I remember them doing this with every oop title in the last year (Metropolis steelbook, Will success Spoil Rock Hunter?, Insect Woman etc).

Does this mean titles like the Keaton set, F for Fake, Grey Gardens and the Last Laugh will be upgraded as they did not see a price hike from the BestMediaGroup Amazon shop and instead quickly disappeared?

I'd imagine those 4 titles to be big sellers, so I think I might be onto something :-$

[Tommaso]

The new resto of Lang's "Der Müde Tod" gets a German dvd release by Murnau-Stiftung on March 11. No sign of a blu (yet). Now the big question is: will this come from MoC, too, in a reasonable time?

[Jonathan S]

And is anything known about the score!?

[Tommaso]

Details about the resto and the score on the Berlinale website. New orchestral score by Cornelius Schwehr which "combines music styles from Romanticism with the analytical style of contemporary music". Well, whatever this may mean, it's most likely no "Varieté"-style disaster. As the new resto will be shown on arte next month, I'll report back.

[AK]

The new resto of Lang's "Der Müde Tod" gets a German dvd release by Murnau-Stiftung on March 11. No sign of a blu (yet). Now the big question is: will this come from MoC, too, in a reasonable time?

I'd love to know this too!
Really hoping for an MoC Blu.

[Drucker]

I've also held off on buying the Cohen Hangmen Also Die, expecting it to come from MOC. Assuming Lang was the director they were talking about releasing a book/DVD box set of a few years ago, these two releases are likely what would have helped comprise that box methinks.

[TMDaines]

April:

Man with a Movie Camera (4-Disc Dual Format)
Three Days of the Condor (Dual Format)
1900 (Blu-ray)

Three films with already serviceable English-friendly Blu-rays...

[Bürgermeister]

April:

Man with a Movie Camera (4-Disc Dual Format)
Three Days of the Condor (Dual Format)
1900 (Blu-ray)

Three films with already serviceable English-friendly Blu-rays...

More elitist region free whining...

Why should people miss out on releases because you're region free and their not?
Why should distributors miss out on potential profits because you're region free?

I'm region free. I couldn't care less if they release films that already have releases in other territories.

[Drucker]

I sympathize with Daines, but the 1900 and Movie Camera releases should be noticeable step-ups in PQ from the previous releases.

Also, hopefully with them releasing films Olive has already done, a new, sourced from 4k restoration of Johnny Guitar is near. [-o< [-o< [-o<

[rapta]

April:

Man with a Movie Camera (4-Disc Dual Format)
Three Days of the Condor (Dual Format)
1900 (Blu-ray)

Three films with already serviceable English-friendly Blu-rays...

I think Masters of Cinema have showed time and time again that they do better than just 'serviceable'.

Man with a Movie Camera will be 2xBD with 100-page booklet (and a handy DVD copy if you're ever in a tight spot), and will feature several other Vertov works as well as new extras (presumably exclusive). Deluxe packaging too, much like The Passion of Joan of Arc - one of the best MoC packages.

Three Days of the Condor has had a US release as well as a European one, but I expect the MoC edition will at least have better encoding, a better booklet - and again - very possibly one or two brand new extras. Same goes for 1900, which I expected MoC to pick up at some point and glad to see it show up sooner rather than later.

Great announcements in my opinion. Seeing as Sony seem to be lining up several Criterion titles for a UK release, and Arrow/ BFI/StudioCanal etc. are killing it elsewhere, is there any reason to go Region Free? If anything, staying region-locked will curb my spending and prevent double-dips.

I sympathize with Daines, but the 1900 and Movie Camera releases should be noticeable step-ups in PQ from the previous releases.

Also, hopefully with them releasing films Olive has already done, a new, sourced from 4k restoration of Johnny Guitar is near. [-o< [-o< [-o<

Will be dependent on whether Universal will let them license it or not. I've noticed MoC haven't done a deal with them for a while, so I wonder if that's just because Universal don't always supply the greatest masters or there's some other reason.

[Ribs]

Just yesterday I begrudgingly added Three Days of the Condor and 1900 in their current forms to my Amazon wishlist as I really wanted them despite the just-adequate releases; very surprised to see them both be announced today! I'm not huge on MoC but I'm in for all three, probably. A great set of releases, to my mind.

[TMDaines]

More elitist region free whining...

Why should people miss out on releases because you're region free and their not?
Why should distributors miss out on potential profits because you're region free?

I'm region free. I couldn't care less if they release films that already have releases in other territories.

That's a straw man argument. All are available in region B English-friendly.

[Timec]

I don’t think anyone is questioning the quality of Masters of Cinema releases. Yes, it’s true that this version of 1900 will almost certainly be a significant step up from the Olive BD. But I’d still rather see them use their limited resources to release something that’s not already readily available on Blu-ray, rather than just an upgrade. In the past, MoC has been one of the more adventurous labels—so it can be disappointing when their release slate seems almost entirely composed of upgrades of films I already own on Blu-ray. I feel the same when Criterion announces another edition of Mulholland Dr. or The Innocents.

Anyways, I feel like this ground has been well trod, so I suppose there’s not really much point in going over it again.

In either case, I still love these labels and buy plenty of their releases.

And yes, it’s true that most people aren’t region free and it’ll be great that they can pick up something like 1900 in what should be an excellent edition.

We are certainly speaking from a niche perspective—but this is the Criterionforum, so that should be kind of expected.

[Drucker]

Rapta: is Johnny Guitar Universal in the UK? Thought it was Republic, and therefore, Paramount?

[tenia]

That's a straw man argument. All are available in region B English-friendly.

1900 and Three days of the Condor don't have a UK BD release.
The Dziga Vertov set will feature different movies sourced from different material and with different extras than the BFI set.

And since nothing replaces a domestic video release, well...

Of course, we could ask MoC to release stuff for consumers not within their market at all while turning things well within their market. But that just seems silly.

It'd be like asking Criterion to release things that aren't already available in the UK. Why should they care ? For the 100 British consumers who buys Criterion stuff ?

[rapta]

But I’d still rather see them use their limited resources to release something that’s not already readily available on Blu-ray, rather than just an upgrade.

As you and others have pointed out, it's only an 'upgrade' to people who already own these films (i.e. region free customers who happen to already own them).

Despite MoC being quite a small team they have released worldwide Blu-ray debuts of several films in the last year or so - Two For the Road, Paper Moon, Listen Up Philip, Cruel Story of Youth, Pickup on South Street, The Naked Prey, Dragon Inn, Day of the Outlaw, and A Touch of Zen - and soon we'll have a few more (Fixed Bayonets!, Hawks & Sparrows, Pigsty), so it's not like they aren't releasing worldwide debuts very often.

They have a good balance right now of generally superior versions of familiar titles (as far as region free collectors are concerned) that are often titles that are scarce or unavailable in the UK market (even on DVD, in some cases), and titles that are brand new to the Blu-ray format (as I have listed above). I don't expect them to cater solely to the region free market, and neither should anybody else. If locked regions weren't introduced in the first place, then sure some complaints could be warranted, but unfortunately that isn't the case.

Rapta: is Johnny Guitar Universal in the UK? Thought it was Republic, and therefore, Paramount?

The DVD seems to be Universal...perhaps Republic have titles in both Paramount and Universal libraries (or there's some international rights complications going on).

[Timec]

It'd be like asking Criterion to release things that aren't already available in the UK. Why should they care ? For the 100 British consumers who buys Criterion stuff ?

Well, I don’t think I’m the only one who was a bit disappointed in both MoC and Criterion’s 2015 release slates, in large part because many of the titles they released were already readily available on Blu-ray and (in several cases) sitting on my media shelf. The releases that get me the most excited are things like The Emigrants and Cruel Story of Youth that are otherwise unavailable in decent English-friendly versions. I understand their reasoning for putting out something like The Graduate, but that doesn’t stop me from wishing they had used their resources for something more in need of being rescued.

Also: Criterion is probably the most internationally well known label, so I imagine their UK audience exceeds 100 people.

But you’re mostly right—it’s a relatively small audience who even cares about these films, and an even smaller audience who regularly import releases from other countries.

For the record, I know that no label owes me anything. This isn’t a matter of “how dare MoC put out something I’m not interested in?!”, but simply a matter of expressing (mild) disappointment as a fan that I already own all these titles and thus won’t be discovering anything new from a label that has introduced me to a lot of favorite films.

I don't expect them to cater solely to the region free market, and neither should anybody else. If locked regions weren't introduced in the first place, then sure some complaints could be warranted, but unfortunately that isn't the case.

Yeah, I’m fully aware that they can’t cater their entire catalog toward international region-free fans—but thanks for the very useful reminder anyways. I’m also aware that there are very good economic reasons for putting out more than just an endless stream of Maurice Pialat and Nagisa Oshima films (as wonderful as I would personally find that.)

This isn’t so much about “complaining” that they’re doing something wrong, but rather about expressing that I’m not as interested in the direction they’ve been going for the past year or so. My opinion isn’t important in the scheme of things, but as a long-time fan of the label who owns some 75 of their releases, I decided to share it anyways.

But worry not, rapta—in spite of my whining, MoC is still fine in my books. I've bought several of their recent titles, and I have no doubt that they’ll continue to release things I’m interested in purchasing in the future.

[rapta]

I’m also aware that there are very good economic reasons for putting out more than just an endless stream of Maurice Pialat and Nagisa Oshima films (as wonderful as I would personally find that.)

If that was at all possible, I definitely wouldn't complaining either! Unfortunately, it's the masses that would.

No problemo my end though - I'm sorry if my response sounded snarky! I do rush to defend Eureka each time somebody complains soon after they announce some titles, so maybe their lineups have pleased me more than most, or maybe I'm just too easy to please?

I must admit 1900 looks a bit of a chore to watch (something that was on my Netflix queue I seem to remember), so I'm more interested in Man with a Movie Camera and Three Days of the Condor...both of which are films I was meaning to get at some point anyway (but knew to wait for the former, and would've had to import the latter from Europe). So I can understand your disappointment to some extent, in that they're repeat titles. There will be some difference, if not in the encoding then in the extras and packaging.

Anyway, to put it in perspective, this is just one month of a 12-month calendar. Perhaps something in May or June will make up for any disappointments with April's announcements?

[Finch]

Well, the complaints cut both ways. There's bound to be people who will complain that Criterion bother to release Pickup on South St in 4k eventually because MoC got there first. I understand the disappointment over the familiarity of many of the announcements from both labels in the last 12-24 months but it also frees up money for releases from other labels (the prospects of Second Run releasing new titles on Blu-Ray and hopefully revisiting some of their catalogue). So long as there's some labels like Arrow who take risks with Rivette and Yoshida, I'm not especially disappointed over the overlap between MoC and Criterion/Olive etc. To be fair to MoC, when there is an overlap theirs tends to be the definitive edition on the worldwide market, especially when their competition is Olive. You could argue that's not hard given the barebones nature of most Olive titles, but the specs for 1900 (a film I personally don't care much about) are impressive, and I loved their booklet for The Quiet Man and it has the better encode. Yes, they could have licenced a bunch more documentaries but whether that was financially feasible is another question. You'd have looked at a RRP of £25.99 or thereabouts if A Touch of Zen is anything to go by. Man With A Movie Camera looks set to be the definitive release of this film with the Adrian Martin commentary and the only reason I'm not double-dipping is that I already have the French set which suits me fine personally.

So, I agree that the novelty and excitement's mostly gone for me as well when it comes to their announcements but it doesn't mean that they're short of worthwhile releases. The two King Hu discs are pretty cool and I can't see Criterion add much more value (are any of the cast & crew still alive?) on top, and as rapta says, they did have worldwide firsts last year. I can't imagine that Fixed Bayonets will be their only worldwide first title for 2016 (Rocco and His Brothers is another, no?), either. Considering they have a smaller team than Arrow and possibly a smaller budget, I think MoC are doing fine.

[Timec]

Anyway, to put it in perspective, this is just one month of a 12-month calendar. Perhaps something in May or June will make up for any disappointments with April's announcements?

Oh, absolutely. I’m very, very far from giving up on MoC. Even if I’ve been a bit underwhelmed by them recently (merely due to the redundancy, not due to the quality of the films or releases), I still look forward to every new release announcement. And I have no doubt that my MoC collection will continue to grow in the coming months and years.

And, as Finch points out, Arrow and co. have stepped in to fill in for some of the harder-to-find films.

…And, for the record, I do still get excited about the occasional MoC or Criterion–Cruel Story of Youth, A Brighter Summer Day, Here Is Your Life, Dragon Inn, A Special Day, etc.

[tenia]

Also: Criterion is probably the most internationally well known label, so I imagine their UK audience exceeds 100 people.

I obviously exaggerated the figure, but the point remains the same : UK-based people buy UK stuff, US-based people buy US stuff. The cross-links between the video markets (imports/exports) are absolutely negligible.

I have to say that I understand your point though : buying from many different video markets, I don't like seeing a "slot" being used for a movie I already have on a very good release somewhere. But it's clear that people like me and you and others around here only are a handful, and a label clearly always look to do a domestic release because that's where their consumers are.

But on the other end : my wallet likes a break from time to time.

Well, I don’t think I’m the only one who was a bit disappointed in both MoC and Criterion’s 2015 release slates, in large part because many of the titles they released were already readily available on Blu-ray and (in several cases) sitting on my media shelf.

I won't speak for others, but I've bought 47 Criterion and 26 MoC/Eureka releases in 2015, so consider me quite happy.

MoC/Eureka had Two For The Road, Shoah + 4 films, Paper Moon, Tokyo Tribe, 40 Guns, Pickup On South Street, Cruel Story of Youth, The Naked Prey, Dragon Inn, The Quiet Man (which I didn't buy from Olive because the technical presentation was leaving plenty of space for improvement), A New Leaf and Day of the Outlaw. All fine movies or interesting stuff that is elsewhere unavailable on BD, on in inferior releases.

Criterion had Don't Look Now, The Palm Beach Story, An Autumn Afternoon (4K remaster), Ride The Pink Horse, the 3 Morris, Cries and Whispers, The Rose, the Costa Gavras and the Chaplins, The Bridge, Here Is Your Life, My Beautiful Laundrette, Day For Night (brand new 2K resto, much better than the French BD), Blind Chance, A Special Day, Kwaidan, Code Unknown, The Apu Trilogy, Dont Look Back, Ikiru and Speedy. Same as above : elsewhere unavailable on BD, on in inferior releases.

I think there was plenty to be happy with here, and 2016 looks even better !

[zedz]

This isn’t so much about “complaining” that they’re doing something wrong, but rather about expressing that I’m not as interested in the direction they’ve been going for the past year or so. My opinion isn’t important in the scheme of things, but as a long-time fan of the label who owns some 75 of their releases, I decided to share it anyways.

If you've bought 75 of their releases to date and you're not interested in their current direction, your opinion is certainly important, and MoC would be reckless to ignore it: you're their core audience. They're in a market where selling a couple of thousand discs represents huge success, so disregarding the needs of a few hundred UK-based, region-free, Criterion-following cinephiles and their own international customers (probably another couple of hundred there) is a strategic decision that shouldn't be taken lightly.

[swo17]

If MoC had announced some Alan Clarke today, it would be just one of his films (in an excellent transfer) and a respectable booklet.

If Criterion were doing it, the booklet would be replaced with a ::kogonada:: video essay and cover art featuring Gary Oldman in cartoon form.

I love both of these labels, but I'm glad there are also other ones.