Criterion & Eclipse Cover Art & Packaging Babble-on Vol.4

[Antoine Doinel]

The way the words "Last" and "Year" are spaced on the cover is driving me much crazier than something like that should

Ugh, me too.

[Matt]

You guys are all insane. That Marienbad cover is the best one since Le Corbeau.

Matt, please explain.

What's to explain? In the abstract, it's a beautiful, minimal, Deco-inspired design; in the context of the film, it's enigmatic, ambiguous, pure light and shadow (in certain light, the text is visible because of shadows; in other light, it disappears), stylized, bold, original, polarizing, understated, and totally classy. It is a perfect fit for the film.

I'm assuming it's embossed matte stock and not shiny and not a trompe l'oeil shadow (both of which would be disappointing). I think this is a case in which, like Breathless and Mishima, people will hate it until they hold it in their hands, and then they will love it. It's just too subtle as a thumbnail on a computer screen.

[domino harvey]

Code: Select all

You're --------
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[Matt]

The way the words "Last" and "Year" are spaced on the cover is driving me much crazier than something like that should

Ugh, me too.

They're perfectly balanced and evenly spaced, which is not something you can say for that Rialto poster. Even though I like all of Keiko Kimura's previous illustrations for Rialto posters/Criterion covers, I think that one's kind of a mess (totally unfit for this most precise of films). Delphine looks like she's got ape arms.

[domino harvey]

They're not though. The first two words are aligned differently than the entire rest of the cover

[Matt]

They're not though. The first two words are aligned differently than the entire rest of the cover

You want them all to be centered? Where's the design in that?

[domino harvey]

Where's the design in the cover? See?

[criterionsnob]

[img]http://criterion_production.s3.amazonaws.com/release_images/2134/11_box_348x490.jpg[/img] [img]http://criterion_production.s3.amazonaws.com/release_images/1577/ManWhoFellColor.jpg[/img]

[swo17]

The Marienbad cover is clearly just a small part of the whole package, difficult to judge until we see how it fits into the grand scheme. I think it has potential.

[Jeff]

[img]http://criterion_production.s3.amazonaws.com/release_images/2134/11_box_348x490.jpg[/img] [img]http://criterion_production.s3.amazonaws.com/release_images/1577/ManWhoFellColor.jpg[/img]

[chime_on]

I also think the Marienbad cover is great. I have always found the opening titles of the film to be very visually appealing, though.

[Jeff]

I also think the Marienbad cover is great. I have always found the opening titles of the film to be very visually appealing, though.

Of course! That didn't even register with me at first.

[Feego]

[knives]

I was about to post the same thing. The Robocop similarities are the only reason I won't rip it a new one, even if the spacing is distracting.

[hammock]

The "Last Year" cover is clever, but I'll have to wait and see the complete packing until I can judge it. However, I must be the only one in here who have not yet seen the movie, so that's what I'm looking forward to more than the cover.

[sidehacker]

The "Marienbad font" looks like it came from a poster for a 1950s sports car.

[Schkura]

I thought the Marienbad cover was a blank space for a upcoming cover.

[sir karl]

I thought the Marienbad cover was a blank space for a upcoming cover.

Exactly. I still think it is. Also if you look at the Blu-ray covers all other releases have that blue bumper stick on them except Marienbad. There's hope...

[aox]

It's no worse than Breathless... which is to say it is terrible.

[kupo]

I always love seeing the reactions to covers in this forum. Often because of the dramatic overreaction, but usually just because my opinion stands in oppposition to the consensus and I wonder if I'm crazy or not.

So call me crazy, but I like, at the very least, the *idea* of the Marienbad cover. As Matt articulated, the barely-there aesthetic is incredibly evocative of the ephemeral quality of the film itself.

I'm not sure I'm entirely sold on the font/layout, but they certainly don't irk me.

[kaujot]

The font is what does it for me. I think a slab-serif is very inappropriate for the cover. Granted, I haven't seen the film, but Lord knows I've seen plenty of stills, and a script font in place of the current one would do wonders, even with the crappy text layout.

Of course, it looks like (at a cursory glance, at least) the exact same font that was used in the title credits. But still.

[Kirkinson]

I also think the Marienbad cover is great. I have always found the opening titles of the film to be very visually appealing, though.

Of course! That didn't even register with me at first.

Yeah, I was about to ask if everybody here always skips the title sequence because they hate it so much. The cover seems like an almost perfect evocation of the title. The Rialto poster, while excellent and really nice to look at on its own, seems somewhat at odds with the film to me. Criterion's austere take on it feels much more appropriate.

[tavernier]

They could wrap a Marienbad BluRay in a grocery bag and I'd still buy it.

[Saturnome]

I guess my reflective material / chrome package guess thingy is thrown by the window, I totally forgot the titles. The omnipresent mirrors in the film left me a bigger impression than the titles...

[cdnchris]

In the title sheet they actually show two covers for Marienbad, so I'm guessing the packaging may be more complicated than what is shown there.

The cover art for My Dinner with Andre looks rather nice, though I'm sure you'll find something to bitch about once you see it (if that is the one they use.) I'll post it when I get the chance.

The price for The Seventh Seal is $39.95 for both the DVD and Blu-ray. I'm guessing the site is incorrect.