Criterion & Eclipse Cover Art & Packaging Babble-on Vol. 7

[Boosmahn]

New Cover by Mike McQuade...why?

He wanted to work on -- nay, be -- a Menace II Society.

[Cinephrenic]

K….I get it…

[The Pachyderminator]

The Kane cover could be worse. It's boring and disappointing, but not actively painful to look at like some of the covers are

[DimitriL]

I like the ‘K.” It’s sort of like Malcolm X - sometimes you just need a statement. Citizen Kane, it now OWNS a letter of the alphabet. That’s pretty powerful.

I think it’s part of a trend. I mean, the WB BD box was just the title on black. It gets more simplified as its legend grows. The version in 20 years is just going to be the Criterion C with a tiny little ‘K.”

[domino harvey]

Plus, when they release Welles' the Trial, they only have to change two words in the adobe file and it's ready to go

[guyetgenevieve]

Yeah, I'm hoping they post a video or something that shows the full look of Kane's packaging, 'cause right now, I'm super underwhelmed. I don't particularly think it's bad, I just think it's boring. Criterion has made quite a few bad covers here and there, but I can't think of any in recent memory that have simply been boring

[Amazing Goose]

I find it stunning that neither MIIS or CK are getting DVD releases, considering both would be bought by libraries that have long since weeded earlier editions out. (thought it's probably more likely that CK doesn't get weeded because of its status, or still circulates enough that it doesn't get weeded).

Correct me if I'm wrong, but there are no DVDs announced this month. It seems Criterion has decided that they can only focus on two formats at a time and DVD has had a good life with them.

[JayAlmighty]

Citizen Kane : bland cover, but I have a feeling that they're going to go all out on the rest of the packaging (I'm assuming it's gonna be a box, because it's Citizen FUCKING Kane), so I can't judge too harshly. Still, even for what they're going for, it's pretty weak.

Once Upon a Time in China : packaging looks great overall. It's simple, pretty and effective. Nothing wrong with that

Mullholland Dr. : the worst thing about this 4k release is the reminder that this dud of a cover exists. This is one of the biggest missed opportunities in criterion cover history.

Menace II Society : aside from the spacing of the "A HUGH BROTHERS FILM" text, I quite like this cover, and even the cutout concept. However, the inside of the packaging looks like polka dots - I get it's supposed to be blood spatters, but they're all equal in size and spaced so evenly it looks a clown pattern, which distracts from the gritty aesthetic they're going for.

La Strada : this is my favorite of the bunch. The illustration looks great, and it's an overall massive improvement over the old cover.

[Kracker]

jfc guys Kane is fine, there's obviously going to be way more to it for the Criterion edition of Citizen Kane. Even if that was the cover for an ordinary case rather than this deluxe packaging they have planned, its the film that needs no introduction. What's essentially a safe non-cover is way better than something with gaudy artwork and horrible typography. I'll gladly hedge my bets on they know what they are doing when it comes to a release of this importance.

[Walter Kurtz]

I like the Kane packaging. Its obviously going to be a fancy box/digipak/whatever... and the outside nicely announces with the ‘K’ what is going to be inside… just as the film itself with a ‘K' on top of a gate announces who is going to be inside.

The large ‘K’ is a nice reference to that shot near the beginning of the film. Also, there are two letters. C and K. Citizen Kane.

I also like the curtain call font on the right side that’s a nice throwback to the font used before the modern change.

[criterionsnob]

It's all about the Ks. There should have been 4 'K's on the cover.

[cdnchris]

I think in hand it has the potential to look nice and this could be a case of it just not translating well to a JPEG; there may be more layers to it. There's such a build-up to this title coming back that I think any cover was going to disappoint ultimately.

[Jean-Luc Garbo]

Nice to see some more Sister Hyde work recently! Menace here as well as the Fassbinder (which I loved). I don't remember ever seeing that La Strada poster so I think the new cover looks really neat. I've got a sentimental attachment to the old one but this is obviously better.

[colinr0380]

Once Upon a Time in China : packaging looks great overall. It's simple, pretty and effective. Nothing wrong with that

It is also focusing on the iconic martial arts on the beach at sunrise opening titles that begins the first film.

[Matt]

Going to be the maverick here once again and say I love the Kane cover. I'm 99% certain it's just the first panel of a 4-panel foldout digipak that will spell out K A N E when unfolded. I think it's perfect for one of the most acclaimed, well-known, talked-about, film school 101 movies of all time—simple, basic, iconic, instantly recognizable. I mean, what image from the film would set this edition apart from all the other VHS, DVD, BD, and laserdisc releases that came before? Surely we don't need to see that damn snow globe again, or the shot of the Kane political rally where he's standing in front of the big gassy portrait of himself, or the publicity still of Welles standing on top of all the newspapers.

[fdm]

Aside from La Strada, looks to be a month filled with cardboard joy (and probably no slots).

(Edit: I like the no slots part, the cardboard: blech.)

[tenia]

Wonder which color the Criterion sticker will be for those UHD releases.

[Finch]

I'm fine with the Kane cover, too. I'm more irritated by them holding on to that ghastly Mulholland Drive art.

[DRW.mov]

Menace II Society : aside from the spacing of the "A HUGH BROTHERS FILM" text, I quite like this cover, and even the cutout concept. However, the inside of the packaging looks like polka dots - I get it's supposed to be blood spatters, but they're all equal in size and spaced so evenly it looks a clown pattern, which distracts from the gritty aesthetic they're going for.

Those are bullet holes.

[kcota17]

Wonder which color the Criterion sticker will be for those UHD releases.

Going to guess black

[swo17]

Black on a black cover won't stand out. I guess red or gold

[flyonthewall2983]

I like the K. It puts a new spin on a movie that has been repackaged a million times with similar imagery.

[NWRdr4]

That K made me laugh out loud. It honestly looks like placeholder art. Probably proof that a lot of what passes for graphic design is just grifting, but I’ll wait to pass final judgment until we see the inside—assuming, that is, that they aren’t cyber-bullied into changing it!

[dwk]

The cover did get Citizen Kane trending on twitter.

[Pavel]

assuming, that is, that they aren’t cyber-bullied into changing it!

The only time bullying would be beneficial