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bad future wrote: Sun Nov 11, 2018 6:08 am Is this normal? I just noticed Amazon's page for digitally renting or buying David Lean's The Passionate Friends shows it with a mock Criterion cover, with the "studio" listed as The Criterion Collection. Is Criterion in charge of the digital distribution for a lot of movies for which there is no physical release? Do they always make a digital "cover"? And does it have any bearing on whether a physical release might be on the way?

edit: well, as for how unique this is, one needn't look further than the related products which also show digital Criterion releases for Lean's Madeleine and Compton Bennett's The Seventh Veil. I reckon I have probably just "discovered" a practice already documented and familiar to everyone else?

This was already discussed and generally agreed to be not that notable, but I wanted to update with the additional wrinkle that I actually rented The Passionate Friends today, and it opens with the same Criterion logo as any physical release. And the transfer seems perfectly blu ray-ready to my eyes — almost like all it needs is some supplements and priority in the release schedule, but they aren’t going to wait that long to exploit the title. I bet there are several titles in a similar state. I wonder if they’ll all eventually get a physical release, or if maybe digital-only releases are going to be a thing.

Not sure where to ask this, but didn't want to start another thread for it.

Recently did a retrospective on Ralph Bakshi's work, and I'm still flabbergasted after all these years by American Pop. I know its virtually unknown nowadays, but it really bums me out Bakshi isn't a bit more well-known for his pre-American Pop work, let alone that one.

Fritz the Cat, Heavy Traffic. I feel those would be ideal releases for Criterion to consider. As far as I know, the only films of his to have Blu releases of any kind are Wizards and The Lord of the Rings, but they're definitely geared toward the genre market there.

What're the chances of a Bakshi ever getting released? Hell, it must be a nightmare gathering all the music rights for American Pop, alone, but I just.. yeah. Think he's worth it.

EDIT: Just realized Shout Factory released Heavy Traffic on Blu. Man. I'm a dope. Still think Criterion should sniff out Fritz, though.

Producer Filip Jan Rymsza has tweeted that "there's a chance" The Other Side of the Wind will be released by Criterion.

Is it appropriate to speculate an eclipse set of Stahl silents is forthcoming, based on this article: https://www.criterion.com/current/posts ... lent-films ?

According to this post by Ray Kelly of Wellesnet, we should be expecting a film that Welles didn't direct but which he is the focus.

The Third Man?

As much as I'd like The Third Man back, I'm more hopeful for Jane Eyre. George Barnes' cinematography is stunning. And though it was already released by Twilight Time (I'm more than sure it's OOP - it was released in 2013), I think Criterion could do more with a restoration - working with multiple sources and so on as the original negative is lost.

I'm assuming that he means the film is focused on a character played by Welles, but I suppose another possible interpretation is that the Criterion release would be focused on Welles / his involvement. In which case, Journey Into Fear might be a candidate.

I know that there's plenty of options out there to fuel speculation, but.....

Is there any reason to think the post wasn't referring to the Mark Cousins doc: The Eyes of Orson Welles ? (which is being distributed by Janus)

I imagine Criterion could save some of that for the purported release of Citizen Kane. For a film of it's stature I'd hope that Criterion would just ram as much into a set as they possibly could.

It could be Black Magic.

Speaking of Welles, I hope Criterion haven't abandoned plans to release It's All True. It was confirmed here back in 2015 but while all the other titles mentioned there have since been released we're still waiting on it, and by it sounds like we can't expect it in 2019 either.

Calvin wrote: Sat Jan 12, 2019 5:04 pm Speaking of Welles, I hope Criterion haven't abandoned plans to release It's All True. It was confirmed here back in 2015 but while all the other titles mentioned there have since been released we're still waiting on it, and by it sounds like we can't expect it in 2019 either.

Interesting. I forgot that this title was confirmed. I ran into one of the co-directors of It’s All True at the Egyptian theater here in Hollywood a few months ago and we got to talking about the possibility of it seeing a blu ray release and he said to me how much he’d love to see Criterion or even Kino do it, but that he hadn’t heard anything from either label and that Paramount had routinely denied any of his requests.

Big Ben wrote: Sat Jan 12, 2019 1:44 pm I imagine Criterion could save some of that for the purported release of Citizen Kane. For a film of it's stature I'd hope that Criterion would just ram as much into a set as they possibly could.

I was speaking with someone who is a pretty reliable source and was told that Criterion has indeed obtained the rights to Kane. Perhaps giving stronger credence to the clue in the New Years Day drawing.

Janus tweeting an image from 'High and Low' yesterday and posting a GIF of 'Throne of Blood' today. I wonder if they're trying to hint at something? [-o< Also, shouldn't there be a new Discussion and Random Speculation thread since this one has gone over 100 pages?

We don't really need to worry about large threads anymore now that phpBB offers better support, so nah

Like domino said we used to have issues with really large threads. It's not an issue anymore (for now anyways!)

There's a page for War and Peace now.

Boosmahn wrote: Mon Jan 14, 2019 5:04 pm There's a page for War and Peace now.

Ha! It's just a tad longer than 0 minutes though.

This is one I'm really looking forward to, I've seen it in 70mm once. The brilliance shone through the discolored condition of that print.

I’d be surprised if it’s getting announced soon. It’s not even up on Janus’ site. There will be a tour first.

Why haven't they released Twentieth Century already? It was restored ages ago and we're still waiting.

FrauBlucher wrote: Mon Jan 14, 2019 10:24 pm I’d be surprised if it’s getting announced soon. It’s not even up on Janus’ site. There will be a tour first.

As noted in the "Forthcoming: War and Peace" thread, it will begin a run next month.

via Film Society at Lincoln Center:

War and Peace / Voyna i Mir
Opens February 15
This winter, the Film Society is pleased to present a new digital restoration of Sergey Bondarchuk’s seven-hour-plus adaptation of Tolstoy’s magnificent novel. Winner of the 1969 Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film, Bondarchuk’s War and Peace sets the changing fortunes of several aristocratic families against the backdrop of Napoleon’s invasion of Russia. On record as the most expensive film in history (more than $700 million after inflation), it is also perhaps the greatest epic ever made: an exquisite production of spectacle and realism, the political and personal, that endures as a monumental achievement in filmmaking. A presentation by Mosfilm Cinema Concern. A digital restoration image by image of the picture and sound using a 2K scanner. Producer of the restoration: Karen Shakhnazarov.

Janus has, in the past on some occasions, begun the tour at around the same point the disc is released. I don't really think one has any particular impact on the other.

Boosmahn wrote: Mon Jan 14, 2019 5:04 pm There's a page for War and Peace now.

I wouldn't read too much into this. Since the new website came up, not a single phantom page (which usually show shortly before announcement day) has correlated to the month's actual announcements. Still no Come and See, More, The Valley or The Baker's Wife, all of which have had phantom pages...

Calvin wrote: Sat Jan 12, 2019 11:57 am According to this post by Ray Kelly of Wellesnet, we should be expecting a film that Welles didn't direct but which he is the focus.

Ed Wood.