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

[mfunk9786]

We're two pages away from the covers and with a start of a new page, I thought I'd re-post them at the top of this page so the discussion flows a little better without having to click around to see them. Each cover has been linked to its own page on criterion.com as well:

[img]http://criterion_production.s3.amazonaws.com/release_images/2719/521_BD_box_348x490.jpg[/img][img]http://criterion_production.s3.amazonaws.com/release_images/2722/520_box_348x490.jpg[/img]
[img]http://criterion_production.s3.amazonaws.com/release_images/2713/235_BD_box_348x490.jpg[/img][img]http://criterion_production.s3.amazonaws.com/release_images/2725/519_box_348x490.jpg[/img]
[img]http://criterion_production.s3.amazonaws.com/release_images/2728/523_box_348x490.jpg[/img][img]http://criterion_production.s3.amazonaws.com/release_images/2734/522_BD_box_348x490.jpg[/img]

[scotty2]

Mystery Train echoes those old posters for the Stax soul revues. I'm assuming the poster they are including is of this cover.

[MyNameCriterionForum]

I'm curious to see if the Close-Up cover will be sourced from a literal close-up of a printed image, or if the designer simply picked a higher-res photo (or film grab) and ran it through Photoshop's color halftone filter...

[Matt]

I think it's just Photoshop. Real color halftones are much messier.

[MyNameCriterionForum]

Hard for me to tell from the lo-res cover image. If so, too bad -- I prefer the imperfections.

[domino harvey]

HOW DO YOU NOT PUT MONICA VITTI ON THE FUCKING COVER

[mfunk9786]

Wait, there's a girl in this movie?

Wait, that's a movie?!

I thought it was the loading screen for a Soviet Union level of Call of Duty: World at War!

[Murdoch]

HOW DO YOU NOT PUT MONICA VITTI ON THE FUCKING COVER

I was really hoping they would keep up their Antonioni cover streak, disappointing to say the least. I might get the BFI just so when I look at it I won't mistake it for my copy of Out-Of-Focus Building Movie.

[mfunk9786]

"Alright, we have to make a cover for Red Desert."
"Well, we haven't used the sad building photo pastiche in a while. Throw a couple of old ones in a blender, throw in some blue (NO RED - too obvious!) and see what you can come up with."

[img]http://criterion_production.s3.amazonaws.com/release_images/644/108_box_348x490.jpg[/img][img]http://criterion_production.s3.amazonaws.com/release_images/1262/452_box_348x490.jpg[/img]

[fdm]

HOW DO YOU NOT PUT MONICA VITTI ON THE FUCKING COVER

[img]http://criterion_production.s3.amazonaws.com/spotlights/171/1173b.jpg[/img]

Indeed.

[Cinephrenic]

I was kinda hoping they get L'eclisse or L'avventura on Blu-ray with Red Desert.

[MyNameCriterionForum]

The more I look at that Red Desert image the more it looks like an unused cover for A Christmas Tale

[captveg]

I wonder if there may eventually be an Everlasting Moments Blu after all, kinda like how A Christmas Tale started DVD only and then went Blu a few weeks later.

Probably not, but one can hope.

[TheGodfather]

Wow, so after a few excellent months, June sees the return of a (coverwise) awfull month.
Only one I like is the Mystery train cover. Excellent to see The Leopard on blu,although I`m not a fan of the cover at all.

[bugsy_pal]

I like the cover for Night train to Munich - very clever. The Leopard Bluray cover looks nice also - the typography works well and the fact that it uses the same photo as the DVD package but with different colour is a nice touch.

Interesting that the Red Desert cover has generated a lot of comments. I too feel that it is a bit bland - I have not seen the movie, but I imagine it must reflect the visual tone of the film. I do feel that the typography is weak - they seem to have used a modern font that does not evoke the 60s for me. Of course, if it reflects the typeface used in the credits, I'll stand corrected.

One thing I will say though re Criterion's art - it has improved out of sight in the last couple of years, and it's so much more interesting and varied than the uniform artwork that adorns series like the new StudioCanal bluray discs, or even the BFI bluray discs.

[Derek Estes]

My only complaint is with the swastika on the Night Train cover. It too closely resembles the swastika shadows on the covers of 49th Parallel and Army of Shadow, minus the creativity. It just seems slapped on after the fact.

[HistoryProf]

the swastika wasn't on the preview Skillman gave on his blog was it? Seems like I would have remembered that - or that it would have made guessing the film a lot easier.

[Derek Estes]

No, it wasn't on the image Skillman posted earlier. I think it's a really good design otherwise!

I'd also like to put in a good word for the other covers. I love the Close Up cover, and the revised cover for The Leopard (it seems appropiate for hi def). I think the Red Desert cover is unexpected, but I don't think it's a bad design. I'm curious to see the whole package once it's released.

[karmajuice]

Mystery Train and Night Train to Munich both have fantastic covers. The swastika is a little unnecessary, but the cover is so much fun I don't mind. The others I'm ambivalent about, but I haven't seen the three new releases yet so I can't comment much on them.

I really like the shortened E to compensate for the accent mark in Cinqué Lee's name. Not sure why, but I think it's a nice touch.

[godardslave]

Mystery Train 5/10
Everlasting Moments 8/10
Close-Up 7/10
Night Train to Munich 2/10
Red Desert 3/10

In particular, Red Desert cover is quite boring for such a revolutionary, colorful work of cinema art.
Unfortunately, Criterion's Artwork has slipped into a kind of staid, predictable uniformness in recent times.
Having said that I do quite like Everlasting Moments and Close-Up.

[Alphonse Doinel]

I believe Everlasting Moments is the first cover to be done by someone who did a fake cover in the past. I guess swimminghorses dream may come true some day after all.

[MyNameCriterionForum]

Who did the EM cover?

[Flike]

Sam's Myth, the dude that did the House poster.

[captveg]

I wonder if there may eventually be an Everlasting Moments Blu after all, kinda like how A Christmas Tale started DVD only and then went Blu a few weeks later.

Probably not, but one can hope.

I should start stating this about more DVD-only titles when they are announced.

[hammock]

Old news in blu-ray post but not sure if everyone here noticed that Criterion has now added Close-Up and Everlasting on Blu-ray on their site...

[img]http://criterion_production.s3.amazonaws.com/release_images/2737/519_BD_box_348x490.jpg[/img] [img]http://criterion_production.s3.amazonaws.com/release_images/2740/520_BD_box_348x490.jpg[/img]