criterionforum.org

Thomas J. wrote:So I'm looking for this supposed nature of kevyip to justify the bashing of him here, and all I can find is his use of the word "biatch" in one of his posts from early in the year. Either I can't figure out the search function (likely, regardless) or a lot of people here have sensitivity issues.

Here you are, Thomas J. It starts innocently enough, but once you get to about page three or four, I think, the train cars start to pile up in astonishing amounts.

I am beginning to tabulate the results. You may still edit ballots you have already posted, but please pm me your changes. My plan is to leave voting open until Dec. 19, if that's ok for everybody.

GringoTex wrote:My plan is to leave voting open until Dec. 19, if that's ok for everybody.

I guess I was expecting something more like Jan. 19. A radical reordering of my kevyip is suddenly in order. The first batch of Criterion Blu-Rays have a release date of Dec. 16, which pretty much eliminates them from contention.

Was anyone even voting for Blu-rays in this thread?

Was anyone even voting for Blu-rays in this thread?

I was wondering this, also. Most of my non-Criterion picks would've been Blu-ray, so I just left my votes out altogether.

Release of the Year (5 choices) (Eclipse titles eligible)

Trafic
The Last Emperor
The Death of a Cyclist
Vampyr
Pierrot le fou

HM: An Autumn Afternoon

Best Eclipse Release: Series 10: Silent Ozu—Three Family Comedies
Best Reissue: Salo
Best Commentary: Gorin on Pierrot le fou
Best Single Supplement (not a commentary): In the Footsteps of Monsieur Hulot (1989), a two-hour documentary tracing the evolution of Jacques Tati’s beloved alter ego
Best Cover: Vampyr
Best Package Design (including DVD menus): Mishima: A Life in Four Chapters
Best Discovery: Death of a Cyclist
Most Disappointing Release: Patriotism (Great film: Should have been supplement to Mishima)

Best 5 Non-Criterion:

Touch of Evil 50th Anniversary
Stanley Kubrick Box Set
Godfather: Coppola Restoration
The Wire: The Complete Series
Bonnie and Clyde: Ultimate Collector's Edition

Release of the Year
1) Mishima: A Life in Four Chapters
2) Pierrot le fou
3) Trafic
4) Bottle Rocket
5) Le deuxieme souffle

Best Eclipse:
Didn't view enough sets to make an informed vote

Best Reissue:
Cleo from 5 to 7 (wish I could buy it solo)

Best Commentary
Gorin on Pierrot

Best Single Supplement (not a commentary)
In the Footsteps of Monsieur Hulot from Trafic

Best Cover
The Ice Storm

Best Package Design (including DVD menus)
Mishima

Best (Re)Discovery
Before the Rain

Most Disappointing Release
The Last Emperor
(Although I can't exactly blame Criterion that the Director of Photography has gone insane, I can blame Criterion for letting the inmates run the asylum)

Forum Member of the Year
domino harvey

Richard Cranium
swimminghorses

Best Non-Criterion Release
Touch of Evil (Universal)
The Godfather - The Coppola Restoration (Paramount)
Jean-Luc Godard Collector's Edition (Lionsgate)

My 2008 kevyip is still very large, so these choices will probably change in the next few months. Looking forward to watching White Dog, Vampyr, Trafic, The Earrings of Madame de..., An Autumn Afternoon, and Larisa Shepitko releases. However, from what I’ve watched, these are my favourites.

Release of the Year (5 choices) (Eclipse titles eligible)
1. Chungking Express (Blu-ray)
2. Lubitsch Musicals
3. 4 by Agnes Varda
4. Brand Upon the Brain!
5. Salo

Best Eclipse Release
Lubitsch Musicals
(Runners up: All others)

Best Reissue
Salo

Best Commentary (includes selected scene commentaries and visual essays)
Gorin's Pierrot Primer

Best Single Supplement (not a commentary)
Various narrator tracks – Brand Upon the Brain!

Best Cover
Pierrot le fou

Best Package Design (including DVD menus)
Mishima

Best (Re)Discovery (for a film you knew little or nothing about before the
Criterion release)
Lubitsch Musicals

Most Disappointing Release (for releases that Criterion dropped the ball on: bad
transfer, poor supplements, etc.)
None.

Forum Member of the Year
Michael

Richard Cranium Award
Kevyip

Best Non-Criterion Release (5 Choices)
1. Palms (Second Run)
2. The Godfather – The Coppola Restoration (Blu-ray)
3. The Draughtsman’s Contract (Zeitgeist)
4. The Adventures of Robin Hood (Blu-ray)
5. Georges Méliès: First Wizard of Cinema (Flicker Alley)

Again, the non-Criterion list will probably change and could include the MOC Pialats, Bill Douglas Trilogy, Terence Davies Trilogy, Judex+Nuits Rouges, Baraka (Blu-ray), New World Extended Cut, Chris Marker films, Valerie and Her Week of Wonders, Rat-Trap, and/or Black Sun.

GringoTex wrote:My plan is to leave voting open until Dec. 19, if that's ok for everybody.

fiddlesticks wrote:I guess I was expecting something more like Jan. 19. A radical reordering of my kevyip is suddenly in order. The first batch of Criterion Blu-Rays have a release date of Dec. 16, which pretty much eliminates them from contention.

Domino Harvey wrote:Was anyone even voting for Blu-rays in this thread?

Correct me if I'm wrong but I think fiddlesticks meant people who bought the blurays instead of the DVD versions won't get a chance to see the discs before the votes are tallied.

Is there a rush to get the results done? There's about a week's discrepancy between the American and Canadian release dates and I imagine forum members outside the Americas wait even longer. I ordered the Criterion Blurays from the US amazon site and it's 50/50 they'll get here before Christmas. I'm a little cooler on these two films than a lot of other stuff released this year so I doubt they'd make my top 5 regardless of the supplements--and I might just do a list in the next day or two anyway--but, well, how about this: show of hands, anyone else usually not get the Decembers releases until late in the month or early January? I don't care too much either way but if there's a silent majority I wouldn't mind moving our official tabulation back a bit.

I for one think the 19th is hasty for two reasons.

First, Christmas day usually finds many members here getting some of their most-wanted releases as gifts, and then some, and getting to watch them in time to vote. Second, I seem to remember the voting winding up in January the last few yrs... is my memory totally shot or is that the way it usually went down?

How about Jan. 12 then?

GringoTex wrote:How about Jan. 12 then?

=D>
It's not that I expect to put Chungking Express Blu on my list (although, of course, I might), it's that, like criterionsnob, I have a whole lot of 2008 in my kevyip at the moment, and should get to much of it over the holidays. Thanks for being accommodating, Gringo Tex, and thanks also for your work tabulating the results.

GringoTex wrote:How about Jan. 12 then?

I'd say whatever's most convenient for you Gringo, after the first of the year.

But was I wrong-- i e that the cutoff last year was around New Years?

GringoTex wrote:How about Jan. 12 then?

Sounds good. I'll fourth that. Danke.

Release of the Year (5 choices) (Eclipse titles eligible)

1. Kenji Mizoguchi's Fallen Women
2. La Ronde
3. Larisa Shepitko
4. The Furies
5. Silent Ozu

Best Eclipse Release

Kenji Mizoguchi's Fallen Women

Best Reissue

High and Low

Best Commentary (inlcudes selected scene commentaries and visual essays)

n/a (never listened to a full one this year)

Best Single Supplement (not a commentary)

n/a (did not look at too many -- too many actual films piled up to view)

Best Cover

The Furies

Best Package Design (including DVD menus)

The Furies

Best (Re)Discovery (for a film you knew little or nothing about before the Criterion release)

Larisa Shepitko

Most Disappointing Release (for releases that Criterion dropped the ball on: bad transfer, poor supplements, etc.)

n/a

Forum Member of the Year

So many good people here that it always torture to single one person out, but I will join the chorus on zedz.

Richard Cranium Award

There were some "Richard Cranium" moments this year (aimed at no one in particular). Kinsayder's departure was one. Such a shame that he has left. In terms of quality per post, he was very close to 100%, I thought. The other was a more personal one -- the loss of much work done in the forum over the last two years, when the upgrade was done.

Best Non-Criterion Release (5 Choices)

Number one was without question the Ford at Fox set. Unless, it is the Murnau/Borzage set that counts, in which case that will certainly be my number 1 based on the films in the set alone, and the beautiful screen shots someone posted from City Girl. To name just four other really excellent releases: Flicker Alley's Méliès set, Gaumont's 7-disc Early Cinema set, a toss up between Flicker Alley's Gance releases (films I simply never thought I would own), and finally, I have to say that The Little Rascals set that I picked in the recent DD sale is more pure fun than I can remember having in a long time viewing films. EDIT: Scratch the Little Rascals, the Early Russian Silents definitely should be on my list, even if it has not arrived with me yet. Just knowing that before Christmas, I will be able to sit down and see another 5 Bauer films (no matter what the quality) is almost too good to be true. Little Rascals still get very honorable mention, however.

In closing, big appreciation to all those great people here, who always help expand my knowledge of all kinds of films: Schreck (always, and the most consistently entertaining read), David Hare (so good you are back!!), Knappen, and Knappen again, Tommaso, Kinjitsu (truly missed), tryavna, StevenH, and many others. Wish I had been here more this year.

Scharphedin2 wrote:Wish I had been here more this year.

Feeling's mutual, pal. And hey.. do I remember something about a package? :-"

Scharphedin2 wrote:Kinsayder's departure was one. Such a shame that he has left.

Have we also lost shirobamba? Never one of the more effusive members, but it's been two months. It's a new world, I guess.

Scharphedin2 wrote:There were some "Richard Cranium" moments this year (aimed at no one in particular) ... the loss of much work done in the forum over the last two years, when the upgrade was done.

Did you have any luck with what I suggested here? When I tried it about a month ago it seemed like I could get to some of the information that went missing but I could easily be mistaken.

yoshimori wrote:

Scharphedin2 wrote:Kinsayder's departure was one. Such a shame that he has left.

Have we also lost shirobamba? Never one of the more effusive members, but it's been two months. It's a new world, I guess.

And the same goes for the dancing kid, haven't seen him around. Is it because of that, earlier, Hara Setsuko débâcle?

yoshimori wrote:Have we also lost shirobamba? Never one of the more effusive members, but it's been two months. It's a new world, I guess.

No Yoshi, I'm still around, but my work is eating me up for the last couple of months. Hope to be able to post more next year.

Shiro

Best Criterion Releases (in no particular order)
1. Naked Prey
2. The Fire Within
3. 4 x Varda
4. Mishima: A Life in Four Chapters
5. The Furies

Best Eclipse Release: Larisa Shepitko. It's for sets like this that Eclipse should exist. A close second is the William Klein set.

Best Reissue: Vagabond

Best Commentary: Le Deuxieme Souffle

Best Cover: Mishima (I hated the cover at first, but when I actually received the package I thought it was great.)

Disappointing release: Patriotism. The story as a supplement is nice, but it still could have been folded into the Mishima set.

Member of the Year: You're all members of the year, but in a different and more meaningful way, Michael is my member of the year. I've appreciated his refreshingly un-cynical love of films. (This tells me that I spent waaaaaaaayyyyyyyy too much time in the politix thread, but it was an election year, after all.)

Richard Cranium: How could it be anyone other than the inimitable Kevyip?

Best non-Criterion releases:
1. La Roue (Flicker Alley)
2. J'Accuse (Flicker Alley)
3. Police (MoC)
4. The Round-Up (Second Run)
5. Valerie and Her Week of Wonders (Second Run)
Honorable Mention: All My Good Countrymen (Facets). Only because the film is better than Facets' usual standards. The subtitles are in a hideous font, they're mistimed and don't catch a lot of the dialogue, so in some ways it's a typical Facets release, but the film was so damn wonderful that I'm grateful that somebody released it. That said, one of my wishes for 2009 is that Second run or somebody else will release this--I'll gladly double dip.

Release of the Year
1. The Furies
2. Mishima: A Life In Four Chapters
3. Antonio Gaudí
4. 4 by Agnès Varda
5. Brand Upon The Brain!

Best Reissue
Cleo from 5 to 7

Best Eclipse Release
Larisa Shepitko

Best Commentary
----------------------

Best Single Supplement
The Strange Case of Yukio Mishima (BBC program) on Mishima: A Life In Four Chapters

Best Cover
Brand Upon The Brain!

Best Package Design
--------------

Best Discovery
This Sporting Life

Most Disappointing Release
The Last Emperor

Best Forum Member
Lemmy Caution
“this is a fucking valuable thing, you just don’t give it away for nothing.”

Richard Cranium Award
Lemmy Caution
“I’ve got this thing and it’s fucking golden, and, uh, uh, I’m just not giving it up for fuckin’ nothing. I’m not gonna do it. And, and I can always use it. I can parachute me there.”

Release of the Year
1. Vampyr
2. Pierrot le Fou
3. Miss Julie
4. Mishima
5. The Furies

Best Reissue
High and Low

Best Eclipse Release
Larisa Shepitko, definitely.

Best Single Supplement
The screenplay of Vampyr. Makes me wish that Patriotism had been packaged with Mishima.

Best Cover
1) Pierrot le Fou
2) Vampyr
3) The Fire Within
4) Patriotism

Haha, I don't even know if I'm supposed to rank them like that. Tough call on this category.

Best Package Design
Vampyr...maybe High and Low for the fact that the reverse side of the cover is made to look like wood paneling.

Best Discovery
Miss Julie

Most Disappointing Release
The Ophuls films

Release of the Year
1. 4 by Agnes Varda (primarily for Le Bonheur)
2. Vampyr
3. The Ice Storm
4. Pierrot le fou
5. Antonio Gaudí

Best Eclipse Release
Series 11: Larisa Shepitko

Best Reissue
High and Low

Best Commentary
Vampyr. By default.

Best Single Supplement
A “Pierrot” Primer-Gorin

Best Cover
Pierrot le fou

Best Package Design
Vampyr

Best Discovery
Blast of Silence

Most Disappointing Release
Twenty-Four Eyes. A release that was actually worse than the existing MoC.

Best Non-Criterion Release (5 Choices)
Red Desert-blu (BFI)
Der letzte Mann (MoC)
Valerie and Her Week of Wonders (Second Run)
LA Confidential-blu (Warner)
Wall-e (Disney)

Release of the Year
Vampyr
An autumn afternoon
Pierrot le fou
4 by Agnès Varda
La deuxième souffle

Best Eclipse Release
Mizoguchi's Fallen Women

Best Reissue
High and low

Best Commentary
Stephen Prince on High and low

Best Single Supplement
Remembrances on Cléo de 5 à 7

Best Cover
Salò

Best Package Design
Vampyr

Best (Re)Discovery
Wings (Shepitko) & Miss Julie (Sjöberg)

Most Disappointing Release
Before the rain

Forum Member of the Year
Tommaso

Best Non-Criterion Release
Bill Douglas trilogy (bfi)
L'enfance-nue (moc)
La notte (moc)
Berlin. Sinfonie der Großstadt/Melodie der Welt (edition filmmuseum)
Hey Joe and other TV shorts by Samuel Beckett (absolut medien)