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captveg wrote:Reds already has a pretty good Blu-ray release via Paramount, though, which Criterion would be hard pressed to top.

Lossless audio.

boywonder wrote:Just why would Criterion want either of the these two Scorsese hagiographies? It would make more sense to talk Mr. Jagger into giving the OK to the release the oft bootlegged and infinitely more interesting "Cocksucker Blues" by American photographer and filmmaker Robert Frank. It is a document in and of its time, and a reminder that at least up to 1972 the Rolling Stones functioned as a relevant and vibrant force in rock music. Don't waste spine numbers on inferior work by superior directors!

Steidl were unable to include it in their "Complete" Film Works series of Robert Frank DVDs as they'd planned to do, so I'd think that's not a possibility.

Reds is out of print and needs a new Blu-ray release, and it should not be difficult at all to top the Paramount release with a newer transfer.

The unavailability of Cocksucker Blues on home video is, at this point, just retarded. If anything, the fact that the Stones are still touring should make them want to release it. It's the ultimate historical document of rockstar excess. But there's nothing at all in it to embarrass them now. Steidl didn't even get it? Lame. Btw, anyone who wants to see how that excellent art book publisher goes about his daily business should check out the doc How To Make A Book With Steidl.

warren oates wrote:The unavailability of Cocksucker Blues on home video is, at this point, just retarded. If anything, the fact that the Stones are still touring should make them want to release it. It's the ultimate historical document of rockstar excess. But there's nothing at all in it to embarrass them now. Steidl didn't even get it? Lame. Btw, anyone who wants to see how that excellent art book publisher goes about his daily business should check out the doc How To Make A Book With Steidl.

I could easily be wrong but I don't think the problem with the release came from Robert Frank or his publisher Steidl. I once heard Frank talk before a showing of CB in the very early 80's. He said the Stones commissioned and owned the film. He was only able to show the film if he, Frank, was at the screening. It seems that with today's current music vids ("Blurred Lines, "Work Bitch, i.e.) The Stones approval of this release could only help their now very tired and bloated juggernaut of a tour machine!

captveg wrote:Reds already has a pretty good Blu-ray release via Paramount, though, which Criterion would be hard pressed to top.

Having the entire film all on one disc wouldn't hurt. :-"

AfterTheRain wrote:With Carlo Lizzani's recent passing, I wonder if Criterion would be interested in The Violent Four (AKA Bandits in Milan) for release as a pairing with Bitter Rice (which he worked on as a screenwriter).

That would be one bizarre double-bill! Banditi a Milano does need a release somewhere though, despite the efforts of enthusiasts online.

PfR73 wrote:

captveg wrote:Reds already has a pretty good Blu-ray release via Paramount, though, which Criterion would be hard pressed to top.

Lossless audio.

Dolby TrueHD English track on Paramount's Italian release.

Yeah, but no extras. Way to go, Paramount.

Is it conceivable that the R-1 OOP Artists and Models (1955) be released by Criterion given their recent Paramount licensing? Or, is there any indication that WB will re-release it on DVD, as they did with other Paramount titles? It is quite unfortunate that this Tashlin masterpiece is not available on Blu-Ray, let alone available at all in R-1, while it seems unlikely that Paramount itself will release it anytime soon.

A more likely home for further Jerry Lewis releases would be Olive.

Matt wrote:A more likely home for further Jerry Lewis releases would be Olive.

Thanks, Matt. I'm aware of Olive's Lewis releases, but given the fact that Artists and Models is among Tashlin's best works and a genuine masterpiece, I entertain the hopes that CC would show greater interest to license it.

They've had access to other, more well-known, Tashlins via Fox for years and haven't shown any interest. I wouldn't expect anything now.

Exactly. They'd grab Rock Hunter first.

I wonder if Criterion might be interested in licensing the 1923 slient version of Cecil DeMille's The Ten Commandments. It was only included as a bonus feature on the special edition dvd of the 1956 version. Paramount licensed the 1956 version to Warner Brothers but the silent version is MIA. Might finally be due for a standalone release?

I am wondering about few titles for a long time now - Is Paris Burning? (1968), A Place in the Sun (1951), Hud (1963), Detective Story (1951) and The Tin Star (1958). I hope they get the treatment they deserve one day.

Hud was reissued by Warner Brothers but the rest are theoretically up for grabs.

I believe The Tin Star is now in the Warner Archive Collection.

ianungstad wrote:I wonder if Criterion might be interested in licensing the 1923 slient version of Cecil DeMille's The Ten Commandments. It was only included as a bonus feature on the special edition dvd of the 1956 version. Paramount licensed the 1956 version to Warner Brothers but the silent version is MIA. Might finally be due for a standalone release?

WB re-released the big Ten Commandments Blu-ray box set earlier this year and it still includes the 1923 version on a bonus Blu-ray disc with a commentary and tinted sequences as extras.

chatterjees wrote:I am wondering about few titles for a long time now - Is Paris Burning? (1968), A Place in the Sun (1951), Hud (1963), Detective Story (1951) and The Tin Star (1958). I hope they get the treatment they deserve one day.

I believe George Stevens Jr is overseeing the restoration of A Place in The Sun as per an interview he gave.

TCM aired The Stepford Wives last night. I think there has been some debate if Paramount still held the rights to this and possibly the other Palomar titles. The Paramount logo opened the screening on TCM so they still seem to have the rights.

Considering that the old dvd is fetching big bucks and hasn't been reissued by Warner Brothers and Criterion already holding the rights to a few films by Bryan Forbes; I would flag this as a strong candidate as one of the titles licensed to Criterion.

Not to mention the Ira Levin connection with Rosemary's Baby - the films are structured very similarly, even down to final scenes of the woman exploring a house, driven onwards by the cries of her child!

Speaking of creepy Paramount titles overdue for a good R1 release, have we had any news, Criterion or otherwise, of a Don't Look Now blu-ray release?

I was reading on one of the other forum's Mr Lime mentioning some deal between Bristol-Myers Squibb and Paramount. He said this deal makes it hard to deal with Paramount because they ask a lot for the licensing rights. This is new to me. Does anyone have any backstory on this and has this affected Criterion in deals with Paramount?

No, what he meant was that BMS is still asking for a ton of money to license the original Sleuth, Heartbreak Kid and Stepford Wives. They feel they can ask for a ton because Paramount paid them a lot in the early 2000s to license them when they made their remakes. (Although IIRC the Sleuth remake was Sony). So now, any company that tries to license those titles from BMS is confronted with an out of date high licensing cost.

How did BMS get the rights in the first place?