Do you own any Criterion Collection DVD's?

[Guest Downhome]

I own one, The Royal Tenenbaums, and it's simply outstanding in every way. I was just wondering if all of the Criterion Collection DVD's are like this, or just a select few. While we're at it, which ones do you own?

 

Are the DVD's in their line simply DVD's that would not get a special release otherwise, or just what is the deal?

 

Sincerely,

...Downhome...

[Guest Dmann2000]

Well, until they all were STOLEN FROM ME!

 

I owned a few Criterion discs, and they all are standouts.

[Guest Downhome]

Well, until they all were STOLEN FROM ME!

 

I owned a few Criterion discs, and they all are standouts.

How in the world did this happen?

[Guest Dmann2000]

Someone broke in my place and made off with a bunch of my stuff including 100 DVDs

 

I mentioned it in Current Events

[Guest godthedog]

criterion is pretty much the standard-bearer for good dvd's of great movies.

 

that said, i don't own any, cause they're fucking expensive.

 

their features are very inconsistent, too. 'tenenbaums' is quite the rich little dvd, but it's a bit of a rarity. if you get, say, 'alphaville' or 'the night porter' you don't really get anything extra. most of their stuff is inbetween.

[Guest Downhome]

criterion is pretty much the standard-bearer for good dvd's of great movies.

 

that said, i don't own any, cause they're fucking expensive.

 

their features are very inconsistent, too. 'tenenbaums' is quite the rich little dvd, but it's a bit of a rarity. if you get, say, 'alphaville' or 'the night porter' you don't really get anything extra. most of their stuff is inbetween.

Well thanks a lot. I've been looking over a list of their films and just found out that they have an OOP Robocop that I now want to track down, and it seems to have a a good number of features on it also.

 

I also see that they released Man Bites Dog, and I've been wanting that on DVD for a while.

[Guest starvenger]

their features are very inconsistent, too. 'tenenbaums' is quite the rich little dvd, but it's a bit of a rarity. if you get, say, 'alphaville' or 'the night porter' you don't really get anything extra. most of their stuff is inbetween.

I think some of the early Criterion discs were ported over from laser disc, which may account for the disparity in features.

 

The only one I own is The Beastie Boys, and that's seriously loaded considering it's just music videos...

[Guest Lil Naitch]

I got the Armageddon Criterion DVD, and it had a load of extas, like comentary from NASA guys and the gag real. Also got Tenebaums, great movie. And I know I mispelled it, so back off:P

[Guest HHH123007]

I have...

 

Rushmore

The Royal Tenenbaums

Chasing Amy

Silence of The Lambs

Life of Brian

Traffic

The Rock

Armageddon

 

I can't get into some of those older flicks....they make my head hurt...

[Guest NoCalMike]

I have the Robocop criterion collection edition. Which includes the "rated x" shots that had to be cut to get an R rating. It is loaded as well. I am extremely happy with that purchase.

[Guest HHH123007]

I'd be happy to have that one....it's out of print.

[Guest Downhome]

I have...

 

Rushmore

The Royal Tenenbaums

Chasing Amy

Silence of The Lambs

Life of Brian

Traffic

The Rock

Armageddon

 

I can't get into some of those older flicks....they make my head hurt...

So how would you rate each of these in terms of special features and the such?

[Guest HHH123007]

Chasing Amy is great for the commentary alone. It's my favorite commentary on any DVD I own(and probably on ones I don't own as well).

 

I also like Tenenbaums' extras, but that's probably because I like Wes Anderson a lot.

 

The Rock and Armageddon are good, but growing to be like every other action flick DVD...

 

I haven't even watched everything on Traffic's DVD...

 

Life of Brian has some good stuff, if you have/have seen Monty Python and The Holy Grail's SE DVD, you know what to expect....no lego scenes though.

 

Silence of The Lambs is a bit light, but it's out of print now, so I don't care too much...

[Guest bravesfan]

Someone broke in my place and made off with a bunch of my stuff including 100 DVDs

 

But the wrestling masters are okay, right?

[Guest Dmann2000]

criterion is pretty much the standard-bearer for good dvd's of great movies.

 

that said, i don't own any, cause they're fucking expensive. 

 

their features are very inconsistent, too.  'tenenbaums' is quite the rich little dvd, but it's a bit of a rarity.  if you get, say, 'alphaville' or 'the night porter' you don't really get anything extra.  most of their stuff is inbetween.

Well thanks a lot. I've been looking over a list of their films and just found out that they have an OOP Robocop that I now want to track down, and it seems to have a a good number of features on it also.

 

I also see that they released Man Bites Dog, and I've been wanting that on DVD for a while.

I had the OOP Robocop, This is Spinal Tap and Silence of the Lambs.

 

But, again, they were all STOLEN FROM ME!!!!!

 

Needless to say I'm still miffed at this.

[Guest Dmann2000]

Someone broke in my place and made off with a bunch of my stuff including 100 DVDs

 

But the wrestling masters are okay, right?

They grabbed my WWE PPV DVD's and the Wrestling Gold 5 pack, I still have the miscelanious WWE DVD's, no tapes were taken.

[Guest Dmann2000]

I have...

 

Rushmore

The Royal Tenenbaums

Chasing Amy

Silence of The Lambs

Life of Brian

Traffic

The Rock

Armageddon

 

I can't get into some of those older flicks....they make my head hurt...

I had all those

 

 

DID YOU STEAL EM FROM ME?

 

Just kidding I know you didn't.

[Guest PORNFAQ]

The Fear and Loathing Criterion disc is stacked. Definitely pick it up if you enjoy that movie at all.

 

I personally have The Killer, Hard-Boiled (both OOP now and ported over from laserdisc), Silence of the Lambs, Robocop (those two also OOP), The Last Temptation of Christ, Rushmore, Chasing Amy, Traffic, The Rock, Armaggeddon, Do The Right Thing, Spartacus & The Royal Tenenbaums.

 

EDIT: I totally forgot (until I read GodtheDog's post) that I also own Criterion's Akira Kurosawa box which includes The Hidden Fortress, Seven Samurai, Yojimbo and Sanjuro.

Edited May 21, 2003 by PORNFAQ

[Guest evenflowDDT]

Let's see...

 

1. 2. 3. 4! Four Criterions! (I have access to a fifth if you count my roommate's Beastie Boys Anthology, which he was lucky enough to find used at Streetlight for $15... curses!)

 

What makes Criterions so great? Their name says it all... they're the criterion toward which all DVDs should be judged. The films are almost always instant "credibility builders" towards any collection, with lots of art-house/second cinema titles (although admittedly, there's Armageddon and The Rock to pay the bills), and their transfers are almost always the best of any release (I say almost because there's been nit-picking in some circles about how longer films like Seven Samurai are kept to one disc, which causes some very very slight distortion compared to Toho's Region 2 version which spans two discs). Sometimes the discs are loaded, sometimes there's frustratingly few bonuses (as someone mentioned earlier, these are probably "direct ports" from the laserdisc... many of their commentary tracks are), but if you're looking to add credibility to your collection or if you're a fan of the films in question, Criterion is unquestionably the way to go.

 

That being said, I wish I had a steady source of income so that I could buy more of their f'n discs! That's why I'm so stoked that their upcoming release of Night & Fog has an MSRP of $15 as opposed to the $30-$40 of most of their titles.

[Guest godthedog]

the laserdisc of 'the seven samurai' (which i think was done by criterion) is pretty awe-inspiring, spanning like four discs.

 

they need to make a similar transfer of 'raging bull'. that laserdisc was fucking loaded with features: commentary, script, storyboards, shot-by-shot comparisons with things like 'on the waterfront', old la motta boxing footage...it makes me almost want to buy a laserdisc player, just so i can buy the laserdisc.

[Guest evenflowDDT]

the laserdisc of 'the seven samurai' (which i think was done by criterion) is pretty awe-inspiring, spanning like four discs.

 

they need to make a similar transfer of 'raging bull'. that laserdisc was fucking loaded with features: commentary, script, storyboards, shot-by-shot comparisons with things like 'on the waterfront', old la motta boxing footage...it makes me almost want to buy a laserdisc player, just so i can buy the laserdisc.

Whoa. On both counts.

 

MGM's DVD of Raging Bull (when it was in print) had nowhere near that many features. That's actually one of the things that disappoints me about MGM... I love how their titles are always affordable, particularly their "Midnite Movies" and other lines I'm interested in, but the price of that is almost all of their discs are barebones. Since it's on topic, a perfect example of this is their re-release of Sid & Nancy vs. Criterion's original (which I scour eBay for an affordable auction; I've yet to find one)... Criterion's has a better transfer, a commentary track, a documentary on the film, and some bonus Sid Vicious/Sex Pistols footage.

 

Is it just that the other companies don't want to pay Criterion to license their special features? I'm assuming they'd have to do that.

 

And sorta on topic, did a lot of laserdiscs have special features? Because I never knew that they did until recently, and all I've seen up until your post gtd were that some had commentaries.

[Guest godthedog]

MGM's DVD of Raging Bull (when it was in print) had nowhere near that many features.

no shit. for this exact reason, my stomach churns whenever i see a dvd copy of 'raging bull'. it's like taking a christmas turkey & serving it on a cardboard box that's been left in the rain for 2 days.

 

And sorta on topic, did a lot of laserdiscs have special features? Because I never knew that they did until recently, and all I've seen up until your post gtd were that some had commentaries.

in my VERY limited experience with laserdiscs (i.e., watching one in the library every once in a while), features & such are rare. they seemed to only put a lot of stock in the big, canonical movies & treat them as something special. i don't think they'd figured out yet that special features could be a selling point for just about anything.

[Guest Dmann2000]

Don't forget about the Brazil Criterion 3-disc set with it's cool case. It's a great set covering the controversy about the release. Yes it was stolen too, but I promise once I get settled back up it'll be one of the first I get again.

[Guest Dmann2000]

The "Do the Right Thing" 2 disc set is so good. That's another one I have to pick up again.

[Guest Ravenbomb]

all I've got is Seven Samurai and Chasing Amy, they're all good. I haven't checked out any of the Features on SS yet, tho, just the trailer.

[Guest ArkhamGlobe]

I've got Band of Outsiders and Contempt. Both transfers are excellent, the special features on Band of Outsiders are good, the special features on Contempt range from good to excellent.

[Guest IDrinkRatsMilk]

the Criterion dvds I have:

 

ones already discussed:

Chasing Amy

Silence of the Lambs

Life of Brian

Last Temptaion of Christ

 

others:

M - no features, but it's old (1933 I think)and somewhat hard to find anywhere else, so it's cool with me

Flesh for Frankenstein - has a commentary and still gallery, not much, but the movie's worth it

Salo - the crown jewel of my collection, no features, but you still probably won't be able to find it for less than $200

[Guest evenflowDDT]

Salo - the crown jewel of my collection, no features, but you still probably won't be able to find it for less than $200

Holy shit dude! Where'd you get a hold of that? I've never even seen one in real life outside of bootleg eBay auctions (although allegedly there's a copy in the campus library, need to see if there's a way to sneak it out since only faculty can check out movies).

 

Also, how's Flesh for Frankenstein the movie? I've got that and Blood for Dracula in my Netflix queues, but it'll be at least a month before I get that far down to seeing 'em.

[Guest teke184]

Since I got the Antoine Donel collection, which has a new version of 400 Blows, the only Criterions I don't have are The Killer and Salo. Neither of those will be easy to find at an affordable price, either.

 

As for Flesh For Frankenstein, it blows. HORRIBLE movie. Blood For Dracula is MUCH better because it's got a story instead of crappy shock value.

[PsychoDriver 0]

I only have 2:

 

Carnival of Souls

Fiend without a Face

 

Both are really great in the extras department.