recommend some recent Criterions...
 

...please!

I haven't been paying too much attention to what Criterion has released in the past year or so, and I'd love some recommendations. The only relatively recent titles I've checked out were STRAW DOGS and THRONE OF BLOOD.

These films are usually new to me, so I rely on you guys to let me know what's worth my time and money.

I've got my eye on THE RED CIRCLE and NAKED LUNCH, but I don't think those two are out yet. KATHARIANA BLUM sounds interesting, and I might try SOLARIS (I thought the remake was decent). What do you guys think?

By Brakhage

May not appeal to everyone but for me personally i would say it's probably the one Criterion title i'm most pleased to own.

I've also recently been very impressed with the Fassbinder BRD Trilogy.

You must take a look at Tokyo Story when it comes out. Ozu's film is one of the greatest pieces of cinema ever produced.

And, if I might hype my own review, out of the most recent Criterions, I have really loved The Devil and Daniel Webster. The movie is a classic piece of fantasy and Americana, and the DVD itself is pretty gosh darn good!

LA CERCLE ROUGE and TOKYO STORY are both must-buys. UMBERTO D and KNIFE IN THE WATER are also well worth a look, among the stuff the CC has released in the last 3 or 4 months.

It's all about The Devil and Daniel Webster. Wonderful movie, wonderful DVD.

Here's how I would rate Criterion's releases in 2003:


Highest Recommendation
Trouble in Paradise (Lubitsch/1932)--one of Lubitsch's best sophisticated comedies; excellent commentary
Band of Outsiders (Godard/1964)--my favorite Godard film, very accessible
My Life as a Dog (Hallström/1985)--I simply love this coming-of-age film about a Swedish boy
Straw Dogs (Peckinpah/1971)--great film, commentary
The Adventures of Antoine Doinel Box Set (Truffaut/1959-79)--not all of the films are great, but this box set is one of Criterion's crowning achievements
Throne of Blood (Kurosawa/1957)--Kurosawa's take on MacBeth. 2 different subtitle choices, excellent commentary
Il Posto (Ermanno Olmi/1961)--I love both of these Olmi films; most people prefer Il Posto
I Fidanzati (Olmi/1961)
Night and Fog (Resnais/1955)--brilliant Holocaust documentary (30 minutes)
Ali: Fear Eats the Soul (Fassbinder/1974)--a revelation to me. I found it very moving, and a good place to start if you haven't seen any Fassbinder before.
Umberto D. (De Sica/1952)--a wonderful sad Italian neorealist film
A Film Trilogy by Ingmar Bergman: Through a Glass Darkly/Winter Light/The Silence (Bergman/1961-3)--three of Bergman's greatest films with a 2.5 hour documentary. Essential for anyone with an interest in Bergman
The Devil and Daniel Webster (Dieterle/1941)--a wonderful, forgotten film from Hollywood's Golden Age. Excellent
Fassbinder's BRD Trilogy: The Marriage of Maria Braun/Lola/Veronika Voss (Fassbinder/1978-82)--perhaps Criterion's greatest release so far


Recommended
Pépé le Moko (Duvivier/1937)--significant print & sound damage, but a very good movie
The Killers (Siodmak/1946 & Siegel/1964)--I enjoyed the noirish '46 version more than the '64 TV movie
Hiroshima mon amour (Resnais/1959)--Resnais puts a lot of people off with his style. I'd rent first


Recommended with some reservations (will not please all tastes):
by Brakhage: an anthology (Stan Brakhage)--Brakhage was a leader of the American avant-garde; this is modern art as film. The set is extremely well done. I'd rent if you can.
Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas (Gilliam)--the film didn't work for me at all, but the set is excellent
The Honeymoon Killers (Kastle/1969)--a pulp crime film. May remind you of John Waters without the laughs.
The Pornographers (Imamura/1966)--a very odd black comedy that didn't win me over
Schizopolis (Soderbergh/1996)--I liked the first half to two-thirds of this film; a cult film for sure.


Releases I own (with good reviews) but haven't had a chance to watch yet:
The Lost Honor of Katharina Blum (Schlöndorff & von Trotta/1975)
Les Dames du Bois de Boulogne (Bresson/1945)
The White Sheik (Fellini/1952)
Quai des Orfèvres (Clouzot/1947)


Releases I don't own and haven't seen, with good reviews:
Knife in the Water (Polanski/1962)


Releases I don't own and haven't seen, with mixed or poor reviews:
I Am Curious... box set (Sjöman/1967-8)
Jubilee (Jarman/1977)
Coup de Grâce (Schlöndorff/1976)
Indiscretion of an American Wife/Terminal Station (De Sica/1953)


Coming soon & eagerly anticipated:
Tokyo Story (Ozu/1953)
Le Cercle Rouge (Melville/1970)
La Strada (Fellini/1954)


Coming soon & curious:
Naked Lunch (Cronenberg/1991)

Knife in the Water!!! Its AWESOME!!!

A Film Trilogy by Ingmar Bergman:

Through a Glass Darkly
Winter Light
The Silence
Ingmar Bergman Makes a Movie

No kidding, the bonus disc (IB Makes a Movie) is absolutely fantastic. And the first three aren't too shabby themselves!

(I'm still debating on whether Bergman or Kieslowsky is my favorite director)

oops... Kieslowski!

I couldn't agree more. The documentary is one of the best supplements I've seen on a Criterion release. I recently watched the whole set again for a review I'm doing, and The Silence is quickly becoming my all-time favorite Bergman film. In a year of so many wonderful releases from Criterion, it's easy to overlook this gem. Worth absolutely every penny.

Definitly La Strada when it comes out next month. And of course, The Devil and Daniel Webster.

Yup. :up:

Night and Fog and Hiroshima Mon Amour, two classic movies.

My favourites over the past year have been The White Sheik, Pepe le Moko, The Killers, Straw Dogs and The Devil and Daniel Webster. All of them simply wondrous films, and dazzling DVDs to boot.

Came out a little over a year ago but I enjoyed Ratcatcher.

Le Cercle Rouge
 

I got Le Cercle Rouge this afternoon and the disc is terrific.
The first few minutes on train was too dark to be seen on VCD and now I can see what really happen for the entire scene.

Hiroshima mon Amour, by Brakhage, and Knife in the Water.

Spendy but well worth it.