Hokeyboy

Short answer? Not really. Check out his silents and earlier films for a remarkably different style. As his films progressed (and as Ebert pointed out on the Floating Weeds commentary), Ozu took away from his filmmaking flourishes, rather than building upon them.

Yeah, many of the later films were very similar. Early Summer and An Autumn Afternoon are almost the exact same film! But most of Ozu's films are generally meditations on a theme (or themes), rather than being overly preoccupied with plot and narrative.

(I am so full of shit sometimes...)

eedoon

Is there's anyone who ever seen Port of Shadows? That cover just got me. I love Children of Paradise and I might getting these for a blind buy.

animalmystic

Sorry thats just my opinion, I am entitled to my opinion right? If you like them, great, I happen to not. And since when did I mention Van Helsing? Is this a Van Helsing thread, no, I simply added my opinion on these Criterion releases, and I don't care for any of them. Most Criterions I like (Brazil, Unbearable Lightness, Traffic, Rushmore) I just don't happen to like these movies, thats all.

As for the Monster Squad suggestion, it was a joke actually, because I remember a thread a few months ago where somebody was suggesting Monster Squad was going to be a Criterion release, which we know was a joke, so I just added it for humor sakes.

jough

I'm still disappointed that this title hasn't been announced for July:

Hokeyboy

And I'll ask again: have you seen Early Summer, Port of Shadows, The Golden Coach, French Cancan, and Elena and Her Men? Or are you dismissing them as "crap" out of ignorance?

slop101

I'll answer for him and say that no, he has not - how could he have, unless he went to film school?

But that doesn't even matter, because in today's cultural climate a lot of people (mistakenly) think that they are so well-versed in everything (especially film), that if they haven't heard of something, it sucks. Since they seem to know everything, how could it be good, if they don't know about it.

I've run into people that call themselves "movie-buffs" and then listen to them say, with a straight face, that they don't like B&W movies.

Instead of pleading ignorance, they make themselves look worse by making obviously uninformed judgments on things they know nothing about - I should know, I tend to be guilty of this myself, sometimes.

Walter Neff

Reminds me of John Cleese's character from Monty Python's Flying Circus: "As a man who speaks loudly in restaurants, I think...."

animalmystic

First of all don't answer for me, I can answer for myself. Next you don't even know me, at all, so don't assume I haven't seen these movies, or went to film school, shit I could be Robert DeNiro and you wouldn't even know, because you know what, you don't know. And I didn't call myself well-versed in anything.All I did is comment that I do not like these movies.

Next I don't call myself a "movie buff". Just because some movies are b&w doesn't mean they are good.

And who cares anyways if some people don't like b&w movies, thats there perogative, and there choice and there opinion, who are you to judge? Everybody has there own opinion. If you like b&w movies great have at it. Some people don't like Star Wars, is that a crime? Some people only like 80's type moveis, is that a crime too? Who cares its peoples personal opinions.

Coral

animalmystic, I agree that he shouldn't have answered for you.

However, you still haven't answered his question.

Have you seen those films?

jough

I can be reasonably sure you're not Robert DeNiro.

Hendrik

...well... actually, that's really neither hear nor their...

. . . . . .

kekule

Renoir cover art:

jkester

nice.

Der Zorn Gottes

Those covers aren't so bad at all.

Hehe. "Can."

planet_jake

I've never been to film school and I've seen all 5 of these films, and adore them all. In fact French Can Can and Golden Coach are among my favorite films of all time (I actually like those covers).

But to be fair I do start film school in September.

dave955

Is your list of four films supposed to show you like "most Criterions"? Those films are far more modern than most of the collection, and all in English.

Admittedly, it is not the Armageddon/Rock/Chasing Amy list, but nonetheless, it is hardly a representative set of titles in the collection either.

BeckysBoy

You are, of course, entitled to your opinion. But a listing of Brazil, ULoB, Traffic, and Rushmore doesn't prove to anyone that you're a fan of avant garde film. To the contrary, it proves that you only like Criterion Collection films that are recent, in color, and in English. As others have said, that is a very small segment of the collection indeed.

Now, on one hand, maybe that says that the CC needs to broaden its scope a bit. But on the other hand, and here is where I think you're offending people in this thread, Criterion has taken it upon itself to do high quality DVD releases of films that more often than not would never get released at all. So when you arrogantly proclaim that they need to release The Game and Bottle Rocket and whatever else fits your narrow conception of a good film, it offends us. One reason is because these are films that have already been released. Moreover, even without the CC, they will likely get high quality redo's in the future.

Yeah, I'd love to see The Game and Bottle Rocket in the CC. I really like both flicks (especially the latter). But for each of those mainstream flicks there are hundreds if not thousands of lesser known gems crying out for Criterion's attention. Just because you and many others like you seem to find them boring (apparently sight unseen) is no reason for Criterion to cave to your way of thinking. I think the single best thing about the CC is that it has unfolded to me a whole range of great films that I otherwise would not have gotten to see.

Don't like B&W? Don't like subtitles? Go and watch Seven Samurai and get back to me.