I think the attraction of Equinox is that A) it is definitely very popular and esoteric item for horror cult film fans (ala Carnival of Souls) that has been seen only sporadically over the years since it was made; B) it has a very weird/surreal quality to it that was unusual for horror films of its era; C) it had a pretty notable influence on famous future surreal horror films like Evil Dead; and D) from a technical filmmaking history standpoint, it was an important early effort for FX guru Dennis Muren, who is now probably the biggest effect specialists in Hollywood.

Like most other folks, I first saw it as a scratchy/faded print on late night local TV back in the 1980's, which only added to the weird/otherworldly experience of watching it. I think it's great fun, but be aware - it is loooow budget and very cheesy, albeit with great special effects for its relative cost. I would compare it to something like Lemora. It is not as artful, but definitely has the same odd creativity and surreal quality that is strangely heightened by its low budget production.

It's not 'bad' bad, it's cheesy bad like LiquidSky said. I think it got that score because of the cheesy effects, but when you watch it you have to put into consideration that it was made on a shoestring bugget by film students, and in 1970 so computers couldn't be used for the monster effects. And, anyone can correct me on this as I'm not too sure of it myself, I think Equinox was a feature length version of a student film the director made called 'The Beast'.

The film is anything but that popular amongst horror fans.
http://www.1000misspenthours.com/rev...-g/equinox.htm

Furthermore, it is not just the cheesy effects that have spurred a wave of negative reviews, the reality is that it is simply not a good film. It is far from being the classic camp picture as well. All in all, one of the worst selections I have seen in a very long time from Criterion. No doubt the beautiful cover will make up for it.

I am most certainly NOT going to add this title to my collection.

Pro-B

Well, your single data point example aside, this IS a popular item among cult film fans. One needs only read the dozens of comments on various forums where news of the Criterion release of Equinox has been posted.

Secondly, I am well aware there are lots of film snobs out there who dislike low budget cult films for the very reasons cited in the review you linked. This includes films such as Carnival of Souls, Night of the Living Dead, Texas Chainsaw Massacre, Lemora, Eraserhead, Phantasm, Evil Dead, and others. I've read scathing reviews of each of those films, from both professional and self-appointed critics. And yet all of those films are appreciated, revered, and even considered to be "classics" by cult film fans and many mainstream film fans alike.

I'm not saying that Equinox is necessarily a film that's on equal footing with the aformentioned, but it does have a considerable cult following, as Criterion is well aware (your personal objection notwithstanding). While I certainly appreciate the art house classics that Criterion usually specializes in (and I have several dozen of them in my own personal collection), there is also room (and a good market) for cult items like Equinox, as well. I am reasonably certain it will outsell the Criterion release of the Brakhage films, for just one example.

I am certainly not willing to go into a heated discussion as to what the actual merits of this film are. Suffice to say that the very forum that carries the Criterion name is not exactly perplexed by the news of this upcoming release.

Furthermore, the films you cite above are quite frankly as foreign to Equinox as is the Seven Samurai. With other words, I can hardly draw any parallels between the above-mentioned titles and Equinox. I wonder how you determined that Equinox belongs in the same category (certainly I do not see Equinox being comparable to Evil Dead). To be considered a "cult film", seeing that you have described Equinox as such, i would think that the film in question must have some substantial following. I am certainly not aware of Equinox being such a fan-favorite release...hence my humble opinion is that the film does not qualify as such.

The final comment regarding how this film will sell I would like not to comment on at this point.


Ciao,
Pro-B

I'm glad to see some Pialat make its way into the collection (finally). Sorry it's not <b>Sous le soleil de Satan</b>, but <b>À nos amours</b> is an excellent film.

Now, what about some Rivette or Eustache?

Oh, and <b>The Game</b>? -ohbfrank-

Though he has a nice body of work, I think the KNB guys are well above him as far as SFX work is to be had.

There are people (many of them) who would say that any film Criterion releases on DVD, is an important piece of world cinema. Equinox is definitely not one of them, and it is almost embarassing to hear people stick up for this decision to give it the SE treatment. Have you ever even seen this film? I, for one, am glad that Criterion is mixing things up and choosing different genre films to release, but I have to think they could have found something better than this.
I don't mind if they give trashy "B" movies the deluxe treatment, in fact that would be pretty awesome if Criterion started a series just for these kind of flicks. Just don't pretend they're more than what they really are.
But whatever, it's just a DVD release. If you don't like it, don't buy it.
I wonder if they'll ever do Cronenbergs "Crash"?

I LOVE Equinox and have been waiting patiently for it since Criterion hinted that they were working on it for laserdisc.

Neither of these look that interesting. I am waiting for the Mr. Arkadin set, personally.

Yeah, big deal. I like that they mix it up as well. I'm excited for anything they release, trusting that I'll see something different from the norm almost every time.

And here's another HELL YEAH to Cronenberg's 'Crash'. I would sell body parts for this to happen.

http://www.criterionco.com/content/i...ox_348x490.jpg
Scheduled for June

Cronenberg's Crash would be a welcome SE, but I don't see it happening. It is owned by New Line who is a subsidary of Warner that just recently has went on record saying they will not allow their titles to be released by third parties.

So your only hope is a vista series, infinifilm, platinum, or whatever they call special editions in the near future.

I gotta say, I am also glad to see some mix to the catalog. Criterion seemed to have a more diverse choice in genre titles a few years back, and while they knock it out of the park almost every time with the two discers...nothing they put out was a real suprise.

Yah, there are some titles, I know they have access to that I would rather see than Equinox, but It sounds fun just the same. (Then again I do own the Hideous Sun Demon so bad movies are up my alley) Now where are the Sam Fuller movies we were hearing about?

And at the end of the day, that's all that really matters. No one has a got a gun to anyone's head forcing them to like a movie or to make them buy it. Criterion could, if they wanted to, select films by Jess Franco or Uwe Boll, and while I would wonder what they were thinking, I'd simply pass and I'd do it without needing to make smug insults about well designed box covers. Equinox is one of those movies I've heard of but never seen, so I can't speak to its merits and it does sound like it would be more at home as part of a cult-centric DVD line rather than the collection proper but I'm sure they have some kind of criteria in place & market research which justifies it's release in their eyes. As for the title's popularity, I recieved three emails today from friends asking if Criterion releasing Equinox was true. They were all pretty excited about it, so yea for them.

Yes!!!! :) Made my day, I knew it was coming but I havn't seen the cover art yet....Didn't see any other thread about this, was there one or is this a first?

Is this a new policy for them because Criterion had a deal in place for several New Line films, Short Cuts, My Own Private Idaho and Naked for example, and from everything I have read, Crash was supposed to have been part of that deal.

As far as I know, no one else has posted it. When I responded to your question it was the first time I saw it at least. It's a must-have for me too :).

I'm very excited about Dazed and Confused.

Isn't Criterion supposed to be releasing a new "Picnic at Hanging Rock" DVD? Peter Weir mentioned this during the DVDTalk Radio interview. Supposedly, the "A Dream Within A Dream" documentary is going to be included among other things, most importantly, a 16x9 enhanced transfer. Is this still going to happen?

Right now there are 4 re-releases already scheduled for this year. Look for it in 2007

Cameron, where did you see this? I am curious too, as they are in a dispute with Image over some titles. They licensed the Street Fighter films along with others and now New Line are trying to get out of the deal. New Line are claiming they didn't know what they were licensing. Now, NL says the elements can't be found. How convenient.

New Line is an independent subsidiary of Time Warner, with its own, separate corporate policy that is not dictated by WHV. They have a long history of licensing films to Criterion:

This Is Spinal Tap
Sid & Nancy
Short Cuts
My Own Private Idaho
Hoop Dreams
An Angel at My Table
Naked

Given Criterion's close working relationships with New Line and Cronenberg, I think a CC Crash is a distinct possibility.

how come I can't find "Equinox" listed anywhere on the Criterion site?

Still hasn't been "officially" announced.

^Image Ent has it listed: http://www.image-entertainment.com/d...roductID=53978

:cool: