Homicide (David Mamet, 1991)

In David Mamet’s cinema, nothing is as it seems—so you better know what you’re looking for. Unfortunately, the protagonist of Mamet’s nightmarish urban odyssey Homicide, inner-city police detective Bobby Gold (Joe Mantegna), is as bewildered about who he is as who (or what) he’s after. Gold’s investigation, following the murder of an elderly Jewish candy-shop owner, leads him down a path of obscure encounters and clues, as well as profound reckoning with his own self and identity. Filled with Mamet’s trademark verbal play and featuring standout supporting performances from William H. Macy, Ving Rhames, and Rebecca Pidgeon, Homicide is a taut, rich work from a true American original.

• New, restored high-definition digital transfer, supervised by editor Barbara Tulliver
• Audio commentary featuring writer-director David Mamet and actor William H. Macy
• New video program featuring interviews with recurring Mamet actors Steven Goldstein, Ricky Jay, J. J. Johnston, Joe Mantegna, and Jack Wallace
• Gag reel and TV spots
• PLUS: A booklet featuring an essay by critic Stuart Klawans



That Hamilton Woman (Alexander Korda, 1941)

One of cinema’s most dashing duos, real-life spouses Vivien Leigh and Laurence Olivier enact their greatest on-screen romance in this visually dazzling tragic love story from legendary producer-director Alexander Korda. Set against the backdrop of the Napoleonic Wars of the late eighteenth century, That Hamilton Woman is a gripping account of the scandalous adulterous affair between the British Royal Navy officer Lord Horatio Nelson and the renowned beauty Lady Emma Hamilton, the wife of a British ambassador. With its grandly designed sea battles and formidable star performances, Korda’s film (Winston Churchill’s favorite movie, which he claimed to have seen over eighty times) brings history to vivid, glamorous life.

• New, restored high-definition digital transfer
• Audio commentary featuring noted film historian Ian Christie
• New video interview with author and editor Michael Korda, Alexander’s nephew, who discusses growing up in the Korda family and the making of That Hamilton Woman
• Theatrical trailer
• Alexander Korda Presents, a 1942 promotional radio piece for the film
• PLUS: A booklet featuring an essay by Molly Haskell



Mayerling (Anatole Litvak, 1936)

The gorgeous duo of Charles Boyer and Danielle Darrieux first appeared on-screen together almost twenty years before The Earrings of Madame de . . . , in this sumptuous tragic romance from Anatole Litvak (The Snake Pit, Anastasia). Mayerling is the profoundly emotional true story of the doomed adulterous affair between Archduke Rudolph, heir to the Austrian throne, and the young and innocent baron’s daughter Marie Vetsera.



Le Jour se lève (Marcel Carné, 1939)

The culmination of Poetic Realist cinema of the 1930s, Le jour se lève was Marcel Carné’s third collaboration with screenwriter and poet Jacques Prevert. A story of obsessive sexuality and murder—in which working class everyman François (Jean Gabin) resorts to killing in order to free the woman he loves from the controlling influence of another man—Le jour se lève cemented the enormous reputations of Gabin and Carné.



Gervaise (René Clément, 1956)

One of France’s most respected directors of the postwar era, René Clément directed such searing psychological dramas as Forbidden Games and Purple Noon. And Gervaise, his vivid 1956 adaptation of Émile Zola’s 1877 masterpiece L’assommoir, is no exception. An uncompromising depiction of a lowly laundress’s struggles to deal with an alcoholic husband while running her own business, Gervaise was nominated for an Oscar, and the indomitable Maria Schell earned best actress honors at the Venice Film Festival.

Also, Blu-ray editions of...

Holy Crap! So awesome to get a loaded release of Homicide this is instantly my most anticipated DVD for the rest of the year right now.

And finally some Godard in Blu Although, I am a little pissed I bought the standard Criterion of that, kind wish Criterion would give us a rebate.

Yeah, I've been waiting a loooong time for Homicide. That'll be a rare purchase for me.

Gotta love that artwork for Homicide. I swear, they can make any film intriguing with their art.

oh man, all of them! my wallet is going to cry in september.

dvdaf also says Wings of Desire for September as well as 39 Steps and Throne of Blood for Essential Art House.

The colors in Pierrot le Fou should look dynamite in HD.

This looks like one of those months where they dropped the ball. Its as if someone told Criterion to release one set of films in the main line, and another set in the Essential Arthouse line, but they got it mixed up.

And no Eclipse?

According to the Criterion forum, Nikkatsu Noir is due at the end of August...

They also list The Human Condition as a September 8th release...but I believe that was announced a few weeks ago.

Criterion does have a trade in program for Blu-ray, but it's not the best deal.

I'm definitely looking forward to Pierrot Le Fou in Blu...

I was hoping for the J-Horror set with Goke!

What's that like exactly?

Homicide!!!!

I've been waiting a long time for Homicide.

Fuckin' awesome!

You send them 20 bucks (plus 5 bucks shipping) and the disc (just the disc), and they send you the Blu-Ray (disc only).

Like he said, not a good deal.

I am kind of surprised that Criterion hasn't mentioned anything of the forthcoming Trilogy of Life Pasolini films. At this point, any fan who can go region free have probably said screw it and bought the new BFI editions (like myself: )

Being a huge Mamet fan, I am all over Homicide (which is ironically, the only Mamet film I have not seen). Love the art on it too.

love most everything Mamet. so in for "Homicide"!!

Two or three years ago my copy of Criterion’s "Picnic at Hanging Rock" got really scratched up / cracked, it was totally unplayable.

I sent an email to Criterion to see if they would replace it at a reduced price, kind of like how they are replacing standard DVDs with Blu-Ray DVDs at a reduced price. I never heard back from them.

If they want to completely ignore their customers then to hell with them. Since that time I have not bought any more Criterions, nor do I plan on doing so.

So you scratched your own CD and you expect them to replace it at a loss? I'm all for customer relations, but not seeing your point there...

My DVD was unplayable. I wanted Criterion to replace it for a new one for a reasonable price, maybe $10 or $15 (instead of $30 which was the going price at the time for this DVD). They didn't even bother to send me an email telling me "no", they just ignored me.

It doesn't cost Criterion $10 or $15 to make a DVD, they would have made a little bit of money and kept a customer happy. I don't know, maybe they expected me to go out and buy a new one at retail? And I certainly don't appreciate being ignored by this company when I had been shelling out $30+ for their DVDs and ask them to replace one at a reduced price.

People like you are the reason I hate working in customer service. Take some
responsibility for your own actions. Of course they didn't answer your e-mail, your ridiculous question didn't warrant a response.

I've nicely emailed them a few times when I have had problems with discs. They always get back to me and offer to exchange my defective discs. Usually I just have to tell them where I purchased the DVD and they tell me to send over the disc with a note and they have it out within a week. Perhaps you should try again and just explain that your disc when purchased was defective... or tell the store/website you bought the dvd from the situation.