shadokitty

5 more days.

Travis McClain

shadokitty

I know what you mean. I keep stopping myself from watching Criterion eligible content myself.

CardiffGiant

I'm never a stickler for how we enforce these things. I thought the trailer inclusion was a good idea to get people more involved (don't have a Criterion disc, go to YouTube and find the trailer and you can participate in "supplemental material").

Since I've already tossed the list thread up with the checklist, I think it probably makes sense to keep it that way, so checklists aren't inconsistent.

And, yes, people should feel free to change the soundtrack to "optional."
Same here. Two more days!

CardiffGiant

So...does anyone have the first film already planned? If so, what is it?

I think I'll be starting with The Phantom Carriage.

CardiffGiant

Criterion by Country Infographic

mrcellophane

I'm spending time with family over the Labor Day weekend, so I'm not quite sure which movie will kick of the challenge. If the family wants to watch something with me, I'll probably suggest The Curious Case of Benjamin Button (already a favorite of my sister) or Ace in the Hole. If everyone goes to bed or wanders off, I'll probably go for The Cranes Are Flying, a Russian flick I'm excited to see.

I would consider Weekend (2011), but with my luck, everyone would walk into the room during some guy-on-guy action, and we don't need that awkwardness!

mrcellophane

Excellent graphic!

I found this site that lists all of the Criterion films currently streaming via Netflix Instant. I've found it useful and have updated my list with some eligible titles.

Mondo Kane

Thanks. King of the Hill is the only movie on that list that I haven't seen yet.

Since it looks like I'm only going to have to rely on DVD rentals from Netflix, it lappears that this just might be the smallest Criterion challenge I've done yet (I just can't afford to buy new discs at the moment and I've already used the Hulu free trial a few years back) I'll try & make the most of it though.

pacaway

For my first, I've been hanging on to my brand new Blu-Ray versions of Insomnia, The Game and Rushmore, so it'll likely be one of those. I've seen them all before though, so I still may change my mind and pull something out of my closet I haven't seen yet, like The 400 Blows or Le Corbeau.

shadokitty

Ever since the Horror Challenge thread was posted, I've been dabbling at horror here and there, so I think I may start with my copy of Halloween.

mrcellophane

I would recommend watching The 400 Blows sometime this month. It is a deeply moving coming-of-age film, one of the best I've seen. The rest of the films in the series are interesting and often enjoyable, but they never near the perfection of the first. If you cannot tell, I'm a fan!

CardiffGiant

The Cranes are Flying is an excellent film. One of my favorites in the collection (easily in my top 20). It's a film that pairs well with Ballad of a Soldier, this essay discusses some of the connection between the two films, albeit briefly. Don't read the essay if you haven't seen the films.

Ace in the Hole is on my list for this challenge, too. I'm thinking of going in order by decade and then circling back around to anything else that I want to watch (or need for the checklist).
Thanks, this is quite helpful. I'll be sure to add it to the first post in this thread.

Rushmore is great and I was surprised by how much I liked The Game; both provide good entertainment.

I was really thinking of delaying The Phantom Carriage until the October challenge, but I'm thinking of going in decade order and then circling back around to other content.

Travis McClain

What about your local library? Mine, for instance, has 34 Criterion DVD's, plus quite a few non-Criterion editions of eligible movies, plus I can place Inter-Library Loan requests to get hold of DVD's they don't have.

I've been reading Liv Ullmann's memoir, Changing. I hope to finish it before the challenge starts, but if I don't I should be able to finish shortly after. It's a nice prelude. Something I think I'm gonna make a point to start doing going forward, actually (read something related to people/films in the Criterion Collection).

CardiffGiant

I really like this idea. I'm currently reading Ingmar Bergman's Images: My Life in Film.

I also recently picked up the Taschen Ingmar Bergman Archives. It's really well made and include a film strip from Fanny and Alexander, which played in Bergman's own projector. Since Fanny and Alexander is my favorite film, I had to have it. Thankfully, I was able to wait for the price to become more reasonable on Amazon.

rbrown498

I agree that THE 400 BLOWS is great, but I love STOLEN KISSES even more and feel that it's the better film. This is not to disparage THE 400 BLOWS in any way; STOLEN KISSES just resonates more strongly with me. You certainly can't go wrong with either film.

shadokitty

Do the bonus features have to be Criterion bonus features, or can you list non Criterion bonus features if you don't have the Criterion edition? I'm not talking for the checklist, I just mean for the regular list.

LJG765

[QUOTE=Mondo Kane;12215379Since it looks like I'm only going to have to rely on DVD rentals from Netflix, it lappears that this just might be the smallest Criterion challenge I've done yet (I just can't afford to buy new discs at the moment and I've already used the Hulu free trial a few years back) I'll try & make the most of it though.[/QUOTE]

Travis got there before me, but I was going to suggest this as well. My local library is part of a system, so all I have to do is go online, pick the movie (there's about 50 or 60 libraries connected, so it's a wide selection) and where I want it sent and they notify me when it gets in so I know when to pick it up. I've only had one or two more obscure films not be available.

Don't really have any plans yet on what I want to watch. The only one I do plan on is "The Fantastic Mr. Fox" which I got on Black Friday awhile ago (non Criterion version). In the next few days, once it slows down a bit here, I plan on going through the lists and seeing what jumps out at me to watch.

shadokitty

Was in the mood for some horror, so I thought, 'Why not coincide it with the Animation Challenge?' Therefore, I watched an episode of 'Witchblade'.

Edit ; wrong thread :P

Travis McClain

It's CardiffGiant's call, but my feeling is that those non-Criterion supplements are outside the letter of the law of the challenge, but since they flesh out your understanding and perceptions of the film, they're within the spirit of the challenge. I would recommend formatting like this:

1. Criterion Edition Title
2. Criterion Edition Title Commentary
3. Non-Criterion Edition Title
   Non-Criterion Edition Title Supplement

You might also want to check to see if the supplement in question appears on the Criterion edition. For instance, Disney licensed all the Criterion supplements for their Blu-ray Disc releases of Armageddon and The Rock. I think when I compared editions of Being John Malkovich last year, I saw that Criterion had re-used some, if not all, of the original DVD supplements.

shadokitty

Just ordered a used copy of the Criterion Collection version of Life of Brian from Amazon. When I get paid, I plan to order The Rock, Robocop, and The Seventh Seal.

malazar

I am raring to go in anticipation of the challenge too. When my Amazon orders came in last week and I was off and able to watch them, it took all my will power to tell myself to wait until at least Sunday night.

shadokitty

I bought 2001: A Space Odyssey this year and never got around to watching it for the Sci-Fi Challenge. Just out of curiosity I looked it up. I see it is eligible, as it was released on LD by Criterion.

shadokitty

I had to cancel my order for Life of Brian to pay an unexpected bill. So I can either wait till I get paid, or locate my copy of that and Robocop, and try to get the scratches out. Any recommendations for home disc repairs with materials around the house?

Trevor

I guess I'll try to watch Mr Fox to start. Did we ever come up with a definitive list of Criterion Animation?