PopcornTreeCt

-Posted on the Criterion Forum

I'm not getting my hopes up but this is better news than the standard 'waiting for the format war to be over' response.

steelpotato

If Criterion goes blu, I will buy a blu-ray player. Just purchased the a3.

Supermallet

I'm surprised it's taking Criterion this long to get into the HD game. I thought they'd be happy to start charging $80-$120 per title again.

Paul_SD

the problem with Criterion is that they license titles from format exclusive studios on both sides.
So if they do transition to HD (which I really hope they will) will they
- be able to use any licensed titles?
- if so, would they be a covert opportunity for these studios to essentially go dual format, or would they be restricted to only being able to put the studios title on the format that studio is exclusive to?
- or would thy shy away from Fox, Paramount, and Universal product and only release stuff from Janus, and overseas catalog owners?

At this point, I really don't care- I would just love to get HDMs of Seventh Seal, Black Narcisuss (new master please), Walkabout, and a ton of others.

Of course stuff like Days Of Heaven would be up there too, but there is plenty of quailty stuff that isn't mired in the format-centric wrangling, that I would love to see almost as much.

Just get crackin "C'- times a wastin.

DamingR

I stopped buying Criterions after they started telling us that everything was mastered in HD. Seems like just a matter of time before we actually get to see them in HD.

Drexl

I was thinking about that, and maybe that is the reason they've held off. Perhaps they could only release the titles on the format affiliated with the studio that owns them. So, they're waiting until they can release all of their titles on one format rather than having them split up with some on one and some on the other.

Realistically, I believe the MSRP for most titles will be $49.95. Even for HDM, I don't think they can go higher than that.

Adam Tyner

It might vary by studio or by title, but overall, I'd tend to doubt that'll be an issue.

Mine just shipped on Blu-ray from Amazon.co.uk yesterday.

I assumed it'd be 2-3 years into these formats' lifespans before we saw anything from Criterion, and I guess we're slowly nudging towards that point. Great to hear they're thinking about it.

Giles

ah the era of the laserdisc MSRP

Paul_SD

I can't afford any imports right now (even though I'm jumping on the B1G1s left and right)- if I could I would love to get SS. I rewatched it recently and enjoyed it more than I ever have.

I agree that $49.99 is likely to be the ceiling- maybe $59.99 if they go double disc. IIrc, $69.99 was the price of their bare bone version multi disc LD sets back in the day. And while everyone bellyaches about HDM prices in general, I jus ran across a page in one of my old notebooks where I listed some DVDs that were on sale and that I was thinking of getting.

at the time, those were a bargain compared to LDs. Genies out of the bottle now though and as much as the studios want to put it back in, it just ain't gonna happen.
__________

actually, no. I remember what that list was now- CompUSA was blowing out their DVDs at the time for a mind-blowing $15 a piece, and I was making a note of the 'normal' discounted prices of the same ones over at Media Play. I think I ended up dropping well over $100 at CompUSA in that deal

splattii2

I have a question. While I own some of their discs, I've never really looked into why Criterion discs cost so much. I assumed part of it was the transfer, so people paid a premium for the best quality disc. I know all the discs I own are for the picture quality. The OP post said that they don't have to get a "new transfer" for the HD or Blu disc, as they have mastered in HD for years now. In theory, wouldn't that suggest the costs spent on the transfer have already been absorbed with SD sales? Therefore the only cost they really have now is authoring and pressing the HD disc, outside of licenses right? I assume they'd encode the video themselves, which is nothing more then machine time/processing. Therefore they are either going to make a killer profit on these if sold for $49, or they can cut the prices down to meet today's HD market.

I'm not sure I'd pay a premium for a Criterion in HD as I've have to see how much better the picture is vs a normal HD disc. I know La Haine for example (I know, a recent title) is out on SD via Criterion. If they released a La Haine HD in North America, would it be any better then the HD version out now? Was it the fact Criterion was always mastering in HD the reason their titles looked better on SD? Sorry for my ignorance, I never really looked at them too close.

Paul_SD

from what I understood, Criterion got its 'masters' from the studios they license from- i.e. Universal supplies a master for Lady Eve or the Killers, Buena Vista for Armaggeddon, etc. But lately it looks like new HD masters are being struck under the oversight of Criterion and the specific filmmakers (Two-lane Blacktop, Days Of Heaven, etc).
I wonder if these new masters are the property of Criterion, and were paid for by Criterion- or if they were paid for by the studio with some kind of 'first use' rights exchanged to Criterion?

As far as why they cost a premium over 'normal' studio produced discs
-Criterion is a small label.
-Most of the criterion catalog is made up of very niche appeal content that will not sell in large numbers
-they pay to create , track down, or license supplemental material out of their own pocket- and their pockets aren't as deep as the studios.
- they pay a fee for each film they license. They don't own anything (except the supplemental features they create).

Back in the LD days, they were known for very high technical quality. On DVD they average very good to adequete...and sometimes dip below that (especially some of the older titles from 99/00/01...). Unlike the LD days, there are many, many examples of studios releasing discs with exceptional A/V quality and supplements. Pound for Pound, at this point, I think Criterion is frequently outclassed in this area. OTOH, they are usually consistently high quality in execution, as well as the title selection offered.

milkdog

Before that quote in the same article the same guy (Criterion tech director Lee Kline) said: "We're waiting for the formats to figure themselves out. If we wind up liking Blu-ray but Casablanca is only on HD DVD we don't want people to have to chose. And we don't want to confuse them by siding with one format over the other, because it's not our place to decide. Both HD DVD and Blue-ray have merit to us, and both look really good."

Soooo, I didn't take this as positive. Sounds like as long as there's a format war we'll have no high-def Criterions.

Giles

yeah, I agree the preface is important not to include.

tsetse27

I still have plenty of Criterion LD In my collection... yes, back in the day, a single disc costed $50, two disc set $100 and 3-disc set $125...

No, no way we are going back to that kind of price structure, HD or not...we are not in Japan...please...

Giles

oh I am definately not advocating it, I was just perceiving Criterion released in HiDef might not be all that cheap.

PopcornTreeCt

Ah, that part wasn't included in the quote I took from the criterion forum. Oh well.

Having thought about it, Criterion releasing on HD formats would be great for PQ on some films but if there's ever a release that is barebones by the studio and then extras filled by Criterion. I would go with the studio release when it comes to HD. For example, I have both La Haine and Dazed & Confused on HD-DVD which book look great. I'll watch those for the films and then check out the Criterions for the extras. If other studios start putting out "Criterion movies" on HD-DVD or Blu-ray I'll gladly support those.

Bill Geiger

Salo in HD

Giles

hell, how about the golden shower scene in 'Sweet Movie' in HiDef - ewwwww

Gizmo

Rushmore....c'mon....

MBoyd

But 8 1/2 in HD . . .

That said, I would be very selective in repurchasing titles. The Kurosawa re-releases look amazing upconverted, but I would re purchase them for sure. Same with Brazil which would be a triple dip. Short Cuts another score. Knife in The Water or Haxan . . . eh not so much.

And the way things are going we have quite a few Criterion titles on HD from other studios. That should get their butts in high gear I would think.

And If the cost is so much less than Blu Ray I think it wouldnt be so bad for Criterion to do limited pressings on HD DVD and sell exclusively on their website. Of course that might anger the studio that licensed the title. Could be they only have the DVD rights.

Lastyear

Ive just watched The Seventh Seal in HD and its not much of an improvement if any over the Criterion.Not all movies lend themselves well to Hd.It depends on the condition of the film source or what it was shot on.Spartacus on HD looks inferior the the Criterion release.And some movies like The French Connection will probably never look good on HD.It was shot with too much grain to give it a documentary feel.

PopcornTreeCt

I thought The Seventh Seal looked great especially over the Criterion. It was a new master that was used so even the DVD version is an improvement over the Criterion. But I agree with you that most Criterion movies won't drastically improve by being in HD.

Cosmic Bus

If they don't debut the eventual high-def line with a new print of Black Narcissus, then they're going about things all wrong.

Sparrow

Sorta good to hear (even though I read this as....we're not quite ready, but it's all good )

I have so many gaps in my Criterion collection that I'd like to fill, that a jump by Criterion into HD by way of purple would be OK by me.

As long as I can fill those gaps with BD, sign me up.

dsa_shea

Come on Criterion shoot that Bottle Rocket at us in HD.