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Frozenhamster 08-15-08 11:21 PM

What I'm wondering is what kind of cases they are going to use. I'm hoping for extremely sturdy digipaks like the one used for Close Encounters.

InnocentBlood 08-16-08 04:49 AM


Originally Posted by me12321 (Post 8878153)
"Chungking Express", "The Third Man", "The Man Who Fell To Earth", and "Bottle Rocket" Blu-Ray in November.

http://www.criterion.com/asp/browse_bluray.asp

if i'm not mistaken, the blu ray version of "The Man Who Fell To Earth" leaves out the book that was packaged together in the beautiful dvd box... bummer...

InnocentBlood 08-16-08 04:50 AM


Originally Posted by Cosmic Bus (Post 8878881)
While the special features are mostly carried over for the Blu-ray versions, it's worth noting that the Last Emperor specifically drops any mention of the extended television cut for the BR release.

i was under the impression that the 4 disc Last Emperor dvd set was also being released in blu ray - was i wrong or is that one still in the works?

Mr. Cinema 08-16-08 06:24 AM

Blu-ray.com has full specs:

The Criterion Collection has posted details for their first five Blu-ray Disc titles. 'The Third Man' and 'The Man Who Fell to Earth' are set for release on November 18th, while three more titles - 'Bottle Rocket,' 'Chungking Express,' and the critically acclaimed 'The Last Emperor' - arrive one week later on the 25th. The films will be presented in their original (or director approved) aspect ratios in new high definition digital transfers, featuring lossless and Dolby Digital 5.1 audio mixes. Each title will also contain a wealth of extra features.

'The Third Man' (1949) will featured a restored high definition transfer in 1.37:1, and an uncompressed mono soundtrack. Extra features include:

-Video introduction by writer-director Peter Bogdanovich
-Two audio commentaries: one by filmmaker Steven Soderbergh and screenwriter Tony Gilroy, and one by by film scholar Dana Polan
-Shadowing "The Third Man" (2005), a ninety-minute feature documentary on the making of the film
-Abridged recording of Graham Greene's treatment, read by actor Richard Clarke
-"Graham Greene: The Hunted Man," an hour-long, 1968 episode of the BBC's Omnibus series, featuring a rare interview with the novelist
-"Who Was the Third Man? (2000)," a thirty-minute Austrian documentary featuring interviews with cast and crew
-The Third Man on the radio: the 1951 "A Ticket to Tangiers" episode of The Lives of Harry Lime series, written and performed by Orson Welles, and the 1951 Lux Radio Theatre adaptation of The Third Man
-Illustrated production history with rare behind-the-scenes photos, original UK press book, and U.S. trailer
-Actor Joseph Cotten's alternate opening voice-over narration for the U.S. version
-Archival footage of postwar Vienna
-A look at the untranslated foreign dialogue in the film
-A booklet featuring an essay by Luc Sante

'The Man Who Fell to Earth' (1976) will feature a high definition digital transfer approved by director Nicolas Roeg, and an uncompressed stereo soundtrack. Extra features include:

-Audio commentary by Roeg and actors David Bowie and Buck Henry
-New video interview with screenwriter Paul Mayersberg Performance, video interviews with actors Candy Clark and Rip Torn
-Audio interviews with costume designer May Routh and production designer Brian Eatwell
-Audio interview from 1984 with author Walter Tevis, conducted by Don Swaim
-Multiple stills galleries, including Routh's costume sketches; behind-the-scenes photos; and production and publicity stills, introduced by set photographer David James
-Gallery of posters from Roeg's films
-Trailers
-Booklet featuring an essay by critic Graham Fuller

'The Last Emperor' (1987) features a high definition digital transfer approved by cinematographer Vittorio Storaro, and a stereo track in DTS-HD Master Audio. Extras include:

-Audio commentary by director Bernardo Bertolucci, producer Jeremy Thomas, screenwriter Mark Peploe, and composer-actor Ryuichi Sakamoto
-The Italian Traveler: Bernardo Bertolucci, a 53-minute film by Fernand Mozskowicz, tracing the director's geographic influences, from Parma to China
-Video images taken by Bertolucci in China
-The Chinese Adventure of Bernardo Bertolucci, a 52-minute documentary that revisits the film's creation
-A 47-minute documentary featuring Storaro, editor Gabriella Cristiana, costume designer James Acheson, and art director Gianni Silvestri
-A 66-minute documentary exploring Bertolucci's creative process and the making of The Last Emperor
-A 30-minute interview with Bertolucci from 1989
-A new interview with composer David Byrne
-A new interview with Ian Buruma examining the historical period of the film
-Theatrical trailer
-Booklet featuring an essay by critic David Thomson

'Chungking Express' (1994) features a restored high-definition digital transfer, as well as a remastered Dolby Digital 5.1 soundtrack supervised by director Wong Kar-wai. Extras include:

-Audio commentary by noted Asian cinema critic Tony Rayns
-U.S. theatrical trailer
-New and improved English subtitle translation
-Booklet featuring a new essay by critic Amy Taubin and excerpts from a 1996 Sight and Sound interview with Wong by Rayns


'Bottle Rocket' (1996) features a new, restored transfer supervised by direct Wes Anderson and a Dolby Digital 5.1 soundtrack. Extras include:

-Commentary by director/co-writer Anderson and co-writer/actor Owen Wilson
-The Making of "Bottle Rocket": an original documentary by filmmaker Barry Braverman featuring Anderson, James L. Brooks, James Caan, Temple Nash Jr., Kumar Pallana, Polly Platt, Mark Mothersbaugh, Robert Musgrave, Richard Sakai, David and Sandy Wasco, Andrew and Luke and Owen Wilson, and Robert Yeoman
-The original thirteen-minute black-and-white Bottle Rocket short film from 1992
-Eleven deleted scenes
-Anamorphic screen test, storyboards, location photos, and behind-the-scenes photographs by Laura Wilson
-Murita Cycles, a 1978 short film by Braverman
-The Shafrazi Lectures, no. 1: Bottle Rocket
-Booklet featuring an essay by executive producer James L. Brooks, an appreciation by Martin Scorsese, and original artwork by Ian Dingman

Josh Z 08-16-08 07:34 AM


Originally Posted by Drexl (Post 8878471)
Is there any word on whether The Last Emperor will be in its correct aspect ratio?

Highly unlikely. Right or wrong (and I agree that it's wrong), the cropped master was approved by Vittorio Storaro, and Criterion is not going to go against the cinematographer's express wishes.

PopcornTreeCt 08-16-08 10:11 AM

Is The Third Man still going to be window-boxed?

kefrank 08-16-08 10:20 AM


Originally Posted by PopcornTreeCt (Post 8879381)
Is The Third Man still going to be window-boxed?

i wondered the same thing, but i sure hope not. the whole point of window-boxing is to ensure no loss of image at the edges on TVs that have overscan. most HDTVs are fixed-pixel and don't have significant overscan.

kind of an odd mixture of audio specs for these titles.

Drexl 08-16-08 11:23 AM

Judging from the cover art, it appears these may use DVD-sized cases. I've already adjusted my shelves back to DVD height because of the Warner digibooks, but I was really hoping they'd make them the standard BD size (regardless of whether they're digipacks or not).

Gizmo 08-16-08 12:40 PM

I don't think these are the final specs for Blu-ray.

If so, I'm not too happy they are giving us a standard DD5.1 track for Bottle Rocket considering its the newest release out of the 5.

pro-bassoonist 08-16-08 12:44 PM


Originally Posted by kefrank (Post 8879397)
the whole point of window-boxing is to ensure no loss of image at the edges on TVs that have overscan. most HDTVs are fixed-pixel and don't have significant overscan.

:up:

Pro-B

flyboy 08-16-08 10:56 PM

But will they have spine numbers?

pro-bassoonist 08-17-08 02:34 AM

Courtesy of Ron Epstein

Official specs with highlighted relevant info:


BOTTLE ROCKET

Wes Anderson first illustrated his lovingly detailed, slightly surreal cinematic vision in this witty and warm portrait of three young middle-class misfits. Fresh out of a mental hospital, gentle Anthony (Luke Wilson) finds himself once again embroiled in the machinations of his best friend, elaborate schemer Dignan (Owen Wilson). With the aid of getaway driver Bob (Robert Musgrave), they develop a needlessly complex, mildly successful plan to rob a small bookstore—then go “on the lam.” Also featuring Lumi Cavazos as Inez, the South American housekeeper Anthony falls in love with, and James Caan as local thief extraordinaire Mr. Henry, Bottle Rocket is a charming, hilarious, affectionate look at the folly of dreamers. Shot against radiant southwestern backdrops, it’s the film that put Anderson and the Wilson brothers on the map.

Info
• Directed by Wes Anderson (Rushmore, The Royal Tenenbaums, The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou)
• Starring Owen Wilson (The Royal Tenenbaums, Armageddon, Wedding Crashers)
• Starring Luke Wilson (The Royal Tenenbaums, Legally Blonde, 3:10 to Yuma)
• Cinematography by Robert Yeoman (Drugstore Cowboy, Rushmore, The Squid and the Whale)

DIRECTOR-APPROVED SPECIAL EDITION FEATURES:
• New, restored high-definition digital transfer supervised and approved by director Wes Anderson and director of photography Robert Yeoman
• Dolby Digital 5.1 soundtrack (DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 on Blu-ray)
• Commentary by director/co-writer Anderson and co-writer/star Owen Wilson
• The Making of “Bottle Rocket”: an original documentary by filmmaker Barry Braverman featuring Anderson, James L. Brooks, James Caan, Temple Nash Jr., Kumar Pallana, Polly Platt, Mark Mothersbaugh, Robert Musgrave, Richard Sakai, David and Sandy Wasco, Andrew and Luke and Owen Wilson, and Robert Yeoman
• The original thirteen-minute black-and-white Bottle Rocket short film from 1992
• Eleven deleted scenes
• Anamorphic screen test, storyboards, location photos, and behind-the-scenes photographs by Laura Wilson
• Murita Cycles, a 1978 short film by Braverman
• The Shafrazi Lectures, no. 1: Bottle Rocket
• PLUS: A booklet featuring an essay by executive producer James L. Brooks, an appreciation by Martin Scorsese, and original artwork by Ian Dingman

Title: Bottle Rocket Title: Bottle Rocket (Blu-ray)
CAT: CC1772D CAT: CC1777BD
UPC: 7-15515-03072-4 UPC: 7-15515-03342-8
ISBN: 978-1-60465-058-7 ISBN: 978-1-60465-092-1
SRP: $39.95 SRP: $39.95
Prebook: 10/28/08 Prebook: 10/28/08
Street date: 11/25/08 Street date: 11/25/08


CHUNGKING EXPRESS

The whiplash, double-pronged Chungking Express is one of the defining works of nineties cinema and the film that made Hong Kong filmmaker Wong Kar-wai an instant icon. Two heartsick Hong Kong cops (Takeshi Kaneshiro and Tony Leung), both jilted by ex-lovers, cross paths at the Midnight Express take-out restaurant stand, where the ethereal pixie waitress Faye (Faye Wong) works. Anything goes in Wong’s gloriously shot and utterly unexpected charmer, which cemented the sex appeal of its gorgeous stars and forever turned canned pineapple and the Mamas and the Papas’ “California Dreamin’” into tokens of romantic longing.

Info
• Directed by Wong Kar-wai (Ashes of Time, In the Mood for Love, 2046)
• Starring Tony Leung (Infernal Affairs, In the Mood for Love, Lust Caution)
• Starring Takeshi Kaneshiro (Fallen Angels, House of Flying Daggers)

SPECIAL EDITION FEATURES:
• New, restored high-definition digital transfer
• Remastered Dolby Digital 5.1 soundtrack supervised by director
Wong Kar-wai (DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 on Blu-ray)

• Audio commentary by noted Asian cinema critic Tony Rayns
• U.S. theatrical trailer
• New and improved English subtitle translation
• PLUS: A booklet featuring a new essay by critic Amy Taubin and excerpts from a 1996 Sight and Sound interview with Wong by Rayns
• More!

Title: Chungking Express Title: Chungking Express (Blu-ray)
CAT: CC1774D CAT: CC1778BD
UPC: 7-15515-03322-0 UPC: 7-15515-03332-9
ISBN: 978-1-60465-090-7 ISBN: 978-1-60465-091-4
SRP: $39.95 SRP: $39.95
Prebook: 10/28/08 Prebook: 10/28/08
Street date: 11/25/08 Street date: 11/25/08

THE THIRD MAN (BLU-RAY)

Pulp novelist Holly Martins travels to shadowy, postwar Vienna, only to find himself investigating the mysterious death of an old friend, black-market opportunist Harry Lime—and thus begins this legendary tale of love, deception, and murder. Thanks to brilliant performances by Joseph Cotten, Alida Valli, and Orson Welles; Anton Karas’s evocative zither score; Graham Greene’s razor-sharp dialogue; and Robert Krasker’s dramatic use of light and shadow, The Third Man, directed by the inimitable Carol Reed, just continues to grow in stature as the years pass.

Info
• Directed by Carol Reed (Odd Man Out, The Fallen Idol, Oliver!)
• Starring Joseph Cotten (Citizen Kane, Shadow of a Doubt)
• Starring Orson Welles (Citizen Kane, Mr. Arkadin, F for Fake)
• Starring Graham Greene (The Fallen Idol, The End of the Affair)

BLU-RAY SPECIAL EDITION FEATURES:
• Restored high-definition digital transfer
• Uncompressed mono soundtrack
• Video introduction by writer-director Peter Bogdanovich
• Two audio commentaries: one by filmmaker Steven Soderbergh and screenwriter Tony Gilroy, and one by film scholar Dana Polan
• Shadowing “The Third Man” (2005), a ninety-minute feature documentary on the making of the film
• Abridged recording of Graham Greene’s treatment, read by actor Richard Clarke
• “Graham Greene: The Hunted Man,” an hour-long, 1968 episode of the BBC’s Omnibus series, featuring a rare interview with the novelist
• Who Was the Third Man? (2000), a thirty-minute Austrian documentary featuring interviews with cast and crew
• The Third Man on the radio: the 1951 “A Ticket to Tangiers” episode of The Lives of Harry Lime series, written and performed by Orson Welles, and the 1951 Lux Radio Theatre adaptation of The Third Man
• Illustrated production history with rare behind-the-scenes photos, original UK press book, and U.S. trailer
• Actor Joseph Cotten’s alternate opening voice-over narration for the U.S. version
• Archival footage of postwar Vienna
• A look at the untranslated foreign dialogue in the film
• PLUS: A booklet featuring an essay by Luc Sante

Title: The Third Man (Blu-ray)
CAT: CC1780BD
UPC: 7-15515-03382-4
ISBN: 978-1-60465-100-3
SRP: $39.95
Prebook: 10/21/08
Street date: 11/18/08

THE MAN WHO FELL TO EARTH (BLU-RAY)

The Man Who Fell to Earth is a daring exploration of science fiction as an art form. The story of an alien on an elaborate rescue mission provides the launching pad for Nicolas Roeg’s visual tour de force, a formally adventurous examination of alienation in contemporary life. Rock legend David Bowie, in his acting debut, completely embodies the title role, while Candy Clark, Buck Henry, and Rip Torn turn in terrific supporting performances. The film’s hallucinatory vision was obscured in the American theatrical release, which deleted nearly twenty minutes of crucial scenes and details. The Criterion Collection is proud to present Roeg’s full uncut version, in this exclusive director-approved high-definition widescreen transfer.

Info
• Directed by Nicolas Roeg (Walkabout, Don’t Look Now, Bad Timing)
• Starring David Bowie (Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars, The Last Temptation of Christ, The Prestige)
• Starring Rip Torn (Cross Creek, Tropic of Cancer, The Larry Sanders Show)
• Cinematography by Anthony RIchmond (Walkabout, Don’t Look Now, Bad Timing)

DIRECTOR-APPROVED BLU-RAY EDITION FEATURES:
• High-definition digital transfer, supervised and approved by director Nicolas Roeg
• Uncompressed stereo soundtrack
• Audio commentary by Roeg and actors David Bowie and Buck Henry
• Video interview with screenwriter Paul Mayersberg
• Performance, video interviews with actors Candy Clark and
Rip Torn
• Audio interviews with costume designer May Routh and production designer Brian Eatwell
• Audio interview from 1984 with author Walter Tevis, conducted by Don Swaim
• Multiple stills galleries, including Routh’s costume sketches; behind-the-scenes photos; and production and publicity stills, introduced by set photographer David James
• Gallery of posters from Roeg’s films
• Trailers
• PLUS: A booklet featuring an essay by critic Graham Fuller

Title: The Man Who Fell to Earth (Blu-ray)
CAT: CC1781BD
UPC: 7-15515-03412-8
ISBN: 978-1-60465-103-4
SRP: $39.95
Prebook: 10/21/08
Street date: 11/18/08

THE LAST EMPEROR (BLU-RAY)

Bernardo Bertolucci’s The Last Emperor won nine Academy Awards, unexpectedly sweeping every category in which it was nominated—quite a feat for a challenging, multilayered epic directed by an Italian and starring an international cast. Yet the power and scope of the film was, and remains, undeniable—the life of Emperor Pu Yi, who took the throne at age three, in 1908, before witnessing decades of cultural and political upheaval, within and without the walls of the Forbidden City. Recreating Ching-dynasty China with astonishing detail and unparalleled craftsmanship by cinematographer Vittorio Storaro and production designer Ferdinando Scarfiotti, The Last Emperor is also an intimate character study of one man reconciling personal responsibility and political legacy.

Info
• Directed by Bernardo Bertolucci (Le commare secca, The Conformist, Last Tango
in Paris)
• Starring John Lone (Year of the Dragon, M Butterfly, War)
• Starring Joan Chen (Twin Peaks, Heaven and Earth, Lust Caution)
• Starring Peter O’Toole (Lawrence of Arabia, The Ruling Class, My Favorite Year)
• Cinematography by Vittorio Storaro (The Conformist, Apocalypse Now, Reds)

Title: The Last Emperor (Blu-ray)
CAT: CC1779BD
UPC: 7-15515-03372-5
ISBN: 978-1-60465-095-2
SRP: $39.95
Prebook: 10/21/08
Street date: 11/18/08
Pro-B

Drexl 08-17-08 02:41 AM

Well, that's cool that they're doing lossless on all of them. They should be great.

Gizmo 08-17-08 10:59 AM

Phew. DTS MA for Bottle Rocket. Too bad there is no additional BD Exclusive features.

NoirFan 08-17-08 11:13 AM

So, the BD of Chungking Express won't include the Moving Pictures episode excerpt, or would that fall under the category of "More"?

tylergfoster 08-17-08 11:43 AM

I was hoping the BD of Bottle Rocket might slip in the Theatrical Trailer as well.

NoirFan 08-17-08 11:07 PM

Is the cover art for The Man Who Fell to Earth and The Third Man on DVD Beaver's home page correct? If so, those b's are really intrusive - they look like handicap parking signs.

Rizor 08-17-08 11:27 PM


Originally Posted by NoirFan (Post 8881583)
Is the cover art for The Man Who Fell to Earth and The Third Man on DVD Beaver's home page correct? If so, those b's are really intrusive - they look like handicap parking signs.

If anything, they'll probably be stickers.

dkny75 08-18-08 11:57 AM

:drool:All five of them will be mine!:drool:

Giles 08-18-08 12:22 PM


Originally Posted by pro-bassoonist (Post 8880420)
Courtesy of Ron Epstein

Official specs with highlighted relevant info:



Pro-B

'Last Emperor' does have 5.1 right? no audio specs are included in your quote.

Was the theatrical 70mm/6-Track soundmix with discrete stereo surround sound, or five channel screen mix (left, left-center, center, right-center, right + mono surrounds)

bunkaroo 08-18-08 12:43 PM


Originally Posted by Giles (Post 8882281)
'Last Emperor' does have 5.1 right? no audio specs are included in your quote.

Was the theatrical 70mm/6-Track soundmix with discrete stereo surround sound, or five channel screen mix (left, left-center, center, right-center, right + mono surrounds)

The press release posted at Blu Ray dot com seems to suggest Last Emperor will have DTS-HD MA 2.0.

NoirFan 08-18-08 12:48 PM


Originally Posted by PopcornTreeCt
Looks like they're doing away with spine numbers. Very good.

But...why collect them then? On Criterion's Blu-ray page, 'Blu-Ray' is listed in the spot where the spine number for the SD titles usually is.

Giles 08-18-08 01:14 PM


Originally Posted by bunkaroo (Post 8882325)
The press release posted at Blu Ray dot com seems to suggest Last Emperor will have DTS-HD MA 2.0.

and then checking out Criterion's website it states:

Film Info
1987
165 minutes
Color
2.00:1
DTS (5.1)
Anamorphic
English

hmmm

??

pro-bassoonist 08-18-08 02:46 PM


Originally Posted by Giles (Post 8882281)
'Last Emperor' does have 5.1 right? no audio specs are included in your quote.

Was the theatrical 70mm/6-Track soundmix with discrete stereo surround sound, or five channel screen mix (left, left-center, center, right-center, right + mono surrounds)

Giles,

This is what is currently in circulation (I am going to look for a confirmation that Bertolucci's film is indeed planned with 2.0 or 5.1):

****
Sound specs:

Bottle Rocket: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1
Chunking Express (Chung Hing sam lam): DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1
The Last Emperor: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1
The Man Who Fell To Earth: Uncompressed Stereo
The Third Man: Uncompressed Mono

Pro-B

clckworang 08-18-08 03:02 PM

And I guess that means that we're only getting the one cut of The Last Emperor? I would be pretty shocked if Criterion drops the ball and doesn't offer the extended TV cut on the Blu-ray as well. But either way, I know I'll be picking all of these up.


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