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Street date: 8/23
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Jean Renoir's comedy of the classes was not always as well regarded as it is today: in an archival interview included on the disc, Renoir reveals that the film was so poorly received upon its release, in 1932, that it had to be pulled from theaters after only three days. So shocked were audiences by the déclassé behavior of Michel Simon as the tramp Boudu, that riots nearly broke out at every screening, necessitating daily calls to the police. The now beloved film didn't make its U.S. premiere until February 1967, thirty-five years after it was made. |
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Street date: 8/23
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Upon its release, in 1950, cinematic pioneer Roberto Rossellini's unconventional portrayal of a very human Saint Francis of Assisi unsurprisingly stirred some controversy within the church. In a new video interview on the disc, film critic Father Virgilio Fantuzzi tells of a private screening held by Rossellini for Monsignor Roncalli, who would later become Pope John XXIII. As they were viewing the film, Roncalli stroked the great director's sleeve and repeated to him, "Poor man, you don't know what you've done." |
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Street date: 8/23
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Masaki Kobayashi's iconoclastic samurai film tells the story of a ronin who takes revenge on a corrupt clan, culminating in a fight with dozens of foes. In an exclusive new video interview for this release, star and swordplay film icon Tatsuya Nakadai reveals that most Japanese films shot in the 1960s used real blades in their swordfighting scenes. The authentic weight of the blade added credibility to the fights, he explains, as well as some hair-raising moments while shooting a key duel! |
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The only film noir (that we know of) about apples and overland trucking, Jules Dassin's Thieves' Highway was a real discovery for many of us here. One of Dassin's lesser-known films, the title was presented to us by Twentieth Century Fox at a time when we were discussing licensing a package of titles from them, including Dassin's classic Night and the City. Fox had received word from Steven Spielberg that Thieves' Highway was one of his favorite films and that he was looking forward to a DVD edition. They asked us to include it in our deal, and when we saw the white-knuckled, hard-boiled thriller, we were delighted to oblige!
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Rebel Samurai: Sixties Swordplay Classics
Four-disc collector's set featuring Samurai Rebellion,
Sword of the Beast, Samurai Spy, and Kill! |
For further information on Criterion and our products, please visit our website at www.criterionco.com
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©2005 The Criterion Collection
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We were delighted to hear from Tom Fleming and Bill Couture, who work at a Milwaukee Barnes & Noble, where they've designed and built a Criterion display that features the entire collection. Thanks to Tom and Bill for their dedication, and for sending us a photo of their achievement! Click here to see it.
We've received a few letters expressing confusion about the two versions of The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou. We worked closely on the title with Disney, the film's studio and distributor, and the company wanted to make sure there were two releases—a single disc and the double-disc special edition. There isn't a big difference in retail price between the two, and some retailers are carrying only one edition. If you plan to purchase this DVD, please be sure to check the packaging carefully to ensure you are getting the version you want; unfortunately, we can't make exchanges between the two. Take a look at our website to see the complete contents of both releases. |
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| "Risk and Reinvention: The Films of Louis Malle”—a retrospective of the work of the revered French filmmaker—will be traveling to several cities this month, having completed a successful run at New York's Film Society of Lincoln Center. The Cinematheque Ontario is currently running a program of the narrative features, which continues through August 20. In the Bay Area, half the series will be presented from August 11 to 24, at the Balboa in San Francisco, while the other half will screen at the Pacific Film Archive, in Berkeley, from August 4 to 28. And, finally, Malle's Murmur of the Heart will get an individual screening on August 30 at the Guild Hall Cinema, in East Hampton, New York, where Candice Bergen will introduce the film. |
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Recipient of a special New York Film Critic’s Circle award for “visionary programming,” Bruce Goldstein is Repertory Program Director of New York’s Film Forum, for which he has created more than 350 film festivals and spearheaded the re-releases of more than one thousand classic films, all in new 35mm prints. In 1997, he founded Rialto Pictures, a distribution company specializing in the classic re-releases. Because few have done more for classic film than Mr. Goldstein, we asked him to pick his ten favorite non-Rialto Criterion titles.
Here is his list:
The 39 Steps
The 400 Blows
À nous la liberté &
Le million (tie)
Big Deal on Madonna Street
& Divorce Italian Style (tie)
Great Expectations
The Honeymoon Killers
Night and the City
Port of Shadows
Stray Dog
Sullivan's Travels
Trouble in Paradise
For Goldstein's comments on these films, click here.
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