Variant Editions of Criterion Films (DVD, BD, EAH)

[Gregory]

Yep, and in the case of Down by Law there was a gap of nearly two years between the price drop and the blu upgrade. If one considers the Colonel Blimp example relevant, then that was more like three years between the EAH release and the looming blu announcement. My point here was not that a blu upgrade is never coming for Spirit of the Beehive, just that it now looks like it will likely be some time longer before we see it and, moreover, that makes me sad. If there's a case of Criterion dropping a DVD price and then announcing a blu upgrade within, say, a year, I'd be interested to know about it.

[Jeff]

Then again, we could see a Blu-ray upgrade of the existing Spirit of the Beehive package announced for February. Could be that they're just repricing and repackaging the standard DVD in advance so that it will follow the current model of $30 DVDs and $40 Blu-rays.

[triodelover]

Yep, and in the case of Down by Law there was a gap of nearly two years between the price drop and the blu upgrade. If one considers the Colonel Blimp example relevant, then that was more like three years between the EAH release and the looming blu announcement. My point here was not that a blu upgrade is never coming for Spirit of the Beehive, just that it now looks like it will likely be some time longer before we see it and, moreover, that makes me sad. If there's a case of Criterion dropping a DVD price and then announcing a blu upgrade within, say, a year, I'd be interested to know about it.

Fools walk in where angels fear to tread, but I think that the situations for Spirit of the Beehive and Blimp are somewhat different. I seem to recall that there was a FF presentation of a different P&P (can't recall which) at which Thelma Schoonmaker was asked about Blimp. I think that was in 2009, which coincides roughly with the EAH reissue. She mentioned that a resto was in progress and all of us here got quite excited. That 4K resto has finally happened - 3 years on - and we've just seen the first BD release in the UK. The CC is sure to follow in 2013.

Spirit OTOH has just seen a package/price revision that coincides (again roughly) with the release of a Spanish BD in 2012. Our own MichaelB has seen it and reported that the quality is quite good for the inexpensive price point. But the good news is that it appears that the elements for a BD release are available now. If Criterion intend an upgrade, surely the lag won't be so great given the availability. (Of course, with Saura's Cria Cuervos due for a DF BFI release next May, it's possible that that title will precede the Erice on CC's schedule.)

[henin]

Is there somewhere on the site here that lists all the content changes when Criterion re-releases DVDs? With each new Blu-ray release of a film I have, I always find myself wondering if they've introduced new content on the DVD(s).

[Matt]

You're soaking in it, or at least the closest thing we have to it.

[duck duck]

As to content change with releases, there are a few exceptions but if the cover changes there is at least a new transfer. The most frequent and subtle of changes is dropping essays from the printed book. Also, BLU releases of existing releases sometimes don't have everything a 2 DVD set did but usually something minor like photo gallery.
If you look on Criterion's site it will say in the supplements if something is DVD or BLU only.

[jindianajonz]

This is a list where later editions of Criterion DVDs and blu-rays ommitted some sort of feature that was present in earlier editions. Please post about anything that may be missing from the list; I will try to keep it updated.

2: Seven Samurai: Early editions of the DVD contained a restoration demonstration.
5: The 400 Blows: Original DVD contains a french commentary that is not included on the updated DVD or blu-ray, nor in the Adventures of Antoine Doinel box set.
6: Beauty and the Beast: The original DVD has a color booklet while the Blu-ray release has a black and white booklet. The original DVD release included a feature "Cinematic Eye: Angel of Space and Time" that wasn't included on the updated DVD or the blu-ray.
51: Brazil: The blu-ray and DVDs have different essays.
56: 39 Steps: Old DVD contained featurette not on the upgrade.
57: Charade: DVD contains interactive essay not on the blu-ray.
64: The Third Man: DVD includes essays not present on the blu-ray.
70: The Last Temtation of Christ: DVD includes a stills gallery not present on the blu-ray.
123: Grey Gardens: The Blu-ray includes spine 361 The Beales of Grey Gardens, but omits the filmography and the essay by Michael Musto
169: Monterey Pop: The DVD includes an article not present on the blu-ray.
147: In the Mood for Love: DVD contains interactive essay not on the blu-ray.
175: Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas: Early DVD editions came in a digipack with a transparent slipcase with part of the cover art printed on it.
216: Rules of the Game: Early DVD editions came in a digipack with a transparent blue slipcase.
261: Fanny and Alexander: The DVD contains video introductions by Bergman not included on the blu-ray.
265: Short Cuts: Early versions of the DVD included a copy of the source novel.
304: The Man Who Fell to Earth: The DVD contains a copy of the source novel.
351: Spirit of the Beehive: Early editions of the DVD came in a digipack
359: Double Life of Veronique: The DVD contains an essay not included on the blu-ray.
414: Two-Lane Blacktop: Early versions of the DVD included a copy of the screenplay.
422: The Last Emperor: The 4-disc DVD edition includes a television version of the film not included on the blu-ray.
476: Curious Case of Benjamin Button: Early versions of the DVD and Blu-ray contained a cardboard sleeve.

[The Narrator Returns]

Plenty of Blu-Ray upgrades cut down on the stills gallery (Last Temptation of Christ comes to mind). The Third Man is missing a few essays, and Fanny and Alexander loses the Bergman introductions.

[vsski]

A few more that come to mind:

The Double Life of Veronique Blu loses some of the articles in the DVD book(let)
The packaging for Brazil is entirely different and the essay that comes with the Blu is different from the DVD
One of the articles for Monterey Pop got dropped on the BD package

Then there are some differences as to how some extras on DVDs got "upgraded" to BDs, like on Wages of Fear where the censored feature is shown differently on the BD (although covers the same ground).

I know there are several others, but I would have to go through my list one by one to find them all.

[jindianajonz]

Thanks guys! I've edited my post to try and keep a running list of these things; if there's something I'm missing or have wrong, please let me know!

[manicsounds]

The 39 Steps DVD had a featurette not on the upgrade
Charade and In The Mood For Love DVDs had interactive essays no on BDs

[jindianajonz]

Thanks!

[The Narrator Returns]

The original DVD of The 400 Blows features a commentary that's not on any future releases.

[domino harvey]

Wasn't it unsubtitled though?

[The Narrator Returns]

Yes. So, it's not even valuable to the kind of people who dropped hundreds of dollars for the version of Seven Samurai with the restoration demo.

[Charles]

Beauty and the Beast:

BD booklet is B&W, omitting a couple of subtle (and nice) color tints, and has some different contents from the DVD booklet - in addition to just feeling cheaper.

I was actually so torn about giving up the DVD booklet for the BD one that I finally kept it to store happily alongside the BD, and gave the DVD disc and case to a friend who loves the film but has no particular interest in CC or booklets.

Both the DVD and BD omit the laserdisc feature Cinematic Eye: Angel of Space and Time, from a TV educational or documentary series.

[dwk]

Cinematic Eye: Angel of Space and Time was on the first Beauty and the Beast DVD

[Charles]

Ah, thanks -- never had that one.

[jindianajonz]

Thanks guys! I'm not as interested in things that weren't ported over from laserdisc. Instead, I am trying to use this to figure out which version of a film I want to buy. I had to buy Short Cuts twice because I didn't realize that there was a release that included the book, and the book on Man Who Fell to Earth helped me save some money by convincing me the cheaper DVD version was actually better for me than the blu-ray.

[duck duck]

Anyone know what the deal with this is on the Cassavetes set:
"Al Ruban on Lighting and Shooting “Faces,” a new video program featuring commentary by Ruban (Blu-ray); Lighting and Shooting the Film, an on-screen essay by Ruban, illustrated with video clips, that discusses the techniques and equipment used on Faces (DVD)"
Also, I'll randomly guess the BLU doesn't include the hidden "Jimmy Crack Corn"