Radiance Films General Discussion & Wishlist

[swo17]

That's fair about Angelopoulos--the AEs can be improved upon, but presumably if it were that easy they'd have done it themselves. For Pialat though, the only mentions I see here (including my own) are for heretofore unreleased films. And it's hard to know what the market really is there. I know MoC didn't think it would be worth the effort to upgrade, but then five of the titles were subsequently upgraded in the U.S., with the addition of one that MoC hadn't gotten around to (Loulou).

EDIT: And of course I was just proven wrong below. I was only thinking of the US and UK markets

[Calvin]

Pialat - La maison des bois, Le Garcu

Le Garcu is available from Gaumont with English subtitles

[FrauBlucher]

Well, here's hoping that Radiance takes a swing at Angelopoulos much like Arbelos did with Tarr.

[dvdglr]

Since we are adding wishlists, here is mine:

Raoul Ruíz - City of Pirates
Luc Moullet - Anatomy of a Relationship
Jacques Rozier - Adieu Philipine
Manoel de Oliveira - Doomed Love

For the above directors, some sort of box set would make the most sense and in the case of Moullet and Rozier, upgrades to the previous box sets on blu-ray would be ideal.

Benoît Jacquot - The Musician Killer
Luigi Comencini - The Scopone Game (Lo scopone scientifico) as well as his The Adventures of Pinocchio (1972) miniseries + film version
René Allio - I, Pierre Rivière, Having Slaughtered My Mother, My Sister and My Brother…
Paul Vecchiali - Femmes Femmes
Werner Schroeter - The Kingdom of Naples
Danielle Jaeggi - La Fille de Prague avec un sac très lourd
Pascal Kane - Dora and the Magic Lantern (Dora et la lanterne magique)
Hans-Jürgen Syberberg - Ludwig: Requiem for a Virgin King (or any of his German trilogy)
Marco Bellochio - In the Name of the Father

[Tommaso]

Let me chime in with asking for more Makhmalbaf. I didn't realise that the Arrow set apparently sold so poorly, but the films on it are all masterpieces, with "Gabbeh" being one of the most beautiful films I've ever seen. No idea whether other films of his or his daughters/wife would have been more accessible, but as many of these had at least DVD releases via Artificial Eye, it would be great if the new company could get something that hasn't been officially available in Europe in any form. For instance, Marzieh Meshkini's (Marzieh Makhmalbaf's) "The Man who came with the snow" doesn't even seem to be available in the backchannels, nor does Mohsen's latest "Marghe and her Mother". I have no idea of course how good these are, but so far nothing from the Makhmalbaf family has seriously disappointed me.

Otherwise, I would plead for a look at the films of Daniel Schmid, and especially at his 'maudit' work "Schatten der Engel" (1976), which is based on Fassbinder's play "Der Müll, die Stadt und der Tod" and features RWF himself in one the main roles, as well as other Fassbinder regulars like Ingrid Caven, Irm Hermann and Klaus Löwitsch. It's as stylish and intense as any of Fassbinder's very best films but it seems to be completely unreleasable at least in Germany in the current 'politically correct' climate because of the play's alleged antisemitism (an accusation which is complete nonsense in my view, but many people obviously have no idea that lines spoken by characters don't necessarily express the view of the author). Anyway, this one would really fill a large gap in the Fassbinder catalogue and I'm sure it would be hailed as a major rediscovery by many people here. If someone has any doubts: there's an unsubbed old TV recording on youtube here.

And talking about German cinema of the 1970s/80s (and onwards): I know I sound like a broken record, but someone must convince Ulrike Ottinger to license some of her works to more 'normal' and affordable distribution channels. Blurays of "Bildnis einer Trinkerin" or "Dorian Gray" would be a major coup for any label, at least for the sake of art (though probably not for the sake of major sales). I'm not even dreaming of blus of any of her long-form ethnographic documentaries (well, actually I do...)

And in the same vein of ultra-stylish, new-wave cinema: yes, a good blu of Greenaway's "The Baby of Macon" would be fine, but even more desirable would be "Prospero's Books" (and someone should also release the complete "Tulse Luper Suitcases" films, as the Australian Madman release probably flew under most people's radar and I'm not sure whether it's still available anyhow...).

And finally, and completely unlikely, not just because of Putin's war: the films of Russian director and actress Renata Litvinova. Visually ravishing and complex cinema very much in the tradition of Muratova (unsurprisingly) but perhaps even more stylised and mannerist. I loved her latest "The North Wind" especially.

[ryannichols7]

isn't there something to be said though about a label that will already have a built in fanbase (Fran already reached 2K twitter followers in as many days, people know what to expect from him) who may be willing to take more risks on films if they're being treated with top care and in a more loving package than they may have gotten before? I feel more people are willing to blind buy from a label like second run (I know I am - Luminous Procuress isn't up my alley but I'll still be getting it because I trust them) due to the dedication of their films. I feel like this would be the case with Radiance as well. so sure, Angelopoulos didn't sell for AE, but I cannot imagine AE gets nearly the brand loyalty or blind buying that Fran would get, nor do they generally package lavish editions - they largely want to get contemporary films out there in affordable editions, which they do great at. I just don't expect them to carry classics and deep cuts nearly as well, even though they do here and there. I think it's unfair to shut down a work/filmography (which doesn't have an in print English friendly release at all), purely based on sales numbers. whenever we see Criterion or Indicator bring out a movie it usually goes back into the greater conversation and reach of a much wider audience as it had previously. "slow cinema" is very much in style at the moment, and I do often see film twitter kids calling for his films, among others.

but again, I know it's all about money and margins..

Well, here's hoping that Radiance takes a swing at Angelopoulos much like Arbelos did with Tarr.

and this seems to have gone okay for them. Damnation hasn't sold out, sure, but Satantango did, and at a pretty good rate.

Let me chime in with asking for more Makhmalbaf. I didn't realise that the Arrow set apparently sold so poorly, but the films on it are all masterpieces, with "Gabbeh" being one of the most beautiful films I've ever seen. No idea whether other films of his or his daughters/wife would have been more accessible, but as many of these had at least DVD releases via Artificial Eye, it would be great if the new company could get something that hasn't been officially available in Europe in any form. For instance, Marzieh Meshkini's (Marzieh Makhmalbaf's) "The Man who came with the snow" doesn't even seem to be available in the backchannels, nor does Mohsen's latest "Marghe and her Mother". I have no idea of course how good these are, but so far nothing from the Makhmalbaf family has seriously disappointed me.

I'm not sure if they sold that poorly, someone else may know better. but considering my copy didn't come with a booklet, it must've sold well enough to reach a second print run! similarly their Kore-eda and Zhangke boxsets sold out of their LEs which fetch high numbers on eBay. there is a market, however limited it is

[swo17]

Re: Makhmalbaf, at the very least, Moment of Innocence is the clear critical/popular standout among his filmography--so much so that I truly am baffled that Arrow didn't start there (grateful as I am to have the trilogy)--and The Cyclist would seem to have a built-in audience given its connection to Close-Up. Although to be honest, I've only seen about half a dozen of his films and would welcome the chance to dive deeper

[dvdglr]

Would love to see more Mohsen Makhmalbaf. How about his daughter, Samira Makhmalbaf's film The Apple?

[zedz]

Re: Makhmalbaf, at the very least, Moment of Innocence is the clear critical/popular standout among his filmography--so much so that I truly am baffled that Arrow didn't start there (grateful as I am to have the trilogy)

This would be a great choice. His preceding film Salaam Cinema is also intensely self-reflexive and would make a great supporting / double feature.

[Yakushima]

I'll second Dead Man's Letters, Industrial Symphony, Russell's Salome's Last Dance, films by Erice, Moodysson, Iosseliani, Angelopoulos.

One more suggestion: Masahiro Shinoda Under the Blossoming Cherry Trees / Sakura no mori no mankai no shita (1975)

Fantastic news about Warm Water Under a Red Bridge getting a Blu-ray release from Film Movement, I completely missed that.

[Vegeta84]

One more suggestion: Masahiro Shinoda Under the Blossoming Cherry Trees / Sakura no mori no mankai no shita (1975)

I wish Criterion would hurry and release this one.

[Vegeta84]

Edit: Also I really doubt they'll do US and UK. I mean just look at how long it took Arrow and Indicator to start doing that.

Well, they haven't mentioned anything about being UK only at the moment, so that makes me think they are trying to make something happen in the US as well. We'll see.

[swo17]

That makes me wonder whether Radiance would be looking for investors like Arrow got when they expanded into the U.S. (i.e. pay several thousand dollars in exchange for a copy of every release for the first ten years)

[kompromiss]

More films of Marco Ferreri would be great, and especially "Tales of Ordinary Madness".

[RitrovataBlue]

It's always exciting to see a new label explicitly focus on deep-cut cinephile films. To add to the wish lists posted above, I'd love to see films by:

Susumu Hani
Shuji Terayama
Yoshishige Yoshida
Koji Wakamatsu
Hiroshi Shimizu
Toshio Matsumoto
Mani Kaul
Tsai Ming-liang
Jean Epstein
Mohsen and Samira Makhmalbaf
Raul Ruiz
António Reis

[Stefan Andersson]

Pialat - La maison des bois, Le Garcu

Le Garcu is available from Gaumont with English subtitles

Thanks, must have missed that info about the English-friendly Le Garcu!

[Robin Davies]

To join in the fun, I second (or third) calls for earlier Edward Yang and Alan Rudolph. Also not sure how well known he is outside of Australia, but a collection of early Paul Cox (e.g. Man of Flowers, My First Wife) would be a dream come true.

Paul Cox is a fantastic suggestion. You can’t purchase many for non-institutional use. He’s an amazing artist in the pantheon of Australian and Dutch cinema

Another vote for Paul Cox.

[Finch]

I'd like to see Shadows of Forgotten Ancestors to be upgraded if the rights are up for grabs.

[Orlac]

Some Nabuo Nakagawa would be nice!

[Jean-Luc Garbo]

I'd love to see them release Ishii's Angel Dust (or even the whole trilogy). Or also more Paul Cox.

[beamish14]

I'd like to see Shadows of Forgotten Ancestors to be upgraded if the rights are up for grabs.

Still Kino Lorber

[beamish14]

More films of Marco Ferreri would be great, and especially "Tales of Ordinary Madness".

That reminds me of another underrated Gazzara film: Giuseppe Tornatore’s debut, Il Camorrista

[Furstemberg]

So I'm probably not going to be doing...Golden Age Hollywood stuff

-_-

[ryannichols7]

I'd like to see Shadows of Forgotten Ancestors to be upgraded if the rights are up for grabs.

Still Kino Lorber

...in the US. I believe it's fair game in the UK

[Vegeta84]

That makes me wonder whether Radiance would be looking for investors like Arrow got when they expanded into the U.S. (i.e. pay several thousand dollars in exchange for a copy of every release for the first ten years)

I guess that's possible. 88 and Indicator didn't need investors to release films over here, and I would Francesco understands the infrastructure of the US now since Arrow has been dealing with US releases since 2015.