Criterion Discussion and Random Speculation Volume 7

[beamish14]

I'm actually stunned K-Pop Demon Hunters is happening but hey, why not? if anything this further shows that Netflix is willing to license just about anything to Criterion, which I know was a concern for a lot of people

so anyway, The Other Side of the Wind...

I’m still stunned that Shirkers isn’t there. One of THE great hidden gems on Netflix and there could be some amazing supplements

[Altair]

Still does have a 'jumping the shark' feel to it... Is there any coherency to the curation of the collection with this?

[CSM126]

Still does have a 'jumping the shark' feel to it... Is there any coherency to the curation of the collection with this?

If this is jumping the shark then so was the Akira laserdisc back in the day cuz that movie is hot garbage with no artistic merit. But it is popular and they probably sold a lot of copies.

Unless you’re the type who arbitrarily decided that you are obligated to own every CC release this is, at worst, ignorable.

[Zot!]

Still does have a 'jumping the shark' feel to it... Is there any coherency to the curation of the collection with this?

I think Armageddon already holds that distinction, I think you can argue that Demon Hunters is some convergence of where popular cinema is today. I also think it's a fun meta-riposte to the spine # completists.

Akira? That was a very reasonable inclusion in an era where anime was probably more fringe than the Seventh Seal. I also think more of it than you, but it certainly wasn't a CA$HGRAB situation at the time.

[What A Disgrace]

I keep hoping that Criterion will give a physical release for Age of Resistance somehow, but I suppose Shout! is the more obvious home for the show.

[DimitriL]

What is the source for this information? The Variety article just says "Guillermo del Toro’s “Frankenstein” and “KPop Demon Hunters” have been added to the Criterion Collection." In addition to the wording being inaccurate (they have not "been added," at least not yet) there is no proof verifying this.

Variety.

https://variety.com/2026/film/news/kpo ... 236670172/

[swo17]

ianthemovie was asking for Variety's source.

I agree the wording in the article is confusing but what other interpretation is there besides "coming soon on disc"? The only other possibility might be "premiering on Criterion Channel" but what would be the point of that--what percentage of streamers subscribe to CC but not Netflix?

[ianthemovie]

Yes, thank you, swo. The article doesn't provide any quotes, links, or anything else to substantiate what is being presented as a definitive fact (that has somehow already happened).

Sounds like Variety has a track record of being right about identifying other future releases from Criterion, and given Criterion's close relationship with del Toro and Netflix it's likely true, but still seems like this should be taken with some salt.

[beamish14]

Still does have a 'jumping the shark' feel to it... Is there any coherency to the curation of the collection with this?

If this is jumping the shark then so was the Akira laserdisc back in the day cuz that movie is hot garbage with no artistic merit.

Some serious fighting words there!

Actually, Akira possibly would’ve had a chance to enter the collection today if Miramax had not declined to distribute it in 1989

[Altair]

Still does have a 'jumping the shark' feel to it... Is there any coherency to the curation of the collection with this?

I think Armageddon already holds that distinction, I think you can argue that Demon Hunters is some convergence of where popular cinema is today. I also think it's a fun meta-riposte to the spine # completists.

Akira? That was a very reasonable inclusion in an era where anime was probably more fringe than the Seventh Seal. I also think more of it than you, but it certainly wasn't a CA$HGRAB situation at the time.

Armageddon is always trotted out, as are a variety of laser-disc releases of mainstream Hollywood films, although the very fact that it's so commonly invoked shows what an outlier it is, in terms of the majority of the collection.

I suppose it leads to the question - is there any film that you wouldn't want included, outside of personal preference? Is there not a strength in Criterion having a coherent identity to its releases, beyond 'well, we can license it and it will sell well'? No one seems to be advocating for K-Pop Demon Hunters' inclusion here on its aesthetic merits.

Arrow is an example of a label whose identity and releases have shifted significantly over time and not, in my view, for the better.

[Zot!]

I suppose it leads to the question - is there any film that you wouldn't want included, outside of personal preference? Is there not a strength in Criterion having a coherent identity to its releases, beyond 'well, we can license it and it will sell well'?

I mean it would be nice, but once you get past all the typical Janus dinosaurs, you may as well close up shop. So I'm fine them proliferating with all sorts of definitions of what is worthy. Some of which I find very silly. Personally, having grown up with the laserdisc era, It was easy not to take it seriously as a "collection", because they were VERY costly, and completist-types were mostly unheard of. Even today, I buy probably 5% of their releases, if that...even then I often buy the Region 2 version if it is superior.

[Altair]

Similarly, I am not a completist and will buy alternative editions if they're superior; but I would just say the Janus 'dinosaurs' are part of what characterises the archetypal Criterion release, rather than Michael Bay films. Criterion has released lots of film I don't enjoy and haven't bought, but at the same time I understand the reason they're releasing them and see how they fit into a larger picture about what makes Criterion distinctive from other independent (and studio) labels. If the only reason they're releasing K-Pop Demon Hunters is because it will make them money, then we should treat their cynicism with our own cynicism (the fact that Criterion is now the wealthiest and best resourced label in the world - its owner, Steven Rales, has an estimated worth of $8.9bn - means that the rationale of releasing a money-spinner seems even hollower).

[hearthesilence]

Oh no they’re going to release something that will sell bucket loads and subsidize some board darling that won’t sell hardly at all. It’s almost like they’ve been using this formula since the 1980s.

If we could only go back to shaking our pitchforks at Netflix as we accuse them of doing away with physical media.

[Zot!]

I agree that if they shed their prestige Janus marquee titles, they would totally lose their distinctive appeal. It's kind of like everything else they peddle is sort of based on a Venn diagram of the Bergman/Kurosawa/Fellini/etc... spheres of influence. I totally forgot that they're part of the military industrial complex now, but it is a very valid argument that some of this "evolution" might be shoehorned to pad the bottom line.

[dwk]

Disney approached Criterion about doing the two Bay films, so it is very possible that Netflix asked Criterion to do K-Pop Demon Hunters. Who knows, maybe it'll get Netflix to finally OK The Other Side of the Wind

[bad future]

Yes, thank you, swo. The article doesn't provide any quotes, links, or anything else to substantiate what is being presented as a definitive fact (that has somehow already happened).

Sounds like Variety has a track record of being right about identifying other future releases from Criterion, and given Criterion's close relationship with del Toro and Netflix it's likely true, but still seems like this should be taken with some salt.

Some reports from trades feel to me more like press releases with a fig leaf pretense of reporting, and these announcements of Criterion releases for Netflix or Neon films definitely qualify, i.e. I get the feeling the source is just the marketing department of one of the companies in question. A compromise perhaps between the distributor wanting the minor prestige of the association and Criterion having their own more patient and theoretically egalitarian approach to title announcements, wherein they don't have to risk seeming quite so much like they're prioritizing recent hits over their bread and butter. Obviously I could be totally wrong, though!

[Mr.DarjeelingLimited]

I imagine this is a deal where they get to put out more Netflix films that were being kept away from them in exchange for a Kpop Demon Hunters release. Either way it’s a win/win. Both companies will make a lot of money. Netflix shows it will likely still do physical with Warner and Criterion gets a lot of money for future dream releases they’ve been dying to do.

[Lowry_Sam]

Who knows, maybe it'll get Netflix to finally OK The Other Side of the Wind

Or even better, the 7+ hr. Napoleon (1927) on UHD for it’s 100th anniversary.

[thelberg]

I suppose it leads to the question - is there any film that you wouldn't want included, outside of personal preference? Is there not a strength in Criterion having a coherent identity to its releases, beyond 'well, we can license it and it will sell well'? No one seems to be advocating for K-Pop Demon Hunters' inclusion here on its aesthetic merits.

I would go to bat for K-Pop Demon Hunters’ merits as an exemplary example of contemporary studio animation. Beyond K-Pop aesthetics, its animation is influenced by anime and presents itself in a really visually appealing way. The film also functions perfectly as a musical with succinct storytelling. Each number advances or extrapolates emotions or plot points but it feels like watching a concert film and/or music video rather than characters suddenly breaking into a song and dance number. I could go on about it but it’s one film my kids want to watch over and over and I don’t mind watching with them.

[Peter McM]

Criterion will do this K-Pop thing; why have they never released Sorrentino's The Hand of God?

[MichaelB]

Given the general paucity of 21st-century films in their catalogue, why that specific film?

[ellipsis7]

Criterion will do this K-Pop thing; why have they never released Sorrentino's The Hand of God?

Quite simply, I believe Netflix hold worldwide distribution rights, so it can be easily streamed but is not readily available on physical media, even in Italy...

[MichaelB]

Ah, that makes sense.

[The Fanciful Norwegian]

If KPop Demon Hunters news is real, my guess is one of the topline folks involved with it (the directors and/or the producer) pushed for it. My working theory on Netflix licenses is that they happen at the behest of the filmmakers and this is definitely a case where Netflix would bend over backwards to bring them into the fold (from what I can tell they're all still currently employed at Sony, but I'm sure Netflix will be sending dumptrucks of money their way whenever their Sony deals expire).

On the broader subject of Criterion releases that brought out charges of the collection's curatorial standards going out the window, before the Michael Bay titles there was a fuss about This Is Spinal Tap, and in the early DVD era you had a freakout over the Beastie Boys anthology.

[Maltic]

What's the deal with all the Del Toro films?