The Complete Kubrick

[beamish14]

Someone on reddit asked Criterion about the behind the scenes footage of Full Metal Jacket and posted Criterion's response

“The “18 hours of footage” you’re referring to is unedited, unsynchronized 16MM material that was shot by Vivian Kubrick around the filming of Full Metal Jacket. This footage was not made available to us, however, Criterion were granted permission to include a short excerpt of largely unseen behind-the-scenes material, edited in 2005 by filmmaker and musician Katie deVidas, that was part of the touring Stanley Kubrick Exhibition organized by the German Film Museum and the Stanley Kubrick Archive. This excerpt is unique material that is different from the behind-the-scenes Full Metal Jacket footage featured in Stanley Kubrick’s Boxes and Jan Harlan’s Stanley Kubrick: Life In Pictures and not available on previous home video editions.”

I remember some of these clips. Kubrick actually addresses the camera at a few points and remarks about how impressive the pyrotechnics are

[The Elegant Dandy Fop]

Yup. At least some of that Whitney footage appeared on the Criterion 2001 laserdisc, IIRC.

And like I mentioned, has all been recently restored in 4K by his estate along with his brother's work.

I'm still very curious about what they get from Graphic Films. Apparently the negative for Voyage to the Moon is currently stored at Fotokem in Burbank.

[domino harvey]

Really wish they would just put out a list of all the features instead of slowly teasing them out!

Yes, this gradual reveal of extras is incredibly annoying. Freaked up by some social media expert, no doubt

EDIT I meant dreamed up but the autocorrect works too

[pzadvance]

Really wish they would just put out a list of all the features instead of slowly teasing them out!

Yes, this gradual reveal of extras is incredibly annoying. Freaked up by some social media expert, no doubt

EDIT I meant dreamed up but the autocorrect works too

Especially because the main reason the get this set of extremely popular and repeatedly released films would be for the exclusive extras! Why are you drawing out your primary selling point?

[Zot!]

Sorry if this has already been discussed, but is there consensus of what transfers this is getting and if they are exclusive? Considering the rollercoaster reception the Criterion Eyes Wide Shut got, I wonder if this set will be further differentiated from the existing studio releases. Personally, I would sit this one out, as Kubrick is a little too saturated, but if it has the definitive transfers of my favorites that Criterion isn't otherwise selling individually, I might be tempted.

[MichaelB]

Why are you drawing out your primary selling point?

Was that asked with a straight face?

Because the answer couldn't be more glaringly obvious: by drip-feeding the info, the box gets discussed constantly in the run-up to its actual release. It's a textbook marketing strategy.

[pzadvance]

They could announce a full list of extras up front and still tease them out with clips and spotlights in the lead-up to the actual release. As someone who already owns all these movies, I’m not pulling the trigger on buying this until i know the full breadth of what’s included, and i have to think im not the only one like this, so I’d argue the marketing strategy is keeping them from securing at least some sales for now

[andyli]

Sorry if this has already been discussed, but is there consensus of what transfers this is getting and if they are exclusive? Considering the rollercoaster reception the Criterion Eyes Wide Shut got, I wonder if this set will be further differentiated from the existing studio releases. Personally, I would sit this one out, as Kubrick is a little too saturated, but if it has the definitive transfers of my favorites that Criterion isn't otherwise selling individually, I might be tempted.

What roller coaster reception? It was rather widely praised by the physical media community barring a few nut heads who could not move on from the video-y look of the '07 Blu-ray and looked the other way when evidence was presented.

As far as other films are concerned, no complete redo is expected. Maybe noticeably better encodes since FiM is doing all but Barry Lyndon. Are there any specific issues with existing transfers that you don't like about?

For me, the PQ uptick is not something that would motivate me to sell all my Kubrick discs to get this box. The yet to be fully announced extras are the key selling point here.

[MichaelB]

They could announce a full list of extras up front and still tease them out with clips and spotlights in the lead-up to the actual release. As someone who already owns all these movies, I’m not pulling the trigger on buying this until i know the full breadth of what’s included, and i have to think im not the only one like this, so I’d argue the marketing strategy is keeping them from securing at least some sales for now

...while at the same time spinning out the conversation so that potentially more people notice and pre-order, thus neatly cancelling out that objection (which I seriously doubt makes a statistically significant jot of difference anyway).

And announcing something that they haven't announced before will have more impact in terms of keeping the conversation going than just posting clips from stuff that we already know is going to be on there.

[Zot!]

Sorry if this has already been discussed, but is there consensus of what transfers this is getting and if they are exclusive? Considering the rollercoaster reception the Criterion Eyes Wide Shut got, I wonder if this set will be further differentiated from the existing studio releases. Personally, I would sit this one out, as Kubrick is a little too saturated, but if it has the definitive transfers of my favorites that Criterion isn't otherwise selling individually, I might be tempted.

What roller coaster reception? It was rather widely praised by the physical media community barring a few nut heads who could not move on from the video-y look of the '07 Blu-ray and looked the other way when evidence was presented.

As far as other films are concerned, no complete redo is expected. Maybe noticeably better encodes since FiM is doing all but Barry Lyndon. Are there any specific issues with existing transfers that you don't like about?

For me, the PQ uptick is not something that would motivate me to sell all my Kubrick discs to get this box. The yet to be fully announced extras are the key selling point here.

Sorry, that was probably a poor analogy, but there was a lot of film-bro attempts to take umbrage with the (intended and appropriate) heavy grain of the Criterion in lesser forums, the same way the Boogie Nights 4K from the IP was similarly misjudged. At the time I think even those of us who saw the film theatrically during it's original run were pleasantly surprised by how pronounced the Criterion edition difference was. I just wonder if any of the other films might have a similarly dramatic improvement from current editions.

Probably atypically, I have the opposite problem you do, where I no longer own ANY of these films in any format, and no time to watch extras, and I would only buy the entire box is if the transfers were topped out. Otherwise I might just pick up my favorites on the cheap, damn the sexy Criterion livery.

[Lowry_Sam]

And announcing something that they haven't announced before will have more impact in terms of keeping the conversation going than just posting clips from stuff that we already know is going to be on there.

And what extra could do that? The pie fight sequence as an Easter egg is the first thing that comes to mind.

[DimitriL]

And what extra could do that? The pie fight sequence as an Easter egg is the first thing that comes to mind.

It doesn’t need to be so unattainable to keep the conversation going. I heard back from Criterion a little while ago that they are including the film Universe on the 2001 disc, which was a major developmental influence on 2001. It’s a substantial enough unannounced addition that it makes you wonder what else is going to be on these discs.

[Lowry_Sam]

FYI to those in the SF Bay Area, some of the screenings of The Comple Kubrick series @ BAMPFA have been selling out even though its the summer, particularly those with presenters. The screenings for Eyes Wide Shut are listed as an imported uncensored print from the BFI which has also sold out except for August 30 (at time of this post).

[dwk]

Special features section has been updated to list the archival interviews and documentaries included:
Archival interviews with Alexander Singer, Christiane Kubrick, Kirk Douglas, Jean Simmons, Peter Ustinov, George C. Scott, Peter Sellers, Sue Lyon, Scatman Crothers, Kelvin Pike, John Alcott, Wendy Carlos, Douglas Trumbull, and Steven Spielberg

Documentaries including Stanley Kubrick: A Life in Pictures (2001), directed by Jan Harlan and narrated by Tom Cruise; Kubrick by Kubrick (2020), told in Kubrick’s own words; Staircases to Nowhere (2013, expanded 2026), about the making of The Shining; and Stanley Kubrick’s Boxes (2008), about the trove of archival materials left behind by Kubrick

Edited to add, someone pointed out thay the individual film pages have been updated to detail their special features.

[nicolas]

Edited to add, someone pointed out thay the individual film pages have been updated to detail their special features.

Someone = moi.

Here's the complete list:

• Short Films, Fear and Desire & Killer's Kiss

Spoiler

• 4K digital restoration of Killer’s Kiss, with uncompressed monaural soundtrack
• 4K restoration of Fear and Desire (1952)
• New 4K restorations of director Stanley Kubrick’s short films: Day of the Fight (1951), Flying Padre (1951), and The Seafarers (1953)
• One 4K UHD disc of the films presented in Dolby Vision HDR and one Blu-ray with the films and special features
• Appreciation of Killer’s Kiss featuring film critic Geoffrey O’Brien
• Interview from 2012 with filmmaker and early Kubrick collaborator Alexander Singer
• Trailer
• English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing

• The Killing:

Spoiler

(same as the old Blu-ray)

• New digital restoration, with uncompressed monaural soundtrack
• New video interview with producer James B. Harris
• Excerpted interviews with actor Sterling Hayden from the French television series Cinéma cinémas
• New video interview with poet and author Robert Polito about writer Jim Thompson
• Restored high-definition digital transfer of Stanley Kubrick’s 1955 noir feature Killer’s Kiss
• New video appreciation of Killer’s Kiss featuring film critic Geoffrey O’Brien
• Trailers
• English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing

• Paths of Glory:

Spoiler

(same as the old Blu-ray)

• New high definition digital transfer made from 35 mm film elements restored by UCLA Film & Television Archive in cooperation with MGM Studios, with funding provided by the Film Foundation and the Hollywood Foreign Press Association, with uncompressed monaural soundtrack
• New audio commentary featuring critic Gary Giddins
• Excerpt from a 1966 audio interview with director Stanley Kubrick
• Television interview from 1979 with star Kirk Douglas
• New video interviews with Kubrick’s longtime executive producer Jan Harlan, Paths of Glory producer James B. Harris, and actress Christiane Kubrick
• French television piece about a real-life World War I execution that partly inspired the film
• Theatrical trailer
• English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing

• Spartacus:

Spoiler

• 4K digital restoration of the 1991 Super Technirama version of the film, with 7.1 surround DTS-HD Master Audio soundtrack
• One 4K UHD disc of the film presented in Dolby Vision HDR and one Blu-ray with the film and special features
• Audio commentary featuring producer-actor Kirk Douglas, actor Peter Ustinov, novelist Howard Fast, producer Edward Lewis, restoration expert Robert A. Harris, and designer Saul Bass
• Audio commentary featuring screenwriter Dalton Trumbo’s scene-by-scene analysis, narrated by Michael McConnohie
• Restoring “Spartacus” (2015), a documentary by Gary Leva
• Deleted scenes
• Archival newsreel footage
• Archival interviews with Ustinov and actor Jean Simmons
• Behind-the-scenes “gladiatorial school” footage
• The Hollywood Ten (1950), a documentary about the Hollywood blacklist
• Trailer
• English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing

• Lolita:

Spoiler

• New 4K digital restoration, with uncompressed monaural soundtrack
• One 4K UHD disc of the film presented in Dolby Vision HDR and one Blu-ray with the film and special features
• New conversation between writers Jonathan Lethem and Kevin Wynter about director Stanley Kubrick and authorship
• Segment from a 1987 episode of the French television series Cinéma cinémas featuring actor Sue Lyon
• Conversation from 1958 between author and screenwriter Vladimir Nabokov and critic Lionel Trilling
• Screen tests with Lyon and actor James Mason
• Trailers
• English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing

• Dr. Strangelove, or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb:

Spoiler

(same as old Blu-ray)

• Restored 4K digital transfer, with uncompressed monaural soundtrack
• Alternate 5.1 surround soundtrack, presented in DTS-HD Master Audio
• New interviews with Stanley Kubrick scholars Mick Broderick and Rodney Hill; archivist Richard Daniels; cinematographer and camera innovator Joe Dunton; camera operator Kelvin Pike; and David George, son of Peter George, on whose novel Red Alert the film is based
• Excerpts from a 1966 audio interview with Kubrick, conducted by physicist and author Jeremy Bernstein
• Four short documentaries, about the making of the film, the sociopolitical climate of the period, the work of actor Peter Sellers, and the artistry of Kubrick
• Interviews from 1963 with Sellers and actor George C. Scott
• Excerpt from a 1980 interview with Sellers from NBC’s Today show
• Trailers
• English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing

• 2001: A Space Odyssey:

Spoiler

• 4K digital restoration, with original theatrical 70 mm 5.1 surround DTS-HD Master Audio soundtrack
• Alternate 5.1 surround DTS-HD Master Audio and original theatrical 35 mm uncompressed monaural soundtracks
• One 4K UHD disc of the film presented in Dolby Vision HDR and two Blu-rays with the film and special features
• Two audio commentaries, one featuring actors Keir Dullea and Gary Lockwood, the other author Michael Benson (Space Odyssey: Stanley Kubrick, Arthur C. Clarke, and the Making of a Masterpiece)
• Five archival documentaries: A Look Behind the Future (1968); “2001”: The Making of a Myth (2001); Standing on the Shoulders of Kubrick: The Legacy of “2001” (2007); Vision of a Future Passed: The Prophecy of “2001” (2007); and FX and Early Conceptual Artwork (2007)
“A Primer for 2001: A Space Odyssey” (1971), an episode of the television program Camera Three hosted by Dullea
• Universe (1960), a documentary by Roman Kroitor and Colin Low, narrated by Douglas Rain, later the voice of HAL 9000
• New program about Graphic Films, including rare footage from To the Moon and Beyond (1964), which convinced Kubrick to hire its team for 2001
• Rare slit-scan films by John Whitney Sr. and his son that inspired 2001’s special effects
• Archival interview with special-effects supervisor Douglas Trumbull
• Trailers
• English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing

• A Clockwork Orange:

Spoiler

• 4K digital restoration, with uncompressed monaural soundtrack
• Alternate 5.1 surround DTS-HD Master Audio soundtrack
• One 4K UHD disc of the film presented in Dolby Vision HDR and one Blu-ray with the film and special features
• Audio commentary featuring actor Malcolm McDowell and film historian Nick Redman
• Three archival documentaries featuring interviews with members of the cast and crew: Still Tickin’: The Return of “A Clockwork Orange” (2000), Great Bolshy Yarblockos! Making “A Clockwork Orange” (2007), and Once Upon a Time . . . “A Clockwork Orange” (2011)
• Episode from 1972 of the television program Camera Three, featuring McDowell and author Anthony Burgess
• Kama Sutra Rides Again (1971), an animated short by Bob Godfrey that director Stanley Kubrick selected to play before the U.S. and UK theatrical releases of A Clockwork Orange
• Trailer
• English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing

• Barry Lyndon:

Spoiler

(same as the standalone 4K release)

• New 4K digital restoration, with uncompressed monaural soundtrack
• Alternate 5.1 surround soundtrack, presented in DTS-HD Master Audio
• One 4K UHD disc of the film presented in Dolby Vision HDR and two Blu-rays with the film and special features
• Interviews with the cast and crew as well as archival audio featuring director Stanley Kubrick on the film’s cinematography, costumes, editing, and production
• Interview featuring historian Christopher Frayling on production designer Ken Adam
• Interview with critic Michel Ciment
• Interview with actor Leon Vitali about the 5.1 surround soundtrack, which he cosupervised
• Interview with curator Adam Eaker about the fine-art-inspired aesthetics of the film
• Trailers
• English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing

• The Shining:

Spoiler

• 4K digital restorations of the U.S. theatrical and international versions of the film, with uncompressed monaural soundtracks
• Alternate 5.1 surround DTS-HD Master Audio soundtracks
• Two 4K UHD discs of the films presented in Dolby Vision HDR and two Blu-rays with the films and special features
• New 4K restoration of Making “The Shining” (1980) by Vivian Kubrick, director Stanley Kubrick’s daughter, with audio commentary featuring the filmmaker
• Audio commentaries featuring Stanley Kubrick biographer John Baxter and Steadicam operator Garrett Brown as well as filmmaker Lee Unkrich (editor of the book Stanley Kubrick’s “The Shining”)
• Three archival documentaries: Staircases to Nowhere (2013, expanded 2026), View from the Overlook (2007), and Work & Play (2017)
• Six Kinds of Light (1983), a documentary on cinematographer John Alcott
• Shine On (2024), a documentary short by Paul King about the last surviving Elstree Studios shooting location from the film
• Archival interviews with composer Wendy Carlos and actor Scatman Crothers
• “30 Impossible Shots” (1974), Brown’s Steadicam show reel
• Trailers
• English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing

• Full Metal Jacket:

Spoiler

• 4K digital restoration, with uncompressed monaural soundtrack
• Alternate 5.1 surround DTS-HD Master Audio soundtrack
• One 4K UHD disc of the film presented in Dolby Vision HDR and one Blu-ray with the film and special features
• Audio commentary featuring actors Adam Baldwin, R. Lee Ermey, and Vincent D’Onofrio and screenwriter Jay Cocks
• “Full Metal Jacket”: Between Good and Evil (2007), a documentary featuring interviews with Stanley Kubrick collaborators and cast members
• Behind the Scenes of “Full Metal Jacket” (2005), a short film by Vivian Kubrick, Stanley Kubrick’s daughter, and edited by Katia deVidas
• The Marines (1957), a documentary by François Reichenbach about the Parris Island Marine Corps Recruit Depot
• Mickey Mouse in Vietnam (1968), an animated short by Whitney Lee Savage and Milton Glaser
• Stanley Kubrick’s Boxes (2008), a short documentary by Jon Ronson about the trove of archival materials left behind by Kubrick
• Trailer
• English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing

• Eyes Wide Shut:

Spoiler

(same as the standalone 4K release)

• New 4K digital restoration of the international version of the film, supervised and approved by director of photography Larry Smith, with 5.1 surround DTS-HD Master Audio soundtrack
• One 4K UHD disc of the film presented in Dolby Vision HDR and two Blu-rays with the film and special features
• New interviews with Smith, set decorator and second-unit director Lisa Leone, and archivist Georgina Orgill
• Archival interview with Christiane Kubrick, director Stanley Kubrick’s wife
• Never Just a Dream (2019), featuring interviews with producer Jan Harlan; Katharina Kubrick, Stanley Kubrick’s daughter; and Anthony Frewin, Kubrick’s personal assistant
• Lost Kubrick: The Unfinished Films of Stanley Kubrick (2007)
• Kubrick Remembered (2014), featuring interviews with actors Todd Field and Leelee Sobieski and filmmaker Steven Spielberg
• Kubrick’s 1998 acceptance speech for the Directors Guild of America’s D. W. Griffith Award
• Press conference from 1999, featuring Harlan and actors Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman
• Teaser, trailer, and promos
• English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing

[Drucker]

Glad to see they are retaining the Sterling Hayden interview from The Killing and the Paths of Glory commentary, two of my favorite supplements. No fears about offing the old discs at this point.

[Walter Kurtz]

Mickey Mouse in Vietnam is one of the greatest films in history.

[Finch]

Unexpected that The Killing and Paths of Glory are not 4K restorations if the specs are accurate. Now I'm regretting offloading my MoC 4K of Paths of Glory.

[ChunkyLover]

Unexpected that The Killing and Paths of Glory are not 4K restorations if the specs are accurate. Now I'm regretting offloading my MoC 4K of Paths of Glory.

I presume those specs are for the BDs (or that they just copy and pasted the BD specs).

[nicolas]

Unexpected that The Killing and Paths of Glory are not 4K restorations if the specs are accurate. Now I'm regretting offloading my MoC 4K of Paths of Glory.

I did note that these are the specs from the BD releases. I think they’re just carrying the old discs over to the new set and didn’t make any new subpages for the 4K discs.

[dwk]

Someone = moi.

oops. In my defense, I was looking at the Blu-ray.com forum on my phone and I was zoomed in and the side with the member names and avatars was not visible.

[beamish14]

Mickey Mouse in Vietnam is one of the greatest films in history.

Very happy to see Bob Godfrey in the collection at last, too

[Roger Ryan]

So Killer’s Kiss will appear in a 4K restoration as a featured film and as a lower quality bonus feature for another film? That seems odd.

[PfR73]

I think the specs for the set versions of the existing films, especially the older releases, haven't actually been updated yet. Because the existing discs are still for sale, it is linking to the existing pages with the existing specs.

[beamish14]

I was really hoping for more on Kubrick’s co-writers, especially Gustav Hasford (who actually was in Vietnam with Dale Dye, Oliver Stone’s military advisor on his films)