criterionforum.org

felipe wrote:I assume this has already been discussed, but why hasn't Criterion released any of his movies in America? Are they just not interested?

I think they were interested in Cook/Thief for a while, but I get the impression the rights are complicated for that one.

I agree though... and I sold my Anchor Bay DVD for a substantial amount on the suspicion that a Criterion blu-ray announcement wasn't long away. That was at least a year ago!

Complicated? I just don't see many people jumping over movie rights for Greenaway movies...

Anyway, does that mean they haven't even considered releasing some of his other movies? like they're not worthy getting in the collection or something?

The impression has always been that the rights to Cook (which Criterion supposedly did pursue) are something of a mess, and that Drowning by Numbers may be tied up for the same reason. Theoretically, Criterion should be able to release The Belly of an Architect (an OOP MGM title), but, as far as I'm aware, there's been no indication that they plan to do so. Has anyone else heard otherwise?

Well Zeitgeist has the rights to most of his films and Criterion tends to enjoy starting directors on a big note so I doubt they would do anything after The Pillow Book first.

Are you speculating or are there indeed rumours about a CC "Pillow Book"? My own mentioning this a few days ago was indeed pure random speculation...

I was just saying that I don't see their first Greenaway being a film made after that one due to popularity.

But has Criterion ever hinted any interest in releasing any Greenaway film, aside from The Cook?

felipe wrote:But has Criterion ever hinted any interest in releasing any Greenaway film, aside from The Cook?

Not that I'm aware. The Cook was supposed to be a sure thing, until an posting on Facebook that things were not looking good for it. That's been well over a year, I think.

Digital Classics in the UK are releasing A TV Dante: Cantos I-VIII on DVD this month.

Very nice, especially with "M is for Man, Music, Mozart" as an extra.

Tribe wrote:

felipe wrote:But has Criterion ever hinted any interest in releasing any Greenaway film, aside from The Cook?

Not that I'm aware. The Cook was supposed to be a sure thing, until an posting on Facebook that things were not looking good for it. That's been well over a year, I think.

But if Criterion shouldn't have the blu-ray rights for the title, does that mean somebody else is planning to release it?

We have a confirmed Cook/Thief blu sighting in Mexico! No word yet on how the transfer is and if the subtitle situation is handled appropriately. Anyone feel like risking it?

Netflix has The Cook, the Thief, His Wife, and Her Lover listed as available for streaming starting on June 1, 2011. No indication yet whether it will be in HD.

The Cook, the Thief, His Wife, and Her Lover is now up on Netflix for instant streaming and it is listed as available in HD. Woohoo.

bringmesomechemicals wrote:The Cook, the Thief, His Wife, and Her Lover is now up on Netflix for instant streaming and it is listed as available in HD. Woohoo.

I watched about 10-15 minutes and was a little surprised to see how worn and dirty the print used for this transfer was (skip ahead to the first scene in the bathroom to get a really good look at what I mean). It's not like a Facets release or anything, but it was certainly more than I would have expected. The colors are also slightly subdued in the HD stream, though I couldn't say for certain whether the HD transfer is faded or the SD transfer is simply over-saturated.

Blu revue: http://www.mondo-digital.com/cookthief.html

Mondo Digital wrote:Incidentally, fans of British comedies should keep their eyes peeled for two very prominent future cast members of the hilarious Vicar of Dibley among the regular diners

In addition to Liz Smith (who I thought did an excellent comic relief turn as a kooky next door neighbour in the Argentinian set political serial killer/Repulsion-esque film Apartment Zero starring Colin Firth, though perhaps she is better known these days not only for her role in Vicar of Dibley but also as the mother in The Royle Family) and Roger Lloyd-Pack (who, apart from Dibley is probably just as well known for his role in the long running sitcom Only Fools and Horses), we shouldn't forget Gary Olsen who after he played the awful Spangler in this film went on to play the archetypal early 90s sitcom dad in 2point4children, which I still think of as one of the better examples of the 'gentle, unthreatening light entertainment sitcom' that the BBC has been falteringly trying to recreate for a decade with My Family. Unfortunately Olson died far too early to build on that success.

Greenaway's films have always had a nice space for comic actors (from Jim Davidson in A Zed and Two Noughts through to Martin Freeman in Nightwatching) which likely only helps emphasise the thin line between comedy and tragedy I guess!

Plus don't forget in Cook, Thief, Wife and Lover that there is a very early appearance by Alex Kingston (later of E.R. and the new Doctor Who series) as well as a very amusing scene featuring the musician Ian Dury in an acting role.

In addition to Liz Smith

She has fans besides me....I love her. She had a string of roles in the mid 80s leading up to Cook/Wife/Thief/Lover & usually played a nutty old woman in all of them: A Private Function, Little Dorrit, Apartment Zero, We Think The World Of You. She also appears in Mike Leigh's Secrets & Lies (playing a cat owner yet again). I had the pleasure of catching a short that was written just for her called Anthrakitis in a film fest once & highly recommend tracking it down if you can find it.

Back to the topic, My choices for Criterion would be 1.) Cook.... 2.) The Baby of Macon 3.) A Zed & Two Noughts. I still have my dvd of Cook, which actually isn't bad (it's anamorphic at least) and the collection of shorts. I recently picked up Zed on blu ray (BFI) & it looks quite good. I'd say forget anything after Pillowbook because Greenaway really lost his mojo & possibly his marbles (although perhaps not as much as Ken Russell has).

Crossposted from the bargain thread: Baby of Macon Blu for 6 Euros from Megastore (plus 10 for shipping to North America, but given the weakness of the Euro right now that's still not bad). Nightwatching Blu is the same price.

And since this thread has been revived, it's probably worth flagging this up.

I'll try to find out the region-coding situation a.s.a.p.

A quick question. Did anyone ever get that Umbrella set released a couple years ago? I found an individual copy of Prospero from that set which I will pick up if the framing is more correct than the Atlantic.

The framing is exactly 16:9, but the picture is markedly soft.

I know this particular film is never going to look that great (the analogue HD video post-processing means that it won't be a patch on the BFI's 35mm-sourced Greenaway Blu-rays without going back to basics and essentially redoing the post-production), but I suspect there's still a bit of scope for improvement.

By contrast, the Beev raves about the BFI's upcoming Belly of an Architect - and I hope that now that they've started releasing Greenaway films that weren't originally BFI-funded that there'll be more in the pipeline.

They should be doing Draughtsman soon, right? Seeing as there's already a Japanese blu-ray.

Apologies if this has already been posted elsewhere.

http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/p ... sex-389277

This has been up for a year and I only just noticed it now, but the Kasander Film Company uploaded a free, legal version of The Baby of Macon to YouTube. SD only, though, and you have to be OK with your slow, deliberate dolly shots being interrupted by commercials for Psych and the latest Tomb Raider game.

Anyway, there it is.