criterionforum.org

Posted: **Mon Oct 26, 2009 8:42 pm**

I'll post more details when I get them, but for now I can reveal that Kent Mackenzie's legendary 1961 independent film is provisionally scheduled for early next year, probably February, though the exact timing depends on factors currently outside the BFI's control.

It's likely to be a clone of the Milestone release, though presumably the video will be PAL.

For more information about the film, see the official website.

Posted: **Tue Oct 27, 2009 2:18 am**

Any chance of a Blu-ray? My library already had a copy of the Milestone release (without any of the extras) and it is a gorgeous film.

Posted: **Wed Nov 11, 2009 2:11 pm**

According to Amazon, this comes out late March. I hope the reason for the delay, isn't that it will be an exclusive title for a particular retailer.

Posted: **Wed Nov 11, 2009 2:52 pm**

No, it's because of the production schedule - at the time I made my original post, the master materials hadn't yet arrived, which is why I used phrases like "provisionally scheduled" and "factors currently outside the BFI's control".

Posted: **Wed Nov 25, 2009 9:37 pm**

MichaelB wrote:No, it's because of the production schedule - at the time I made my original post, the master materials hadn't yet arrived, which is why I used phrases like "provisionally scheduled" and "factors currently outside the BFI's control".

Oops, that would be me. The BFI does have all the materials now though I'm now waiting to hear if there's a glitch on one of the shorts.

Posted: **Thu Dec 17, 2009 1:52 pm**

Now classified by the BBFC (12) and cover art up on the HMV website:

http://hmv.com/hmvweb/displayProductDet ... &sku=16306

Note, however, that their February release date doesn't tally with the March one being given on most other e-tailers.

Posted: **Thu Dec 17, 2009 2:23 pm**

It definitely isn't February, for the reasons given by Dennis above.

Posted: **Thu Dec 17, 2009 5:13 pm**

MichaelB wrote:It definitely isn't February, for the reasons given by Dennis above.

Well, to be entirely accurate - I'm willing to take blame on myself but not have others suggest it when they're not actually invoved and don't know the whole story - their were delays on the BFI's side as well, but all is delivered now and work is progressing.
Dennis
Milestone

Posted: **Thu Dec 17, 2009 6:06 pm**

Dennis - genuine apologies for any misunderstanding.

As it happens, literally all I knew about the situation until your penultimate post was that the release was being delayed due to factors beyond the BFI's control - but they could have been any number of things: authoring, mastering, BBFC classification, distribution slots, booklet schedules, you name it.

Posted: **Thu Dec 17, 2009 9:08 pm**

MichaelB wrote:Dennis - genuine apologies for any misunderstanding.
As it happens, literally all I knew about the situation until your penultimate post was that the release was being delayed due to factors beyond the BFI's control - but they could have been any number of things: authoring, mastering, BBFC classification, distribution slots, booklet schedules, you name it.

Accepted! It was actually contractual way before delivery. And partly familial. There's just so much more to this business than 24fps or 0s and 1s!

Dennis

Posted: **Fri Jan 22, 2010 7:59 pm**

Now up for pre-order on the BFI website. Release date is 15th February.

Extras (as listed on the site):

* Four shorts directed by Kent Mackenzie including Bunker Hill (1956), A Skill for Molina (1964) The Story of a Rodeo Cowboy (1962) and Ivan and His Father (1970)
* Commentary featuring Sherman Alexie and Sean Axmaker
* 2008 theatrical trailer
* Los Angeles Plays Itself (2003), extracts from Thom Anderson's film
* Opening night panel discussion at UCLA (audio)
* Last Days of Angels Flight (1969) - short film by Robert Kirste
* Bunker Hill: A Tale of Urban Renewal (2009) - short film by Greg Kimble
* White Fawn's Devotion (1910) thought to be the first film directed by a Native American
* Charles Burnett and Sherman Alexie on the Leonard Lopate Show (audio)
* Sherman Alexie interviewed by Sean Axmaker (audio)
* Stills Gallery
* Downloadable PGF files of Kent Mackenzie scripts and film notes.

EDIT: Extras therefore look to be identical to the Milestone disc. One change, judging from the info on the BFI website, is that the main feature will have HOH English subs.

Posted: **Fri Jan 22, 2010 9:07 pm**

EDIT: Extras therefore look to be identical to the Milestone disc. One change, judging from the info on the BFI website, is that the main feature will have HOH English subs.

Well, how much more could they add on to all the stuff we did? I'm glad they have the English subs and I do believe they will have a booklet, but I haven't seen it myself. Three years to produce and they can come out with their version in one month. Sometimes life isn't fair.

I'm sure they did a great job.

Dennis
Milestone F&V

Posted: **Fri Jan 22, 2010 9:20 pm**

drdoros wrote:Well, how much more could they add on to all the stuff we did? I'm glad they have the English subs and I do believe they will have a booklet, but I haven't seen it myself. Three years to produce and they can come out with their version in one month. Sometimes life isn't fair.

I remember waiting with trepidation for the Zeitgeist Quay Brothers release. The BFI version had a head start - but by the same token they were able to examine that version and potentially improve on it. In fact, I was pleasantly surprised that they only added a couple of trailers!

Posted: **Sat Jan 23, 2010 3:13 am**

drdoros wrote:Well, how much more could they add on to all the stuff we did? I'm glad they have the English subs and I do believe they will have a booklet, but I haven't seen it myself. Three years to produce and they can come out with their version in one month. Sometimes life isn't fair.

I'm sure they did a great job.

Dennis
Milestone F&V

Sorry Dennis, wasn't making it a competiton - merely reporting on the new release. And of course Milestone made it the release it is.

Posted: **Sat Jan 23, 2010 1:49 pm**

antnield wrote:
Sorry Dennis, wasn't making it a competiton - merely reporting on the new release. And of course Milestone made it the release it is.

No slight at all -- we've been working with the BFI for twenty-two years and think very highly of them. I was just suggesting that there's not much more room on those DVDs to add anything.

Dennis

Posted: **Thu Jan 28, 2010 1:05 pm**

Full press release:

The Exiles
A film by Kent Mackenzie
2-disc set

The Exiles chronicles one night in the lives of a group of young American Indians living in the Bunker Hill district of Los Angeles. Deeply affecting and utterly convincing, this remarkable film is finally made available on DVD in the UK for the first time and is packed with special features.

Based entirely on interviews with the participants and their friends, the film follows this group of exiles – transplants from Southwest reservations – as they flirt, drink, party, fight, and dance. With its vivid, high-contrast black and white photography and soundtrack by The Revels, Kent Mackenzie’s gritty, no-frills depiction of this marginalised Los Angeles community draws comparisons to John Cassavetes, Charles Burnett and Vittorio De Seta.

Special features
• Four shorts directed by Kent Mackenzie: Bunker Hill 1956 (1956), A Skill for Molina (1964), The Story of a Rodeo Cowboy (1962) and Ivan and His Father (1970)
• Los Angeles Plays Itself (2003): extracts from Thom Anderson’s film
• Last Days of Angels Flight (1969): a short film by Robert Kirste
• Bunker Hill: A Tale of Urban Removal (2009): a short film by Greg Kimble
• White Fawn’s Devotion (1910): a short film by James Youngdeer, thought to be the first directed by an American Indian
• 2008 theatrical trailer
• Feature commentary by Sherman Alexie and Sean Axmaker, plus audio interviews with Charles Burnett and a panel discussion with the cast and crew
• Downloadable PDF files (DVD-ROM) of Kent Mackenzie’s scripts, Master’s thesis, press kits and much more

Release date: 15 February 2010
RRP: £19.99 / cat. no. BFIVD853 / cert 12
USA / 1961 / black and white / English, optional feature subtitles for the hard-of-hearing / 70 mins + 111 mins extra material / DVD-9 and DVD-5/ 1.33:1 /
Feature audio: PCM dual mono (48k/16bit)

Posted: **Sun Feb 14, 2010 8:48 pm**

Beaver.

Posted: **Sun Feb 14, 2010 9:47 pm**

Just a note on the Beaver review, the video master is indeed the same transfer. The DVD authoring and compression are just different.

Posted: **Mon Mar 22, 2010 12:05 am**

DVD Times

Posted: **Mon Mar 22, 2010 6:16 am**

I just caught this at SCMS at UCLA Friday night with a panel including the d.p. Milestone apparently even allowed the screening for free. One point of interest was that apparently Humphrey Jennings was a big influence. I loved that synch was strategic non-consideration and the lighting (of course) was simply amazing. They also mentioned that a lot of the drinking/drunkenness was real and actions and dialogue came from the actors' own experiences. Ultimately, I found it to be a very interesting cultural document which seems as much tied to one era of experimental student filmmaking as much as the dramatized documentation of a unique American subculture.

Posted: **Mon Mar 22, 2010 2:03 pm**

One of the things Milestone does right (and there are other times when we don't, trust me) is that we spend a long, long time trying to find everyone we can who was involved with the making of the restored films we release. It's just not the director, the cinematographer and the "stars," but everyone from interns on up. On THE EXILES, I think we tracked down over thirty people who worked on the film fifty years ago and many of them participated in the theatrical and DVD release as well as collected their memories on the making of the film. We continue that process for years after we release each film. The cinematographers Erik Darstaad, John Morrill and Robert Kaufman have not only been an amazing help to our understanding of the film but have been truly wonderful people to get to know. Erik can be heard being interviewed at http://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/kuci ... d216292636" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false; (he's number 7 down the list and Ross Lipman and I are number 6).

And yes, we did allow SCMS permission to screen the film for free. Anytime UCLA and Ross's work can be promoted, we do our best to help out.

Dennis
Milestone F&V

Posted: **Mon Mar 22, 2010 3:26 pm**

Many thanks to Milestone; it was a fun and informative night.

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