Comments on: Some Recent Notable DVDs

By: Cinexcellence

Cinexcellence — Mon, 28 Jul 2008 22:43:04 +0000

Nice. I’ve been wanting to see Vampyr

By: Rick

Rick — Sun, 27 Jul 2008 14:32:08 +0000

Ditto. Thanks for the pointer, Whitney!

By: campanella.joseph

campanella.joseph — Sun, 27 Jul 2008 06:29:58 +0000

Whitney-

that’s incredible! thanks so much for linking that here.

By: Whitney

Whitney — Sun, 27 Jul 2008 05:33:18 +0000

Joe and Rick – have you guys read this guy’s blog:

http://ericskillman.blogspot.com/

He does a lot of the graphic design for Criterion. The way he slaves over each aspect of an image is so interesting.

By: Rick

Rick — Sun, 27 Jul 2008 02:39:20 +0000

Joe, you’re absolutely right … I much prefer the newer, more expressionistic Criterion covers

But for me it wouldn’t be a double-dip, because I don’t have the original. Hmmmm …

By: Joe Campanella

Joe Campanella — Sun, 27 Jul 2008 00:39:45 +0000

Also Rick. And I don’t know how much this means to you, but for me, the cover art is so greatly improved it’s almost worth the double dip based on packaging alone!

EH…
http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51XHQ6Z3PSL._SL500_AA240_.jpg

AWESOME…
http://www.nipponcinema.com/images/releases/high_and_low_criterion.jpg

By: Rick

Rick — Sun, 27 Jul 2008 00:23:34 +0000

I think the one I saw — Criterion’s original transfer, number 24 in their series, which meant an early one — was direct from their Laser Disk. It was non-anamorphic, and bare-bones. There have been significant advances in digital “restoration” since then (1998), and there may have been new elements found. Folks who’ve seen it say it’s a major improvement. I’d love to own it, and probably will at some point.

By: Whitney

Whitney — Sat, 26 Jul 2008 17:40:13 +0000

High and Low is one of my favorite Kurosawa movies. It’s so dark. Probably his darkest? But I remember the print I watched on DVD being pretty beautiful already? Maybe my memory is rosy.

By: Rick

Rick — Sat, 26 Jul 2008 05:29:38 +0000

It’s true: “Vampyr” isn’t as easy to love as “The Passion of Joan of Arc.” But I’d give it another shot. I think it’s monumentally creepy, but in a fundamentally different way from most ghost stories.

By: campanella.joseph

campanella.joseph — Sat, 26 Jul 2008 00:47:33 +0000

Never seen a Tarr movie, which I plan do very, very soon.

HIGH AND LOW is great. Not his best, like you say Rick, but what the hell. Even his worst is better than everyone else!

VAMPYR didn’t do it for me the first time I saw it. I don’t know why. I’ve seen parts of DAY OF WRATH that floored me, and PASSION is just one of the greatest films ever. Maybe I need to give it another go. Eh?