• The Criterion Blues [December]

    full details for each release beneath the seats…

    BRAZIL:

    Special Features:
    – Restored high-definition digital transfer of Terry Gilliam’s 142-minute director’s cut, supervised by Gilliam, with DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 surround soundtrack on the Blu-ray edition
    – Audio commentary by Terry Gilliam
    – What Is “Brazil”?, a thirty-minute on-set documentary by Rob Hedden
    – The Battle of “Brazil”: A Video History, a sixty-minute documentary by author and film writer Jack Mathews about the controversy surrounding the film’s release
    – The “Love Conquers All” version of Brazil, a ninety-four-minute cut of the film produced by the studio in an attempt to make it more commercial, with commentary by Brazil expert David Morgan
    – The Production Notebook, a collection of supplements featuring a trove of Brazil-iana from Gilliam’s personal collection: a short documentary on the screenplay, featuring interviews with screenwriters Gilliam, Charles McKeown, and Tom Stoppard; Gilliam’s storyboards for unfilmed dream sequences, animated and narrated by Morgan; visual essays on the film’s production design and special effects; a visual essay on Brazil’s costumes, narrated by costume designer James Acheson; and interviews with Gilliam and composer Michael Kamen on the score
    – Trailer
    – An essay by Jack Matthews on the DVD edition and a booklet featuring an essay by film critic David Sterritt on the Blu-ray edition

     


     

    The Qatsi Trilogy (Koyaanisqatsi, Powaqqatsi, Naqoyqatsi):

    Special Features:
    – New, restored high-definition digital transfers of all three films, approved by director Godfrey Reggio, with 5.1 surround DTS-HD Master Audio soundtracks on the Blu-ray editions
    – Essence of Life, an interview program with Reggio and composer Philip Glass on Koyaanisqatsi
    – New interview with cinematographer Ron Fricke about Koyaanisqatsi
    – Early forty-minute demo version of Koyaanisqatsi with a scratch soundtrack by Allen Ginsberg, along with a new introduction by Reggio
    – New interview with Reggio about Koyaanisqatsi’s original visual concept, with behind-the-scenes footage
    – Impact of Progress, an interview program with Reggio and Glass on their collaboration
    – Inspiration and Ideas, an interview with Reggio about his greatest influences and teachers
    – Anima Mundi (1992), Reggio’s twenty-eight-minute montage of images of over seventy animal species, scored by Glass
    – Video afterword by Reggio on the trilogy
    – The Making of “Naqoyqatsi,” a brief documentary featuring interviews with the production crew
    – Panel discussion on Naqoyqatsi from 2003, with Reggio, Glass, editor Jon Kane, and music critic John Rockwell
    – Music of “Naqoyqatsi,” an interview with Glass and cellist Yo-Yo Ma
    – Television spots and an interview with Reggio relating to his 1970s multimedia privacy campaign in New Mexico
    – Trailers
    – Booklet featuring essays on the trilogy by film scholar Scott MacDonald, Rockwell, and author and environmentalist Bill McKibben

     


     

    PURPLE NOON:

    Special Features:
    – New digital restoration, with uncompressed monaural soundtrack on the Blu-ray edition
    – New video interview with René Clément scholar Denitza Bantcheva
    – Archival interviews with actor Alain Delon and novelist Patricia Highsmith, on whose book The Talented Mr. Ripley the film was based
    – Original English-language trailer
    – Booklet featuring an essay by film critic Geoffrey O’Brien and a reprinted interview with Clément

     


     

    FOLLOWING:

    Special Features:
    – New, restored high-definition digital transfer, supervised by director Christopher Nolan, with uncompressed monaural soundtrack on the Blu-ray edition
    – New 5.1 surround sound mix by sound editor Gary Rizzo, presented in DTS-HD Master Audio on the Blu-ray edition
    – Audio commentary by Nolan
    – New interview with Nolan
    – Chronological rendering of the story
    – Side-by-side comparison of three scenes in the film with the shooting script Doodlebug (1997), a three-minute film by Nolan, starring Jeremy Theobald
    – Trailers
    – Booklet featuring an essay by film critic and programmer Scott Foundas

    [via]

13 Comments


  1. Rick Vance says:

    Oh I am glad I didn’t get Brazil on DVD now.

  2. Matt Brown says:

    So now the inevitable hard questions, like “is FOLLOWING worth a double-dip, even though it’s FOLLOWING.”

  3. Andrew James says:

    I wonder what the pricing is on the Qatsi Trilogy. I’m not sure I need all three films, but I’d pay for just Koyaanisqatsi on Blu. I’ve never seen a really good, cleaned up version of the film. I’m curious to see Criterion’s treatment of it.

  4. Yeah, I think I’d be good with just Koyaanisqatsi, too. I haven’t seen Nagoyqatsi, but Powaqqatsi didn’t do much for me.

    Definitely curious to see Purple Noon, though I probably won’t buy it blind. Wonder if it is or will be on HuluPlus? I’ll have to check.

    In related news, Kino is releasing a 15-disc Buster Keaton Blu-ray box set in December – looks like collecting pretty much everything they’ve already released plus a few more, including College. Lusting after that quite strongly.

  5. Antho42 says:

    Criterion’s art>> Mondo’s art
    Mondo has to be the most overrated graphic design company of the last 10 years. I still do not understand why the fanboys love that company.

  6. J says:

    I am definitely going to pick up “Purple Noon”. I saw part of it, and I loved what I saw.

    I might also buy “Brazil” as I heard it was a great film. One thing I’m worried about is whether or not the other cut of the film will interfere with the main feature’s quality. Hopefully this is a 2-disc release.

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