From the looks of things, The Criterion Collection will be gracing us with another brilliant slate of Blu-ray discs come April. I’m particularly excited about upgrading my DVD copy of Terry Gilliam‘s Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, because, as I feared over a year ago, Universal‘s Blu-ray release of the film just didn’t cut the mustard. I’m expecting great things from this new director approved transfer! Oh yeah, and Blow Out in HD! And more Melville! And Ken Loach!
Hey, look at that! Speaking of Blow Out, Criterion has just tweeted in regards to their new Blu-ray edition of the film, that “This is the first release made from the original negative and the transfer was supervised by de Palma… It looks great.”
I just drooled all over my keyboard…
FEAR AND LOATHING IN LAS VEGAS
(April 26, 2011 – MSRP $39.95)
Video: 2.35:1 1080p
Audio: DTS-HD Master Audio
Special Features:
- Digital transfer, approved by director Terry Gilliam (with a DTS-HD Master Audio soundtrack and an optional 5.1 mix)
- Three audio commentaries: one with Gilliam, one with stars Johnny Depp and Benicio Del Toro and producer Laila Nabulsi, and one with author Hunter S. Thompson
- Deleted scenes, with optional commentary by Gilliam
- Selection of Thompson correspondence, read on camera by Depp
- Hunter Goes to Hollywood, a short documentary by filmmaker Wayne Ewing
- A look at the controversy over the screenwriting credit
- Profile of Oscar Zeta Acosta, the inspiration for Dr. Gonzo
- Collection of artwork by illustrator Ralph Steadman
- Audio excerpt from the 1996 spoken-word CD Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, featuring filmmaker Jim Jarmusch and actor Maury Chaykin
- Fear and Loathing on the Road to Hollywood, a 1978 BBC documentary with Thompson and Steadman
- Storyboards, production designs, stills gallery, theatrical trailer, and TV spots
- PLUS: A booklet featuring an essay by critic J. Hoberman and two pieces by Thompson
LE CERCLE ROUGE
(April 12, 2011 – MSRP $39.95)
Video: 1.85:1 1080p
Audio: uncompressed monaural
Special Features:
- Restored, complete, uncut version, with uncompressed monaural soundtrack
- Excerpts from Cinéastes de notre temps: “Jean-Pierre Melville”
- Video interviews with assistant director Bernard Stora and Rui Nogueria, the author of Melville
on Melville - Thirty minutes of rare on-set and archival footage, featuring interviews with director Jean-Pierre Melville and stars Alain Delon, Yves Montand, and André Bourvil
- Original theatrical trailer and 2003 Rialto Pictures rerelease trailer
- PLUS: A booklet featuring essays by film critics Michael Sragow and Chris Fujiwara, excerpts from Melville on Melville, a reprinted interview with composer Eric Demarsan, and an appreciation from director John Woo
SWEETIE
(April 19, 2011 – MSRP $39.95)
Video: 1.85:1 1080p
Audio: DTS-HD Master Audio
Special Features:
- Restored digital transfer, supervised by director of photography Sally Bongers and approved by director Jane Campion, with DTS-HD Master Audio soundtrack
- Audio commentary featuring Campion, Bongers, and screenwriter Gerard Lee
- Making “Sweetie,” a video conversation between stars Genevieve Lemon and Karen Colston
- Campion’s early short films An Exercise in Discipline: Peel, Passionless Moments, and A Girl’s Own Story
- Jane Campion: The Film School Years, a 1989 video conversation between Campion and critic Peter Thompson
- Gallery of behind-the-scenes photos and production stills
- Original theatrical trailer
- PLUS: A booklet featuring an essay by film scholar Dana Polan
WHITE MATERIAL
(April 12, 2011 – MSRP $39.95)
Video: 2.35:1 1080p
Audio: DTS-HD Master Audio
Special Features:
- New digital transfer, supervised and approved by director Claire Denis and cinematographer Yves Cape with DTS-HD Master Audio soundtrack
- New interviews with Denis and actors Isabelle Huppert and Isaach de Bankolé
- Short documentary by Denis on the film’s premiere at the Écrans Noirs Film Festival 2010 in Cameroon
- Deleted scene
- Theatrical trailer
- New and improved English subtitle translation
- PLUS: A booklet featuring a new essay by film writer Amy Taubin
KES
(April 19, 2011 – MSRP $39.95)
Video: 1.66:1 1080p
Audio: uncompressed monaural
Special Features:
- New, restored digital transfer, approved by director Ken Loach and director of photography Chris Menges with uncompressed monaural soundtrack
- Making “Kes,” a new documentary featuring Loach, Menges, producer Tony Garnett, and actor David Bradley
- The Southbank Show: “Ken Loach” (1993), a profile of the filmmaker, featuring Loach, Garnett, directors Stephen Frears and Alan Parker, and other Loach collaborators
- Cathy Come Home (1967), a feature directed by Loach and produced by Garnett, with an introduction by film writer Graham Fuller
- Original theatrical trailer
- PLUS: A booklet featuring an essay by Fuller
BLOW OUT
(April 26, 2011 – MSRP $39.95)
Video: 2.40:1 1080p
Audio: DTS-HD Master Audio
Special Features:
- New, restored digital transfer, supervised by director Brian De Palma with DTS-HD Master Audio soundtrack
- New hour-long interview with De Palma, conducted by filmmaker Noah Baumbach
- New interview with star Nancy Allen
- Cameraman Garrett Brown on the Steadicam shots featured in the film within the film
- Select on-set photos from photographer Louis Goldman
- Original theatrical trailer
- More!
- PLUS: A booklet featuring an essay by critic Michael Sragow and Pauline Kael’s original New Yorker review
I will be picking up ‘Kes’ and ‘Le Cercle Rouge’ on blu ray.
Kes is ranked as the #7 British film of all time by the BFI, but few Americans have had a chance to see it (including myself). I am intrigued by the idea of reading subtitles for dialogue spoken by native English speakers!
Le Cercle Rouge is another classic Melville entry to go along with Army of Shadows. Now we can only hope for Le Samourai and Bob le Flambeur in upcoming months.
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