CriterionCast » Blu-Ray Reviews

West Reviews Martin Scorsese’s The Last Temptation Of Christ [Criterion Blu-ray Review]

West Anthony — Sun, 20 May 2012 05:49:44 +0000

The Blu-ray of The Last Temptation Of Christ, as it stands, is a much more polished presentation but will probably be of interest only to those hardcore home video enthusiasts who want the upgraded video presentation, and those Blu-ray owners who have never bought the film before.

West Reviews A Hollis Frampton Odyssey [Criterion Blu-ray Review]

West Anthony — Sun, 20 May 2012 05:33:38 +0000

More adventurous cinephiles will already be on board, but for those who are wary of experimental film, give Frampton a chance. I think there's something in this odyssey that everyone can appreciate if they're only willing to meet the filmmaker halfway.

West Reviews Luis Buñuel’s Belle De Jour [Criterion Blu-ray Review]

West Anthony — Sun, 20 May 2012 05:18:05 +0000

Belle De Jour is a remarkable film from a cinematic master then in the midst of his last great decade of filmmaking before retirement. As complex, beautiful and inscrutable as any of his finest works, it is a pure delight to have it in the Criterion Collection once again.

David Reviews Mario Monicelli’s The Organizer [Criterion Blu-ray Review]

David Blakeslee — Wed, 02 May 2012 03:22:58 +0000

May 1 is International Workers Day, and The Organizer has something to say to the rank and file.

Joshua Reviews King Vidor’s Bird Of Paradise [Blu-ray Review]

Joshua Brunsting — Tue, 01 May 2012 17:25:22 +0000

Film is a pre-Code romance epic that is finally hitting Blu-ray thanks to Kino.

Joshua Reviews Hideo Gosha’s Three Outlaw Samurai [Blu-ray Review]

Joshua Brunsting — Sat, 21 Apr 2012 01:23:46 +0000

Film was the debut of iconic director Hideo Gosha.

David Reviews Alfred Hitchcock’s Notorious [Blu-ray Review]

David Blakeslee — Wed, 18 Apr 2012 07:27:23 +0000

David compares and contrasts the rare OOP Criterion DVD with the recent blu-ray release from MGM/20th Century Fox.

West Reviews Roy Ward Baker’s A Night To Remember [Criterion Blu-ray Review]

West Anthony — Wed, 11 Apr 2012 05:55:35 +0000

West takes a look at the recent Criterion Blu-ray upgrade for A Night To Remember, and reflects on the 100th anniversary of the TItanic sinking.

West Reviews Otto Preminger’s Anatomy Of A Murder [Criterion Blu-ray Review]

West Anthony — Sun, 08 Apr 2012 16:00:23 +0000

West takes a look at spine 600: the recently released Criterion Blu-ray of Otto Preminger's Anatomy Of A Murder.

Catherine Reviews Alfred Hitchcock’s Rebecca [Blu-Ray Review]

Catherine Stebbins — Thu, 01 Mar 2012 07:44:11 +0000

Revisiting Alfred Hitchcock's first American film in glorious Blu-Ray.

Joshua Reviews Woody Allen’s Annie Hall [Blu-ray Review]

Joshua Brunsting — Wed, 29 Feb 2012 03:05:19 +0000

Joshua looks at the new Blu-ray of Woody Allen's Annie Hall.

Joshua Reviews Woody Allen’s Manhattan [Blu-ray Review]

Joshua Brunsting — Wed, 29 Feb 2012 03:00:22 +0000

Joshua takes a look at the newly released Blu-ray of the classic Woody Allen film, Manhattan.

David Reviews Lena Dunham’s Tiny Furniture [Criterion Blu-ray Review]

David Blakeslee — Mon, 27 Feb 2012 08:29:51 +0000

David takes a break from his Eclipse series, to see what Lena Dunham has to offer in this new Criterion Collection release.

James Reviews Jalmari Helander’s Rare Exports: A Christmas Tale [Blu-ray Review]

James McCormick — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 05:57:25 +0000

James takes a look at the recent Blu-ray release of Rare Exports from Oscilloscope Laboratories.

Joshua Reviews ‘The Cinema Of Jean Rollin,’ Kino’s Five New Redemption Film Blu-ray Releases [Blu-ray Review]

Joshua Brunsting — Tue, 24 Jan 2012 16:28:55 +0000

Joshua reviews the Blu-rays of five classic thrillers from director Jean Rollin.

Joshua Reviews Jean-Luc Godard’s ‘Film Socialisme’ [Blu-ray Review]

Joshua Brunsting — Mon, 09 Jan 2012 04:00:18 +0000

Joshua reviews the latest film from French New Wave icon Jean-Luc Godard.

Joshua Reviews Kino’s Nothing Sacred And A Farewell To Arms [Blu-ray Review]

Joshua Brunsting — Thu, 29 Dec 2011 04:17:49 +0000

Joshua reviews two iconic classics newly released on Blu-ray via Kino.

David Reviews Ernst Lubitsch’s Design for Living [Blu-ray Review]

David Blakeslee — Mon, 19 Dec 2011 21:08:39 +0000

A new Blu-ray edition gives The Lubitsch Touch its well-deserved Criterion Treatment. More than just enshrining a nearly forgotten historical artifact in state-of-the-art digital technology, this free adaptation of a Nöel Coward play fearlessly treads over taboos still intact nearly 80 years later.

Joshua Reviews Buster Keaton’s ‘Seven Chances’ [Blu-ray Review]

Joshua Brunsting — Fri, 16 Dec 2011 08:08:39 +0000

Joshua reviews the new Blu-ray of Buster Keaton's 'Seven Chances' from Kino.

Joshua Review’s D.W. Griffith’s ‘Way Down East’ [Blu-ray Review]

Joshua Brunsting — Thu, 15 Dec 2011 05:23:13 +0000

Joshua reviews the classic D. W. Griffith melodrama, 'Way Down East,' and its recent Blu-ray release from Kino.

Joshua Reviews D. W. Griffith’s ‘The Birth Of A Nation’ [Blu-ray Review]

Joshua Brunsting — Tue, 13 Dec 2011 06:23:40 +0000

Joshua reviews the new Blu-ray of D. W. Griffith's controversial masterwork, 'The Birth Of A Nation,' hitting shelves thanks to Kino.

Joshua Reviews Giorgio Moroder Presents Metropolis [Blu-ray Review]

Joshua Brunsting — Mon, 14 Nov 2011 06:17:21 +0000

Throughout a film’s history, particularly that of a silent film, the piece in question may or may not take various shapes when being [...]

Joshua Reviews Bertrand Blier’s Going Places [Blu-ray Review]

Joshua Brunsting — Sun, 06 Nov 2011 03:42:08 +0000

Despite being best known in today’s world for a recent bladder issue whilst taking a flight, actor Gerard Depardieu is and has always [...]

Joshua Reviews Lu Chuan’s The City Of Life And Death [Blu-ray Review]

Joshua Brunsting — Tue, 25 Oct 2011 16:08:00 +0000

Over the span of recorded history, the human race has had both its bright days, and in [...]

James Reviews Brian De Palma’s Dressed To Kill [Blu-Ray Review]

James McCormick — Wed, 19 Oct 2011 05:09:05 +0000

Following his ‘Carrie-lite’ The Fury in 1978 and his comedy Home Movies the same year as the film that will be reviewed, [...]

Joshua Reviews The Criterion Collection’s Complete Jean Vigo [Blu-ray Review]

Joshua Brunsting — Tue, 11 Oct 2011 05:11:29 +0000

Spielberg. Kubrick. Kurosawa. Hitchcock. These are a few of the cavalcade of names that one would find to be synonymous with greatness [...]

Joshua Reviews Sam Peckinpah’s Straw Dogs [MGM Blu-ray Review]

Joshua Brunsting — Mon, 19 Sep 2011 06:47:11 +0000

Remakes are an interesting beast.

Most fail to truly connect with either what made the original piece so great, or what would [...]

Joshua Reviews Lee Chang-dong’s Poetry [Blu-ray Review]

Joshua Brunsting — Fri, 26 Aug 2011 04:59:36 +0000

If you are beloved Korean filmmaker Lee Chang-dong, you are having one hell of a good week.

First, your 2007 masterpiece Secret [...]

David Reviews Satyajit Ray’s The Music Room [Blu-ray Review]

David Blakeslee — Tue, 19 Jul 2011 15:00:35 +0000

Over the past few years, as the Criterion Collection’s monthly announcement of upcoming releases developed its own cult following among film fans, [...]

James Reviews Jonathan Hensleigh’s Kill The Irishman [Blu-ray Review]

James McCormick — Sun, 17 Jul 2011 04:45:54 +0000

When I heard about the film Kill the Irishman, I thought Jonathan Hensleigh had it out for me. I liked plenty [...]

Joshua reviews Jimmy T. Murakami’s Battle Beyond The Stars [Blu-ray Review]

Joshua Brunsting — Fri, 08 Jul 2011 06:29:30 +0000

Some say imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. And in the case of Roger Corman and his New World Pictures, they [...]

James Reviews Prachya Pinkaew’s Elephant White [Blu-Ray Review]

James McCormick — Mon, 04 Jul 2011 06:08:08 +0000

A straight to DVD movie starring Djimon Hounsou as an assassin and Kevin Bacon as a gun runner in Thailand directed by [...]

James Reviews Jules Dassin’s Rififi [Arrow Films Blu-ray]

James McCormick — Tue, 28 Jun 2011 06:48:50 +0000

Only a few days after he’s been released from prison, Tony Le Stephanois (Jean Servais) is reunited with his former [...]

James Reviews Michelangelo Antonioni’s Le Signora Senza Camelie [Masters of Cinema Blu-ray]

James McCormick — Sat, 18 Jun 2011 18:00:21 +0000

Le Signora Senza Camelie (aka The Lady Without Camelias) is about Clara Manni (Lucia Bose), a young woman form Milan who [...]

James Reviews Henri-Georges Clouzot’s Les Diaboliques [Arrow Films Blu-Ray]

James McCormick — Sat, 28 May 2011 00:17:44 +0000

“Don’t be diabolical. Don’t spoil the film for your friends by telling them what happens. Thanks on their behalf.”

Those [...]

James Reviews Vittorio De Sica’s Bicycle Thieves [Arrow Films Blu-ray Review]

James McCormick — Sun, 22 May 2011 22:28:07 +0000

Vittorio De Sica, director of Bicycle Thieves (Ladri di biciclette), was a leading force in the neorealist movement in Italy. [...]

James Reviews Robert O’Hara’s The Inheritance [Blu-Ray Review]

James McCormick — Thu, 12 May 2011 05:56:25 +0000

Where do I begin with this film The Inheritance? I guess the best place to start in the plot itself. [...]

Joshua Reviews Michael Dowse’s Fubar: Balls To The Wall [Blu-ray Review]

Joshua Brunsting — Fri, 22 Apr 2011 06:16:56 +0000

Festivals are truly a special portion of the overall film world.

While many may play home to otherwise bigger pictures (look at [...]

James Reviews Nathan Greno and Byron Howard’s Tangled [Blu-Ray Review]

James McCormick — Wed, 13 Apr 2011 05:25:16 +0000

“You broke my smolder.”

When Disney announced they were making an animated film about the Brothers Grimm story Rapunzel

[...]

James Reviews Robert Young’s Vampire Circus [Blu-Ray Review]

James McCormick — Mon, 04 Apr 2011 06:24:26 +0000

Hammer Films was a premier company when it came to making horror films in the 1950′s and 1960′s. But [...]

James Reviews Alejandro Jodorowsky’s Santa Sangre [Blu-Ray Review]

James McCormick — Wed, 30 Mar 2011 04:11:20 +0000

It was 12 years between films for Alejandro Jodorowsky when he announced his making of the film Santa Sangre. Nobody [...]

James Reviews Samuel Fuller’s Shock Corridor [Blu-ray Review]

James McCormick — Fri, 11 Feb 2011 17:00:19 +0000

All of the men want me, Johnny. But I want you. And you – you want the Pulitzer Prize.

A [...]

Joshua Reviews James L. Brooks’ Broadcast News [Blu-ray Review]

Joshua Brunsting — Fri, 04 Feb 2011 06:35:00 +0000

Time is an interesting beast when it comes to its relation to particular films, or cinema as a whole.

Often taking [...]

James Reviews Disney’s Alice In Wonderland [Blu-ray Review]

James McCormick — Tue, 01 Feb 2011 15:00:13 +0000

A film that was ripped apart by critics when it was released, especially in England, Walt Disney’s Alice in [...]

James Reviews Adam Green’s Hatchet II [Blu-ray Review]

James McCormick — Tue, 01 Feb 2011 14:00:46 +0000

Victor Crowley is back with a vengeance, this time with more gore filled kills than the first time around, [...]

James Reviews Fritz Lang’s Metropolis [Masters Of Cinema UK Blu-ray Review]

James McCormick — Mon, 03 Jan 2011 14:00:42 +0000

There can be no understanding between the hand and the brain unless the heart acts as mediator.

How can one review [...]

James Reviews Robert Houston’s Shogun Assassin [UK Blu-Ray review]

James McCormick — Mon, 13 Dec 2010 06:59:36 +0000

I guess I wish it was different. But a wish is only a wish.

Looking at the film Shogun Assassin, it’s [...]

James Reviews Leo McCarey’s Make Way For Tomorrow [UK Blu-Ray Review]

James McCormick — Mon, 13 Dec 2010 06:00:50 +0000

Two old-fashioneds, for two old-fashioned people.

Sometimes you hear about a film for years, from your grandparents, from friends and colleagues [...]

David Reviews Stanley Kubrick’s Paths Of Glory [Blu-ray Review]

David Blakeslee — Wed, 27 Oct 2010 14:00:51 +0000

With Halloween just a few days away, The Criterion Collection once again shows its mastery of the art of thematically perfect [...]

David Reviews Ingmar Bergman’s The Magician [Criterion Collection Blu-ray Review]

David Blakeslee — Tue, 12 Oct 2010 17:16:22 +0000

I don’t know about the rest of you, but for me the release of a new Ingmar Bergman film is a [...]

James Reviews Nagisa Oshima’s Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence [Blu-ray Review]

James McCormick — Fri, 01 Oct 2010 04:00:42 +0000

It’s your gods. It’s your bloody, awful, stinking gods. They made you what you are. May they rot away in the [...]

James Reviews Jean-Luc Godard’s Breathless [Blu-ray Review]

James McCormick — Tue, 14 Sep 2010 13:00:51 +0000

When we talked, I talked about me, you talked about you, when we should have talked about each other.

Soon this [...]

David Reviews Bruce Robinson’s Withnail and I [Blu-ray Review]

David Blakeslee — Thu, 09 Sep 2010 13:00:56 +0000

Late last month, fans of 1980s British cult cinema saw a few long-time favorites make the leap into 21st century media [...]

James Reviews Terrence Malick’s Days of Heaven [Blu-ray Review]

James McCormick — Mon, 06 Sep 2010 04:15:18 +0000

My brother used to tell everyone they were brother and sister…

Terrence Malick. The man, the myth, the legend? In some [...]

James Reviews Michelangelo Antonioni’s Red Desert [Blu-Ray Review]

James McCormick — Sun, 05 Sep 2010 19:00:36 +0000

“You ask what you should watch. I ask how I should live. It’s the same thing.“

Sometimes the best duos in [...]

James Reviews John Mackenzie’s The Long Good Friday [Blu-ray Review]

James McCormick — Fri, 27 Aug 2010 19:04:25 +0000

Who lit the fuse that tore Harold’s world apart?

When sitting down to write a review on a new DVD or [...]

James Reviews Jim Jarmusch’s Mystery Train Criterion Collection Blu-ray New Release

James McCormick — Tue, 22 Jun 2010 04:42:45 +0000

“Was that a gun?”

“Probably. This is America.”

Jim Jarmusch’s ‘Mystery Train’ and I have had a tumultuous relationship with one [...]

James Reviews Akira Kurosawa’s Sanjuro Blu-ray Re-release [Criterion Collection New Releases]

James McCormick — Wed, 19 May 2010 05:04:16 +0000

The story of the wandering ronin is back once again with the Akira Kurosawa’s underrated 1962 gem “Sanjuro“, a sequel [...]

Criterion New Release Tuesday – May 10, 2010 – Fritz Lang’s M Blu-ray Review [Criterion Collection New Releases]

James McCormick — Tue, 11 May 2010 06:11:58 +0000

When one letter could mean so much to film aficionados everywhere, you know you have something special in your midst. The [...]

Akira Kurosawa’s Yojimbo – Criterion Collection #52 [Criterion Blu-ray Review]

James McCormick — Sat, 20 Mar 2010 01:13:50 +0000

“You idiot, I’m not giving up yet. Theres a bunch of guys I have to kill first!”

So says Toshiro Mifune as [...]

Nicholas Ray’s Bigger Than Life – Criterion Collection #507 [Blu-ray Review]

James McCormick — Sun, 14 Mar 2010 20:58:35 +0000

Captain Nemo. Humbert Humbert. Brutus. Eduard Seibert. Richard Straker. Phillip Vandamm. All are classic and iconic characters played by none other than [...]

Steven Soderbergh’s Che – Criterion Collection # 496 [Blu-ray Review]

Ryan Gallagher — Tue, 19 Jan 2010 16:00:10 +0000

Whether you know his story or not, you know the face. Whether on a t-shirt, dorm room poster, coffee mug, [...]