Criterion For September....Let's Dance!

[HGervais]

Great month for Criterion and an expensive one for me.


#400 Stranger Than Paradise/ Jim Jarmusch
Rootless Hungarian emigré Willie (John Lurie), his pal Eddie
(Richard Edson), and visiting sixteen-year-old cousin Eva (Eszter
Balint) always manage to make the least of any situation, whether
aimlessly traversing the drab interiors and environs of New York
City, Cleveland, or an anonymous Florida suburb. With its delicate
humor and dramatic nonchalance, Jim Jarmusch's one-of-a-kind
minimalist masterpiece, Stranger Than Paradise, forever transformed
the landscape of American independent cinema. Also included in this
special-edition release is Jarmusch's legendary debut feature,
Permanent Vacation, a time capsule of late-seventies Manhattan, on
DVD for the first time in the United States.

1984
89 minutes
Black & White
1.85:1
Dolby Digital Mono 1.0
Anamorphic
English

DIRECTOR-APPROVED SPECIAL EDITION FEATURES:
New, restored high-definition digital transfer, supervised and
approved by director Jim Jarmusch
Permanent Vacation (1980, 75 minutes), Jarmusch's first full-length
feature, presented in a new, restored high-definition digital
transfer supervised by the director
Kino '84: Jim Jarmusch: a 1984 German television program featuring
interviews with cast and crew from Stranger Than Paradise and
Permanent Vacation
Some Days in January, 1984, a behind-the-scenes Super-8 film by Tom
Jarmusch
Location and on-set photos
U.S. and Japanese trailers
PLUS: A booklet featuring Jarmusch's 1984 "Some Notes on Stranger
Than Paradise," Geoff Andrew and J. Hoberman on Stranger Than
Paradise, and Luc Sante on Permanent Vacation


#401 Night On Earth/ Jim Jarmusch
Five cities. Five taxicabs. A multitude of strangers in the night.
Jim Jarmusch assembled an extraordinary international cast of actors
(including Gena Rowlands, Winona Ryder, Armin Mueller-Stahl,
Beatrice Dalle, and Roberto Benigni) for this hilarious quintet of
tales of urban displacement and existential angst, spanning time
zones, continents, and languages. Jarmusch's lovingly askew view of
humanity from the passenger seat makes for one of his most charming
and beloved films.

1991
128 minutes
Color
1.85:1
Dolby Digital Mono 1.0
Anamorphic
English

DIRECTOR-APPROVED SPECIAL EDITION FEATURES:
New, restored high-definition digital transfer, supervised and
approved by director Jim Jarmusch
Audio commentary by director of photography Frederick Elmes and
location sound mixer Drew Kunin
Q&A with Jarmusch, in which he responds to questions sent by fans
1992 Belgian television interview with Jarmusch
New and improved subtitle translation
PLUS: A booklet featuring new essays by Paul Auster, Thom Andersen,
Bernard Eisenschitz, Goffredo Fofi, and Peter von Bagh, as well as
the lyrics to Tom Waits's original songs from the film

404 Robinson Crusoe on Mars/ Byron Haskin
Special-effects wunderkind and genre master Byron Haskin (The War of
the Worlds, The Outer Limits) won a place in the hearts of fantasy-
film lovers everywhere with this gorgeously designed journey into
the unknown. When his spaceship crash-lands on the barren wastelands
of Mars, U.S. astronaut Commander "Kit" Draper (Paul Mantee) must
fight for survival, with a pet monkey seemingly his only companion.
But is he alone? Shot in vast Techniscope and blazing Technicolor,
Robinson Crusoe on Mars is an imaginative and beloved techni-marvel
of classic science fiction.

1964
110 minutes
Color
2.35:1
Dolby Digital Mono 1.0
Anamorphic
English

New, restored high-definition digital transfer
Audio commentary featuring screenwriter Ib Melchior, actors Paul
Mantee and Victor Lundin, production designer Al Nozaki, Oscar-
winning special effects designer and Robinson Crusoe on Mars
historian Robert Skotak, and excerpts from a 1979 audio interview
with director Byron Haskin
"Destination: Mars," a new video featurette by Michael Lennick
detailing the science behind Robinson Crusoe on Mars
Excerpts from Melchior's original screenplay
New music video for Victor Lundin’s song "Robinson Crusoe on Mars"
Stills gallery of behind-the-scenes photos, production designs, and
promotional material
Theatrical trailer
PLUS: A booklet featuring a new essay by filmmaker and space
historian Michael Lennick, a "Brief Yargorian Dictionary" of
Melchior’s original alien dialect, and a list of facts about Mars
included with his original screenplay


#405 The Threepenny Opera/ G.W. Pabst
The sly melodies of composer Kurt Weill and the daring of dramatist
Bertolt Brecht come together onscreen under the direction of German
auteur G. W. Pabst (Pandora's Box) in this classic adaptation of the
Weimar-era theatrical sensation. Set in the impoverished back alleys
of Victorian London, The Threepenny Opera follows underworld
antihero Mackie Messer (a.k.a. Mack the Knife) as he tries to woo
Polly Peachum and elude the authorities. With its palpable evocation
of corruption and dread, set to Weill's irresistible score, The
Threepenny Opera remains a benchmark of early sound cinema. It is
presented here in both its celebrated German and rare French
versions.

1931
105 minutes
Black & White
1.33:1
Dolby Digital Mono 1.0
Not Anamorphic
German & French

SPECIAL EDITION DOUBLE-DISC SET FEATURES:
New, restored high-definition digital transfer (taken from a new
film restoration element from the Bundesarchiv in Germany)
Audio commentary by scholars David Bathrick, author of The Dialectic
and the Early Brecht, and Eric Rentschler, author of The Films of G.
W. Pabst
L'opera de quat'sous, Pabst's French-language version of The
Threepenny Opera, starring Albert Préjean and Florelle
A video interview with film scholar Charles O'Brien on the
differences between the English and French versions
New exclusive documentary on Threepenny’s controversial journey
from stage to screen to lawsuits
Gallery of production photos by Hans Casparius
Production sketches by art director Andre Andrejew
New and improved English subtitle translation
PLUS: A new essay by film critic Tony Rayns


406 Martha Graham: Dance On Film/ Nathan Kroll
One of the great artistic forces of the twentieth century,
performer, choreographer, and teacher Martha Graham influenced dance
worldwide. Criterion presents a sampling of her stunning craft, all
collaborations with television arts-programming pioneer Nathan
Kroll. A Dancer's World (1957), narrated by Graham herself, is a
glimpse into her class work and methodology. Appalachian Spring
(1959) and Night Journey (1960) are two complete Graham ballets, the
first a celebration of the American pioneer spirit, scored by Aaron
Copland, the second a powerfully physical rendering of the Oedipus
myth. These are signature Graham works and tributes to the art of
the human body.

1959
93 minutes
Black & White
1.33:1
Not Anamorphic
English

SPECIAL EDITION DOUBLE-DISC SET FEATURES:
New, restored high-definition digital transfers of three films: A
Dancer's World, Appalachian Spring, Night Journey
Martha Graham: The Dancer Revealed, an American Masters documentary
following Graham's career
Side-by-side comparison, by dance critic Deborah Jowitt, of excerpts
from a 1940s performance of Appalachian Spring, featuring Graham,
Eric Hawkins, and Merce Cunningham, with the 1958 film
Aaron Copland: Art in America, a short documentary by Nathan Kroll,
featuring composer Aaron Copland discussing Appalachian Spring with
artist Paul Jenkins
A visual essay narrated by Kroll
New interview with Museum of Television and Radio curator Ron Simon
discussing Kroll's work and legacy
Interviews with film editors Eleanor Hamerow and Miriam Arsham
discussing their work on the three films
New interviews with Graham company dancers Mimi Cole, Mary Hinkson,
Linda Hodes, Stuart Hodes, Yuriko Kikuchi, and Ethel Winter
Excerpts from The Martha Graham Technique, a 1975 filmed
demonstration featuring company members and narrated by Graham
16mm home-movie footage of Graham's company from their 1954 European
tour
PLUS: A booklet featuring an essay by writer Joan Acocella

[BenShultz]

I gots to get Robinson Crusoe On Mars. Sounds freaking awesome. Anyone know much about it?

[The Omen]

I gots to get Robinson Crusoe On Mars. Sounds freaking awesome. Anyone know much about it?

I know nothing of it, but I agree it sounds awesome.

[Future Man]

Robinson Crusoe on Mars will be a definite buy for me. Never have seen it but it has always seemed to be highly regarded.

[Kenneth Morgan]

What, no Adam West commentary for "Robinson Crusoe on Mars"?

[The Butcher]

Sweet!! So stoked on Stranger Than Fiction, knew it was coming, just didn't know when. possibly Jarmusch's best film. Night on Earth is pretty good, but not on the same level (i'll still get it). And I'll prolly pick up Robinson Crusoe as well