Criterion For June

[HGervais]

It's a big month from the Collection where in addition to what you see listed here on Blu you will also see Mystery Train & Red Desert make their entrances as well as Visconti's The Leopard.

#519 Close-Up-Abbas Kiarostami
Iran
1990
98 minutes
Color
1.33:1
Farsi
•New, restored high-definition digital transfer
•Audio commentary by Mehrnaz Saeed-Vafa and Jonathan Rosenbaum, authors of Abbas Kiarostami
•The Traveler, a notable early feature by director Abbas Kiarostami
•“Close-up” Long Shot, a forty-five-minute documentary on Close-up’s central figure, Hossein Sabzian, five years after Kiarostami’s film
•New video interview with Kiarostami
•A Walk with Kiarostami (2003), a thirty-two-minute documentary portrait of the director by Iranian film professor Jamsheed Akrami
•New and improved English subtitle translation
•PLUS: A booklet featuring an essay by film scholar Godfrey Cheshire

#520 Everlasting Moments-Jan Troell
Sweden
2008
131 minutes
Color
1.85:1
Swedish
•New high-definition digital transfer, approved by director Jan Troell
•Jan Troell’s Magic Mirror, an hour-long documentary about Troell’s life and career
•Short documentary on the making of Everlasting Moments, featuring interviews with Troell, cast,
and crew
•Documentary featuring photographs by the real Maria Larsson, accompanied by narration telling her story
•Theatrical trailer
•PLUS: A booklet featuring an essay by critic Armond White

#521 Mystery Train-Jim Jarmusch
United States
1989
110 minutes
Color
1.77:1
English
•New, restored high-definition digital transfer, supervised and approved by director Jim Jarmusch (with uncompressed monaural soundtrack on the Blu-ray edition)
•Two video Q&As with Jarmusch, one from the 2009 All Tomorrow’s Parties festival in New York and one in which he responds to questions sent in by fans
•Original documentary on Mystery Train’s locations and Memphis’s rich social and musical history
•On-set photos by Masayoshi Sukita, and behind-the-scenes photos
•New and improved English subtitle translation
•PLUS: A booklet featuring essays by writers Peter Guralnick and Dennis Lim, as well as a collectible poster

#522 Red Desert-Michelangelo Antonioni
Italy
1964
117 minutes
Color
1.85:1
Italian
•New, restored high-definition digital transfer (with uncompressed monaural soundtrack on the Blu-ray edition)
•Audio commentary by Italian film scholar David Forgacs
•Archival video interviews with director Michelangelo Antonioni and actress Monica Vitti
•Outtakes from the film’s production
•Original theatrical trailer
•PLUS: A booklet featuring an essay by film historian Mark Le Fanu, an interview with Antonioni by Jean-Luc Godard, and a reprinted essay by Antonioni on his use of color
•More!

#523 Night Train To Munich-Carol Reed
United Kingdom
1940
90 minutes
Black and White
1.33:1
English
•New, restored high-definition digital transfer
•New video conversation between film scholars Peter Evans and Bruce Babington about director Carol Reed, screenwriters Frank Launder and Sidney Gilliat, and the social and political climate
in which Night Train to Munich was made
It•PLUS: A booklet featuring an essay by film critic Philip Kemp

[BenShultz]

Like all the others, this looks like a good month. I've heard really great things about Red Desert. I doubt I'll be doing the Mystery Train double-dip, though. Extras don't look substantive enough to warrant the price, and it's not like it's one of my all-time favorite Jarmusch flicks. (Give us Ghost Dog! Or Dead Man!) Although it'd be sweet to have that poster if it's like the cover art.

[Andrew Forbes]

Night Train to Munich interests me. The rest, not so much. Interesting to see an essay by Armond White, though. I wonder if his insights merit inclusion, or if Criterion is just trying to be controversial.

[BenShultz]

Night Train to Munich interests me. The rest, not so much. Interesting to see an essay by Armond White, though. I wonder if his insights merit inclusion, or if Criterion is just trying to be controversial.

Nah, controversy's got nothing to do with it. They included an essay of his on the Hidden Fortress DVD, back before he gained his infamous rep. He's a really great writer; his piece on Z is well worth reading.

[Andrew Forbes]

Night Train to Munich interests me. The rest, not so much. Interesting to see an essay by Armond White, though. I wonder if his insights merit inclusion, or if Criterion is just trying to be controversial.

Nah, controversy's got nothing to do with it. They included an essay of his on the Hidden Fortress DVD, back before he gained his infamous rep. He's a really great writer; his piece on Z is well worth reading.

Good to know.

[Mark Van Hook]

Antonioni in Blu? Yes, please.

And more Carol Reed is always welcome. Great month.

[HGervais]

Antonioni in Blu? Yes, please.

And more Carol Reed is always welcome. Great month.

Yeah I'm pretty much in the same boat. Antonioni & Carol Reed? Oh hell yes and I bet The Leopard is gonna look gorgeous in hi-def.

[BenSaylor]

Very excited to finally see Red Desert, and Night Train to Munich looks like a lot of fun.

[azul017]

Out of those movies, I've only seen Mystery Train. It's been a while since I've seen it, but I think the whole movie should've focused on the Japanese tourists and the Italian widow.

[ckulik]

I'm one of the precious few to see Everlasting Moments in the theaters and thought it was superlative. I recommend you all check it out at least a rental....meanwhile, I'm patiently waiting to purchase the Blu-ray.