The month of November is PACKED. Very packed, with six films and the CC40 set that was previously announced. A Kurosawa staple plus a pop culture monster are the two standalone re-editions, while another mysterious monster coming from the lab and a human monster on the streets of Chicago join the Collection. Plus, the film that introduced Babs to the world and a father-daughter collaboration which became a key film of ‘70s New Hollywood also joins Criterion. So, if you need to buy a movie for a Christmas gift, you have plenty of options.
Scarface (1932)
Howard Hughes produced this bullet-blazing gangster drama directed by Howard Hawks, loosely based on the exploits of Al Capone. Paul Muni is Tony Camonte, the most ruthless gangster in the city of Chicago who will never stop shooting his way to power and doesn’t care who gets killed. For its time, the violence was seen as overbearing and the censors came in to tame the violent content. Boris Karloff and George Raft also star in this gritty depiction of Prohibition life which would be remade sixty years later by Brian DePalma and Al Capone as Tony Montana.
Godzilla (1954)
70 years later, the power of Gojira – the Japanese word of the title – remains influential to this day and it all started with this fable of the dangers of nuclear bomb testing. From the waters came this radioactive monster who terrorizes cities on the coast and officials scramble to contain the monster. Thanks to director Ishiro Honda’s sensational story, a franchise began that still continues to produce movie after movie and even led Criterion to release a massive box set of the Japanese-produced sequels. For this one, it is simply the 4K re-edition of the seed that started it all.
Seven Samurai (1954)
The same year Godzilla came out, Akira Kurosawa released his three-plus hour masterpiece about a group of free agent samurais who are hired to defend a small village from threats of invasion by bandits. Led by Toshiro Mifune and Takashi Shimura, the group live amongst the villagers and work through emotions, ideals of heroism, and preserving honor in the face of overwhelming odds. It’s certainly among Kurosawa’s most famous films, one that has been retold several times (The Magnificent Seven) in various forms (A Bug’s Life) and a formula told by many legendary directors such as George Lucas, Steven Spielberg, and Quentin Tarantino; even many of the Marvel films use Samurai’s elements.
Funny Girl (1968)
After its massive success on Broadway, the musical life of Fanny Brice, comedian from the 1920s, was made for Hollywood with Barbra Streisand reprising her legendary role and Omar Sharif playing her charming husband, a failed businessman who becomes a gambler and a fraudster. Brice’s son-in-law, Ray Stark, was the producer of both the Broadway and film versions. William Wyler directed in his penultimate film this energetic biopic with classical hits including “People” and “Don’t Rain on My Parade” that made Streisand a permanent household name and gave her an (co-share, with Katherine Hepburn) Oscar.
Paper Moon (1973)
Director Peter Bogdonavich followed up The Last Picture Show and What’s Up, Doc? With an ode to screwball comedies of the ‘30s with this period piece about a conman who takes in an orphaned girl, who may or may not be his daughter. From the start, she clearly has skills to copy her new guardian’s talents and take a road trip through the Midwest. In crisp black-and-white with the Great Depression behind them, Ryan O’Neal and his daughter, 10-year-old Tatum, are the perfect pair and Tatum would go on to win the Oscar for Best Supporting Actress, becoming the youngest Oscar winner ever.
The Shape of Water (2017)
Today, some people don’t like Guillermo del Toro’s Oscar-winning love story of a mute woman (Sally Hawkins) and a mysterious amphibian (Doug Jones), but I do. My favorite film of 2017 still and I will defend its honor. It won Best Picture; suck it, haters. But, this blend of fantasy, musical, and horror is peak del Toro about outsiders in the 1960s before the cultural revolutions began with a woman, her neighbor (Richard Jenkins), and co-worker (Octavia Spencer) against the establishment in a secret laboratory led by a bloodhound Colonel (Michael Shannon). It is full of emotions and touches all the soft spots of the heart and Del Toro deservingly got his flowers much deserved that will stand the test of time. Again, suck it, haters.
CC40
In honor of its 40 years of existence, a selected box set of forty films for you can be all yours all at once! These are among the most frequently chosen, watched, and suggested by the many who have worked at Criterion and the filmmakers who have graced their offices into the closet. So, what films are in the CC40? They include among others:
- Tokyo Story – 1953, dir. Yasujiro Ozu
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- The Night Of The Hunter – 1955, dir. Charles Laughton
- Wanda – 1970, dir. Barbara Loden
- 3 Women – 1977, dir. Robert Altman
- All That Jazz – 1979, dir. Bob Fosse
- Down By Law – 1986, dir. Jim Jarmusch
- Do The Right Thing – 1989, dir. Spike Lee
- My Own Private Idaho – 1991, dir. Gus Van Sant
- Safe – 1995, dir. Todd Haynes
- In The Mood For Love – 2000, dir. Wong Kar Wai
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