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S E A R C H D V D B e a v e r |
"No one can see every release during the entire calendar year - so we hope our lists can introduce and expose some of the many lauded Blu-rays and DVDs that surfaced during 2017. Hopefully you will find a few unique surprises. We don't discriminate based on regional limitations or broadcast standards. Expanding the borders of your digital entertainment horizons has always been the primary goal of this website. We always appreciate your suggestions and contributions." DVDBeaver DVDBeaver are proud to announce our voting results for Blu-ray and DVD of the Year - 2017. I would like to give a very appreciative thank you to those 92 individuals (the most yet - next year we go for 100!) who participated (we published the complete results of 26 balloters below, but everyone's votes were counted in the totals!). This poll would not exist without the film aficionados who support world cinema and the DVDBeaver website. Thank you! We have done our best to help expose some of the important, and often clandestine, neglected digital packages, in both BD and SD, that surfaced in the 2017 calendar year.
We have had past years where Criterion is more closely challenged, but not this year. I had suspicions that Kino with their strong output would be second but Arrow is very dominant. Criterion generally can release 4 titles a month - maybe 5, recently - but with the UK editions it is over 85 for the year! Kino is over 200 for the year. Arrow similarly high. It has been another super-strong year. It's hard to keep up!
Two announcements: Firstly, I'd like to warmly welcome Colin Zavitz as our new VP of business development and Versatile Miscellaneous Stuff - he does a little of everything. He's great - you will all love him. And thanks to Colin for this year's ballot tallying!
Secondly, I have purchased both a OLED65 LG TV with, essential, Dolby Vision + HDR (increasing the color depth to 10-bit per color) plus an Oppo Digital UDP-203 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray player. We will start to review the system and each machine, eventually comparing this 4k UHD format's discs to BD and DVD. We have started with a small section below and expect that next year we will have incorporated this format into our Top 100 list!
Acknowledgment, as always, to reviewers Eric Cotenas and Gregory Meshman who continue to expose new and old releases with informative reviews and Calendar updates. We wouldn't be here without them! And appreciation for input and support from Michael C., Monty, Michael B., JM Ryan, Alex D., Sean P., Tim L., Henrik S., Lynn L., Kat E., Brian M. and many others in our FB Group. Thanks everyone!
We're proud of our new listing pages made in
2017:
CREATURE-FEATURES (on Blu-ray!),
PRE-CODE FILMs (on Blu-ray!),
SILENT ERA FILMs (on Blu-ray!),
HAMMER Studios (on Blu-ray!)
The 100 BEST Neo-Noirs (on Blu-ray!),
The GREATEST 100 Westerns (on Blu-ray!),
Giallo on Blu-ray!,
ESSENTIAL NOIR on Blu-ray!,
Shopping Guide for Blu-rays
at Amazon.FR (France),
Shopping Guide for Blu-rays
at Amazon.DE (Germany) and our
LATEST ARTICLES:
Movies From... the End of the World,
The Beauties of Star Trek (TOS). Owning an easily accessible digital library, of the greatest films ever made, in the best possible transfers is a quest of perfection many Cinephiles strive for and continue to achieve. Classic, nostalgic, vintage, or world cinema - has never had such accessibility, ever, for the discerning digital consumer.
NOTE: It's a safe bet that if we had early releases of Suspiria Three disc (2 Blu-rays + 1 CD) LE or The Éric Rohmer Collection that they would have listed even higher in the totals as they are both exceptional packages. We have neither, yet, to review.
The UK output was dominated by Arrow, in addition to much of their output expanding into region 'A'. Criterion packages are being released in Region 'B' (UK), "Indicator" (Powerhouse Films) are all Region FREE!, BFI, Second Run had another great year!, Studio Canal, Artificial Eye and their massive later-year boxsets, Masters of Cinema are always strong, Signal One, Screenbound, Network, 88 Films (love their output!), Third Window - and more.
North America has Criterion continuing to lead the way with help from Kino Lorber's massive output!, Twilight Time, exciting new Classicflix, Olive Films (and their improved 'Signature' releases), Flicker Alley, Shout! Factory, Film Movement, Warner Archive, Milestone, Cinelicious Pics, Synapse, Severin, Grindhouse Releasing, Cinema Guild, Cult Epics, Oscilloscope, Vinegar Syndrome, Cohen Media, Strand Releasing, Film Detective and others.
DVD? We reduced DVD to a TOP 5 this year. Most balloters included zero picks, almost none did a full ten and many chose only 2 or 3. We didn't even include a DVD in the top 100, in 2017, and it, generally, remains infused with extremely eclectic, adventurous world cinema, Indie and documentary leanings. It's slowing but still has value for those seeking vintage or modern films that they can't see, or want to revisit, in alternative, as opposed to lesser (TV) venues. I still like DVD and bought probably 20+ editions in the last year, I'm just bothered by the price of some of the major studio's MoD releases. It certainly seems like a discourtesy towards the loyal fans who are purchasing them...
Okay, let's get to it!
25 Selected Balloters (click name to access votes):
Sean Axmaker Billy Bang Simón Cherpitel Darrick Conley
Eric Cotenas Christopher Doyle Lee Eiseman Gregory Elich
Stuart Galbraith Jeff Heinrich Peter Henné Louis Irwin Benedict Keeler Gregory Meshman Scott Murray Leonard Norwitz Luc Pomerleau Jonathan Rosenbaum Steve Rutt James-Masaki Ryan Schwarkkve Per-Olaf Strandberg (taikohediyoshi) Michael Connors Gary Tooze James White Colin Zavitz The Totals (click to access) TOP TEN Blu-rays OF 2017 TOP 100 Blu-rays of 2017 'Black' and Blu (Film Noir on 2017 Blu-ray) 'Yellow' and Blu (Giallo on 2017 Blu-ray)
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Sean Axmaker
1.
The Lodger: A Story of the London Fog [Blu-ray]
(Alfred Hitchcock, 1927) Criterion
(BEAVER
REVIEW)
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Billy Bang
1.
Martin Scorsese’s World Cinema Project No. 2 [Blu-ray]
(Limite - Mário Peixoto, Revenge - Ermek
Shinarbaev, Insiang - Lino Brocka, Mysterious
Object at Noon - Apichatpong Weerasethakul, Law
of the Border - Lütfi Ö. Akad, Taipei Story -
Edward Yang) - Criterion Collection
(BEAVER
REVIEW)- if Criterion continue to put them out, they are
always going to be blind buys for me. What could be more
precious for cinephiles that the preservation of endangered
film. This has an absolute masterpiece within- Yang's Taipei
Story. As spellbinding as his last film Yi Yi. Of the others-
Mysterious & Limite are as worthwhile. Law of the Border- talk
about preservation from the rubble! Revenge- didn't care for
sadly. Insiang- yet to watch!) ED: I very much concur with Billy's wish choice and would add that it was based on Edward Bunker's novel, who wrote and gave a great commentary in this year's Arrow Blu-ray of Animal Factory (directed by Steve Buscemi)
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Simón Cherpitel The
movies we enjoy speak to our feelings & our consciousness. As
artistic creations, they reflect their creators: the directors,
the writers, the cinematographers, the actors.
(BEAVER
REVIEW)
- A
human remnant of colonialism hangs on as a minor
landlord in revolutionary Cuba, yet his ennui erodes any
possibility of a place in the new society. 3 of the great Billy’s:
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1.
Suspiria Three disc (2 Blu-rays + 1 CD) LE
[Blu-ray]
(Dario Argento, 1977) Synapse Films
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Sacramento, CA, USA
2. Spotlight on a Murderer (George Franju, 1961) Arrow Academy; Region ALL 3. Witchhammer (Otakar Vávra, 1970) Second Run; Region ALL 4. A Woman's Torment (Roberta Findlay, 1977) Vinegar Syndrome; Region ALL 5. The Story of Sin [Blu-ray] (Walerian Borowczyk, 1975) Arrow Video US 6. Swept Away (Lina Wertmüller, 1974) Kino Lorber; Region A 7. The Stendhal Syndrome (Dario Argento, 1977) Blue Underground; Region ALL (replacement version) 8. Rawhead Rex (George Pavlou, 1986) Kino Lorber; Region A 9. The Taisho Trilogy: Zigeunerweisen /Yumeji / Kagero-Za (Seijun Suzuki, 1980-1991) Arrow Academy; Region AB 10. Red Rings of Passion (Joseph Sarno, 1966) Vinegar Syndrome; Region ALL
DVDs
1. Love on a Branch Line (Martyn Friend, 1994) Second Sight; Region 2 2. Eight Films by Jean Rouch (Jean Rouch, 1956-1971) Icarus Films; Region 1 3. Rift (Erlingur Thoroddsen, 2017) Breaking Glass Pictures; Region 1 4. The Ornithologist (Joăo Pedro Rodrigues, 2016) Strand Releasing; Region 1 5. B&B (Joe Ahearne, 2017) Breaking Glass Pictures; Region 1 6. Amnesia (Barbet Schroeder, 2015) Film Movement; Region 1 7. I, Olga (Petr Kazda and Tomás Weinreb, 2016) Strand Releasing; Region 1 8. A Woman A Part (Elisabeth Subrin, 2016) Strand Releasing; Region 1 9. Jonathan (Piotr J. Lewandowski, 2016) Wolfe Video; Region 1
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1.
Blow-Up [Blu-ray]
(Michelangelo Antonioni, 1966) Criterion
(BEAVER
REVIEW) 8. Le samouraď [Blu-ray] (Jean-Pierre Melville, 1967) Criterion (BEAVER REVIEW) 9. The Vietnam War (Ken Burns & Lynn Novick, 2017). PBS, RA 10. Barton Fink [Blu-ray] (Joel Coen, Ethan Coen, 1991) Kino Lorber (BEAVER REVIEW)
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Lee Eiseman
1.
Variety (aka Varieté)
[Blu-ray]
(Ewald André Dupont, 1925) Kino Lorber (Kino version with Berklee Silent
Orchestra score) 14. Early Women Filmmakers: An International Anthology [Blu-ray] (Alice Guy, Lois Weber, Mabel Normand, Madeline Brandeis, Germaine Dulac, Lotte Reiniger, et.al, 1902-1946) Flicker Alley (BEAVER REVIEW)
Most improved score for silent film Variety with Berklee Orchestra
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Gregory Elich
1.
Early Women Filmmakers: An International Anthology
[Blu-ray]
(Alice Guy, Lois Weber, Mabel Normand, Madeline
Brandeis, Germaine Dulac, Lotte Reiniger,
et.al, 1902-1946) Flicker Alley
(BEAVER
REVIEW)
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Kyoto, Japan
1.
The Wanderers [Blu-ray]
(Philip Kaufman, 1979) - Kino DVD 1. Porky Pig 101 ( 5-disc) - Warner Archive 2. The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson: The Vault Series (Various, 1972-1984) Time-Life; R1 3. Green Acres – The Complete Series (Various, 1965-1970) Shout! Factory; R1 4. Lou Grant – Season Four (Various, 1980-81) Shout! Factory; R1 5. Decoy – The Complete Series (Various, 1957-58) Film Chest; ALL Note: This somewhat eclectic list is, by design, intended to acknowledge the varied ambitious aims and accomplishments by labels and the people working for them: restorations: their commitment to serials and B-Westerns (particularly the long beleaguered Roy Rogers series); quality commentary tracks (by Michael Schlesinger, Tom Weaver and others); to heretofore under-acknowledged foreign titles (The Yellow Handkerchief); to audio and 3-D restorations (Hell and High Water, Cease Fire!); and to acknowledge the high-def debuts of highly obscure titles (Cyborg 2087). On the admittedly waning DVD front, indie labels continue complete series runs of shows the bigger studios long ago abandoned half-finished or never released at all. Who says hard media is dead?
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Jeff
Heinrich
1.
Othello
[Blu-ray]
(Orson Welles, 1952) Criterion Collection
(BEAVER
REVIEW)
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1.
Barry Lyndon
[Blu-ray]
(Stanley Kubrick, 1975) Criterion Collection
(BEAVER
REVIEW)
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1
Othello
[Blu-ray]
(Orson Welles, 1952) Criterion Collection
(BEAVER
REVIEW)
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Benedict Keeler
1.
Bring Me the Head of Alfredo Garcia
[Blu-ray]
(Sam Peckinpah, 1974) RB UK Arrow
(BEAVER
REVIEW)
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Atlanta, GA USA
1.
Four Film Noir Classics
(The Dark Mirror, Secret Beyond the Door, Force of
Evil, The Big Combo)
[Blu-ray]
(Robert Siodmak, Fritz Lang, Abraham Polonsky, Joseph H.
Lewis, 1946-1955) RB UK Arrow
(BEAVER
REVIEW)
(BEAVER
REVIEW)
(BEAVER
REVIEW)
(BEAVER
REVIEW)
(boxes from Arrow Academy -
Ludwig,
The Taisho Trilogy)
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TOP 10
BLU-RAYS 2017
* Came
out in 2013
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Leonard Norwitz
1.
Westworld: The Complete First Season
[4K UHD
Blu-ray]
- Warner
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1.
Celine and Julie Go Boating
[Blu-ray]
(Jacques Rivette, 1974) RB BFI
(BEAVER
REVIEW)
An essential work of the Nouvelle Vague and perhaps Rivette's
most accessible one for non-cinephiles, finally getting an
upgraded edition.
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Chicago, Illinois, USA
1. Othello [Blu-ray] (Orson Welles, 1952) Criterion Collection (BEAVER REVIEW)2. Martin Scorsese’s World Cinema Project No. 2 [Blu-ray] (Limite - Mário Peixoto, Revenge - Ermek Shinarbaev, Insiang - Lino Brocka, Mysterious Object at Noon - Apichatpong Weerasethakul, Law of the Border - Lütfi Ö. Akad, Taipei Story - Edward Yang) - Criterion Collection (BEAVER REVIEW) 3. Vampir Cuadecuc [Blu-ray] (Pere Portabella, 1971) R0 UK Second Run (BEAVER REVIEW) 4. The 4 Marx Brothers at Paramount (The Cocoanuts, Animal Crackers, Monkey Business, Horse Feathers, Duck Soup) [Blu-ray] (1929-1933) RB Arrow UK (BEAVER REVIEW) (BEAVER REVIEW) 5. Ana-ta-han [Blu-ray] (Josef von Sternberg, 1953) Kino (BEAVER REVIEW) 6. A Brighter Summer Day [Blu-ray] (Edward Yang, 1991) RB Criterion UK (BEAVER REVIEW) 7. Moses and Aaron [Blu-ray] (Daničle Huillet, Jean-Marie Straub, 1973) Grasshopper Film 8. Letter from an Unknown Woman [Blu-ray] (Max Ophüls, 1948) Olive Signature (BEAVER REVIEW) 9. Lost in Paris [Blu-ray] (Dominique Abel, Fiona Gordon, 2016) Oscilloscope Pictures 10. A New Leaf [Blu-ray] (Elaine May, 1971) Olive Signature
A major reason for listing
Criterion's Othello first is that it includes the digital
premieres of not one and not two but three Orson Welles
features: both of his edits of Othello available with his own
soundtracks, heard for the first time in the U.S. in several
decades, and Filming Othello, his last feature.
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Top Blu-ray Releases of 2017
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James-Masaki Ryan 1. Baby Driver (2-disc Blu-ray edition) (Edgar Wright, 2017) Sony (Australia) (ALL) 2. Electric Boogaloo: The Wild Untold Story of Cannon Films / Machete Maidens Unleashed (Mark Hartley, 2014 / 2010) Umbrella Entertainment (Australia) (ALL) 3. The Fabulous Baron Munchausen [Blu-ray] (Karel Zeman, 1962) Region FREE UK Second Run (BEAVER REVIEW) 4. German Concentration Camps Factual Survey [Blu-ray] - RB UK BFI (BEAVER REVIEW) 5. Horus: Prince of the Sun (Isao Takahata, 1967) Diskotek (US) (RA) 6. Rebecca [Blu-ray] (Alfred Hitchcock, 1940) Criterion (BEAVER REVIEW) 7. Rough Stuff (Jonathan Adams, 2017) Rough Stuff Pty Ltd (Australia) (ALL) 8. The Thing - 4K Restored [Blu-ray] (John Carpenter, 1982) RB UK Arrow (BEAVER REVIEW) 9. Yen Town Space in Inujima [Blu-ray] (Shunji Iwai, 2017) Universal (Japan) (ALL) 10. Your Name. (5-disc Collector's Edition) (Makoto Shinkai, 2016) Toho (Japan) (ALL)
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Schwarkkve Once again, sorry to say, we can’t see everything that comes out in a given year. And that means that, for one reason or another, my list of Top Releases for 2017 is missing titles that I would consider to be likely candidates for inclusion- Martin Scorsese’s World Cinema Project No. 2 [Blu-ray] (Limite - Mário Peixoto, Revenge - Ermek Shinarbaev, Insiang - Lino Brocka, Mysterious Object at Noon - Apichatpong Weerasethakul, Law of the Border - Lütfi Ö. Akad, Taipei Story - Edward Yang) - Criterion Collection (BEAVER REVIEW), or the 100 Years of Olympic Films [Blu-ray] (Leni Riefenstahl, Kon Ichikawa, Claude Lelouch, Carlos Saura, Miloš Forman etc.) - Criterion Collection (BEAVER REVIEW) (BEAVER REVIEW) (BEAVER REVIEW) (BEAVER REVIEW) (BEAVER REVIEW), for example. Still, from those I have seen this year, there is a plethora of outstanding contenders. My selections are determined by my personal tastes which are eclectic (or erratic, depending on your p.o.v.), my personal finances, which prohibit, or at least severely inhibit, high end purchases or extensive indulgence, and my personal perspectives which weigh the relative merits of, say, the uniqueness of the production, personal appeal, its importance (artistically, culturally, historically), and the technical excellence of the pressing- along with other more tangible factors such as its availability at sales prices. Top Blu-ray Releases of 2017 His Girl Friday [Blu-ray] (Howard Hawks, 1940) Criterion Us / UK (BEAVER REVIEW) – Finally, this quiescently Hawksian masterwork, a touchstone of Hollywood comedy and a high point in the careers of everyone involved in the production, receives the treatment it deserves. Light years removed from the bargain bin public domain knockoffs that have surfaced over the years, as well as an improvement over the previous Columbia SD releases of this title, Criterion have provided us with a generous 2-disc package that includes not only an excellent restoration of the film, but interviews with and special features about the cast and crew, trailers, a radio adaption of the film, a clever and informative insert in the form of an edition of the Morning Post, as well as two radio adaptions and a new 4K digital restoration of the “director’s cut” version of the 1931 film The Front Page. Whew! It was a long time coming, but this definitive edition of His Girl Friday was worth the wait. Roberto Rossellini’s War Trilogy [Blu-ray] ( Rome Open City, Paisan, and Germany Year Zero) Criterion (BEAVER REVIEW) – Cornerstones of Neorealism, a movement that marked a turning point in postwar cinema, get the deluxe Criterion treatment. Aside from their historical importance and their influence on the next generation of filmmakers, all of these films are extraordinary works of art, expressive and vital, that in retrospect, appear to me classical in their rigorous vision- even as they make use of every means at hand to explore and develop a new way of expressing that vision to the world. This package does these films justice, supporting them in a presentation that is the best I’ve ever seen them look. The Marseille Trilogy (Marius, Fanny, César) [Blu-ray] (Alexander Korda, Marc Allégret, Marcel Pagnol, 1931-1936) Criterion (BEAVER REVIEW) – Another collected trilogy of world classics from Criterion. Landmarks of humanism, whose epic span, theatrical realism and stylized romanticism produce a poetic transcendence. A collection of masterworks complete with extensive supplements, in a box set that is itself a work of art. Jeanne Dielman, 23, quai du Commerce, 1080 Bruxelles [Blu-ray] (Chantal Akerman, 1975) Criterion Collection (BEAVER REVIEW) - A truly unique cinematic experience that pushes the neorealism esthetic to the edge and beyond. Chantal Akerman’s technique works in contrast to the theatricality and pretense of what we normally think of as cinematic realism, exposing the so-called “reality” as artificial and manipulative. Her seemingly naturalistic depiction of mundane moments is actually a heightened verisimilitude, incorporating elements which evoke the temporal experiments of Warhol’s Sleep or Michael Snow’s Wavelength, the ritualistic behavior of routine actions found in Bresson’s Pickpocket, A Man Escaped, or Diary of a Country Priest, and the minimalism of Dreyer’s Ordet. It seems to me that this approach is also akin to the 1968 Straub and Huillet film, The Chronicle of Anna Magdalena Bach. Both films present their subjects through a meticulous attention to detail, marshaling their various components in such a way as to not recreate reality, but create their own time and place. Akerman’s rendering of time (“(not) real time, not dramatic and codified [cinematic] time. I take ‘my time’…”) evokes a visceral reaction, forcing the viewer to actually experience the moment. Delphine Seyrig doesn’t so much act, as channel her character, not impersonating or representing, but creating Jeanne Dielman through emersion in the actions and the rhythms of the film. Once again, Criterion delivers a deluxe package that includes a booklet, a behind-the-scenes “making of” documentary, the director introducing her first film, and several interviews (including one with Chantal Akerman’s mother!). Stalker [Blu-ray] (Andrei Tarkovsky, 1979) Criterion (BEAVER REVIEW) – Tarkovsky’s “other” science fiction film, based on the Strugatsky brother’s renowned 1971 novel Roadside Picnic. With the aid of the authors, Tarkovsky scaled back, condensed and altered the original material to provide himself a platform from which to explore his own concerns involving man making his way through a seemingly hostile or indifferent world, facing an environment filled with danger, illogic and contradiction, yet holding out hope for the possibility of salvation, a benevolent outcome, or at least the emergence of some sort of meaning. I’ve about run out of adjectives when it comes to describing the uniform excellence of the Criterion Collections’ restorations and supplemental materials. Suffice it to say that this release is no exception to the rule. The quality and detail of the improved image is profound. The Lost World [Blu-ray] (Harry O. Hoyt, 1925) Flicker Alley (BEAVER REVIEW) / The Lodger: A Story of the London Fog [Blu-ray] (Alfred Hitchcock, 1927) Criterion (BEAVER REVIEW) – Two excellent releases of late silent films, both of which are not only entertaining and “firsts” of their kind, but important harbingers of things to come. Willis O’Brien’s stop motion animation anchors the screen adaption of Arthur Conan Doyle’s 1912 novel, the first ever feature-length commercial production to utilize this innovative technique, and provides the template for King Kong and almost every other dinosaur/adventure/quest for a “lost unknown continent that time forgot” movie to follow. Alfred Hitchcock’s third feature, the first to introduce many of his reoccurring tropes (an innocent man wanted for a crime he did not commit, the association of sex with violence, the idealized blonde heroine), is not only a defining moment in that director’s distinguished body of work (“the first true Hitchcock film”), but also a seminal work in the suspense thriller genre. Both The Lost World and The Lodger have been meticulously restored and packaged with excellent music scores, abundant supplements, informative booklets, and additional films by their creators. Along with copious dinosaur outtakes, The Lost World includes several early Willis O’Brien animated shorts and test footage for the proposed feature Creation (1930). The Lodger includes an entire second Hitchcock feature, the restored 1927, Downhill, also starring Ivor Novello. Le samouraď [Blu-ray] (Jean-Pierre Melville, 1967) Criterion (BEAVER REVIEW) – In Le samouraď Melville moves into Bresson territory, applying an austere minimalism to his material while substituting Eastern stoicism and the code of bushido for the other director’s rigorous spiritual discipline and Catholicism. Here, Melville pares back plot, dialogue, even the color palate, to produce a spartan, yet striking, expressionistic effect. The iconic image of Alain Delon’s white gloved, trench coat wearing assassin in a fedora hat is at the same time both broadly rendered and sparingly realized- an exaggerated image that defines the character in a few conspicuous strokes. Many consider this Melville’s best film, and once more, Criterion brings us a primo restoration supported by a first rate set of supplements. The Lure [Blu-ray] (Agnieszka Smoczyńska, 2015) Criterion Collection (BEAVER REVIEW) – Another beautiful package featuring a striking one-of-a-kind movie experience- a genre crossing mash-up that that references MGM musicals, horror films, Hans Christian Anderson, feminism and ‘80s MTV among other things. An energetic postmodernist pop art extravaganza that exudes the seeming effortless improvisational certainty of a parkour practitioner navigating up, over, under, around and through their environment. It is nice to see that Criterion supports this kind of promising new cinema as well as the established classics and recognized masterpieces. Othello [Blu-ray] (Orson Welles, 1952) Criterion Collection (BEAVER REVIEW) – Last year Criterion gave us Chimes at Midnight. This year, it’s not one but two restored versions Welles’ Othello- both the US/UK release and the longer European version. Of course, Criterion bundles in a load of extras to support this disc (interviews, documentaries, a booklet) but the thing that most impressed me about this edition, revealed in the detail of the 4K scans, is the richness of the images and the quality and consistency of the production design. Amazing, considering that the film was shot on shoestring budget in multiple locations over a period of years. The Adventures of Captain Marvel [Blu-ray] (John English, William Witney, 1941) Kino Lorber (BEAVER REVIEW) / Daredevils of the Red Circle (12 Chapter Serial) [Blu-ray] (William Witney, 1939) Kino - These two Blu-rays, although far from being Criterion style restorations packed with supplements, are important releases because they are “official” 1080P editions (remastered in 4K from archival materials) of two of the finest Republic Serials, made by arguably the greatest directing team working in that genre at the peak that studio’s creative output. Which is to say, they represent the acme of sound era serials. Each of these titles has been sited as the best of its kind and can usually be found on any serial aficionado’s Top Ten List. Over the past couple of years, Olive Films has released several of the later Republic cliffhangers (this year they put out a nice bare bones edition of Panther Girl of the Kongo), but these serials have been from the late ‘40s and the ‘50s- a time that is generally seen as a period of decline, of shrinking budgets and disappearing resources, forcing the filmmakers to find evermore inventive ways to rework their materials (stock footage, recycled action sequences, shortened chapter lengths, etc.) as the theatrical short film form was relinquished to television. With The Adventures of Captain Marvel and Daredevils of the Red Circle Kino has provided us with two legendary examples of the art form from its greatest era, presented in excellent quality editions with informative and enthusiastic commentary tracks (albeit somewhat less extensive in Daredevils’ case). Both of these releases are prime examples of the cliffhanger serial, an important and iconic cultural expression, now as extinct as the silent film. Honorable Mention – They Live by Night [Blu-ray] (Nicholas Ray, 1948) Criterion (BEAVER REVIEW) - Ray’s confident manipulation of his resources and involvement with his material produce a signature tension in his films, already discernible in this, his first feature. His blending of hard-edged, no-nonsense naturalism, intense melodrama, and unabashed romanticism, wedded to striking visuals and propelled by a committed sense of drama, make for an exhilarating and engaging style. A stunning debut and a key film in the lovers on the run subgenre, this title finally gets the release it deserves. Once again, thank you Criterion. Barry Lyndon [Blu-ray] (Stanley Kubrick, 1975) Criterion Collection (BEAVER REVIEW) – Hands down, the best this masterpiece has ever looked on video. It is absolutely breathtaking, with a 4k digital restoration, correct frame ratio, and an abundance of extras on a second disc. When Knighthood Was in Flower (Robert G. Vignola, 1922) Undercrank Productions (ALL) – A promising trend over the past couple of years has been the advent of a DIY movement on the part of movie buffs (film scholars, industry professionals and other interested parties) to restore, or at least clean up and release decent versions of older movies (particularly silents), licensing the rights and obtaining their source materials from private collectors, film museums and archives like MOMA or UCLA. Some of these efforts, like those produced and/or distributed by silent film composer and accompanist Ben Model’s Undercrank Productions (see DVD releases below), are crowd funded and have been very well produced- successfully bringing films, which would have been otherwise unavailable, to a wider, appreciative audience. WKWIF stars Marion Davies in the epic breakout feature that was to make her a star of the first magnitude. Unseen before on home video, the film was scanned from a Library of Congress 35mm nitrate print of the “road show” version, with original tints and a special hand-colored sequence (night riders carrying blazing torches) digitally recreated. This edition contains both Blu-ray and DVD copies of the film with a new theater organ score by Ben Model and a very nice 16-page booklet by film researcher and Marion Davis biographer, Lara Gabrielle Fowler. It is an exemplary independent release of a landmark film that has been little seen in the decades following its theatrical debut. DVD Releases – I’ve not seen many and purchased only a few “DVD only” releases this year. Of those, the following seem worthy of recognition: Rumble: The Indians Who Rocked the World (Catherine Bainbridge, Alfonso Maiorana, 2017) Kino (Region 1) – This eye-opening, award winning documentary makes a compelling argument for influence of Native American culture on American popular music, specifically rock and roll. Using recordings, archival footage, filmed performances and on camera interviews with musicians, scholars and people in the music industry, Rumble illustrates its thesis and makes its case. Citing the instrumental rhythms and vocal patterns of delta bluesman Charlie Patton, the Big Band stylings of Mildred Bailey, and the proto-rock power chords of Link Ray, the film traces the impact of these and other contributions by Native Americans on the various forms of American music. An informative and entertaining essay on a heretofore neglected topic. The Mysterious Airman (Henry Revier, 1929) The Sprocket Vault (ALL Regions) – A fairly routine 10-chapter late silent serial featuring generally excellent picture elements, impressive aerial sequences, authentic behind the scenes glimpses at airplane manufacturing, and location work highlighting unspoiled 1920’s southern California landscapes. It has been restored and given an original and atmospheric musicals accompaniment, as well as a knowledgeable and very thorough audio commentary which provides an excellent context for the serial. This entertaining piece of cinema archeology, with its remarkably detailed visuals, authentic period-appropriate musical score and informative elucidation by Richard M. Roberts, allows us to recreate what a typical film going experience must have been like in 1929. Porky Pig 101 ( 5-disc) - Warner Archive (MOD/ ALL Regions) – A truly archival 5-disc collection of 101 classic Porky Pig cartoons, most of which are black and white, with a couple in 2-strip Technicolor. Presented in chronological order, the quality of the source material ranges from excellent to decent and there are some extras in the form of several commentaries and a couple of storyboards. A nice made-on-demand package put together by the Warner Archive for animation buffs and fans of Warner Bros. “first cartoon superstar.” Entertaining, informative, and of historical interest. Undercrank Productions 2017 catalogue of DVD releases (Lon Chaney: Before the Thousand Faces: 3 Rare Universal Features from 1915-1916, Whispering Shadows/The Devil’s Assistant (1921/1917), Beauty’s Worth (1922), The Bride’s Play (1922) Undercrank Productions (ALL Regions) - A mixed bag of vintage productions (source material ranging from 35mm nitrate theatrical prints to archival 28mm home viewing releases) lovingly restored and reissued by aficionados both amateur and professional who have made the move from passive consumption to passionate involvement with their pastime. For silent movie fans or anyone interested in cinema history, these releases are definitely worth checking out.
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Helsinki, Finland
1.
The Before Trilogy [Blu-ray]
(Before Sunrise - 1995, Before Sunset - 2004, Before
Midnight - 2013) Criterion
(BEAVER
REVIEW)
(BEAVER
REVIEW)
(BEAVER
REVIEW)
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taikohediyoshi
(Michael Connors) Top Blu-ray Releases of 2017
Silent:
Variety [Blu-ray] (Ewald André Dupont, 1925) RB UK Masters Of Cinema (BEAVER REVIEW) There was a 2015 blu ray release by F W Murnau Stiftung with English subtitles, so it should have been the release of that year too. There is a Kino Classics release in the USA. Ewald André Dupont directs Emil Jannings in a carny story much like the ones Lon Chaney made for MGM, but it’s Karl Freund and Carl Hoffmann’s cinematography which makes the movie a lodestar in film history. The Entfesselte Kamera [Unchanged Camera] techniques which were used extensively in Der letzte Mann year before are now used in a less arty, more commercial film to great effect. A big hit on both sides of the Atlantic. Cinema never looked back. Wagon Tracks Blu-ray--William S. Hart (Actor), Jane Novak (Actor), Lambert Hillyer (Director). At the 50 minute mark, a thirteen minute night sequence begins which is very well done. The night shots are the highlight of the film. John August is the cameraman. Print is in remarkably good condition and the transfer is razor sharp.
2 Short Films of Chaplin 2
Blu-ray
Finally someone
had the good sense of collecting the shorts Chaplin made for
First National, but not in The Chaplin Revue on one Blu-Ray.
Yuri Norstein Collection 2K Restoration
Edition
Blu-ray
The Russian animator gets a Blu-ray release of some of his short
films.
"Your
Name."
Blu-ray
Standard Edition
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Gary Tooze Toronto, Canada
Like previous years, I don't feel my input in the poll is essential. It seems redundant for me to mimic the general consensus extolling an impressive lineup of Criterion, Arrow, Indicator, Masters of Cinema editions, of which, I fully concur with all raves expressed. My preference would be to mention discs that I greatly appreciated having on Blu-ray - mostly because of the film and that weren't mentioned extensively by anyone else. It's only my opinion, so here are some of my less-predictable choices, of releases that I felt deserved more love than our poll might express to them. They are in alphabetical order:
21 Grams [Blu-ray] (Alejandro González Ińárritu, 2003) Universal (BEAVER REVIEW) [Blu-ray] (Henry Hathaway, 1956) Kino Lorber (BEAVER REVIEW)The Adventures of Captain Marvel [Blu-ray] (John English, William Witney, 1941) Kino Lorber (BEAVER REVIEW) The Agnčs Varda Collection (Cleo from 5 to 7, Jacquot de Nantes, L'une chante, l'autre pas, Le Bonheur, The Gleaners and I, The Beaches of Agnčs, Vagabond, La Pointe Courte) [Blu-ray] (Agnčs Varda) RB UK Curzon Artificial Eye (BEAVER REVIEW) (BEAVER REVIEW) (BEAVER REVIEW) Barton Fink [Blu-ray] (Joel Coen, Ethan Coen, 1991) Kino Lorber (BEAVER REVIEW) Beggars of Life [Blu-ray] (William A. Wellman, 1928) Kino Lorber (BEAVER REVIEW) The Burning Bed [Blu-ray] (Robert Greenwald, 1984) Kino Lorber (BEAVER REVIEW) China Moon [Blu-ray] (John Bailey, 1994) Kino Lorber (BEAVER REVIEW) Compulsion [Blu-ray] (Richard Fleischer, 1959) - Kino (BEAVER REVIEW) Criss Cross [Blu-ray] (Robert Siodmak, 1949) Cinema Cult (BEAVER REVIEW) The Culpepper Cattle Co. [Blu-ray] (Dick Richards, 1972) RB UK Signal One (BEAVER REVIEW) Dawson City: Frozen Time [Blu-ray] (Bill Morrison, 2016) Kino Lorber (BEAVER REVIEW) The Day of the Jackal [Blu-ray] (Fred Zinnemann, 1973) Arrow UK (BEAVER REVIEW) Death in the Land of Encantos (Lav Diaz, 2007) Region FREE Dissidenz Films Erik the Conqueror [Blu-ray] (Mario Bava, 1961) Arrow UK (BEAVER REVIEW) Fritz Lang: The Silent Films (The Spiders, Harakiri (SD), The Wandering Shadow (SD), Four Around a Woman, Destiny, Dr. Mabuse the Gambler, Die Nibelungen, Metropolis, Spies, Woman in the Moon, The Plague in Florence) [Blu-ray] (Fritz Lang, 1919-1929) Kino German Concentration Camps Factual Survey [Blu-ray] - RB UK BFI (BEAVER REVIEW) Gold [Blu-ray] (Stephen Gaghan, 2016) Lionsgate (BEAVER REVIEW) The Good, the Bad and the Ugly (50th Anniversary Special Edition) [Blu-ray] (Sergio Leone, 1966) - Kino Lorber (BEAVER REVIEW) Hammer Film Edition [Blu-ray] (The Horror of Frankenstein, Scars of Dracula, Blood from the Mummy's Tomb, Demons of the Mind, Straight on Till Morning, Fear in the Night, and Dr Jekyll & Sister Hyde) Studio Canal DE Hammer Volume One: Fear Warning [Blu-ray] (Maniac, The Gorgon, Curse of the Mummy's Tomb, Fanatic) Indicator UK (BEAVER REVIEW) (BEAVER REVIEW) (BEAVER REVIEW) (BEAVER REVIEW) Housekeeping [Blu-ray] (Bill Forsyth, 1987) Region FREE Indicator UK (BEAVER REVIEW) I'll Be Seeing You [Blu-ray] (William Dieterle, 1945) Kino Lorber (BEAVER REVIEW) The Indian Runner [Blu-ray] (Sean Penn, 1991) Kino Lorber (BEAVER REVIEW) Inferno 2D + 3D [Blu-ray] (Roy Ward Baker, 1953) Twilight Time (BEAVER REVIEW) The Informer [Blu-ray] (Arthur Robison, 1929) - RB UK BFI (BEAVER REVIEW) Island of Terror [Blu-ray] (Terence Fisher, 1966) Shout! Factory (BEAVER REVIEW) Junior Bonner [Blu-ray] (Sam Peckinpah, 1972) Kino Classics (BEAVER REVIEW) Lifeboat [Blu-ray] (Alfred Hitchcock, 1944) Kino (BEAVER REVIEW) The Lost World [Blu-ray] (Harry O. Hoyt, 1925) Flicker Alley (BEAVER REVIEW) Blu-ray] (Anna Biller, 2016) Oscilloscope Laboratories (BEAVER REVIEW)Love with the Proper Stranger [ Blu-ray] (Robert Mulligan, 1963) Kino Lorber (BEAVER REVIEW) Blu-ray] (Leos Carax, 1991) Kino (BEAVER REVIEW)Ludwig (4-Disc Limited Edition) [Blu-ray] (Luchino Visconti, 1973) RB Arrow UK (BEAVER REVIEW) Magnificent Obsession [Blu-ray] (Douglas Sirk, 1954) RB FR Elephant Films (BEAVER REVIEW) The Man from Planet X [Blu-ray] (Edgar G. Ulmer, 1951) Shout! Factory (BEAVER REVIEW) Blu-ray] (Carl Reiner, 1983) Warner Archive (BEAVER REVIEW) The Manster - Half Man, Half Monster [Blu-ray] (George P. Breakston, Kenneth G. Crane, 1959) Shout! Factory [Blu-ray] (Arthur Penn, 1962) Olive (BEAVER REVIEW)Night Moves [Blu-ray] (Arthur Penn, 1975) Warner Archive (BEAVER REVIEW) OSS 117: Five Film Collection (OSS 117 Is Unleashed / OSS 117: Panic in Bangkok / OSS 117: Mission For a Killer / OSS 117: Mission to Tokyo / OSS 117: Double Agent) [Blu-ray] (various, 1963-1968) Kino Lorber (BEAVER REVIEW) The Party [Blu-ray] (Blake Edwards, 1968) RB UK Eureka Classics (BEAVER REVIEW) The Piano Teacher [Blu-ray] (Michael Haneke, 2001) Criterion (BEAVER REVIEW) Portrait of Jennie [Blu-ray] (William Dieterle, 1948) Kino Classics (BEAVER REVIEW) Quarry [Blu-ray] TV Series (Michael D. Fuller, Graham Gordy, 2016) HBO (BEAVER REVIEW) Rawhead Rex [Blu-ray] (George Pavlou, 1986) Kino Classics (BEAVER REVIEW) Rawhide [Blu-ray] (Henry Hathaway, 1951) RB UK Signal One Entertainment (BEAVER REVIEW) Ride the High Country [Blu-ray] (Sam Peckinpah, 1962) Warner Archive (BEAVER REVIEW) The Savage Innocents [Blu-ray] (Nicholas Ray, 1960) Olive Films (BEAVER REVIEW) Seven Days in May [Blu-ray] (John Frankenheimer, 1964) Warner Archive (BEAVER REVIEW) The Sicilian Clan [Blu-ray] (Henri Verneuil, 1969) Kino Lorber (BEAVER REVIEW) Silkwood [Blu-ray] (Mike Nichols, 1983) Kino Lorber (BEAVER REVIEW) Since You Went Away [Blu-ray] (John Cromwell, 1944) Kino Lorber (BEAVER REVIEW) Something Wild [Blu-ray] (Jack Garfein, 1961) Criterion (BEAVER REVIEW) La Strada [Blu-ray] (Federico Fellini, 1954) RB UK Studio Canal (BEAVER REVIEW) The Strange Vice Of Mrs Wardh [Blu-ray] (Sergio Martino, 1971) RB UK Shameless (BEAVER REVIEW) Streets of Fire [Blu-ray] (Walter Hill, 1984) Shout! Factory (BEAVER REVIEW) Swept Away [Blu-ray] (Lina Wertmüller, 1974) Kino (BEAVER REVIEW) Take the Money and Run [Blu-ray] (Woody Allen, 1969) Kino (BEAVER REVIEW) Blu-ray] (Joseph H. Lewis, 1958) Arrow US/ UK (BEAVER REVIEW)They Shoot Horses, Don't They? [Blu-ray] (Sydney Pollack, 1969) Kino Lorber (BEAVER REVIEW) Tower [Blu-ray] (Keith Maitland, 2016) - Kino (BEAVER REVIEW) Umberto D [Blu-ray] (Vittorio De Sica, 1952) RB UK Cult Films (BEAVER REVIEW) The Unknown Girl [Blu-ray] (Jean-Pierre Dardenne, Luc Dardenne, 2016) RB UK Artificial Eye (BEAVER REVIEW) The Vampire's Ghost [Blu-ray] (Lesley Selander, 1945) Olive (BEAVER REVIEW) Veep - Season 5 [Blu-ray] - HBO The Vikings [Blu-ray] (Richard Fleischer, 1958) RB UK Eureka Classics (BEAVER REVIEW)
The Wasp Woman / Beast from Haunted Cave [Blu-ray]
(Roger Corman, Jack Hill, Monte Hellman, 1959)
Retromedia
(BEAVER
REVIEW) Woody Allen: Seven Films - 1986-1991 [ Blu-ray] - Hannah and Her Sisters (1986), Radio Days (1987), September (1987), Another Woman (1988), Crimes and Misdemeanors (1989), Alice (1990), Shadows and Fog (1991) - RB UK Arrow Academy (BEAVER REVIEW) (BEAVER REVIEW) (BEAVER REVIEW) (BEAVER REVIEW) (BEAVER REVIEW) (BEAVER REVIEW) (BEAVER REVIEW)The Yellow Handkerchief (Yoji Yamada, 1977) Twilight Time; RA (BEAVER REVIEW)
DVD Coronet Blue - The Complete Series (1967) Kino Lorber The Goddess (Yonggang Wu, 1934) R2 UK BFI (BEAVER REVIEW) The Spring River Flows East (Chusheng Cai, Junli Zheng, 1947) R2 UK BFI (BEAVER REVIEW)
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James White Head of Restoration, Arrow Films
1.
Suspiria Three disc (2 Blu-rays + 1 CD) LE
[Blu-ray]
(Dario Argento, 1977) Synapse Films
10.
The Wages of Fear
[Blu-ray]
(Henri-Georges Clouzot, 1953) RB UK BFI
(BEAVER
REVIEW)
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Colin Zavitz DVDBeaver VP of business development and versatile misc. stuff, Toronto, Ontario
1.
Stalker [Blu-ray]
(Andrei Tarkovsky, 1979) Criterion
(BEAVER
REVIEW)
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TOP SELECTIONS IN ORDER
- Top 100 Voted Upon (minimum 3 separate votes required): 1. Barry Lyndon [Blu-ray] (Stanley Kubrick, 1975) Criterion Collection (BEAVER REVIEW) 2. Othello [Blu-ray] (Orson Welles, 1952) Criterion Collection (BEAVER REVIEW) 3. Stalker [Blu-ray] (Andrei Tarkovsky, 1979) Criterion (BEAVER REVIEW) 4. Suspiria Three disc (2 Blu-rays + 1 CD) LE [Blu-ray] (Dario Argento, 1977) Synapse Films 5. The Thing - 4K Restored [Blu-ray] (John Carpenter, 1982) RB UK Arrow (BEAVER REVIEW) 6. The Fabulous Baron Munchausen [Blu-ray] (Karel Zeman, 1962) Region FREE UK Second Run (BEAVER REVIEW) 7. Buster Keaton: 3 Films [Blu-ray] (Sherlock Jr., The General, Steamboat Bill, Jr.) - RB UK Masters of Cinema 8. Blow-Up [Blu-ray] (Michelangelo Antonioni, 1966) Criterion (BEAVER REVIEW) 9. The Wages of Fear [Blu-ray] (Henri-Georges Clouzot, 1953) RB UK BFI (BEAVER REVIEW) 10. The Old Dark House [Blu-ray] (James Whale, 1932) Cohen Media Group (BEAVER REVIEW) 11. The Marseille Trilogy (Marius, Fanny, César) [Blu-ray] (Alexander Korda, Marc Allégret, Marcel Pagnol, 1931-1936) Criterion (BEAVER REVIEW) 12. Early Women Filmmakers: An International Anthology [Blu-ray] (Alice Guy, Lois Weber, Mabel Normand, Madeline Brandeis, Germaine Dulac, Lotte Reiniger, et.al, 1902-1946) Flicker Alley (BEAVER REVIEW) 13. Le samouraď [Blu-ray] (Jean-Pierre Melville, 1967) Criterion (BEAVER REVIEW) 14. His Girl Friday [Blu-ray] (Howard Hawks, 1940) Criterion Us / UK (BEAVER REVIEW) 15. Martin Scorsese’s World Cinema Project No. 2 [Blu-ray] (Limite - Mário Peixoto, Revenge - Ermek Shinarbaev, Insiang - Lino Brocka, Mysterious Object at Noon - Apichatpong Weerasethakul, Law of the Border - Lütfi Ö. Akad, Taipei Story - Edward Yang) - Criterion Collection (BEAVER REVIEW) 16. Celine and Julie Go Boating [Blu-ray] (Jacques Rivette, 1974) RB BFI (BEAVER REVIEW) 17. Four Film Noir Classics (The Dark Mirror, Secret Beyond the Door, Force of Evil, The Big Combo) [Blu-ray] (Robert Siodmak, Fritz Lang, Abraham Polonsky, Joseph H. Lewis, 1946-1955) RB UK Arrow (BEAVER REVIEW) (BEAVER REVIEW) (BEAVER REVIEW) (BEAVER REVIEW) 18. Roberto Rossellini’s War Trilogy [Blu-ray] ( Rome Open City, Paisan, and Germany Year Zero) Criterion (BEAVER REVIEW) 19. The Lost World [Blu-ray] (Harry O. Hoyt, 1925) Flicker Alley (BEAVER REVIEW) 20. The Before Trilogy [Blu-ray] (Before Sunrise - 1995, Before Sunset - 2004, Before Midnight - 2013) Criterion (BEAVER REVIEW) (BEAVER REVIEW) (BEAVER REVIEW) 21. The Lodger: A Story of the London Fog [Blu-ray] (Alfred Hitchcock, 1927) Criterion (BEAVER REVIEW) 22. Ana-ta-han [Blu-ray] (Josef von Sternberg, 1953) Kino (BEAVER REVIEW) 23. Tampopo [Blu-ray] (Juzo Itami, 1985) Criterion (BEAVER REVIEW) 24. The Breaking Point [Blu-ray] (Michael Curtiz, 1950) Criterion (BEAVER REVIEW) 25. Beggars of Life [Blu-ray] (William A. Wellman, 1928) Kino Lorber (BEAVER REVIEW) 26. Bring Me the Head of Alfredo Garcia [Blu-ray] (Sam Peckinpah, 1974) RB UK Arrow (BEAVER REVIEW) 27. Le Moulin [Blu-ray] (Huang Ya Li, 2015), Roots Films (RA) 28. One-Eyed Jacks [Blu-ray] (Marlon Brando, 1961) RB UK Arrow (BEAVER REVIEW) 29. The Pumpkin Eater [Blu-ray] (Jack Clayton, 1964) UK Indicator (BEAVER REVIEW) 30. The Young Girls of Rochefort [Blu-ray] (Jacques Demy, 1967) Criterion (BEAVER REVIEW) 31. The Wonderful Worlds Of Ray Harryhausen, Volume 2: 1961-1964 [Blu-ray] (Mysterious Island, Jason and the Argonauts, First Men in the Moon) Indicator UK (BEAVER REVIEW) (BEAVER REVIEW) (BEAVER REVIEW) 32. Ghost World [Blu-ray] (Terry Zwigoff, 2001) Criterion Collection (BEAVER REVIEW) 33. Witchhammer [Blu-ray] (Otakar Vávra, 1970) Region FREE UK Second Run (BEAVER REVIEW) 34. Ride the High Country [Blu-ray] (Sam Peckinpah, 1962) Warner Archive (BEAVER REVIEW) 35. Death in the Garden [Blu-ray] (Luis Buńuel, 1956) RB UK Masters of Cinema (BEAVER REVIEW) 35. Housekeeping [Blu-ray] (Bill Forsyth, 1987) Region FREE Indicator UK (BEAVER REVIEW) 37. L'argent [Blu-ray] (Robert Bresson, 1983) Criterion (BEAVER REVIEW) 38. The Cremator [Blu-ray] (Juraj Herz, 1969) RB UK Second Run (BEAVER REVIEW) 39. The Éric Rohmer Collection (The Aviator's Wife | A Good Marriage | Pauline at the Beach | Full Moon in Paris | The Green Ray | My Girlfriend's Boyfriend | The Marquise of O... | Perceval | Four Adventures of Reinette and Mirabelle | The Tree, the Mayor and the Mediatheque) [Blu-ray] (Éric Rohmer, 1976-1993) RB UK Arrow 39. The Bird with the Crystal Plumage Limited Edition [Blu-ray] (Dario Argento, 1970) UK/ US Arrow (BEAVER REVIEW) 39. The Story of Sin [Blu-ray] (Walerian Borowczyk, 1975) Arrow Video US 42. George Romero Between Night And Dawn Limited Edition [Blu-ray] (In There s Always Vanilla, Season of the Witch and 1973's The Crazies) Arrow US / UK (BEAVER REVIEW) (BEAVER REVIEW) (BEAVER REVIEW) 42. The Earrings of Madame de... [Blu-ray] (Max Ophüls, 1953) RB UK BFI (BEAVER REVIEW) 44. Funeral Parade of Roses [Blu-ray] (Toshio Matsumoto, 1969) Cinelicious Pics (BEAVER REVIEW) 44. The Big Heat [Blu-ray] (Fritz Lang, 1953) - UK Powerhouse Films (BEAVER REVIEW) 46. Hammer Volume One: Fear Warning [Blu-ray] (Maniac, The Gorgon, Curse of the Mummy's Tomb, Fanatic) Indicator UK (BEAVER REVIEW) (BEAVER REVIEW) (BEAVER REVIEW) (BEAVER REVIEW) 47. The Vietnam War (Ken Burns & Lynn Novick, 2017). PBS, RA 47. Charlie Chaplin: The Essanay Comedies [Blu-ray] - BFI (BEAVER REVIEW) 49. Kiju Yoshida: Love + Anarchism [Blu-ray] (Eros + Massacre, Heroic Purgatory and Coup d'etat) - Arrow Academy (BEAVER REVIEW) 49. Letter from an Unknown Woman [Blu-ray] (Max Ophüls, 1948) Olive Signature (BEAVER REVIEW) 51. Rebecca [Blu-ray] (Alfred Hitchcock, 1940) Criterion (BEAVER REVIEW) 52. Behind the Door [Blu-ray] (Irvin Willat, 1919) Flicker Alley (BEAVER REVIEW) 52. Lino Brocka: Two Films [Blu-ray] (Manila in the Claws, Light and Insiang) RB UK BFI (BEAVER REVIEW) 52. Liquid Sky (Slava Tsukerman, 1982) (Vinegar Syndrome 55. Junior Bonner [Blu-ray] (Sam Peckinpah, 1972) Kino Classics (BEAVER REVIEW) 55. The Piano Teacher [Blu-ray] (Michael Haneke, 2001) Criterion (BEAVER REVIEW) 57. Melville Boxset (Jean-Pierre Melville, 1956-1972) StudioCanal, RB 57. The Sinbad Trilogy (The 7th Voyage of Sinbad, The Golden Voyage of Sinbad, Sinbad and the Eye of the Tiger) [Blu-ray] (1958-1977) Region FREE Indicator UK (BEAVER REVIEW) 57. They Live by Night [Blu-ray] (Nicholas Ray, 1948) Criterion (BEAVER REVIEW) 60. Les Sorcičres de Salem [Blu-ray] (Raymond Rouleau, 1957), Pathé (RB) 60. Variety (aka Varieté) [Blu-ray] (Ewald André Dupont, 1925) Kino Lorber (Kino version with Berklee Silent Orchestra score) 62. Death in the Land of Encantos (Lav Diaz, 2007) Region FREE Dissidenz Films 62. Panic in the Streets [Blu-ray] (Elia Kazan, 1950) RB UK Signal One (BEAVER REVIEW) 62. Spotlight on a Murderer [Blu-ray] (Georges Franju, 1961) RB UK Arrow (BEAVER REVIEW) 65. Sorcerer [Blu-ray] (40th Anniversary Collector’s Edition) (William Friedkin, 1977) RB UK Entertainment One 65. Love with the Proper Stranger [Blu-ray] (Robert Mulligan, 1963) Kino Lorber (BEAVER REVIEW) 65. The Last Detail [Blu-ray] (Hal Ashby, 1973) RB Powerhouse Films UK (BEAVER REVIEW) 65. The Yellow Handkerchief (Yoji Yamada, 1977) Twilight Time; RA (BEAVER REVIEW) 69. Vampyr [Blu-ray] (Carl Th. Dreyer, 1932) Criterion Collection (BEAVER REVIEW) 70. 100 Years of Olympic Films [Blu-ray] (Leni Riefenstahl, Kon Ichikawa, Claude Lelouch, Carlos Saura, Miloš Forman etc.) - Criterion Collection (BEAVER REVIEW) (BEAVER REVIEW) (BEAVER REVIEW) (BEAVER REVIEW) (BEAVER REVIEW) 70. The Handmaiden - Special Edition [Blu-ray] (Chan-wook Park, 2016) RB UK Curzon Artificial Eye (BEAVER REVIEW) 70. Dawson City: Frozen Time [Blu-ray] (Bill Morrison, 2016) Kino Lorber (BEAVER REVIEW) 70. The Philadelphia Story [Blu-ray] (George Cukor, 1940) Criterion US / UK (BEAVER REVIEW) 70. The 5,000 Fingers of Dr. T [Blu-ray] (Roy Rowland, 1953) Region FREE Indicator UK (BEAVER REVIEW) 75. Deluge [Blu-ray] (Felix E. Feist, 1933) Kino Lorber (BEAVER REVIEW) 75. Carrie - Limited Edition [Blu-ray] (Brian De Palma, 1976) RB UK Arrow (BEAVER REVIEW) 77. The Agnčs Varda Collection (Cleo from 5 to 7, Jacquot de Nantes, L'une chante, l'autre pas, Le Bonheur, The Gleaners and I, The Beaches of Agnčs, Vagabond, La Pointe Courte) [Blu-ray] (Agnčs Varda) RB UK Curzon Artificial Eye (BEAVER REVIEW) (BEAVER REVIEW) (BEAVER REVIEW) 78. Swept Away [Blu-ray] (Lina Wertmüller, 1974) Kino (BEAVER REVIEW) 78. Since You Went Away [Blu-ray] (John Cromwell, 1944) Kino Lorber (BEAVER REVIEW) 78. I'll Be Seeing You [Blu-ray] (William Dieterle, 1945) Kino Lorber (BEAVER REVIEW) 81. Fritz Lang: The Silent Films (The Spiders, Harakiri (SD), The Wandering Shadow (SD), Four Around a Woman, Destiny, Dr. Mabuse the Gambler, Die Nibelungen, Metropolis, Spies, Woman in the Moon, The Plague in Florence) [Blu-ray] (Fritz Lang, 1919-1929) Kino 82. Inferno 2D + 3D [Blu-ray] (Roy Ward Baker, 1953) Twilight Time (BEAVER REVIEW) 83. The Informer [Blu-ray] (Arthur Robison, 1929) - RB UK BFI (BEAVER REVIEW) 84. Ludwig (4-Disc Limited Edition) [Blu-ray] (Luchino Visconti, 1973) RB Arrow UK (BEAVER REVIEW) 84. The 4 Marx Brothers at Paramount (The Cocoanuts, Animal Crackers, Monkey Business, Horse Feathers, Duck Soup) [Blu-ray] (1929-1933) RB Arrow UK (BEAVER REVIEW) (BEAVER REVIEW) 86. Vampir Cuadecuc [Blu-ray] (Pere Portabella, 1971) R0 UK Second Run (BEAVER REVIEW) 86. The Lady from Shanghai [Blu-ray] (Orson Welles, 1947) Region FREE Indicator UK (BEAVER REVIEW) 88. The Love of a Woman [Blu-ray] (Jean Grémillon, 1953) US / UK Arrow (BEAVER REVIEW) 88. Black Girl [Blu-ray] (Ousmane Sembčne, 1966) Criterion (BEAVER REVIEW) 88. La Strada [Blu-ray] (Federico Fellini, 1954) RB UK Studio Canal (BEAVER REVIEW) 91. Mildred Pierce [Blu-ray] (Michael Curtiz, 1945) Criterion (BEAVER REVIEW) 91. The Taisho Trilogy (Limited Edition) (Zigeunerweisen, Kageroza, Yumeji) [Blu-ray] (Seijun Suzuki, 1980-1991) Arrow US (BEAVER REVIEW) (BEAVER REVIEW) (BEAVER REVIEW) 93. Bend of the River [Blu-ray] (Anthony Mann, 1952) RB DE Alive (BEAVER REVIEW) 93. The Legend of the Holy Drinker [Blu-ray] (Ermanno Olmi, 1988) Arrow UK (BEAVER REVIEW) 95. Ken Loach Collection [Blu-ray] (Riff Raff, Raining Stones, Ladybird Ladybird) RB UK BFI (BEAVER REVIEW) 95. Moses and Aaron [Blu-ray] (Daničle Huillet, Jean-Marie Straub, 1973) Grasshopper Film 97. Manina, The Lighthouse-Keeper's Daughter [Blu-ray] (Willy Rozier, 1952) RB UK Eureka (BEAVER REVIEW) 98. The Adventures of Captain Marvel [Blu-ray] (John English, William Witney, 1941) Kino Lorber (BEAVER REVIEW) 99. Variety [Blu-ray] (Ewald André Dupont, 1925) RB UK Masters Of Cinema (BEAVER REVIEW) 99. Blood Rage [Blu-ray] (John Grissmer, 1987) Arrow (BEAVER REVIEW) |
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THE WINNERS - DVD
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