1. Ford At Fox - The Collection (John Ford, 21 Discs) Fox; R1

2. Funny Face (Stanley Donen, 1957) Paramount; R1

3. Sansho the Bailiff (Kenji Mizoguchi, 1954) Criterion; R1

4. Gion Bayashi (Kenji Mizoguchi, 2 Discs) MoC; R2 PAL

5. They Live By Night from Film Noir Classic Collection, Vol. 4 (Various, 5 Discs) Warner; R1

6. Artists and Models from Dean Martin & Jerry Lewis Collection - Vol. 2 (Various, 3 Discs) Paramount; R1

7. The Winning of Barbara Worth from Gary Cooper MGM Movie Legends Collection (Various, 4 Discs) MGM; R1

8. The Godless Girl + Redskin from Treasures III: Social Issues in American Film, 1900-1934 (Various, 4 Discs) National Film Preservation Foundation; R1

9. Late Ozu (Yasujiro Ozu, 5 Discs) Eclipse; R1

10. Magnificent Obsession (Douglas Sirk ’54 and John M. Stahl ’35) Carlotta; R2 PAL

Comments: There were many exclusions in my 2007 list by virtue of the sheer volume of impressive releases (both individual films and box sets): they have poured out like a continuous lava flow, although one still hopes that someone, somewhere, will finally realize that there’s still practically no Gremillons, Borzages, Boettichers, Sjostroms, Kinoshitas, John M Stahls out there, just to name a few great directors missing in action. Criterion’s down market Eclipse series has been a great boon to collectors - the Samuel Fullers, the Louis Malle documentaries, the Raymond Bernards would all have made my 10 list in another year. And much as I have severe ideological problems with my Hearst-like countryman Rupert Murdoch, I reluctantly concede that the Fox wing of his global empire has produced some box sets of stellar quality, most notably the gargantuan Ford collection, but also many that might have made the mighty 10 in previous years, too: the John Brahm Horror Classics, the Tyrone Powers, the long overdue Alice Faye Collection, as well as a goodish quota of westerns, noirs and musicals which have all been most welcome additions to the collection. Warner Bros, Paramount and even bare-bones Universal boxes have maintained high quality transfers in most instances. It has been a vintage year.

1. Histoire(s) du Cinéma (Jean-Luc Godard, 4 Discs) Gaumont; R0 PAL

2. Berlin Alexanderplatz (R.W. Fassbinder, 1980) Criterion; R1

3. Late Ozu (Yasujiro Ozu, 5 Discs) Eclipse; R1

4. Raymond Bernard - Eclipse Series 4 (Raymond Bernard, 2 Discs) Eclipse; R1

5. The Documentaries of Louis Malle (Louis Malle, 6 Discs) Criterion; R1

6. Killer of Sheep: The Charles Burnett Collection (Charles Burnett, 2 Discs) New Yorker Video/Milestone Cinematheque; R1

7. Jordan Belson - 5 Essential Films (Jordan Belson, Various) CenterforVisualMusic.org; R0

8. Film Noir Classic Collection, Vol. 4 (Various, 5 Discs) Warner; R1

9. Ace in the Hole (Billy Wilder, 1951) Criterion; R1

10. Fires on the Plain (Kon Ichikawa, 1951) Criterion; R1

Comments: I haven't summoned up the reserves to get buy the Ford At Fox box yet – no doubt it would have featured on this list. The Twin Peaks Gold box is also high on my wish list. Eclipse has been the best news of the year. The Raymond Bernard films were an exciting rediscovery, and hats off to Milestone for doing right by Charles Burnett.

Daryl Chin
Brooklyn, NY
Daryl Chin is an artist and writer living in Brooklyn, New York who has been on the board of directors of NewFest and Apparatus Productions, co-founded the Asian-American International Film Festival, and began his career as Managing Editor of Film Culture Magazine in 1976-77.

1. Ford At Fox - The Collection (John Ford, 21 Discs) Fox; R1

2a. The Films of Kenneth Anger, Vol. 1 (Kenneth Anger, 5 Films) Fantoma; R1

2b. The Films of Kenneth Anger, Vol. 2 (Kenneth Anger, 6 Films) Fantoma; R1

3. Un chant d'amour (Jean Genet, 1950) Cult Epics; R1

4. Jordan Belson - 5 Essential Films (Jordan Belson, Various) CenterforVisualMusic.org; R0

5. Killer of Sheep: The Charles Burnett Collection (Charles Burnett, 2 Discs) New Yorker Video/Milestone Cinematheque; R1

6. Avant-Garde 2: Experimental Cinema 1928-1954 (Various, 2 Discs) Kino; R1

7. Battleship Potemkin (Sergei Eisenstein, 1925) Kino; R1

8. Jean Renoir 3-Disc Collector's Edition (Jean Renoir, 3 Discs)

9. Nathalie Granger (Marguerite Duras, 1974) Blaq Out; R0

10. Chantal Akerman Collection (Chantal Akerman, 5 Discs) Cinéart; R2 PAL

David Collinge
Millersburg, OH -- USA

1. Sansho the Bailiff/Gion Bayashi (Kenji Mizoguchi, 2 Discs) MoC; R2 PAL

2. Breathless (Jean-Luc Godard, 1960) Criterion; R1

3. Mikio Naruse Collection (Mikio Naruse, 3 Discs) BFI; R2 PAL

4. The Burmese Harp (Kon Ichikawa, 1956) Criterion; R1

5. Ivan’s Childhood (Andrei Tarkovsky, 1962) Criterion; R1

6. Le Silence de la mer (Jean-Pierre Melville, 1949) MoC; R2 PAL

7. Late Ozu (Yasujiro Ozu, 5 Discs) Eclipse; R1

8. Diary of a Lost Girl (G.W. Pabst, 1922) MoC; R2 PAL

9. Two-Lane Blacktop (Monte Hellman, 1971) Criterion; R1

10. Marketa Lazarová (Frantisek Vlácil, 1967), Second Run, R0

Eric Cotenas
Sacramento, CA -- USA

1. Performance (Donald Cammel/Nicolas Roeg, 1970) Warner; R1

2. Peking Opera Blues (Tsui Hark, 1986) Joy Sales; R0

3. Breathless (Jean-Luc Godard, 1960) Criterion; R1

4. Viol du Vampire [Limited Edition 2 DVD Release] (Jean Rollin, 1967) Encore; R0 PAL

5. Bullet in the Head [2 DVD Special Edition] (John Woo, 1990) Joy Sales; R0

6. Les Enfants Terrible (Jean-Pierre Melville & Jean Cocteau, 1950) Criterion; R1

7. Yojimbo/Sanjuro (Akira Kurosawa, 1961 + 1962) Criterion; R1

8. Horror Rises from the Tomb (Carlos Aured, 1972) BCI; R1

9. Two-Lane Blacktop (Monte Hellman, 1971) Criterion; R1

10. 10:30 P.M. Summer (Jules Dassin, 1966) MGM; R1

Comments: At this point, any disc of Performance is welcome.  In spite of a transfer that is stretched from 1.66:1 to 1.78:1 (not cropped), Viol du Vampire looks beautiful and has extensive extras including a commentary and interviews and a great production booklet (not just an insert).  10:30 P.M. Summer is barebones but a revelation as a motion picture and a beautiful transfer.  Horror Rises from the TombB is a beautiful, complete transfer and goes the extra mile with bonus features.  Bullet in the Head allows integration of deleted scenes and the alternate ending.  Not as many extras as hoped for on the Teshigahara set but cheaper than the combined cost of the three separate R2 releases. 

1. Ford At Fox - The Collection (John Ford, 21 Discs) Fox; R1

2. Blade Runner - The Final Cut  (Ridley Scott, 5 Discs) Warner; R1

3. Killer of Sheep: The Charles Burnett Collection (Charles Burnett, 2 Discs) New Yorker Video/Milestone Cinematheque; R1

4. Class Relations (Danièle Huillet & Jean-Marie Straub) Editions Filmmuseum; R0 PAL

5. Distant Voices, Still Lives (Terrence Davies, 1988) BFI; R2 PAL

6. Palms (Artour Aristakisian, 1993) SecondRun; R2 PAL

7. Nuri Bilge Ceylan: The Early Works: Kasaba / Clouds of May (2 Discs) Artificial Eye; R2 PAL

8. Raymond Bernard - Eclipse Series 4 (Raymond Bernard, 2 Discs) Eclipse; R1

9. Why Has Bodhi-Darma Left for the East? -- Director’s Deluxe Edition (Yong-Kyun Bae, 1989) Milestone; R1

10. Jordan Belson - 5 Essential Films (Jordan Belson, Various) Center for Visual Music.org; R0

Comments: As usual, I restricted myself from voting for MoC titles.  My choices are a mixture of DVD quality, my love for the film in question, and sometimes its rarity on home video. I wish I had room for Treasures III, Lionsgate’s Jean Renoir Collector’s Edition, Gaumont's Histoire(s) du Cinéma, Criterion’s Mouchette (with its excellent Bresson documentaries), Facets’ Architecture series, and even the barebones Muriel from Koch Lorber, among many others.  For me, Ford At Fox’s scale trumped Blade Runner’s lavish extras, partly because the latter so heavily favored fandom over critical appreciation.

1a. The Films of Kenneth Anger, Vol. 1 (Kenneth Anger, 5 Films) Fantoma; R1

1b. The Films of Kenneth Anger, Vol. 2 (Kenneth Anger, 6 Films) Fantoma; R1

2. Hitler: A Film from Germany (Hans-Jürgen Syberberg, 1978) Facets; R1

3. Chantal Akerman Collection (Chantal Akerman, 5 Discs) Cinéart; R2 PAL

4. The Films of Alejandro Jodorowsky (3 Films, 5 Discs) AnchorBay; R1

5. Late Ozu (Yasujiro Ozu, 5 Discs) Eclipse; R1

6. Berlin Alexanderplatz (R.W. Fassbinder, 1980) Criterion; R1 - Also valued - Two-Lane Blacktop (Hellman, 71) Criterion; R1, Sans Soleil + La Jetée (Marker, 62/83) Criterion; R1, Mala Noche (Van Sant, 85)

Criterion; R1

7. Shoah (Claude Lanzmann, 1985, 4 Disc Set & 184 Page Book) MoC; R2 PAL

8. Pier Paolo Pasolini Vol.2 (Pier Paolo Pasolini, 3 Discs) Tartan; R2 PAL

9. Muriel (Alain Resnais, 1963) Koch; R1

10. Inland Empire (David Lynch, 2006) Absurda/Rhino; R1

Comments: The order of this list is more or less arbitrary. 2007 proved to be a great year for avant-garde cinema and the German New Wave. The work of the DVD companies listed above on those particular titles is nothing less than heroic. I applaud both the usual suspects (Criterion, Masters of Cinema), as well as the underrated but highly ambitious lesser-known companies (Fantoma, Filmgalerie 451, Cinéart) for their remarkable efforts.  As for 2008, I already look forward to Criterion’s Pierrot le fou, Kino’s Paradjanov set and AE’s The Devil Probably with impatience and enthusiasm. My biggest wishes and hopes for the next year are Godard’s 2 or 3 Things I Know About Her and more Brakhage from Criterion as well as Rivette’s Out 1, Resnais’ Providence and the films of Jack Smith and James Benning.  

1. Ace in the Hole (Billy Wilder, 1951) Criterion; R1

2. Inland Empire (David Lynch, 2006) Absurda/Rhino; R1

3. Bigger than Life (Nicholas Ray, 1956) BFI; R2 PAL

4. When a Woman Ascends the Stairs (Mikio Naruse, 1960) Criterion; R1

5. Mikio Naruse Collection (Mikio Naruse, 3 Discs) BFI; R2 PAL

6. House of Games (David Mamet, 1987) Criterion; R1

7. Overlord (Stuart Cooper, 1975) Criterion; R1

8. Popeye the Sailor: 1933-1938, Vol. 1 (Various, 4 Discs) Warner; R1

9. The Jazz Singer: Three-Disc Deluxe Edition (Alan Crosland, 1927) Warner; R1

10. August Underground's Penance [Snuff Edition] (Fred Vogel, 2007) Toe Tag; R1

Comments: The Criterion selections speak for themselves, with Wilder’s best film topping the list with an absolutely stellar DVD presentation.  Also, the 2-disc DVD edition of Lynch's Inland Empire (Absurda/Rhino), which features over three hours of bonus material, is a staggering descent into cinematic otherness.  To be sure, 2007 was a great year for Narusians.  Specifically, three more films from Naruse's canon were released on DVD this year, with both Criterion and BFI delivering solid editions of some of Naruse's best work.  The other selections on my list are equally swell, but special mention must be made of Fred Vogel and his team of cohorts at Toe Tag Pictures.  With cinematic endeavors such as August Underground's Penance, Toe Tag’s films are at the fore of the American underground horror movement.  More to the point, their continued excellence -- in not only creating great horror films, but also releasing said films themselves with DVD presentations comparable to the home video output of Hollywood -- should be cause for celebration amongst bold horror film aficionados.  Overall, the contrast between Old Cinema and New Cinema could not be more distinct in terms of the films on my list.  On the one hand, there is the poignant cinematic richness of Naruse and Wilder; on the other hand, there is the audacious digital zeal of Lynch and Vogel.  In the end, every selection is a wonderful piece of cinematic entertainment.  All one need do now is climb to the nearest hilltop and proclaim: "Le cinéma est mort.  Vive le cinéma!"  P.S. While the main feature is rather genteel in its mediocrity (offensive blackface sequences and timeless musical numbers notwithstanding), Warner's 3-disc DVD edition of The Jazz Singer is listed primarily because of its exceptional extras.

1. Ford At Fox - The Collection (John Ford, 21 Discs) Fox; R1

2. Alexander Kluge - The films for cinema (Alexander Kluge, 16 Discs) Edition Filmmuseum; R0 PAL

3. The Films of Kenneth Anger, Vol. 1 (Kenneth Anger, 5 Films) Fantoma; R1

4a. Berlin Alexanderplatz (R.W. Fassbinder, 1980) Criterion; R1

4b. Berlin Alexanderplatz (R.W. Fassbinder, 1980) Second Sight; R2 PAL

5. Raymond Bernard - Eclipse Series 4 (Raymond Bernard, 2 Discs) Eclipse; R1

6. The First Films of Samuel Fuller (Samuel Fuller, 3 Discs) Eclipse; R1

7. Marketa Lazarova (Frantisek Vlácil, 1967), Second Run, R0

8. Mikio Naruse Collection (Mikio Naruse, 3 Discs) BFI; R2 PAL

9. Wim Wenders’ Road Movies (Wim Wenders, 3 Discs) Madman; R4 PAL

10a. Diary of a Lost Girl (G.W. Pabst, 1922) MoC; R2 PAL

10b. Hitler: A Film from Germany (Hans-Jürgen Syberberg, 1978) Facets; R1

10c. Ace in the Hole (Billy Wilder, 1951) Criterion; R1

10d. Distant Voices, Still Lives (Terrence Davies, 1988) BFI; R2 PAL

Comments: As always, what’s been missing and what is now available is my major criterion for the choices. I always feel I left something out…but that’s the nature of this game. Currently, I long for Borzage and Ophuls and Gremillon (as well as more pre-nouvelle vague) and more Japanese films other than Ozu, Naruse, Mizoguchi and Kurosawa. I appreciate the appearances of Bunuel’s Mexcian films, the pre-codes from Warner, the noirs from Warner and Fox. I think Eclipse has been a grand addition from Criterion.

1. Raymond Bernard - Eclipse Series 4 (Raymond Bernard, 2 Discs) Eclipse; R1

2. Mikio Naruse Collection (Mikio Naruse, 3 Discs) BFI; R2 PAL

3. Jan Svankmajer - The Complete Short Films (Jan Svankmajar, 3 Discs) BFI; R2 PAL

4. Talking Silents: The Downfall of Osen & Tojin Okichi (Kenji Mizoguchi, 1935 & ‘30) Digital Meme; R0

5. Le Silence de la mer (Jean-Pierre Melville, 1949) MoC; R2 PAL

6. Fires on the Plain (Kon Ichikawa, 1951) Criterion; R1

7. The Party and the Guests (Jan Nemac, 1966) Second Run; R2 PAL

8. Black River (Kobayashi Masaki, 1956) Wild Side; R2 FR PAL

9. Inn at Osaka (Gosho Heinosuke, 1954) Kinokunya; R2 JP

10. Battle of Okinawa (Okamoto Kihachi, 1971) AnimEigo; R1

Comments: This was probably the best year for film on DVD yet.  So many rare gems, it really warrants a top fifty or so rather than a top ten.  All sorts of amazing short film collections from Europe, small label releases of obscure genre filmmaking, and a ton of outstanding, and sadly unsubtitled, Japanese releases must go unnamed.  Again, I value DVD for getting out rarities that wouldn't otherwise stand a chance of exposure.

Brisbane, Australia

1. Ford At Fox - The Collection (John Ford, 21 Discs) Fox; R1

2. Berlin Alexanderplatz (R.W. Fassbinder, 1980) Criterion; R1

3. The Documentaries of Louis Malle (Louis Malle, 6 Discs) Criterion; R1

4. Shoah (Claude Lanzmann, 1985, 4 Disc Set & 184 Page Book) MoC; R0 PAL

5. The Films of Alejandro Jodorowsky (3 Films, 5 Discs) AnchorBay; R1

6a. Sansho the Bailiff/Gion Bayashi (Kenji Mizoguchi, 2 Discs) MoC; R2 PAL

6b. Sansho the Bailiff (Kenji Mizoguchi, 1954) Criterion; R1

7. Breathless (Jean-Luc Godard, 1960) Criterion; R1

8. Film Noir Classic Collection, Vol. 4 (Various, 5 Discs) Warner; R1

9. Marketa Lazarová (Frantisek Vlácil, 1967), Second Run, R0

10. Jan Svankmajer - The Complete Short Films (Jan Svankmajar, 3 Discs) BFI Video; R2 PAL

Comments: It is tough selecting individual titles when box-sets offer so much.  Nos. 1 & 2 are pretty firm, with the ‘Ford at Fox’ Collection nudging the 1^st spot from ‘Berlin Alexanderplatz’, mainly due to scope.  The Louis Malle set gets No.3 for ‘Phantom India’, while the remainder could be ordered differently depending upon my mood at the time.

1. Un chant d'amour (Jean Genet, 1950) Cult Epics; R1

2. The Films of Kenneth Anger, Vol. 2 (Kenneth Anger, 6 Films) Fantoma; R1

3. Ford At Fox - The Collection (John Ford, 21 Discs) Fox; R1

4. Army of Shadows (Jean-Pierre Melville, 1969) Criterion; R1

5. Berlin Alexanderplatz (R.W. Fassbinder, 1980) Criterion; R1

6. Spring in a Small Town (Fei Mu, 1948) Cinema Epoch; R1

7. The Alfred Hitchcock Box Set (Alfred Hitchcock, 3 Discs) Lion’s Gate; R1

8. Raymond Bernard - Eclipse Series 4 (Raymond Bernard, 2 Discs) Eclipse; R1

9. The First Films of Samuel Fuller (Samuel Fuller, 3 Discs) Eclipse; R1

Hi-Def

1. Planet Earth - The Complete BBC Series (4 Discs) Warner/BBC; USA

Comments: The R1 arrival of Un chant d'amour and Kenneth Anger's influential shorts made it a landmark year for short films on DVD. The release of Bernard's epic Les Misérables and Fassbinder's mammoth Berlin Alexanderplatz made it equally noteworthy for long movies. The stuff in-between wasn't half-bad either...

1. Alexander Kluge - The films for cinema (Alexander Kluge, 16 Discs) Edition Filmmuseum; R0 PAL

2. Pistolary! Films and Videos by Peggy Ahwesh (Peggy Awesh, 3 Discs) Video Data Bank; R1

3. Ford At Fox - The Collection (John Ford, 21 Discs) Fox; R1

4. Berlin Alexanderplatz (R.W. Fassbinder, 1980) Second Sight; R2 PAL

5. The Documentaries of Louis Malle (Louis Malle, 6 Discs) Criterion; R1

6. Chantal Akerman Collection (Chantal Akerman, 5 Discs) Cinéart; R2 PAL

7. Histoire(s) du Cinéma (Jean-Luc Godard, 4 Discs) Gaumont; R0 PAL

8. Treasures III: Social Issues in American Film, 1900-1934 (Various, 4 Discs) National Film Preservation Foundation; R1

9. Thomas Koerfer Edition Box (Thomas Koerfer, 8 Discs) Koerferfilm.com; R0 PAL

10. Japanese Anime Classic Collection (Various -- 55 Films, 4 Discs) Digital Meme; R0 NTSC

Craig Keller
Princeton, NJ -- USA

1. Ford At Fox - The Collection (John Ford, 21 Discs) Fox; R1

2. Shoah (Claude Lanzmann, 1985, 4 Disc Set & 184 Page Book) MoC; R0 PAL

3a. The Films of Kenneth Anger, Vol. 1 (Kenneth Anger, 5 Films) Fantoma; R1

3b. The Films of Kenneth Anger, Vol. 2 (Kenneth Anger, 6 Films) Fantoma; R1

4. Inland Empire (David Lynch, 2006) Absurda/Rhino; R1

5. Twin Peaks Definitive Gold Box (David Lynch & various, 1990-92) Paramount; R1

6. Hitler: A Film from Germany (Hans-Jürgen Syberberg, 1978) Filmgalerie 451; R0 PAL

7. Alexander Kluge - The films for cinema (Alexander Kluge, 16 Discs) Edition Filmmuseum; R0 PAL

8. Class Relations (Danièle Huillet & Jean-Marie Straub) Editions Filmmuseum; R0 PAL

9. Eloge de l'amour + Notre musique + Prière pour refuzniks 1+2 (Jean-Luc Godard, Various) Cahiers du cinema; R2 FR

10. The First Films of Samuel Fuller (Samuel Fuller, 3 Discs) Eclipse; R1

http://www.criticalflicker.org.uk

1. Tabu: Story of the South Seas (F.W. Murnau, 1931) MoC; R0 PAL

2. The First Films of Samuel Fuller (Samuel Fuller, 3 Discs) Eclipse; R1

3. Popeye the Sailor: 1933-1938, Vol. 1 (Various, 4 Discs) Warner; R1

4. The Films of Kenneth Anger, Vol. 2 (Kenneth Anger, 6 Films) Fantoma; R1

5. Ivan’s Childhood (Andrei Tarkovsky, 1962) Criterion; R1

6. Treasures III: Social Issues in American Film, 1900-1934 (Various, 4 Discs) National Film Preservation Foundation; R1

7. Late Ozu (Yasujiro Ozu, 5 Discs) Eclipse; R1

8. Marketa Lazarová (Frantisek Vlácil, 1967), Second Run, R0

9. Early Bergman (Ingmar Bergman, 5 Discs) Eclipse; R1

10. Nosferatu (F.W. Murnau, 1922) MoC; R2 PAL

1. Film Noir Classic Collection, Vol. 4 (Various, 5 Discs) Warner; R1

2. Sansho the Bailiff (Kenji Mizoguchi, 1954) Criterion; R1

3.