As you can see from the picture above the holidays brought me some new movies to add to my collection. Let me quickly run down the lot:
- The Third Man (Criterion Blu-ray) – Along with Chungking Express this was one of the two Criterion Blu-rays I had to pick up for myself as they released their first wave of high-definition titles. I already owned the DVD single disc edition, but couldn’t pass up those wet sewer walls in Blu-ray.
- The Man Who Fell to Earth (Criterion Blu-ray) – I just posted my review of this one and it isn’t exactly a recommendation outside of a select group of cinephiles.
- Bottle Rocket (Criterion Blu-ray) – Had Criterion not sent this one to me for review I would have purchased it in a second. I am not a Wes Anderson fan, but this is the one film of his that is miles above the rest. Read my review here.
- Chungking Express (Criterion Blu-ray) – I gave a brief commentary on this one here, which should explain why I bought it. Haven’t had a chance to watch it in high-def yet.
- The Last Emperor (Criterion Blu-ray) – This one comes out on January 6. I have not yet started watching it outside of about an hour of the audio commentary. I am not a huge fan of this flick, but it certainly looks good.
- The Wolf Man (1941) – The rest of these were Christmas gifts and as you can see I filled a void in my collection where classic monster movies were missing. The Wolf Man is my favorite of the four, the fourth being The Mummy, which I already owned.
- Kingdom of Heaven (Director’s Cut Blu-ray) – This will replace my 2-disc DVD edition… now I own it in high-definition and don’t have to switch discs in the middle of watching it… No features though. Boo hoo!
- Frankenstein – I just watched this for the first time and I will say it is my least favorite of the classic monster flicks.
- Dracula – This one is probably my second favorite of the classics with The Mummy coming in third. The brides in this one are stellar!
- My Sunday Morning Cup of Coffee – A necessity.
- Ratatouille (Blu-ray) – I just had to own this one on Blu-ray which is why I asked for it so it would replace my DVD edition.
- La Dolce Vita – I absolutely LOVE Federico Fellini… more on that in a sec, but I am so excited I now own this classic.
- The Departed (Blu-ray) – Had to replace my HD DVD version as I continue to try and get rid of all of them and replace with Blu-ray.
- 300 (Blu-ray) – Another HD DVD replacement, while this isn’t the greatest of films, it is a fun one to toss in for a good dose of mindless entertainment once in a while.
I bring all of this up because I am slowly trying to fill in the holes where my collection is missing titles and am
This weekend I watched The Battle of Algiers, Sunset Boulevard, Double Indemnity, Roman Holiday, La Strada and as I type I am watching Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? for the very first time and realizing just why Mike Nichols made Closer and what a performance by Liz Taylor! Of those films I don’t own The Battle of Algiers, Double Indemnity or Virginia Woolf but all three are so good they are now on my list of must owns, especially Battle of Algiers a film that is freakishly relevant right about now and in a scary sort of way… give it a watch and just wait for your brain to begin to spin.
La Strada was part of my Janus Films Collection and as I watched I continue to see the hole in my collection where 8 1/2 should be and it only makes me want the likes of Amarcord and The Nights of Cabiria that much more.
Other films missing from my collection are Citizen Kane, a film I don’t necessarily love as much as everyone else, but I have some crazy urge to watch it right about now and not owning it is quite frustrating, it not only to see the box on the shelf… Will it be on Blu-ray soon? Who knows?
I want to replace my Stanley Kubrick collection which I have on both DVD and HD DVD, with the Blu-ray versions, but how can I justify those costs? I want the Criterion edition of Peckinpah’s Straw Dogs (a movie I love) for the movie as well as the 80-minute doc on Peckinpah. Too bad it’s out of print at Criterion. Perhaps that will be next for Blu-ray since I can’t bring myself to buying the cheap MGM release.
I will be ordering 8 1/2 in the very near future and perhaps setting up a Fellini triple play one night, but beyond that I have a feeling it will be some time before I fill those other holes.
So, I wonder…
What’s next on your list?
What films have you been eyeing but haven’t brought yourself to purchase yet?
What films do you consider MUST HAVES?
