Arrow Academy October Titles
Arrow Academy, the “art house” label of Arrow films posted their October Blu-ray announcements this morning, including the final film of maestro Federico Fellini, which has never before received a theatrical or video release in the U.S. or the U.K. The Voice of the Moon (1990) may or may not be a good film, but thanks to Arrow, we will finally have an opportunity to decide for ourselves. I, for one, can’t wait.
Please note: Not all of the titles below will be released in the U.S., and those that are “U.K. only” are not likely to be playable in American Blu-ray players, due to distribution rights.
Listed below are the disc descriptions directly from the Arrow Academy Facebook page. The releases are clearly marked as either “UK/US” or “UK Only”:
NEW UK/US TITLE: Zoology (Blu-ray and DVD releases)
Described as “Kafka meets Cronenberg” (Hollywood Reporter) Tverdovsky’s film is a beautifully photographed portrait of Eastern Europe
Release Dates: 30/31 October
A TAIL OF PERSONAL GROWTH
Writer-director Ivan I. Tverdovsky’s prize-winning sophomore feature (Special Prize of the Jury at Karlovy Vary Film Festival, Best Picture at Fantastic Fest) deftly mixes the deadpan humour of Aki Kaurismäki with a poignant examination of social issues including loneliness and aging.
Natasha is a middle-aged admin employee at a zoo where her female co-workers take pleasure in making fun of her. She lives with her God-fearing mother and leads a dull existence without prospects, until one day she grows a tail. Medical examinations follow where she meets Peter, a young radiologist and her dreary life is turned upside down.
Described as “Kafka meets Cronenberg” (Hollywood Reporter) Tverdovsky’s film is a beautifully photographed portrait of Eastern Europe that recalls the recent New Romanian Cinema and features a brave and brilliant central performance from Natalya Pavlenkova.
SPECIAL EDITION CONTENTS:
• High Definition 1080p Presentation
• 5.1 DTS-HD MA surround sound
• Trailer
• More to be announced!
FIRST PRESSING ONLY: Illustrated collectors booklet featuring new writing on the film by critic and author Michael Brooke (Blu-ray only)
NEW UK/US TITLE: The Voice of the Moon (Dual Format Blu-ray & DVD)
The swansong of the great Italian filmmaker Federico Fellini
Release Dates: 16/17 October
The swansong of the great Italian filmmaker Federico Fellini (La dolce vita, 8½), The Voice of the Moon emerged without fanfare: it played the Cannes Film Festival out of competition after its Italian premiere and failed to secure distribution in North America and the UK. This new restoration from the original negative seeks to right that wrong and provide the film with a second chance…
Adapted from a novel by Ermano Cavazzoni, The Voice of the Moon concerns itself with Ivo Salvini (Roberto Benigni, Life Is Beautiful), recently released from a mental hospital and in love with Aldini (Nadia Ottaviani). As he attempts to win her heart, he wanders a strange, dreamlike landscape and encounters various oddball characters, including Gonnella (Paolo Villagio, Fantozzi), a paranoid old man prone to conspiracy theories.
Concluding a career that had stretched back more than fifty years, The Voice of the Moon combines the nostalgia of Amarcord (the film is set in Emilia-Romagna countryside of the director’s youth), the surreal satire of City of Women and the naïf-adrift-in-a-brutal-world structure of La strada. Plenty for Fellini fans to get their teeth into.
SPECIAL EDITION CONTENTS:
• Brand new 2K restoration from original film elements, produced by Arrow Films exclusively for this release
• High Definition Blu-ray (1080p) and Standard Definition DVD presentations
• Original 1.0 mono sound (uncompressed on the Blu-ray)
• Optional English subtitles
• Towards the Moon with Fellini, a rarely seen hour-long documentary on the film’s production, featuring interviews with Fellini, Roberto Benigni and Paolo Villagio
• Theatrical trailer
• Reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Peter Strain
FIRST PRESSING ONLY: Illustrated collector’s booklet featuring new writing on the film by Pasquale Iannone
NEW UK ONLY TITLE: Le Plaisir (Dual Format Blu-ray & DVD)
Le Plaisir takes three of Guy de Maupassant’s stories as its source
Release Date: 9 October
The French writer Guy de Maupassant has inspired many great filmmakers. Among those to adapt his short stories and novels were Jean-Luc Godard, Kenji Mizoguchi, Walerian Borowczyk, Harry Kümel, Luis Buñuel and Christian-Jacque. But it was arguably Max Ophuls, with his 1952 feature, Le Plaisir, who proved to be the most adept.
Le Plaisir takes three of de Maupassant’s stories as its source: in Le Masque, a masked dandy conceals a secret; in La Maison Tellier, the girls of a small-town brothel are taken on an outing to attend the communion of the madam’s niece; and in La Modèle, a painter falls in love with his model, but the course of love isn’t as smooth as either expected.
To tell these tales, Ophuls assembled a remarkable cast of French talent, including Jean Gabin (Pépé le Moko, La Grande illusion), Pierre Brasseur (Eyes Without a Face, Spotlight on a Murderer), Danielle Darrieux (Madame de…, Les Demoiselles de Rochefort), Claude Dauphin (Casque d’Or, Barbarella), Simone Simon (Cat People, La Ronde) and many more besides.
SPECIAL EDITION CONTENTS:
• High Definition Blu-ray (1080p) presentation, from materials supplied by Gaumont
• Original French mono audio (uncompressed LPCM on the Blu-ray)
• Optional English subtitles
• A Journey Through Le Plaisir, a 54-minute documentary by Philippe Roger featuring interviews with cast and crew, and a visit of the film’s locations fifty years on Diary of a Film Shoot, an interview with Ophuls’ assistant director, Jean Valerie
• An interview with Marcel Ophuls, the filmmaker son of Max
• Le Plaisir Restored, Ronald Boullet and Andre Labbouz discuss the restoration process
• Theatrical trailer
• Reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Jennifer Dionisio
FIRST PRESSING ONLY: Illustrated collector’s booklet featuring new writing on the film by Alexander Jacoby and Philippe Roger
NEW UK TITLE: After the Storm (Blu-ray and DVD releases)
A sensitive and powerful story of family ties remade, After the Storm stands with the best of Kore-eda’s work.
Release Date: 2 October
Internationally celebrated filmmaker, Hirokazu Kore-eda’s (I Wish, Like Father, Like Son, Our Little Sister) latest film is possibly his most personal yet. Prompted to the write the script after his own father died and seeing how his mother was coping, After The Storm follows a young father trying to rekindle his relationship with his family.
Author turned private detective, Ryota (Hiroshi Abe), struggles to make ends meet as he flitters away all the money he earns on gambling, barely able to pay child support for his son. After his father passes away his mother (Kiki Kirin) seems to have moved on, but family tensions are high with both Ryota and his sister believing each other are taking advantage of their mother. When a typhoon hits, holed-up in his mother’s house with his estranged wife and son Ryota attempts to rekindle his relationships with his family.
A sensitive and powerful story of family ties remade, After the Storm stands with the best of Kore-eda’s work.
SPECIAL EDITION CONTENTS
• High Definition 1080p presentation
• Original Uncompressed audio
• Optional English subtitles
• Newly filmed introduction to the film
• Brand new interview with director Hirokazu Kore-eda
• Feature-length documentary on the making of After the Storm
• Original trailer
• Arthur Marks trailer reel
• Reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Corey Brickley
NEW UK TITLE: Family Values: Three Films by Hirokazu Kore-eda (Dual Format Blu-ray & DVD) Limited Edition
One of Japan’s most internationally celebrated filmmakers working today, Hirokazu Kore-eda is feted by critics and audiences alike.
Release Date: 2 October
One of Japan’s most internationally celebrated filmmakers working today, Hirokazu Kore-eda is feted by critics and audiences alike. His films often focus on family dynamics and recall the films of masters Yasujiro Ozu and Mikio Naruse. Collected here in a limited edition box set are some of his finest works.
I Wish tells the story of a family literally separated as elder brother Koichi lives with his mother and grandparents, whilst younger Ryu lives with his deadbeat father. The boys hear a rumour that when two trains on the near completed Kyushu line pass each other a miracle will be granted and they hatch a plan to meet and bring their family back together. Like Father, Like Son finds two families in turmoil as they discover their six year old sons were swapped and they have been raising children who are not biologically their own. Worlds apart in many ways they question their roles and nature vs nurture. After the Storm once again focuses on a separated family; the father, Ryota, a struggling writer clutching at past glory is trying to reconnect with his family following the death of his father, causing him to evaluate his relationship with his son and his own role as a father.
Featuring perfectly measured screenplays and astonishing, naturalistic performances, Kore-eda’s films are moving portraits of family life that superbly demonstrate the fragility and profundity of familial bonds.
LIMITED EDITION CONTENTS:
• Limited Edition boxset (2000 copies)
• High Definition transfers of all three films in this collection
• Original Uncompressed audio
• Optional English subtitles
• Newly filmed introductions to all three films by noted critics including Tony Rayns (more to be confirmed)
• Brand new career-spanning interviews with director Hirokazu Kore-eda looking in depth at all three films
• A visual essay on Kore-eda’s films and style
• What Would Your Wish Be? – a documentary on I Wish
• Interviews with the Like Father, Like Son cast
• Feature-length documentary on making of After the Storm
• Promotional featurettes
• Original trailers
• Reversible sleeves featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Corey Brickley
• More to be announced!
• 60-page Collector’s book featuring new writing on all three films
