Garv’s Top Ten Criterion Collection Picks
With this year’s Barnes & Noble Criterion Collection 50% Off Sale beginning on Friday, I thought I’d interject a few shopping suggestions by posting a list of my top ten favorite Criterion discs. I highly recommend all of these titles, and I hope you’ll take a chance on one or more of them.
1) Pierre Etaix (The Suitor, Yoyo, As Long as You've Got Your Health, Le grand amour, Land of Milk and Honey, Rupture, Happy Anniversary, Feeling Good): If you’re a fan of classic comedy, especially the silent work of Buster Keaton, you will almost certainly love the films of Pierre Étaix. I knew nothing about Étaix when I took a chance and purchased this set. It quickly became my favorite Criterion release. Pierre Étaix’s films are clever, beautifully staged, masterfully directed, and wonderfully funny. It could easily be argued that Étaix was the most talented filmmaker and best comedy writer of all the movie comedians working in the 1960s (Jerry Lewis and Jacques Tati included).
2) I Knew Her Well: This was another “blind buy” that became an instant favorite. As I watched this “slice of life” story of an aspiring actress/model in 1960s Rome, I found myself completely falling in love with Stefania Sandrelli. She’s fantastic, and the film is a gem.
3) The Essential Jacques Demy (Lola, Bay of Angels, The Umbrellas of Cherbourg, The Young Girls of Rochefort, Donkey Skin, Une chambre en ville): The Umbrellas of Cherbourg and The Young Girls of Rochefort are two of the most enchanting movie musicals ever made. I could watch them every day.
4) It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World: Stanley Kramer’s big, big, big, big epic comedy is not to everyone’s taste, but this is one of the best packages ever assembled for a single film. The first Blu-ray disc presents a 4K digital transfer of the 163-minute general release version of the movie, and the sharpness and clarity is stunning. The second disc presents a 197-minute patchwork reconstruction by Robert A. Harris of the original, lost Roadshow version of the film. This extended version includes an extremely entertaining and informative audio commentary by Mad World super-fans Mark Evanier, Michael Schlesinger, and Paul Scrabo. If you have affection for this film like I do (it was my favorite film in my preteen years), you need this Blu-ray set on your shelves.
5) Cul-de-sac: If you can separate the art from the artist, Roman Polanski’s Cul-De-Sac is a delicious dark comedy with a rare lead performance by character actor Lionel Stander. It isn’t one of Polanski’s most talked about films, but it is my favorite.
6) To Be or Not to Be: Ernst Lubitsch’s audacious dark comedy savagely satirized the Nazis while World War II still raged. The film is smart, tight, and hilarious. Jack Benny and Carole Lombard give career-best performances.
7) McCabe & Mrs. Miller: Robert Altman made several masterpieces in the 1970s. This is the most perfect. Vilmos Zsigmond’s dimly lit cinematography is difficult to replicate on home video, but the Criterion disc is near perfect.
8) A Matter of Life and Death: Few films are as beautiful or as romantic as this masterpiece by Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger.
9) His Girl Friday: Howard Hawks’ screwball gender twist on Ben Hecht and Charles MacArthur’s hit play The Front Page is one of the fastest and funniest movies ever made. That alone would be worth the purchase, but Criterion sweetened the pot by adding a new restoration of the 1931 film version of The Front Page.
10) F for Fake: Criterion has released beautiful editions of several Orson Welles-directed titles, including the masterpieces The Magnificent Ambersons and Chimes at Midnight. F for Fake is lesser known, but it is a fascinating hybrid of essay, documentary, narrative, magic, and hucksterism. It is a late career gem from one of our greatest filmmakers.
