Female Filmmakers

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exte
Joined: Wed Nov 03, 2004 4:27 pm
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#76 Post by exte » Sun Dec 19, 2004 11:56 pm

matt wrote:I think after Criterion's last experience working with La Babs, there won't be another. Did she not want the discs recalled because there was a typo on the back cover?
I recently read an old archived thread from HTF that had an extensive story about this debacle. Here's the story:
Criterion worked hard with Streisand to create this disc. Eventually, everything was completed, Streisand gave her approval of the project (she had final approval on everything), and the disc was pressed, packaged and ready to be shipped to retail. About a month prior to release, Criterion sent out ~5 early review copies to the prominent LD reviewers of the day (myself included). They also sent Streisand her copies — and that's where the problems started. Streisand rewatched her LD and suddenly decided that she didn't like how she "sounded" on her audio commentary. She thought she sounded insincere in places, and wanted to change both the way she spoke and some specific details she was unhappy with. So, she demanded that Criterion allow her to re-record her entire commentary from scratch, and place that new commentary on the LD before shipping it out.

Except that it doesn't work that way. As you well know, you can't just "replace" the track on the already existing discs. You'd have to remaster, repress and repackage the entire production run. Criterion balked at this, since it would be an extreme waste of time and money, considered that B.S. has already approved the entire project and the discs were finished. Unfortunately, Streisand had the last say legally (due to her final approval rights, which were still in effect since the LD wasn't actually released yet) and they were forced to comply. In the end, Streisand redid her commentary, but she also went in a made a few other little minor changes to the supplementary material (and to the jacket). The title was repressed, repackaged, and that's the version that consumers saw in stores.

As for the original original version, all remaining copies in the warehouse were destroyed. All that remained were the 5 or so copies sent to us reviewers, a few copies given away at a Criterion Xmas party that same year, and a small box (~10 copies) that was stolen from their warehouse (by one of the workers) who sold the then-rare LDs at a local Los Angeles convention.

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exte
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#77 Post by exte » Mon Dec 20, 2004 12:37 am

Kambei wrote:LOL

While I readily admit that Strange Days devolves into a plot-driven mess by the end, the point-of-view scenes were rivetting and a technical achievement. The murder POV is one of the most (deliberately) horrific scenes I have seen in any movie. However, perhaps you are right, not quite Criterion quality...(Although it is mentioned in the Sight & Sound article on films of the past 25 years. "Ridley Scott's 1982 Blade Runner (at number seven) stands alone here for the blockbuster cinema of spectacle that reshaped the world's media industries in the 1980s and 1990s. You'd have to go down to fiftieth place to find another example: Kathryn Bigelow's Strange Days.")


How about the new Canadian film, Elles étaient cinq by Ghyslaine Côté? I thoroughly enjoyed it.
Here's the link to that article: http://www.bfi.org.uk/sightandsound/200 ... times.html

mmiesner
Joined: Thu Mar 10, 2005 10:02 am

#78 Post by mmiesner » Tue Mar 29, 2005 1:39 pm

I was just wondering if anybody knows of the possibility of any other Catherine Breillat films possibly being dropped in with this. I just know that 'Dirty Like an Angel' is not on DVD... I would like to see more of her stuff, and the 'Fat Girl' disc is one of the most underrated gems of the collection in my opinion.

Other than that, I would LOVE to see some Maya Deren, I've suggested a set of her stuff similar to the 'by Brakhage' disc a couple of times but never heard anything about it. It would have been brilliant to release her shorts along with 'In the Mirror of Maya Deren' but I believe that got it's own release. Damn.

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anvilscepe
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#79 Post by anvilscepe » Wed Mar 30, 2005 5:00 pm

Wonderful additions would be Nancy Savoca's "Household Saints" or Lucrecia Martel's "La Cienaga". Although already out on DVD with some great extras, it still would be nice to add it to the collection. Perhaps "La Nina Santa"?

The latter would also be the first Spanish language film in the collection. :P

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Matt
Joined: Tue Nov 02, 2004 12:58 pm

#80 Post by Matt » Thu May 12, 2005 8:59 am

Well, exactly as I thought, we have titles announced or released for 7 out of 12 months of 2005 and not a single woman director yet. The last film added to the CC to be directed by a woman was Breillat's Fat Girl in October 2004, which itself was the first female-directed film added to the CC since The Lost Honor of Katharina Blum (co-directed by Volker Schlöndorff and Margarethe von Trotta) in February of 2003.

Tsk.

mmiesner
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#81 Post by mmiesner » Thu May 12, 2005 1:54 pm

i have to completely agree with matt that this is a tragic occurence. after watching 'in the mirror of maya deren' last night i am more in the mood for her stuff than ever, but i'd also love to see maybe some lina wertmuller or just plain SOMETHING by a woman in the collection.

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tavernier
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#82 Post by tavernier » Sun May 15, 2005 10:50 am

Koch Lorber has announced a six-disc Lina Wertmuller set (for release August 9) containing five films: Seven Beauties, Swept Away, Summer Night, Carolina, and The Nymph and Fernando. There will also be a disc of extras (interviews, etc.) along with an essay about Wertmuller by her biggest fan, John Simon.
I guess that means no Criterions of Wertmuller in the foreseeable future.

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Cinephrenic
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#83 Post by Cinephrenic » Sun May 15, 2005 3:21 pm

I think we'll certainly get Jane Champion's An Angel at My Table as a woman director and a Fine Line film this year.

peerpee
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#84 Post by peerpee » Sun May 15, 2005 3:41 pm

Let's hope Criterion spell it "Campion"! :)

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Cinephrenic
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#85 Post by Cinephrenic » Sun May 15, 2005 4:36 pm

So your saying I could easily get a job there. :lol:

peerpee
not perpee
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#86 Post by peerpee » Sun May 15, 2005 6:52 pm

it's "you're" not "your" :)

mmiesner
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#87 Post by mmiesner » Mon May 16, 2005 1:55 am

burn.

thanks for mentioning it so i didn't have to.

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Jean-Luc Garbo
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#88 Post by Jean-Luc Garbo » Sat May 21, 2005 10:03 pm

John Simon likes Wertmuller? I'm surprised. Kudos to Koch for bringing out so much Wertmuller. I never would have thought she'd be too marketable in America!

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What A Disgrace
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#89 Post by What A Disgrace » Sun May 22, 2005 12:00 pm

tavernier wrote:Koch Lorber has announced a six-disc Lina Wertmuller set (for release August 9) containing five films: Seven Beauties, Swept Away, Summer Night, Carolina, and The Nymph and Fernando. There will also be a disc of extras (interviews, etc.) along with an essay about Wertmuller by her biggest fan, John Simon.
I guess that means no Criterions of Wertmuller in the foreseeable future.
I wouldn't count Wertmuller out of the collection just yet. Seduction of Mimi (which, I believe, is a New Line title?) and Love and Anarchy aren't being included in that box, and they're not exactly considered minor films.

Ted Todorov
Joined: Wed Nov 03, 2004 1:00 pm

#90 Post by Ted Todorov » Mon May 23, 2005 7:12 am

Still, considering Koch-Lorber's penchant for less than optimal PAL to NTSC converted transfers, I am bitterly disappointed that Criterion didn't get the rights to Swept Away. They were obviously up for grabs (last DVD was from Wellspring), so Criterion could have bought them. Same with The Umbrellas of Cherbourg.

I have a very hard time believing that Koch-Lorber has deeper pockets than Criterion -- so why is Criterion letting go such obviously Criterion-worthy titles indeed both were Criterion LDs!!??

Ted

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Michael Kerpan
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#91 Post by Michael Kerpan » Mon May 23, 2005 9:30 am

My favorite Hong Kong film maker. ;~}

I don't think any of her films have been released on DVD here. Her "July Rhapsody" (which has Anita Mui's last performance) is a masterpiece. Her semi-autobiographical "song of Exile" (starring a young Maggie Cheung) is out of print even in Hong Kong -- but is reputedly another masterpiece.

A two disc set of her distinctively humanistic two-part historical "epic" ("Romance of Book and Sword" and "Princess Fragrance" -- currently only available on VCD) might not be amiss either.

leo goldsmith
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#92 Post by leo goldsmith » Mon May 23, 2005 1:47 pm

Song of the Exile is excellent and badly needs a release made with some care. As does Boat People.

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denti alligator
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#93 Post by denti alligator » Sat Feb 11, 2006 12:09 am

So, um, this never really panned out, did it? I mean, what did we get? One Breillat and one Campion? That's it.

ianungstad
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#94 Post by ianungstad » Sat Feb 11, 2006 12:56 am

Don't forget Koppel and Harlan County USA :)

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Gregory
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#95 Post by Gregory » Sat Feb 11, 2006 2:12 am

The statement was that "a few more women" would be "inserted" into the collection" in 2005. Fat Girl was 2004 and Harlan County USA is coming in May 2006 presumably. So Campion was the only woman director with a release from Criterion that year.

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Brian Oblivious
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#96 Post by Brian Oblivious » Sat Feb 11, 2006 6:37 am

The quote never specified women directors. We got Jane Fonda, Linda Darnell, Oja Kodar, Chantal Goya, Cate Blanchett, Katrin Cartlidge, Candy Clark, Maria Schell, and (in a double dose) Gene Tierney all introduced into the collection last year. Isn't that enough for ya?

Cinesimilitude
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#97 Post by Cinesimilitude » Sat Feb 11, 2006 11:14 am

But she does say filmmakers in the line above that quote, and right before it she says Mizoguchi. I think the argument here is that we want to see more films from a female perspective, and in most cases, actresses don't have enough creative input to portray that, It still comes down to what the man thinks, the male director.

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ben d banana
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#98 Post by ben d banana » Sat Feb 11, 2006 11:38 am

That needed an emoticon? Really?

Mise En Scene
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#99 Post by Mise En Scene » Fri Feb 02, 2007 10:56 pm

I saw "Two Friends" (Campion) last night and thought it was wonderful. The last 13 or so minutes gained so much power from the rhythm, structure, and acting from the rest of the film.

I haven't listened to the commentary on the R1 "In the Cut" (I don't know if "Holy Smoke" has a commentary) so I'm not aware of the conditions that has resulted in a drop off in quality, in my eyes, in Campion's work (was she a gun-for-hire?).

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zedz
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#100 Post by zedz » Tue Feb 06, 2007 6:29 pm

Mise En Scene wrote:I saw "Two Friends" (Campion) last night and thought it was wonderful. The last 13 or so minutes gained so much power from the rhythm, structure, and acting from the rest of the film.

I haven't listened to the commentary on the R1 "In the Cut" (I don't know if "Holy Smoke" has a commentary) so I'm not aware of the conditions that has resulted in a drop off in quality, in my eyes, in Campion's work (was she a gun-for-hire?).
Agreed and agreed. Two Friends is a terrific, inventive little film, and one of the most successful to use this particular gimmick. In the 90s she really seemed to lose most of what made her an individual filmmaker in those early shorts and first few features. Holy Smoke? Holy shit!

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