- Joined
- Feb 8, 1999
- Messages
- 18,311
- Real Name
- Robert Harris
Toward full disclosure, I'll admit up front to being a dyed-in-the-wool Powell / Pressburger fan, which means that the release of A Canterbury Tale by Criterion is a cause for celebration.
The 1944 production fits neatly into the P / P pantheon between The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp and "I Know Where I'm Going!"
Criterion has given us the original, longer 124 minute cut of the film, along with the U.S. prologue and ending as an extra.
Those unfamiliar with the film are in for a pleasant surprise, as the film isn't quite about what it seems to be. Rather, it's one of those films which sticks with you for days, as extra layers are discovered and digested. To some it takes on an almost etherial, mystic quality.
The transfer was based upon a nitrate fine grain master, which has seen quite a bit of use over decades, but seems to be the finest surviving image element. The audio comes from several sources.
Starring Eric Portman, Sheila Sim (Lady Attenborough), Dennis Price and John Sweet. Ms. Sim makes her screen debut in the film, and Mr. Sweet, who was a non-pro, made his only screen appearance.
A second disc offers an interview with Lady Attenborough, a return to Canterbury by Mr. Sweet, a documentary by David Thompson, visiting the films locations, as well as additional extras, all in Criterion fashion.
To discuss the film is to give away many delights of viewing, especially for the first time. Suffice to say that there are parallels between the film and the works of Chaucer.
One of the great films.
Enjoy!
RAH
The 1944 production fits neatly into the P / P pantheon between The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp and "I Know Where I'm Going!"
Criterion has given us the original, longer 124 minute cut of the film, along with the U.S. prologue and ending as an extra.
Those unfamiliar with the film are in for a pleasant surprise, as the film isn't quite about what it seems to be. Rather, it's one of those films which sticks with you for days, as extra layers are discovered and digested. To some it takes on an almost etherial, mystic quality.
The transfer was based upon a nitrate fine grain master, which has seen quite a bit of use over decades, but seems to be the finest surviving image element. The audio comes from several sources.
Starring Eric Portman, Sheila Sim (Lady Attenborough), Dennis Price and John Sweet. Ms. Sim makes her screen debut in the film, and Mr. Sweet, who was a non-pro, made his only screen appearance.
A second disc offers an interview with Lady Attenborough, a return to Canterbury by Mr. Sweet, a documentary by David Thompson, visiting the films locations, as well as additional extras, all in Criterion fashion.
To discuss the film is to give away many delights of viewing, especially for the first time. Suffice to say that there are parallels between the film and the works of Chaucer.
One of the great films.
Enjoy!
RAH