Try to sell a difficult Blu-ray title to the HTF Membership (1 Viewer)

[schan1269]

Didn't she make an adaptation of Wuthering Heights which got some buzz a few years ago?

Her version is the first to attempt to have all characters the correct race...and age.Kaya, the lead, plays it well.

 

[hanshotfirst1138]

Her version is the first to attempt to have all characters the correct race...and age.Kaya, the lead, plays it well.

I somehow managed to be an English major and never read that book, it's one of the great mysteries of my life :p.

 

[schan1269]

Every Bronte book is good. At least get a Cliff's Notes...Here is another tough sell. Under the Skin. Sure, Scarlett got nakee...and her boobs aren't exactly like Rosario's(like I always thought they would be). You can catch most of the nakee on Vimeo...Otherwise...Uh, What?(especially when 3 sees what happens to 2)The ending scene was more than a metaphor. All sense was up in smoke.Beyond the Black Rainbow makes more sense.

 

[Matt Hough]

I do admire Pennies from Heaven very much, and there's no question it deserves the Blu-ray treatment, but it's not just dark; it's sometimes ugly and depressing. The musical numbers give it snap and pizzazz and a haunting kind of lyricism that's quite unique, but that ending! Downer doesn't nearly cover it.

It makes All That Jazz seem like a perky, feel-good musical.

Was it ever released on DVD? I only have the laserdisc.

Well, I went searching for my laserdisc and it was nowhere to be found. A former friend who had a laserdisc machine must have borrowed it and never returned it. (Shows how long it's been since I watched this film).

Anyway, I got a good deal on a DVD from an Amazon Marketplace seller and bought it and watched it this week. I really HAVE forgotten the film since it was my memory that the movie ended with Arthur's plaintive live rendition of the title song on the gallows, but it doesn't! There's a reunion between the two leads and another production number.

Has this ALWAYS been here? I guess I'm a lot older than I thought since I had no memory of this final number.

Also listened to the audio commentary which didn't reveal anything especially noteworthy but was a pleasure to hear from someone who truly admired the movie.

 

[Persianimmortal]

"The Man From Earth" . I really enjoyed this movie. It has nothing in the way of special effects. It has only 4 scenes, and the entire movie is centered on an interesting premise that develops as the movie progresses.Why it is a tough sell-it sort of becomes that way after some people see it. It has a rather different perspective of the origins of some peoples belief sets, and raises some interesting questions. Saying more would be a spoiler. I don't think it was made with a big budget. It's available on blu ray, but I found it easier to follow the dialog with a good sound system.

I was going to post the same movie. The Man From Earth is basically a film that challenges people to think about their beliefs. It's presented in a relatively plain manner, with a set of conversations taking place in a remote cabin. Although the story is entirely fictional, much of the discussion is based on actual facts, and what at first seems like a dry, almost boring, movie soon becomes quite emotional (for me at least) as the characters delve further into discussion, and react in various ways.It's obviously low budget, but has several established, recognizable actors, so it's not painfully amateurish to watch like many low budget films. It's also written by Jerome Bixby, who wrote several Star Trek TOS episodes.Interesting and hopefully thought provoking, and best seen without reading any reviews or spoilers of any kind. Just watch it and go with it. The Blu-ray is available but the DVD or digital copy will do just as well because the PQ on the Blu isn't that much better than the SD equivalents.

 

[TJPC]

I do admire Pennies from Heaven very much, and there's no question it deserves the Blu-ray treatment, but it's not just dark; it's sometimes ugly and depressing. The musical numbers give it snap and pizzazz and a haunting kind of lyricism that's quite unique, but that ending! Downer doesn't nearly cover it.

It makes All That Jazz seem like a perky, feel-good musical.

Was it ever released on DVD? I only have the laserdisc.

I have the DVD.

 

[Matt Hough]

I have the DVD.

I do, too, now.

 

[bigshot]

I would pick Leni Riefenstahl's Triumph of the Will. People will obviously have trouble with the subject matter and point of view of the film, but as a piece of documentary film making divorced from the Nazi element, it's brilliant with incredible camerawork, editing, lighting, staging and composition. If a film has this much baggage and is still being shown to film students as one of the greatest documentaries ever made, it must have a lot going for it.

It was released on blu-ray in an excellent transfer, but unfortunately it had unremovable descriptive text burned over the top throughout the film, turning amazing cinematography into a didactic history lesson. Customers who buy blu-rays aren't the only ones who need to be convinced about the intrinsic value of films that might be considered "hard sells". The people releasing the films can be clueless about what people see of value in films too.

 

[Dick]

Strange as it might seem to dedicated film collectors, I do not think I could sell the idea of a NAPOLEON showing to friends. It looks superb and sounds great, but it could not be shown in one sitting and probably not in two, and would be an endurance test, requiring that invited guests who see the first part would be free to come for the last two.

 

[breeezer]

I just realized I'm trying to "sell" 'The Majestic' to the membership and 'The Majestic' isn't even available on Blu-ray!

I love the movie so much I purchased a digital copy in HD from iTunes. Plus I have the DVD, of course.

Sorry about that!

Mark

I have "The Majestic" on blu ray, and, ironically, I haven't watched it yet! I remember I liked it in the theater, so I have to watch it soon.