International Preston Sturges : King of Comedy on Blu-Ray 12/13/17 - in France (1 Viewer)

[David Weicker]

It appears that a Preston Sturges collection will be released internationally this coming December.

https://www.amazon.fr/gp/product/B0...e-4691-4349-8b50-65f9675cdf61&pf_rd_i=desktop

The company releasing this box set is Wild Side Video. I couldn't find out much about them, other than they also released Gun Crazy and Night Of The Demon/Curse Of The Demon (both favorably reviewed by DVDBeaver).

Most of the content is the same as the Preston Sturges - Filmmaker Collection that was released on DVD back in 2006.

However, the two "Great M" films (McGinty/Moment) have been removed and Unfaithfully Yours has been added.

The titles are:

Christmas In July
The Lady Eve (a possible double-dip - Criterion released this on DVD)
Sullivan's Travels (a double double-dip - Criterion and Arrow released)
The Palm Beach Story (a double-dip - Criterion released)
Hail The Conquering Hero
Unfaithfully Yours

 

[Robin9]

Preston Sturges on Blu-ray disc! I have all these films on DVD, but If Universal have done some remedial work on the elements and have produced really good HD masters, I'll be interested. It's probable these same masters will be used in other countries so it might pay to see who else produces Blu-ray discs of these titles.

 

[Garysb]

Price on this set is now EUR 54,99 plus shipping less VAT if going to the USA. Had been EUR 99.00
https://www.amazon.fr/gp/product/B0...b56-08aa65c1d16f&pf_rd_r=WBF88AMT3A7GVP8QRJXM

An amazon.fr customer translated comment:

This magnificent box with all the modern comforts of Blu-Ray and subtitling, a bouncy booklet including beautiful large photographs and neat presentations signed by Philippe Garnier and Marc Cerisuelo Preston Sturges or the Genius of America , has hardly the disadvantage of its price (and its weight). He understands (and I can not quote them without adding each time the names of the two main actors):

The Big Lot (Christmas in July, 1940) with Dick Powell and Ellen Drew

A heart trapped (The Lady Eve, 1941 ) with Henry Fonda and Barbara Stanwyck

Sullivan's Travels (1941) with Joel McCrea and Veronika Lake

Madame and her flirts (The palm beach story, 1942) with Joel McCrea and Claudette Colbert

Second-hand Hero (Hail the conquering hero, 1944) with Eddie Bracken and Ella Raines

Unfaithfully Yours (Unfaithfully yours, 1947) with Rex Harrison and Linda Darnell

The article in the magazine Positive in which I discovered this issue insists on that it does not include: and who laughed as rarely in a dark room with Miracle in the village (The Miracle of Morgan's Creek, 1944) knows that Preston Sturges has shot other valuable movies. Governor in spite of himself (The great MacGinty, 1940 Governor in spite of himself ), for example, had probably all its place in this box. But OK.

Preston Sturges is undoubtedly a director whose film alone may seem odd or wobbly, but whose films light up on each other and win to be seen together (from this point of view, Sullivan's Travels, the best known , makes even greater impression in such company). A wonderful thing with Sturges is that he is so good at scenes where there are many characters present on the screen simultaneously (the crowd on the street in the big Lot, the welcome reserved for the "hero" in Heroes d opportunity), which has to do with his taste for the moments when the milk overflows the pan, and at the same time, that each of his great films is also an admirable "portrait of a couple", especially because it brings his actresses and main actors to give the best of themselves (Barbara Stanwyck in The Lady Eve, Rex Harrison in Unfaithfullly yours). My only reservation (opinion probably minority) would go to The palm beach story, a little behind despite the bravura of the train scene. Sturges, it is also a whole vision of America where the parody is pushed very far (the office life in The big Lot, politics and the army in Hail the conquering hero) and the satirical verve is very irreverent. Add to this that Unfaithfully yours, a portrait of the star conductor as a jealous husband, is one of the best uses of classical music on screen (Rossini, Wagner, Tchaikovski: to each mood its melody, to each scenario of future sound environment),

And in keeping with what we call "repetition comic", it is particularly tasty to see the return of one of the supporting roles, if we dare say, of the first order, such as the hilarious Raymond Walburn, the Dr. Maxford, who signs the check in The Big Lot, and who embodies the Mayor of Boating in Heroes of Opportunity, or Robert Greig, the most irreplaceable butler of all time, would be willing to hire immediately if only we were part Happy few. Both the director looks after everything, for our happiness.

Possibly unique opportunity to seize if you can, unless you already own most of these films LADY EVE [Remastered Edition ] in separate edition.

 

[dana martin]

Keep waiting to see if Universal is going to license more of them out to Criterion, are one lone holdout on the other hand would be that Paramount title that might never get a proper treatment the miracle of Morgan's Creek