THIS SUMMER'S BARNES AND NOBLE CRITERION SALE (1 Viewer)

[Kyle_D]

I was able to pick up the Bergman set for $115 in store after applying a 10% member discount and a 20% single item discount coupon to the sale price. Less than 3 bucks a film. That's the cinephile's steal of the century.

Hopefully the Bergman set sold well. I'd love to see Criterion do more "film course in a box"-type sets. A Kurosawa box set would be amazing. As would a French New Wave set covering 1959-1966, an Italian Neorealist Set, a Fellini Set, etc.

 

[Garysb]

I was able to pick up the Bergman set for $115 in store after applying a 10% member discount and a 20% single item discount coupon to the sale price. Less than 3 bucks a film. That's the cinephile's steal of the century.

Hopefully the Bergman set sold well. I'd love to see Criterion do more "film course in a box"-type sets. A Kurosawa box set would be amazing. As would a French New Wave set covering 1959-1966, an Italian Neorealist Set, a Fellini Set, etc.

You were very lucky to get the 20% off coupon to work on a Criterion set. Only the 10% off membership is supposed to work on Criterions during the sale.

 

[Kyle_D]

You were very lucky to get the 20% off coupon to work on a Criterion set. Only the 10% off membership is supposed to work on Criterions during the sale.

That's true online, but I've never had any trouble getting cashiers to apply the coupons in store. In fact, the coupons have always applied automatically when scanned without even needing to ask the cashier.

 

[skylark68]

Picked up a couple of titles, my store was out of War and Peace...

8 1/2 and Vivre Sa Vie

 

[David Norman]

That's true online, but I've never had any trouble getting cashiers to apply the coupons in store. In fact, the coupons have always applied automatically when scanned without even needing to ask the cashier.

If that includes the last couple years for Criterions then I need to visit your store because I haven't had a coupon scan during this sale for quite a number of sales

 

[Mark McSherry]

I also picked up WAR AND PEACE, which I will watch in four parts beginning tonight. One comment: the essay for the film takes up an entire folded sheet, 18"x13", the other side of which is the beautiful artwork seen on the Blu-ray cover. This is a poster I would love to display, but to read the liner notes again, I would need to take it down and flip it over. Silly nit-picker, you!

You will find the entire essay, "Saint Petersburg Fiddles, Moscow Burns" by Ella Taylor, on Criterion's WAR AND PEACE website.

 

[TheSteig]

Lone Wolf and Cub collection baby ! Glad I waited for the sale

 

[Ronald Epstein]

I am thinking of buying WAR AND PEACE.

Never saw this film before.

I don't want to get bogged down by a long, drawn-out foreign film (not that I dislike foreign films).

Is this an easy, entertaining watch that I will really appreciate?

For $25 its a tempting purchase.

 

[titch]

I am thinking of buying WAR AND PEACE.

Never saw this film before.

I don't want to get bogged down by a long, drawn-out foreign film (not that I dislike foreign films).

Is this an easy, entertaining watch that I will really appreciate?

For $25 its a tempting purchase.

The film certainly has a place in film history and it's fantastic that Criterion brought it out. It has some stunning battle scenes, which would look quite good on your projector (the film quality itself can't compare with a Hollywood production). However, you might find some bits in between a bit drawn-out for your taste - it is, after all, 7 hours long. Maybe watch it like you'd watch a series? I bought the German production of Berlin Alexanderplatz on the Criterion sale - that is 15 hours long!

 

[Winston T. Boogie]

I am thinking of buying WAR AND PEACE.

Never saw this film before.

I don't want to get bogged down by a long, drawn-out foreign film (not that I dislike foreign films).

Is this an easy, entertaining watch that I will really appreciate?

For $25 its a tempting purchase.

To me it is a big deal that this is available, so I am probably not the best person to ask. I would say to you have you ever watched a long Russian film? If you have did you enjoy it? Or have you ever sat through a very long foreign film and did you enjoy it? I mean I know people who find Dances With Wolves a slog due to the length and that film is like sitting through a Charlie Brown special compared to this. I'm just being honest here.

I don't want to tell people not to see it or discourage it but I think this film is probably not for most people. As Kevin says above the battle scenes are stunning because those are real people and all of what you are seeing are practical effects not CGI. Something like that you won't ever see again in a major motion picture.

You could get Bondarchuk's Waterloo when that comes out to test if you want to sit through this picture. It is also gorgeous, features a stunning recreation of the Battle of Waterloo that takes up about half the running time, it is in English, and is only a couple of hours long.

Perhaps if you enjoy his work there you might pick this up in a later sale.

I think War and Peace is an amazing film, an amazing attempt at making a picture on massive scale and will be appreciated by many film buffs or filmmakers...but if you have never tried to sit through something like this or don't really have an interest in the subject matter...this could be something you never make it through.

 

[Kyle_D]

I'll echo what everyone else here has said about War and Peace. It's a stunning spectacle, and you can watch it in 4 parts to cut down on the butt-numb. It's somewhat similar to Gone With the Wind, but replace the antebellum south with early 19th century Russia. With that said, some of the performances are kind of stiff, and the two lead male actors are way too old to be playing their characters. It can also be difficult to keep track of the (many) supporting characters if you haven't read the novel. It's a fairly faithful adaptation of the book, but it doesn't come anywhere close to capturing the full psychological, emotional, or philosophical complexity of Tolstoy and his characters.

Finally, given the condition of the film elements, the restoration is acceptable, but don't expect the Blu-ray to look like Lawrence of Arabia or any of the other 65mm Hollywood epics of the era that have been restored. It's pretty soft, with low contrast and noticeably faded colors, and the opticals are downright grungy.

 

[Kyrsten Brad]

Brad here. Budget constraints are a little tight with the recent purchase of a new Viz 75" PQ759 Quantum but I can't pass this sale up. Bought two today and two planned for next payday. The picks are in:

Charade (1963)



I Wanna Hold Your Hand (1978), replacing my Region B Blu-ray.



Heaven Can Wait (1943)



Being There (1979)

 

[skylark68]

I picked up a couple more, Breathless, and Red Desert.

 

[Rob W]

I am thinking of buying WAR AND PEACE.

Never saw this film before.

I don't want to get bogged down by a long, drawn-out foreign film (not that I dislike foreign films).

Is this an easy, entertaining watch that I will really appreciate?

For $25 its a tempting purchase.

Ron, you need to get a subscription to The Criterion Channel. War and Peace is currently streaming there this month. Criterion puts out a lot of titles I know I want to see but also know I will likely only watch once. This is one of them. And if it really knocks my socks off, I can wait until the next B & N sale to pick it up. Fortunately the streaming quality in my location is excellent.

Hedwig had a one-month window on the channel back in May. This was another title I was debating picking up, but having seen the feature for the first time in years on the channel, and having seen the recent Broadway revival with Neil Patrick Harris, I realized that's likely all the Hedwig I'm ever going to need.

 

[Cranston37+]

Get 'me while they're hot, folks. We could be nearing the end.

I saw this in an article today about how new B&N stores are being built without media sections...

 

[Tino]

Get 'me while they're hot, folks. We could be nearing the end.

I saw this in an article today about how new B&N stores are being built without media sections...

View attachment 61014

Where did you see this? Do you have a link to the entire article?

 

[Cranston37+]

Where did you see this? Do you have a link to the entire article?

Fo sho

http://m.startribune.com/barnes-amp...ay-be-better-at-new-woodbury-store/513101722/

 

[B-ROLL]

Hedwig had a one-month window on the channel back in May. This was another title I was debating picking up, but having seen the feature for the first time in years on the channel, and having seen the recent Broadway revival with Neil Patrick Harris, I realized that's likely all the Hedwig I'm ever going to need.

Like Gummi Bears, Hedwig is an acquired taste ...

 

[Kyrsten Brad]

Brad here. Budget constraints are a little tight with the recent purchase of a new Viz 75" PQ759 Quantum but I can't pass this sale up. Bought two today and two planned for next payday. The picks are in:

Charade (1963)
View attachment 60505


I Wanna Hold Your Hand (1978), replacing my Region B Blu-ray.
View attachment 60507


Heaven Can Wait (1943)
View attachment 60506


Being There (1979)
View attachment 60504

Well folks, I ended up buying Heaven Can Wait (1943) from Amazon during their Prime Days Sale (dropped the price to around $18.49). The others were unaffected.

I’ve added A Hard Days Night (1964), La Dolce Vita (1959) and Here Comes Mr. Jordan (1944) to the mix.

I also now have about 25 titles in my Criterion wish list.

 

[Craig Beam]

Today's haul: