“The ‘Before’ Trilogy”: When Richard Linklater cast Ethan Hawke and Julie Delpy in his 1995 romantic comedy/drama “Before Sunrise,” none of them realized they were embarking on an 18-year journey they just thought they were making a gentle, charming little two-hander about two strangers who meet on a train, hop off, and spend the night walking and talking through Vienna. (Includes audio commentaries, video essays, featurettes, archival interviews, and essays by Robin Robertson and Glenn Kenny.) De Niro’s lead performance remains one of the gold standards of the medium. In other words, it’s like a two-hour film school master class, which is what the best audio commentaries should be. And as for the movie itself, well, it’s quite simply one of the finest movies ever made, a staggering technical achievement and a kitchen-sink drama of piercing insight. And it’s a beaut, delving deep into not only well-told but still fascinating production stories like Robert De Niro’s weight gain and the casting of Joe Pesci and Cathy Moriarity, but technical details like the framing and cutting of the fight sequences and the methodology of the slow-motion.
Somewhat legendary as one of the most informative of all such tracks, it was long available only on the Collection’s 1990 laserdisc (which is to say, not really available at all). Secondly, it includes Criterion’s 1990 audio commentary by Scorsese and editor Thelma Schoonmaker. First off, the restoration is a (pardon the pun) knockout, beautifully rendering the film’s crisp black and white images with you-are-there intimacy. “ Raging Bull ”: Martin Scorsese’s masterful 1980 examination of toxic masculinity has seen no shortage of Blu-ray releases, but The Criterion Collection’s new 4K upgrade offers two significant arguments for double-dipping. One of the year’s true indie success stories arrives on disc this week, alongside a slew of new Criterion titles, a Tom Cruise vehicle that’s worth another look, an all-time classic of kung fu cinema, and much more. This twice-monthly column sifts through all of those choices to pluck out the movies most worth your time, no matter how you’re watching. Every Tuesday, discriminating viewers are confronted with a flurry of choices: new releases on disc and on-demand, vintage and original movies on any number of streaming platforms, catalog titles making a splash on Blu-ray or 4K.
0 kommentar(er)
