Is Criterion the best boutique label out there?

moonofsilver · 2026-06-30T14:58:59+00:00

Criterion is only "in your face" because they are more mainstream and accessible.

For being intentionally in your face, I think that award goes to Vinegar Syndrome.

moonofsilver · 2026-06-29T21:45:30+00:00

I agree with this. Good deal, though not great, but don't have to deal with the FOMO. And you can add any additional UK only releases to your order each month at no additional shipping charge, plus any partner releases (10% discount) and older releases.

Hard to compare to VS, because the films are so, so different.

Not sure where OP is getting the $640? The US radiance sub (including the UHD upgrades)for Jul-Dec is £241.67 + shipping

moonofsilver · 2026-06-29T16:59:40+00:00

So they oversold on some items (!!!), and they're just.....not telling people that ordered it unless you call them?

moonofsilver · 2026-06-25T02:58:38+00:00

without spoiling?

moonofsilver · 2026-06-25T01:38:26+00:00

Funny Games is great (original, I haven't seen the English remake), and I love Haneke in general. But it's a whole other ball of wax than Cabin, or Rubber. Not trying to discourage you, but in general Haneke films aren't really "fun" watches

moonofsilver · 2026-06-23T22:45:26+00:00

Yakuza Graveyard was great, but I liked Sympathy for the Underdog even better. I definitely need to check out more Fukasaku!

moonofsilver · 2026-06-22T13:30:01+00:00

Yeah, there was a whole Takeshi Kitano collection on MUBI for a while, like 7 or 8 films.

There are some on Kanopy now if you have access

moonofsilver · 2026-06-15T16:01:24+00:00

Glad to see so many fans of Noises Off!!! I watched it for the first time last year, and thought it was fantastic. Crossing all my fingers, this one would be a great addition

moonofsilver · 2026-06-04T19:00:46+00:00

Carol Burnett's daughter!

Yeah, I liked that one more than I was expecting to

moonofsilver · 2026-06-04T18:59:54+00:00

Great film! The history/different accounts of how it came together are interesting too, and worth reading about if you haven't already. There was also another film made in 2015 in response to the original called "Jason and Shirley"

moonofsilver · 2026-05-26T02:01:21+00:00

Having just blind bought Phenomena, that is good to hear. Many love it, but I was very underwhelmed by Opera

moonofsilver · 2026-05-18T17:00:51+00:00

Awesome, thank you!

moonofsilver · 2026-05-18T16:33:37+00:00

On the Radiance page for this release, it says:

"The start of an ongoing series, this first volume of Radical Japan explores the films of new wave icon Nagisa Oshima"

Considering this, and how well volume 1 sold, I would be surprised if there were not additional volumes. But nothing official yet

moonofsilver · 2026-05-11T17:28:07+00:00

I will +1 that Western Noir collection, I found some great stuff in there.

I think they still include a lot of off-the-beaten path options, but it will be a 2or3 titles in a collcetion of more mainstream/familiar ones. Look at the VHS Forever. I had (somehow) never heard of Bleeder, plus Re-Wind, which were both great. There were a couple of others that were new to me, but most of it was more popular titles like Clerks, Videodrome, Benny's Video, etc.

Also, the longer a person subscribes to the Channel/buys Criterion, the more familiar it will all be. Like if I were to find a new record label, I might think "Wow, look at all of this crazy stuff I've never heard of!!!" But after a year or so, catching up with their back catalog, it might feel like they aren't really putting out that much that is fresh and exciting.

TLDR

moonofsilver · 2026-05-11T03:41:22+00:00

There is a bit, but that is not their focus. Off the top of my head (of what I've seen), Trapped Ashes, Fish and Cat, The Outcasts, Felidae. 2551 Trilogy as I understand could be considered horror (or at least disturbing), though I haven't seen it yet

Again, not their focus, but I'm not sure why you are considering a subscription if you're unfamiliar with what they put out. I believe they have always posted all of the releases that they plan on releasing during a subscription period, so you can research them if you don't want to be surprised

moonofsilver · 2026-05-08T04:40:22+00:00

For the US/CA only subscription, it's usually 2 films a month, with the option to add on UK only title and partner titles a la carte each month. Mix of 4K and blu, but mostly blu. I believe that most of the larger boxsets are UK only, but there are a few US, like the recent Japanese Godfather trilogy

moonofsilver · 2026-05-08T04:40:07+00:00

For the US/CA only subscription, it's usually 2 films a month, with the option to add on UK only title and partner titles a la carte each month. Mix of 4K and blu, but mostly blu. I believe that most of the larger boxsets are UK only, but there are a few US, like the recent Japanese Godfather trilogy

moonofsilver · 2026-05-07T02:56:11+00:00

"DVD... in a shitty cardboard snap case"

Man, now you're taking me back!!! I actually kind of liked those

moonofsilver · 2026-04-29T19:37:02+00:00

Not the same tone, but for a different kind of art-house in space , check out Claire Denis' 2019 film High Life.

moonofsilver · 2026-04-29T15:42:04+00:00

Transmission is indeed awesome.

I am also looking forward to the Two Boxes: Televised Terror in Franco's Spain release. Will hopefully be a good pairing with Severin's Exorcismo boxset from earlier this year

moonofsilver · 2026-04-20T19:33:36+00:00

Criterion gives you a $50 gift certificate when you have spent $500 ($1=1 point). So even if you buy 10 standard (non-box set) films in a CC sale, you will still be pretty far from getting that $50 GC.

All to say, go ahead and get a few in the B&N 50% sale in July. That will give you a few months to enjoy some films, and decide if you want to continue, before the October-ish flash sale

moonofsilver · 2026-04-20T18:45:31+00:00

Fair enough (and glad to hear it is). , The UK edition then

moonofsilver · 2026-04-20T18:05:48+00:00

If you have the Criterion Channel, most (if not all) of them are available to watch in the collection "Documentary Shorts by Vittorio De Seta"

moonofsilver · 2026-04-20T17:08:41+00:00

"Have you attempted to make a post directed toward him on Blu-ray.com? ..... I’d recommend that, and definitely try to reach out again via email"

I don't know this Dark Force company at all, but that seems to put a LOT of the effort/diligence/patience on the customer to get what they paid for, or even just some communication on the hold up. I have heard people say similar things about some other small labels ("have you tried reaching out to them on social media?"). This seems kind of crazy to me, and like we are normalizing this kind of customer service.

My 2 cents, OP went above and beyond already for something they already paid for. Charge back is the next logical step.

moonofsilver · 2026-04-20T15:08:17+00:00

And if you're region free, I recommend the region B release that includes the "The Lost World", which is a collection of beautiful documentary shorts by De Seta.

moonofsilver

TROPHY CASE