The Best of the Criterion Collection 2014

"The Criterion Collection, a continuing series of important classic and contemporary films, has been dedicated to gathering the greatest films from around the world and publishing them in editions that offer the highest technical quality and award-winning, original supplements."

I promised this past year's list for the top ten new releases from the Criterion Collection would be coming and here it is!  The Academy Awards are just over a week away, so look for a review of the wins for 2014 soon after.  But now I want to highlight one of my favorite outlets for viewing films: the Criterion Collection. They have had some incredible releases this year. While there have been several blu-ray upgrades of existing titles, I have enjoyed many of the new titles in the collection.  Currently at 739 blu-ray and dvd releases through the end of 2014 (with many more to come), Criterion has earned its reputation.

I want to focus on my ten favorite new releases from the Criterion Collection for 2014. One great promotional tool that Criterion began a few years ago was their "Three Reasons" videos.  They even have released bonus dvds under the "99 Reasons" label collecting many of these great videos. A good way to explain why the film is important and worth including in the collection.  I have included them when available.

But first, let me highlight an "honorable mention", a significant blu-ray upgrade from Criterion for 2014.  They finally revisited one of their earliest DVD releases.

Picnic at Hanging Rock (Peter Weir, 1975, #29, Australia)

An exquisite and haunting film.  Grab this blu-ray now and you will find included the paperback edition of the 1967 source novel by Joan Lindsay, previously out of print in the United States.

Here is Peter Weir discussing the film for the Criterion Collection.

10. La dolce vita (Federico Fellini, 1960, #733, Italy)

The sweet life indeed!  Fellini and Mastroianni are kindred spirits.

9. Breaking the Waves (Lars von Trier, 1996, #705, Denmark)

Lars von Trier can break you down, but still find a moment of transcendence for the audience.  I still remember the ending of this film.

Here is Emily Watson discussing the film for the Criterion Collection.

8. Foreign Correspondent (Alfred Hitchcock, 1940, #696, United States)

Hitchcock's other American debut; Rebecca may have claimed the Best Picture Oscar, but Academy members and audiences also found much to like here in Foreign Correspondent.  The mile-a-minute espionage plot keeps the action moving quite well.

7. Thief (Michael Mann, 1981, #691, United States)

I recommend a double feature of this and the Ryan Gosling film Drive.  Or really, you can just keep the Michael Mann marathon going well past his film debut.  The Keep, Manhunter, L.A. Takedown, The Last of the Mohicans, Heat, The Insider, Ali, Collateral, Miami Vice, Public Enemies, Blackhat.  I hope he keeps going...

 

6. Persona (Ingmar Bergman, 1966, #701, Sweden)

Far less narrative and far more reliant on the image itself to convey the message or evoke the emotion.  Two of his finest muses on the screen together- Liv Ullmann and Bibi Andersson.  You are in good company with them.

 

5. Fantastic Mr. Fox (Wes Anderson, 2009, #700, United States)

Wes Anderson may just now be getting some Academy respectability with The Grand Budapest Hotel, but this really was one of the best films in 2009, animated, live action.  Doesn't matter.  He is an inventive storyteller with a strong aesthetic. 

 

4. Eraserhead (David Lynch, 1977, #725, United States)

The debut film from one of my favorite directors.  It's more cult than result, but it's a shot across the bow from a master of the cinema.

Here's the trailer.

 

3. A Hard Day's Night (Richard Lester, 1964, #711, United Kingdom)

John, Paul, George, Ringo.  They speak and sing for themselves!  Even fifty years later, you see a film project like God Help the Girl, where director Stuart Murdoch is borrowing a great deal from A Hard Day's Night.

Here are the Beatles!  In their own voices!

 

2. Scanners (David Cronenberg, 1981, #712, Canada)

"Did you ever see that scene in Scanners where that dude's head blew up?"- Wayne's World (1992)

Here's the trailer:

 

1. Tess (Roman Polanski, 1979, #697, United Kingdom)

Sumptuous scenery and photography in Polanski's adaptation of Thomas Hardy's Tess of the d'Urbervilles.  Nastassja Kinski is the strong protagonist in a doomed struggle against male patriarchy and economic hardship.

Here is a key scene.