Posted Tue May 17, 2011 at 01:00 PM PDT by Tom Landy
Films from Jean Cocteau and Lindsay Anderson will get the Criterion treatment in August.
In an early announcement to retailers, Criterion has just revealed 'Orpheus' is being prepared for Blu-ray on August 30.
This 1950 update of the Orphic myth by Jean Cocteau depicts a famous poet (Jean Marais) scorned by the Left Bank youth, and his love for both his wife Eurydice (Marie Déa) and a mysterious princess (Maria Casarès).
The Blu-ray will feature 1080p, an uncompressed mono soundtrack, and supplements include: Audio commentary by French film scholar James Williams; Jean Cocteau: Autobiography of an Unknown, a 1984 feature-length documentary; Video piece from 2008 featuring assistant director Claude Pinoteau on the special effects in the film; 40 Minutes with Jean Cocteau, an interview with the director from 1957; In Search of Jazz, a 1956 interview with Cocteau on the use of jazz in the film; La villa Santo-Sospir, a 16 mm color Cocteau film from 1951; Gallery of images by French film portrait photographer Roger Corbeau; Raw newsreel footage; Theatrical trailer; and a booklet featuring an essay by author Mark Polizzotti, selected Cocteau writings on the film, and an essay on La villa Santo-Sospir by Williams.
Criterion is also readying the 1968 drama 'If....' for Blu-ray on the same date.
Before Kubrick made his mischief iconic in A Clockwork Orange, Malcolm McDowell made a hell of an impression as the insouciant Mick Travis, who, along with his school chums, trumps authority at every turn, finally emerging as a violent savior.
The Blu-ray will feature 1080p video, an uncompressed mono soundtrack, and supplements will include: Audio commentary featuring film critic and historian David Robinson and actor Malcolm McDowell; Episode of the Scottish TV series Cast and Crew from 2003, featuring interviews with McDowell, Ondříček, Rakoff, director's assistant Stephen Frears, producer Michael Medwin, and screenwriter David Sherwin; Video interview with actor Graham Crowden; Thursday's Children (1954), an Academy Award–winning documentary about a school for deaf children, by director Lindsay Anderson and Guy Brenton and narrated by actor Richard Burton; and a booklet featuring an essay by critic David Ehrenstein as well as reprinted pieces by Sherwin and Anderson.
Suggested list price for each of the Blu-rays is $39.95.
You can find the latest specs for 'Orpheus' and 'If....' linked from our Blu-ray Release Schedule, where they're indexed under August 30.
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