Criterion has announced their October 2013 releases and it includes brand new Michelangelo Antonioni, the company’s first DVD box set Blu-ray upgrade and a Blu-ray upgrade of a film many were talking about when Holy Motors premiered last year.
First is Antonioni’s La Notte (10/29) starring Marcello Mastroianni and Jeanne Moreau, which I first watched on Netflix Instant what feels like a long, long, long time ago. I can hardly remember the story of a couple who confront the issues within their relationship and the world around them over the course of one night. The version I saw was dark and I can only assume this new 4K digital restoration will be worth the price even if the included features are merely a couple of new interviews, an essay by Richard Brody and a 1961 article by Antonioni.
Another new title to the collection is Lewis Allen‘s 1944 haunted house feature The Uninvited (10/22), which I have never seen and also comes with slim pickings in the feature department with only a visual essay by filmmaker Michael Almereyda on the disc an essay by critic Farran Smith Nehme in the booklet.
There are two Blu-ray upgrades coming to the collection in the form of Georges Franju‘s Eyes Without a Face (10/15), which many were referencing after seeing Leo Carax’s Holy Motors last year and the company’s first DVD box set upgrade in the five-film John Cassavetes collection (10/22).
Of these latter two I’ve never seen Eyes Without a Face and am looking forward to getting a chance and of the Cassavetes collection films I’ve only seen The Killing of a Chinese Bookie. The four other films are Shadows, Faces, A Woman Under the Influence and Opening Night along with Charles Kiselyak’s documentary A Constant Forge – The Life and Art of John Cassavetes.
Finally, René Clair‘s supernatural screwball comedy I Married a Witch (10/8) is also new to the collection and is yet another title coming in October limited in features as it only includes an old audio interview with Clair and an essay by filmmaker Guy Maddin and a 1970 interview with Clair inside the included booklet.
Anything catch your eye? The Antonioni title is top on my list followed by the Cassavetes collection and I would really love to sink my teeth into both Eyes Without a Face and The Uninvited.
