JOEL AND ETHAN COEN began their career-long darkly comic road trip through America with Blood Simple, a razor-sharp, hard-boiled neo-noir set somewhere in Texas, where a sleazy bar owner sets off a torrent of violence with one murderous thought.
Actor M. EMMET WALSH (Blade Runner) looms over the proceedings as the slippery private eye with a yellow suit, a cowboy hat and no moral compass, and FRANCES MCDORMAND (Fargo) gives a cunning debut performance that set her on the road to stardom.
The tight scripting and inventive camera work that have marked the Coens’ work for decades is all here, as cinematographer BARRY SONNENFELD trades black-and-white chiaroscuro for neon signs and jukebox colors
A haunting score by CARTER BURWELL, used to lurid and thrilling effect.
Blending elements from pulp fiction and low-budget horror flicks, Blood Simple reinvented the film noir for a new generation, and marked the arrival of a filmmaking ensemble that would transform the American independent cinema scene in the 1980s.
SPECIAL EDITION FEATURES
New, restored 4K digital transfer, approved by cinematographer Barry Sonnenfeld and filmmakers Joel and Ethan Coen, with 5.1 surround DTS-HD Master Audio soundtrack on the Blu-ray.
New conversation between Sonnenfeld and the Coens about the film’s look, featuring Telestrator video illustrations •
New conversation between author Dave Eggers and the Coens about the film’s production, from inception to release
New interviews with composer Carter Burwell, sound mixer Skip Lievsay, and actors Frances McDormand and M. Emmet Walsh
Trailers
Awards:
WINNER BEST DIRECTOR/BEST MALE LEAD (M. EMMET WALSH), INDEPENDENT SPIRIT AWARDS, 1986
WINNER GRAND JURY PRIZE (DRAMATIC), SUNDANCE FILM FESTIVAL, 1985
THE CRITERION COLLECTION PRESENTS VALLEY OF THE DOLLS
“A lurid ’60s sensation.” —Filmcritic.com
“Gloriously campy.” —Decider.com
THE DELICIOUSLY STEAMY AND ENTERTAINING ADAPTATION OF THE DECADE-DEFINING POP-CULTURE NOVEL
Cutthroat careerism, wild sex, and fierce female protagonists are all on offer in this adaptation of Jacqueline Susann’s sensational and wildly popular novel. PATTY DUKE (The Miracle Worker), BARBARA PARKINS (Peyton Place), and SHARON TATE star as three friends attempting to navigate the glamorous, pressurized world of big-time show business— the “valley” is not a place but a narcotized state of mind, and the “dolls” are the pills that rouse them in the morning and knock them out at night. Blending old-fashioned gloss with Madison Avenue grooviness, this slick look by director MARK ROBSON (Peyton Place) at the early days of sexual liberation and an entertainment industry coming apart was a giant box-office hit and has become an unforgettably campy time capsule of the 1960s.
Summary and design © 2016 The Criterion Collection. Oscar®, Academy Award®, and Academy Awards® are the registered trademarks and service marks of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. www.criterion.com
1967 • 123 MINUTES • COLOR • 3.0 SURROUND • 2.35:1 ASPECT RATIO
2-DVD EDITION SRP $29.95 PREBOOK 8/19/16 • STREET 9/27/16 CAT. NO. CC2681DDVD ISBN 978-1-68143-208-3 • UPC 7-15515-18651-37 1 5 5 1 5 1 8 6 5 1 3
BLU-RAY EDITION SRP $39.95 PREBOOK 8/19/16 • STREET 9/27/16 CAT. NO. CC2680BD ISBN 978-1-68143-207-6 • UPC 7-15515-18641-47 1 5 5 1 5 1 8 6 4 1 4
NOMINEE BEST MUSIC, ADAPTATION OR TREATMENT, ACADEMY AWARDS, 1968
NOMINEE MOST PROMISING NEWCOMER, FEMALE (SHARON TATE), GOLDEN GLOBES, 1968
NOMINEE BEST ORIGINAL SCORE, GRAMMY AWARDS, 1969
AVAILABLE ON BLU-RAY AND DVD!
NOW AVAILABLE IN A SPECIAL
BLU-RAY EDITION!
THE CRITERION COLLECTION PRESENTS BEYOND THE VALLEY OF THE DOLLS
“Shot and edited with astonishing mastery.” —Tony Rayns, Sight & Sound
“A camp classic . . . A patchwork quilt of details and nuances sewn with thread of campy outrageousness.” —J. Bryan Lowder, Slate
RUSS MEYER AND ROGER EBERT’S OUTRAGEOUS AND RAUCOUS CULT CLASSIC
In 1970, 20th Century-Fox, impressed by the visual zing “King of the Nudies” RUSS MEYER (Faster, Pussycat! Kill! Kill!) brought to bargainbasement exploitation fare, handed the director a studio budget and the title to one of its biggest hits, Valley of the Dolls. With a satirical screenplay by ROGER EBERT, Beyond the Valley of the Dolls follows three young female rockers going Hollywood in hell-bent sixties style under the spell of a flamboyant producer—whose decadent bashes showcase Meyer’s trademark libidinal exuberance. Transgressive and outrageous, this big-studio version of a debaucherous midnight movie is an addictively entertaining romp from one of the movies’ great outsider artists.
Summary and design © 2016 The Criterion Collection. www.criterion.com
1970 • 109 MINUTES • COLOR • MONAURAL • 2.35:1 ASPECT RATIO
2-DVD EDITION SRP $29.95 PREBOOK 8/19/16 • STREET 9/27/16 CAT. NO. CC2683DDVD ISBN 978-1-68143-210-6 • UPC 7-15515-18671-17 1 5 5 1 5 1 8 6 7 1 1
BLU-RAY EDITION SRP $39.95 PREBOOK 8/19/16 • STREET 9/27/16 CAT. NO. CC2682BD ISBN 978-1-68143-209-0 • UPC 7-15515-18661-27 1 5 5 1 5 1 8 6 6 1 2
AVAILABLE ON BLU-RAY AND DVD!
THE EPIC TEN-PART MASTERPIECE
