Tweet Criterion announces THE GREAT DICTATOR

Available May 24 on DVD and Blu-ray

http://www.criterion.com/films/27605-the-great-dictator

* United States
* 1940
* 125 minutes
* Black and White
* 1.33:1
* English

SYNOPSIS: In his notorious masterpiece The Great Dictator, Charlie Chaplin offers both a cutting caricature of Adolf Hitler and a sly tweaking of his own comic persona. Chaplin (in his first pure talkie) brings his sublime physicality to two roles: the cruel yet clownish “Tomanian” dictator and the kindly Jewish barber who is mistaken for him. Featuring Jack Oakie and Paulette Goddard in stellar supporting turns, The Great Dictator, boldly going after the fascist leader before the U.S.’s official entry into World War II, is an audacious amalgam of politics and slapstick that culminates in Chaplin’s famously impassioned speech.

Thanks for the information. I pre-ordered today. I wish they would put a restoration of "The Gold Rush" on bluray.

I just watched this film recently. It gets better on every viewing. Chaplin, Oakie, and Goddard are all excellent. But other supporting players also make their marks. Henry Daniell, Carter DeHaven, Emma Dunn, Chester Conklin, Morris Moscovitch, Reginald Gardiner, Grace Hayle, Eddie Dunn, Billy Gilbert, Sig Arno, and Bernard Gorcey all have their little moments in the sun.

The real ending comes after Chaplin's speech with the loving close-up of Goddard against the sunset.

Huh. Just saw on Twitter that Criterion made a deal with the subscription service Hulu Plus ($7.99 US). Clicked over, and many Chaplins are available as part of this including City Lights, Monsieur Verdoux, The Circus, The Kid, A Woman of Paris and, judging from the art, the reissue/narrated version of The Gold Rush.

Also, Pandora's Box.

Just got this press release from Criterion:

Hello – Exciting news! As of today, more than 150 of the Criterion Collection’s most important films are available online via Hulu’s subscription service, Hulu Plus. Criterion has long made it possible for lovers of cinema to discover, and to rediscover, the work of brilliant filmmakers from around the world, and now with Hulu, millions of people will have easy access to the films of Fellini, Kurosawa, Truffaut, Wenders, and hundreds of others. Please check out the blog posts from Peter Becker of Criterion here - http://www.criterion.com/current/posts/ ... ime-coming, and from Eugene Wei of Hulu here - http://www.hulu.com/criterion. It’s never been easier to discover classic and contemporary cinema.

Criterion on HULU is good news. But does anyone know what resolution HULU + uses?

Here is more information on The Great Dictator:

THE GREAT DICTATOR – Blu-ray & DVD

In his notorious masterpiece The Great Dictator, Charlie Chaplin (City Lights, Modern Times) offers both a cutting caricature of Adolf Hitler and a sly tweaking of his own comic persona. Chaplin (in his first pure talkie) brings his sublime physicality to two roles: the cruel yet clownish “Tomanian” dictator and the kindly Jewish barber who is mistaken for him. Featuring Jack Oakie (Thieves’ Highway, Lover Come Back) and Paulette Goddard (Modern Times, The Women) in stellar supporting turns, The Great Dictator, boldly going after the fascist leader before the U.S.’s official entry into World War II, is an audacious amalgam of politics and slapstick that culminates in Chaplin’s famously impassioned plea for tolerance.

1940 • 125 minutes • Black & White • Monaural • 1.33:1 aspect ratio

SPECIAL EDITION FEATURES
• New high-definition digital restoration, with uncompressed monaural soundtrack on the Blu-ray edition
• New audio commentary by Charlie Chaplin historians Dan Kamin and Hooman Mehran
• The Tramp and the Dictator (2001), a documentary narrated by filmmaker Kenneth Branagh and featuring interviews with author Ray Bradbury, director Sidney Lumet, historian Arthur Schlesinger Jr., screenwriter Budd Schulberg, and a host of others
• Two new visual essays, by Chaplin archivist Cecilia Cenciarelli and Chaplin biographer Jeffrey Vance
• On-set, color production footage shot by Chaplin’s half-brother, Sydney
• Deleted scene from Chaplin’s 1919 film Sunnyside
• Theatrical trailer
• PLUS: A booklet featuring an essay by film critic Michael Wood and a 1940 article by Chaplin on the film

TITLE: The Great Dictator (BLU-RAY EDITION)
CAT. NO: CC2010BD
UPC: 7-15515-08061-3
ISBN: 978-1-60465-422-6
SRP: $39.95
PREBOOK: 4/26/11
STREET: 5/24/11

TITLE: The Great Dictator (2-DVD EDITION)
CAT. NO: CC2011D
UPC: 7-15515-08071-2
ISBN: 978-1-60465-423-3
SRP: $29.95
PREBOOK: 4/26/11
STREET: 5/24/11

UA print or Roy Export inserted titles??

UA print or Roy Export inserted titles??

I'll bet you that they will use the lousy print they kept using over and over again.

They should stop using the word restoration, becasue there is nothing restored...

UA print or Roy Export inserted titles??

I'll bet you that they will use the lousy print they kept using over and over again.

They should stop using the word restoration, becasue there is nothing restored...

On the contrary, Criterion does it's own proprietary restoration work, including repairs of tears, lines, spots, image stabilization. They have exacting standards. So much so that they delayed for some time the release of "Grand Illusion" to find better elements...a search that resulted in the discovery of the long lost original camera negative.

They wouldn't be doing "The Great Dictator" unless they had been provided with elements which they deemed of suitable quality, and which they could make suitably presentable on dvd and blu-ray.

They're universally regarded to be the best purveyor of films on home video format, and this is for a reason. You knock them, you might as well quite buying DVDs and blu-rays altogether, because there is no one better.

The Great Dictator was last restored a long time ago. All Criterion needs to do is put it on a disc and shrinkwrap it.

I wonder how much work Criterion actually does, beyond buying a transfer and running it through DVNR. A lot of their releases of older films have been restorations done by other people. They also have their awful set of The Golden Age of Television, where they apparently went out of their way to botch it. With their Eclipse series, it's obvious they just slap the Criterion name on the sets.

Criterion is generally very good, but others like Kino, Warner, Disney, Fox, do just as well, if not better than them.

UA print or Roy Export inserted titles??

I'll bet you that they will use the lousy print they kept using over and over again.

They should stop using the word restoration, becasue there is nothing restored...

On the contrary, Criterion does it's own proprietary restoration work, including repairs of tears, lines, spots, image stabilization. They have exacting standards. So much so that they delayed for some time the release of "Grand Illusion" to find better elements...a search that resulted in the discovery of the long lost original camera negative.

They wouldn't be doing "The Great Dictator" unless they had been provided with elements which they deemed of suitable quality, and which they could make suitably presentable on dvd and blu-ray.

They're universally regarded to be the best purveyor of films on home video format, and this is for a reason. You knock them, you might as well quite buying DVDs and blu-rays altogether, because there is no one better.

I have been seeing this film in broadcasting stations, VHS, DVD, cable, etc. It always looks exactly the same and I am sure that the United Artist reference will still be omitted from the print.

I want a real version of THE KID, with original titles and First National logos.

The Great Dictator was last restored a long time ago. All Criterion needs to do is put it on a disc and shrinkwrap it.

I wonder how much work Criterion actually does, beyond buying a transfer and running it through DVNR. A lot of their releases of older films have been restorations done by other people. They also have their awful set of The Golden Age of Television, where they apparently went out of their way to botch it. With their Eclipse series, it's obvious they just slap the Criterion name on the sets.

Criterion is generally very good, but others like Kino, Warner, Disney, Fox, do just as well, if not better than them.

For the smaller companies, the two that are known for quality is Criterion Collection and Eureka/Masters of Cinema.

Criterion does a lot of work in their films and a lot of their fans hold them (and also the same with MoC) to the highest standards.

I actually enjoyed "The Golden Age of Television" but I felt it could have easily been an Eclipse Series title but wasn't because it came with special features (Eclipse Series don't come with special features).

Kino is also starting to become more quality conscious, granted the release of "Metropolis" (and first batches not having the region coding as they requested for MoC to do) urked may people.

Unfortunately, the third company which could have done a great job but somehow has fallen flat is Studio Canal (Lionsgate) who have been plagued with PQ and packaging problems.

But for films that have been previously restored and remastered, If anything, I believe they mostly check things for dust and particles and for the audio, any hiss, crackle or pops.

The Great Dictator was last restored a long time ago. All Criterion needs to do is put it on a disc and shrinkwrap it.

I wonder how much work Criterion actually does, beyond buying a transfer and running it through DVNR. A lot of their releases of older films have been restorations done by other people. They also have their awful set of The Golden Age of Television, where they apparently went out of their way to botch it. With their Eclipse series, it's obvious they just slap the Criterion name on the sets.

Criterion is generally very good, but others like Kino, Warner, Disney, Fox, do just as well, if not better than them.

For the smaller companies, the two that are known for quality is Criterion Collection and Eureka/Masters of Cinema.

Criterion does a lot of work in their films and a lot of their fans hold them (and also the same with MoC) to the highest standards.

I actually enjoyed "The Golden Age of Television" but I felt it could have easily been an Eclipse Series title but wasn't because it came with special features (Eclipse Series don't come with special features).

Kino is also starting to become more quality conscious, granted the release of "Metropolis" (and first batches not having the region coding as they requested for MoC to do) urked may people.

Unfortunately, the third company which could have done a great job but somehow has fallen flat is Studio Canal (Lionsgate) who have been plagued with PQ and packaging problems.

But for films that have been previously restored and remastered, If anything, I believe they mostly check things for dust and particles and for the audio, any hiss, crackle or pops.

In the case of THE GREAT DICTATOR and the other Chaplin films they will do absolutely nothing and we will get the same lousy prints as always.

[Danny Burk]

In the case of THE GREAT DICTATOR and the other Chaoplin films they will do absolutely nothing and we will get the same lousy prints as always.

So, you're in close contact with the Chaplin Estate and/or Criterion's technical department?

In the case of THE GREAT DICTATOR and the other Chaoplin films they will do absolutely nothing and we will get the same lousy prints as always.

So, you're in close contact with the Chaplin Estate and/or Criterion's technical department?

Of course not. But after decades of access to reedited versions of the films, instead of the originals, they are not changing that pattern.

In fact, they were not even announced.

Luckily, THE GREAT DICTATOR was never re-edited, at least not apart from the credits bit. I'll be picking this one up. I haven't seen the included documentary yet.

Speedy, Jorge, Everyone,

Hey, TCM has recently aired THE GREAT DICTATOR several times, with a Janus films logo before the start. To my eye it looks way better, much improved over the Warner DVD's of 2004. These are brand new transfers of the MK2 restorations.

I won't buy a Criterion disc. They are out of synch. "M" was out of synch. Plus they messed up the framing on "Peeping Tom" cropping it. No way jose.

Finished watching our Blu-ray review copy and I will say that this release is magnificent. The special features were absolutely wonderful:

Audio Commentary - Performer/Author Dan Kamin and silent film historian Hooman Mehran discus the verbal and visual puns of the film, the Jewish performers of the film, the two dictators, "King, Queen, Joker", the real world violence and more.

The Tramp and the Dictator - (55:00) 2001 Documentary by Kevin Brownlow and Michael Kloft discuss the parallels of the life of Chaplin and Hitler. Narrated by filmmaker Kenneth Branagh and featuring interviews with author Ray Bradbury, director Sidney Lumet, historian Arthur Schlesinger Jr., screenwriter Budd Schulberg and many others.

Chaplin's Napoleon - (19:12) A Visual essay by Cecilia Cenciarelli, archivist and head of the Cineteca di Bologna's Progretto Chaplin.

The Clown Turn's Prophet - (20:54) A Visual essay by Chaplin biographer Jeffrey Vance using films stills and historical imagery.

Sydney Chaplin's Footage - (26:52) Silent footage in color filmed by Charlie Chaplin's half-brother documenting the production of "The Great Dictoator" on 16mm.

King, Queen, Joker - Surviving elements of the 1921 Paramount Pictures silent film: Sidney Chaplin (4:54) and Two Shaves (2:21)

Charlie the Barber - (7:50) A scene shot for the 1919 silent film "Sunnyside" but never used.

Trailer - (2:01) The original theatrical trailer of "The Great Dictator".

EXTRAS:

A 30-page booklet featuring the following essays "The Joker and the Madman" by Michael Wood, an article from the New York Times (October 27, 1940) titled "Mr. Chaplin Answers his Critics" and from "....Pourquoi les coiffeurs? by Jean Narboni - What is Known as Really Speaking" feat. an introduction by Richard Brody. The booklet also includes "The Great Dictator" illustrations by Al Hirschfeld from 1942, courtesy of the Al Hirschfeld Foundation.

--
This is a new remaster and the new high-definition digital transfer was created on a Spirit 2K Datacine from a combination of a 35 mm fine-grain mater positive and a 35 mm duplicate negative. Thousands of instances of dirt, debris, scratches, splices, warps, jitter and flicker were manually removed using MTI's DRS system, while DigitalVision's DVNR system was used for small dirt, grain and noise reduction.

The monaural soundtrack according to the Criterion Collection was transferred at 24-bit from the sound negative and restored by L.E. Diapason using Pro Tools and Cedar. Additional restoration was done at Criterion, where clicks, thumps, hiss and hum were manually removed using Pro Tools HD and crackle was attenuated using AudioCube's integrated workstation.

[quote="kndy"]Here is more information on The Great Dictator:

SPECIAL EDITION FEATURES

• The Tramp and the Dictator (2001), a documentary narrated by filmmaker Kenneth Branagh

Did that info come from Criterion? Kenneth Branagh/Kevin Brownlow. Same difference.

Tim

Oh, I get it now, I was misreading their text as implying Branagh was the filmmaker. Still, surprising there'd be no mention of Brownlow.