Tristram Shandy: A Cock and Bull Story (Michael Winterbottom, 2005)

The Criterion Collection, a continuing series of important classic and contemporary films presents Tristram Shandy: A Cock and Bull Story.

Tristram Shandy: A Cock and Bull Story is Michael Winterbottom’s unorthodox adaptation of the unfilmable English literary masterpiece The Life and Opinions of Tristram Shandy, Gentleman, written by Laurence Sterne.  Staying true to the manic spirit of the book, the film flips back and forth between the 18th century story and the hapless efforts of the 21st century filmmakers attempting to shoot the classic.  Tristram Shandy (Steve Coogan) narrates the filmed story of his life from conception onward, with numerous digressions and unfinished thoughts, while actor Steve Coogan serves his professional ego behind the scenes against the increasing prominence of his co-star, Rob Brydon.  Crammed with literary jokes and dark humor, and aided by stellar performances by Jeremy Northam, Stephen Fry, and Gillian Anderson, Tristram Shandy: A Cock and Bull Story is a clever, postmodern take on the construction of a film from an intricate, hilariously autobiographical novel.

Disc Features:

• New, restored 2K digital film transfer, supervised by cinematographer Marcel Zyskind and approved by director Michael Winterbottom, with 5.1 surround DTS-HD Master Audio soundtrack on the Blu-ray
• A Womb with a View, a new interview with director Michael Winterbottom and actors Steve Coogan and Rob Brydon
• Audio commentary with Coogan and Brydon
• Helen Weinstein conversation with Winterbottom and producer Andrew Eaton for Historyworks
• Extended interview with Steve Coogan conducted by journalist Tony Wilson
• Deleted and extended scenes
• Behind-the-scenes footage
• Premiere footage
• Theatrical trailer
• PLUS: A booklet featuring a new essay by film critic Mark Kermode and cartoonist Martin Rowson

On Tour (Mathieu Amalric, 2010)

“A likably rambling survey of ephemeral community, a portrait of the artist as a washed-up family man and pimp, and a quasi-documentary about brassy stage personas.” – Fernando F. Croce, SLANT

Joachim, an ostracized former Parisian television producer, returns from America with a New Burlesque strip-tease ensemble to whom he has promised a tour of France culminating in a grand finale in Paris.  Traveling from city to city, the curvaceous showgirls create a community of warmth and hedonism despite the impersonal hotels and little money.  When the venue for the Paris show falls through, Joachim’s grip on the situation and himself weakens, all under the watchful eyes of his performers.  A winner at Cannes and nominated for 7 César awards, Mathieu Amalric’s On Tour captures all the glamor, the stress, the intimacy, and the freedom of the artist’s life on the road.

Special Features:

• Rodolphe Gonzales’ documentary on the making of On Tour
• Interviews with cast and crew
• Theatrical trailer
• Gary Beeber’s 60-minute documentary on the creation of the new burlesque scene in New York City, Dirty Martini and the New Burlesque
• 16-page booklet featuring an interview with director/actor Mathieu Amalric and an essay by burlesque historian and performer Jo “Boobs” Weldon

“Pasties and Tassels” Edition – Package Includes:

• On Tour on Blu-ray or Standard DVD featuring over 2 hours of bonus materials
• High quality 720p HD Digital Download of the Film
• Instant Download of the 16-track Original Motion Picture Soundtrack, including 4 by performer and actress Kitten on the Keys
• 27″ x 40″ Theatrical Poster
• 1 Pair of Red Sequined Pasties with Tassels

Around the World with Orson Welles (Orson Welles, 1955)

In 1955, Orson Welles brought his distinctive character to Britain’s new ITV channel in 6 travelogues wherein he investigated people and places as iconoclastic and controversial as the famed filmmaker himself.  In Around the World with Orson Welles, he surveys the Basque country, attends the bullfights in Spain, converses with composer Anton Karas, and rubs elbows with Parisian artists and intellectuals, all while developing techniques for location reporting now commonplace in television journalism.  Also included is Christophe Cognet’s 2000 documentary The Dominici Affair, recounting and reconstructing the uncompleted seventh episode, “The Tragedy of Lurs”.  Around the World with Orson Welles is a missing link to Welles’ body of work, part film essay, part home movie, and is a fascinating portrait of Welles and Europe in the 1950s.

A Big Man on the Small Screen – The Televised Orson Welles

Eclipse is a selection of lost, forgotten, or overshadowed classics in simple, affordable editions.  Each series is a brief cinematheque retrospective for the adventurous home viewer.

While most appreciated for his film, theater, and radio work, Orson Welles also pursued his artistic visions on the small screen.  More often than not, his efforts struggled to achieve public broadcast, yet they remain a source of fascination, providing our clearest, most direct access to Welles as a storyteller, a traveler, and an individual.  These programs place the famed artist at their foreground and compel attention by the sheer force of Welles’ magnetic onscreen charisma.  The Kenosha Kid now returns to the small screen, in some cases for the first time, with this retrospective on his televisual creations, obediently yours.

Orson Welles’ Sketch Book

In six 15-minute episodes recorded for the BBC, Welles shares his personal artwork and uses them as inspiration for his stories, recollections, and editorials, creating an intimate and conversational rapport by directly addressing his audience.

Around the World with Orson Welles

Welles tackles the travelogue while touring the Basque country, attending the Spanish bullfights, and interviewing Jean Cocteau and Juliette Greco in Paris, all while inventing the grammar of on-location reporting.

The Fountain of Youth

A formally innovative presentation of a love triangle between a superficial starlet, a top tennis ace, and scientist possessing an anti-aging serum that Welles failed to get picked up as a series (tentatively titled The Orson Welles Show), but nonetheless won the Peabody Award after a single broadcast.

Portrait of Gina aka Viva Italia

Long banned due to the legal efforts of Gina Lollobrigida who took offense at her portrayal, Welles’ portrait of the Italian actress more generally provides a forum to contemplate Italy and its national character, told with his typical wry commentary and brisk editorial panache.

In the Land of Don Quixote

Recounting Welles’ travels through Spain with his wife Paola Mori and their young daughter Beatrice, this 9 episode travelogue made for Italian television includes an exploration the Roman history of Spain, a visual history of flamenco, and an examination of unique settings like the Alcazar Palace tobacco factory, the Feria De April celebrations in Seville, and Welles’ beloved bullfights.

Caesars Guide to Gaming with Orson Welles

Guests at Caesars Palace Las Vegas had the good fortune in the 1970s of letting Orson Welles into their room via closed circuit TV to explain the basics of casino gaming, reassured to put down some bets by his genial demeanor and historical anecdotes.

The Orson Welles Show

Welles’ final, failing effort at a television series saw him take on the talk show format with the assistance of his guests Burt Reynolds, the Muppets, Frank Oz, Jim Henson, and Angie Dickinson.

Orson Welles’ Magic Show

Filmed between 1976 and 1985 as a television special in which Welles performed various illusions while promising no trick photography, Orson Welles’ Magic Show is presented as reconstructed by the Munich Film Museum.

With notes on the programs by Welles-historian Ben Walters.