Cinephiles, it’s time to spend some money.
Barnes & Noble kicked off its Criterion Collection sale, with titles discounted to 50% off in stores and online. The sale happens only twice a year, so many movie lovers stack up on DVDs and Blu-Rays during this time.
The Criterion Collection is a carefully curated set of classic and contemporary films. There are nearly 1,000 titles marked according to spine number and several box sets and stripped-down discs. Think of it as an authoritative library on cinema. Each film includes behind-the-scenes footage, interviews with filmmakers and historians, documentaries about the film and its place in history, and original trailers. Some discs even have second movies, although they are often short.
Important films, like Charlie Chaplin’s “Modern Times” and Ingmar Bergman’s “The Seventh Seal,” share a library with cult classics, including “This is Spinal Tap” and “The Blob.” Afred Hitchcock, Akira Kurosawa and François Truffaut have titles in this collection as well as contemporary filmmakers like Spike Lee, Wes Anderson and Jane Campion. From Spain to Iran to Australia to Mexico, there are movies that span the entire globe.
If you are looking to start your collection or if you are searching for new titles to add to it, here are a few suggestions to look out for during the sale:
“Wanda” (1970)
This title joined the collection in mid-March, after years of being unreachable in home entertainment for decades. This independent film was written and directed by Barbara Loden, with parts shot in Scranton and Carbondale. Loden plays the title character, a housewife in coal-mining country who wants more out of life. “Wanda” is one of the few 1970s films directed by a woman, and it has been applauded for its character-driven viewpoint. There are people in the region who remember the movie being filmed or know someone who served as an extra. The UCLA Film & Television Archive restored the film, which was shot on 16-millimeter film, and its soundtrack, and the disc includes an hourlong documentary, “I Am Wanda,” a segment from a 1971 episode of “The Dick Cavett Show” and the 1975 educational short “The Frontier Experience” directed by Loden.
“Do the Right Thing” (1989)
Criterion will sometimes rerelease previous titles in its collection with much needed upgrades. In time for its 30th anniversary, Lee’s “Do the Right Thing” will be digitally restored with new interviews with the cast and crew, including costume designer Ruth E. Carter and writer Nelson George. Public Enemy’s music video for “Fight the Power” is in the two-disc set along with deleted and extended scenes, trailers, and 1989 footage from its run at the Cannes film festival. The new version will be available July 23.
“Cléo from 5 to 7” (1962)
Director Agnès Varda died in March at the age of 88. Known as the Grandmother of the French New Wave, Varda remained active through the movement’s birth to 2017, when she was nominated for an Academy Award for her documentary with photographer JR “Faces Places.” Criterion has several of her films in its collection, including the box set “4 By Agnès Varda.” If you are just getting to know the director, start with her best known work, “Cléo from 5 to 7.” The film follows around Cléo (Corrine Marchand), a singer who is waiting for the results of a biopsy. In two hours, the audience is drawn into this woman’s world that could bring along tragic news. The disc includes two short films, paintings that inspired the title character, the theatrical trailer and more.
“The Tree of Life” (2011)
Terrence Malick is known for shooting lots of material only for most of it to be hacked to pieces in the editing room. For the Criterion edition of the Academy Award-nominated film, the multi-disc set contains the theatrical version that divided audiences and what feels like a new film in its latest edition. Starring Brad Pitt, Sean Penn and Jessica Chastain, a Texas family and their struggles are told through the birth of the universe, their connection with nature and the time of their lives. The set includes a digital restoration, 50 minutes of extended coverage, an interview with Chastain and a video essay.
The sale at Barnes and Noble, including at the Arena Hub Plaza location in Wilkes-Barre Township, ends Aug. 4, and if a title is not available in stores, you can order it online.
