WATCH: Criterion Releases Blu-Ray Of "Belle Du Jour"

For the last year and change, the esteemed Criterion Collection has been updating much of their vast catalog for Blu-Ray. Most of these Criterion Blu-Ray titles get a digital remastering and have newly included bonus material as well. It's a veritable, if rather expensive to own, treasure trove of important indepent, foreign and classic cinema.

Amongst the slate of January releases is the iconic 1967 Luis Bunuel film, Belle Du Jour starring the mesmerizing Catherine Deneuve. To celebrate the Blu-Ray release of this famous psycho-sexual tale of existential longing, Criterion has issued another in its series of Three Reasons vids. Essentially, these are trailers for their releases that focus on three aspects of a film they love.

In addition to a great visual peek at Belle Du Jour, the Criterion site is now featuring a terrific essay by Village Voice writer, Melissa Anderson on the making of the film and the affect it had on both the star and the director. It's an interesting study of the film fit both for the first time viewer and the seasoned vet who'd like to dig a bit deeper into Deneuve's famous character, the damaged housewife, Severine.

You can watch the video for Criterion's Belle Du Jour: Three Reasons below.

2011 Film Journal

As the days and weeks chug along, I will a keep a list of all the films I watch all year. Yep, every single one of them. Even the embarrassing and the awful.  There are a few simple criteria for a film to make the list. I will only include films watched in completion. 20 minutes of The Cable Guy on TBS won't make the list - sorry Benji Stiller.   If an entry lists two or more dates, then the film was seen in sections - one section on each date listed for that film. 

This list will include both films viewed for the first time and those with previous multiple viewings. Anything on this list was seen via Netflix Watch It Now, DVD, in the theater or on cable - please assume that anything viewed on cable was not only watched in completion, but also without commercials. Movies weren't made with ads designed to fit into the plot narrative, I prefer it stays that way
 

Each of the films on the list is rated on a scale of 1 to 10. Any reviews or notes that I've made on a film from the list will be linked. This will be an ongoing project, so please stay tuned.


JANUARY 
Jan. 3 - Laura (1944) directed by Otto Preminger | 7/10

Jan. 6 - The Damned United (2008) directed by Tom Hooper | 7/10

Jan. 8 - Three Days Of The Condor (1975) directed by Sydney Pollak | 6/10

Jan. 8 - Moog (2008) directed by Hans Fjellestad | Rating: 6/10

Jan. 11 - Blood Into Wine (2010) directed by Ryan Page and Christopher Pomerenke | 5/10

Jan. 12 - Prodigal Sons (2008) directed by Kimberly Reed | 5/10

Jan. 18 - Joan Rivers: A Piece Of Work (2010) dir. by Rikki Stern & Annie Sundberg | 6/10

Jan. 19 - The Parking Lot Movie (2010) directed by Meghan Eckman | 6/10

Jan. 20 - Cropsey (2009) directed by Joshua Zeman and Barbara Brancaccio | Rating: 5/10

Jan. 21 - Le Corbeau (1943) directed by Henri-Georges Clouzot | Rating: 9/10

Jan. 22 - Bugs Bunny’s 1001 Rabbit Tales (1982) dir. by Friz Freleng & Chuck Jones | 7/10

Jan. 22 - Rome: Open City (1945) directed by Roberto Rossellini | 8/10
Jan. 26/Feb. 4 - Pickpocket (1959) directed by Robert Bresson | 7/10

Jan. 28/29 - The Wages Of Fear (1953) directed by Henri-Georges Clouzot | 9/10 - Review

Jan. 29 - The Runaways (2010) directed by Floria Sigismondi | 3/10 - Review

Jan. 29/30 - Le Cercle Rouge (1970) directed by Jean Pierre Melville | 7/10

Jan. 30 - Dial M For Murder (1955) directed by Alfred Hitchcock | 9/10

Jan. 31/Feb. 1 - Crazy Love (2007) directed by Dan Klores | 5/10


FEBRUARY

Feb. 1 - Cyrus (2010) directed by Jay and Mark Duplass | 5/10

Feb. 2 - The Army Of Shadows (1969) directed by Jean Pierre Melville | 8/10

Feb. 2 - Groundhog Day (1993) directed by Harold Ramis | 7/10

Feb. 2/3 - The Grand Illusion (1937) directed by Jean Renoir | 10/10 - Review

Feb. 3 - Le Samourai (1967) directed by Jean Pierre Melville | 9/10 - Review
Feb. 7/8 - The Friends Of Eddie Coyle (1973) directed by Peter Yates | 7/10 - Review
Feb. 10 - True Grit (2010) directed by Joel and Ethan Coen  |  7/10
Feb. 12 - The Kids Are All Right directed by Lisa Cholodenko  |  4/10 - Review
Feb. 13 - Downfall (Der Untergang) (2004) directed by Oliver Hirschbiegel  |  8/10
Feb. 13 - Casino Jack and the United States Of Money (2010) directed by Alex Gibney | 6/10
Feb. 13/14 - Exit Through The Gift Shop (2010) directed by Banksy | 8/10
Feb. 15 - Wild Strawberries (1957) directed by Ingmar Bergman | 10/10
Feb. 18 - Wild & Wonderful Whites of West Virginia (2009) directed by Julian Nitzberg | 5/10
Feb. 18 - Breaker Morant (1980) directed by Bruce Beresford | 10/10
Feb. 19 - The King's Speech (2010) directed by Tom Hooper | 7/10
Feb. 20 - Au Revoir Les Enfants (1987) directed by Louis Malle | 8/10
Feb. 20 - Vive Le Tour (1962) directed by Louis Malle | 7/10
Feb. 20 - Night And Fog (1956) directed by Alain Resnais | 9/10 
Feb. 20 - The Social Network (2010) directed by David Fincher | 7/10
Feb. 21 - The Law directed by Jules Dassin | 7/10
Feb. 21 - The Red Balloon (1956) directed by Albert Lamorisse | 9/10 
Feb. 21 - All That Heaven Will Allow (1955) directed by Douglas Sirk | 4/10
Feb. 21/22 - Homicide (1991) directed by David Mamet | 7/10 
Feb. 22 - Winter's Bone (2010) directed by Debra Granik | 8/10
Feb. 26 - The Man With The Movie Camera (1929) directed by Dziga Vertov | 7/10
Feb. 26 - Client 9: The Rise and Fall of Eliot Spitzer (2010) directed by Alex Gibney | 5/10

MARCH
Mar. 1/2 - Classe tous risques (1960) directed by Claude Sautet | 6/10
Mar. 4/5 - Le Doulos (1962) directed by Jean-Pierre Melville | 7/10
Mar. 5 - Star Wars: Episode IV A New Hope (1977) directed by George Lucas | 8/10
Mar. 6 - Stagecoach (1939) directed by John Ford | 8/10
Mar. 7 - Capturing Reality: The Art Of Documentary (2009) directed by Pepita Ferrari | 7/10
Mar. 7/8 - The Young Savages (1961) directed by John Frankenheimer | 4/10
Mar. 8/9 - Paradise Now (2005) directed by Hanny Abu-Assad | 8/10
Mar. 12 - Millions (2004) directed by Danny Boyle | 6/0
Mar. 13/15/17/20 - Triplets Of Belleville (2003) directed by Sylvain Chomet | 7/10
Mar. 20/21 - The Death Of A Cyclist (1955) directed by Juan Antonio Bardem | 8/10
Mar. 25 - In The Mood For Love (2000) directed by Wong Kar-Wai | 9/10
Mar. 27/31 - The Birds (1963) directed by Alfred Hitchcock | 6/10

APRIL
Apr. 2 - God's Country (1985) directed by Louis Malle | 8/10
Apr. 3 - Brute Force (1947) directed by Burt Lancaster | 6/10
Apr. 5 - The Ascent (1976) directed by Larisa Shepitko | 7/10
Apr. 5 - Zak and Miri Make A Porno (2008) directed by Kevin Smith | 6/10
Apr. 8 - Back To The Future (1985) directed by Robert Zemeckis | 7/10
Apr. 11/12 - Touchez pas au grisbi (1954) directed by Jacques Becker | 6/10
Apr. 13/14 - The Hit (1984) directed by Stephen Frears | 8/10
Apr. 16 - The Pixar Story (2008) directed by Leslie Iwerks | 6/10
Apr. 17 - Diary Of A Wimpy Kid: Roderick Rules (2011) directed by David Bowers | 2/10
Apr. 30 - Frankenstein (1931) directed by James Whale | 9/10
Apr. 30 - Never Cry Wolf (1983) directed by Carroll Ballard | 8/10

MAY

May 7 - Easy A (2010) directed by Will Gluck | 7/10

May 10 - Baseball: Inning One (1994) directed by Ken Burns | 8/10

May 10 - Baseball: Inning Two (1994) directed by Ken Burns | 9/10

May 10 - Baseball: Inning Three (1994) directed by Ken Burns | 9/10

May 11 - Baseball: Inning Four (1994) directed by Ken Burns | 10/10

May 12 - Baseball: Inning Five (1994) directed by Ken Burns | 8/10

May 14 - Baseball: Inning Six (1994) directed by Ken Burns | 9/10