Living Deadpan

In that case, go to Ebay and try bidding on Salo or The Killer.

Living Deadpan

Nick, you beat me to my point in just one minute! And I have to admit you did a better job.

Is Salo still used as a reference point in Ebay Criterion lore?

Sean O'Hara

A few months ago someone found a used copy at FYE. They had it marked at $280.

Nick Danger

Looking through the completed auctions on Ebay, it looks like Criterion DVDs tend to go for about $18 - $25 shipped. The OOP ones go for more. Multiple title auctions are going for about $10 - $15 per title. Royal Tennenbaums goes for $8.

Peep

Why worry about the value of a complete collection. Nobody is going to buy a complete one from you, unless they're looking for a few key titles and planning on dumping the rest. And, in that case, they're looking to get the collection from you at a discount. Otherwise, you've just going to end up selling it off a bit at a time.

I would value the collection at significantly less the the sum of each individual title. Clearly it won't be more than that as most of the titles can be had cheaply if one is patient.

alfonsosoriano

Your first born child.

toddly6666

Why are Criterion DVDs still so damn expensive? Their pricing is like the trend of the early days of DVDs. Why do they think they are so special for their remastering and having extras - that's what all dvds have.

eedoon

This thread might be a good read for you:
http://forum.dvdtalk.com/showthread.php?t=504871

DeadMADMAN

You forgot to adjust for inflation.

toddly6666

I still don't understand why Criterion are so expensive - there are other companies that distribute rare non-hollywood flicks - Image, Blue Underground, New Yorker, Anchor Bay - and their DVDs are remastered, full of extras (well, not all the time), and are cheap. Are the rights of a Criterion DVD still more expensive to get then the rights gained from the above listed companies?

Drop

Criterions really aren't expensive. They do, on average, cost more than the average DVD, but they usually are quite reasonable. Criterion often puts in thick and valuable booklets, sometimes even the original novel. That certainly adds to the cost, and something I've never seen those other smaller DVD companies do. Plus there's a guarantee with the criterion price, it's the best Region 1 release of a film at that time and they usually hold up very well.

I've always respected that criterion goes the extra length and all of their extras are usually gold, so I really see nothing to complain about, especially when you factor in deals and sales that frequently occur.

majorjoe23

They're expensive because they're niche DVDs that Criterion to pay a licensing fee to release.

Also, other DVDs are often cheap because stores sell them below cost as a loss-leader. Joe Six Pack looks at the Best Buy add every week and says "Four bucks for Spider-Man 2? I'm saving money!" and then spends $200 on other things at the store. That same buyer won't be interested in the works of Fellini and Truffaut no matter what the cost.

WEEDEDOUT

i think the prices are fine. the in print ones are like 26 online when they are on sale. i watch the shit out of all the special features and commentaries. i get much more bang for my buck.

iconoclasm

I am not a collector, so if i can rent a criterion off of bb.com or netflix.com i would do that, and then buy good movies that are cheap, that are worth watching more than once, that are usually used.

But I am cheap that way. I can definitely understand trying to buy blue ray on the cheap, it isnt really possible to rent those yet. that is a whole different thread

slop101

I would love to see this quote as a bullet-point on a sticker on one of their dvds.

Dr Mabuse

i think Criterion is the best thing that has ever happened to the world of the cinephile...

also, without them countless truly wonderful and classic films would not be available for viewing at all...

the restoration work they do is important for film history as well...

i see no problem with the prices... i look for sales like anybody...

but what other release of 'The Testament Of Dr Mabuse' were you going to watch?... was there another quality release of Visconti's 'The Leopard' available with the various versions?...

they do important work on important films... for people that care about that sort of thing, that sort of film...

tylergfoster

A lot of Criterion DVDs I see in stores are in the $39.99 range and they need to drop their MSRP so they'll come down to the $29.99 range (or even $34.99 range would be a start). Some are just plain overpriced (why does the one-disc Rushmore cost the same as the 2-disc 8 1/2?), but other than that I don't see the big deal.

chris_sc77

^if it has commentary its gonna be $40. Thats just a criterion rule. There are a few times that this rule does not apply (Royal Tenenbaums, LIfe Aquatic, Chasing Amy, Hoop Dreams) but most of the time if it has commentary its $40.

mr. b_dvd

I just recently added 2 Criterion titles to my collection, for a grand total of 3. Thanks to these boards, I got my two newest ones for $5-10, and I bought Chasing Amy a few years back when it was under $10. I have less than $30 invested in Criterions, but I don't see their prices going down, if anything they are going up, and the amount of content they are putting into them is increasing. I've seen them on the shelves since they first started coming out, and I never could bring myself to spend that much money on a single movie. I'm also not a huge fan of foreign film, so that helps. Now, I spend 25-40 easily on a movie, if I like it enough. I do remember wanting to get Traffic in Criterion, and I have yet to buy that movie in SD because I want the Criterion. I also held off on The Rock and Armegeddon for the same reason, and I picked up the Rock finally not too long ago.

If you can not look at the titles of these films, where these films are coming from, look at the amount of work and investment Criterion puts into each release, and see that the price is right in line with what they are selling, then you just won't get it. For some titles, they might make more revenue if they priced lower and it was a fairly popular movie, but they are not doing what they are doing just to release a movie and have the masses buy it all up. They are making a niche product for a niche group of people. Sure with some titles, there are going to be more people interested, but they have established themselves as a company that releases great movies from all over the world, and I don't see these "artsy fartsy" folks vanishing at all; if anything, thanks to Criterion, they are increasing in numbers. Hell, I've been tempted to buy some foreign films recently, and I would trust it more if it had Criterion written on top or that familar C on the cover. And that is from someone whose taste in foreign cinema goes only as far as martial arts films and some british releases.

Steve

they are expensive for one and one reason. Because people are willing to pay the high prices. That's it. There is nothing - nothing- inherently superior about Criterion releases compared to other Special Editions out there. I don't buy Criterions anymore- instead I wait (granted, sometime a long time) for other manufacturers to release the same movie with the same (and sometimes improved) PQ and supplements for a fraction of the cost. OOPs typically get released (eventually) by other companies. And the few that don't (e.g. Salo) I can live without. Yes, there are some interesting foreign films I would like, but I have no desire to spend that much money on a 'blind' buy. I suppose if there was a all time favorite film of mine that only Criterion has released, I may make an exception. I have in the past, but nowadays don't find that situation occurring that much.

Personally, I think they would do consumers a better service to make these foreign/occult films more accessible to people by having a more reasonable price. I doubt I am alone in not buying blind buys for this kind of money.

I see no rush to buy a movie now at inflated prices. Buying Criterions at $40 MSRP ($24-28 sale) is encouraging them to sell these at these prices. To me, this is paying high definition prices for a standard definition release.