Criterion Crazy: December 2023 Releases
Written by Andreas Babiolakis
The holidays are just around the corner, and you’d expect that the Criterion Collection would have you covered. You’d be right, but also not quite in the way that one would think. Since November is one of the biggest months in Criterion’s calendrical year (because it houses one of two flash sales that the company has every twelve months), December has always been a more quite month for them: a little different than how most companies function. Then again, Criterion has so many magnificent films at this point that they can get by with their current catalogue alone through the holidays. With this in mind, we only have three (ish) releases for December 2023, but they’re all worth checking out (and one release is that of a previously out-of-print film that’s returning). Check out what’s coming in December to the Criterion Collection!
The Favourite: The Red Balloon and Other Stories: Five Films by Albert Lamorisse
Just a Criterion release of The Red Balloon — one of the greatest short films of all time — would have been sufficient enough. Here’s a boxset of five of Albert Lamorisse’s films with stunning box art and a slew of features, including an interview and documentary with Lamorisse’s son Pascal (who is the child that stars in his father’s film The Red Balloon). The other Lamorisse films included are White Mane, Bim, the Little Donkey, Stowaway in the Sky, and Circus Angel (one thing to keep in mind is that only The Red Balloon and White Mane are shorts: you’re essentially getting three feature-length films here as well). If you love whimsical filmmaking and the sense of being taken to a whole new world, you cannot miss this boxset at any cost.
Best Newer Release: Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio
It only just cleaned up during the latest awards season, but Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio still feels like a welcome inclusion here. The artistry and inventiveness of this film (and how Del Toro adapted the classic fairy tale in a new, dark way) is part of the equation; then there’s the auteur’s relationship with Criterion that has seen a number of his films being accessioned in years past. As the sole 4K release this month (this is reason enough to pick up the film: imagine stop motion with this resolution) and with the exceptional box art it has (not just on the outside, but the fold-out Pinocchio with his growing nose is brilliantly absurd), this release alone screams “perfect gift for the holidays” (even if it’s for yourself). Special features include a myriad of add-ons featuring Del Toro (who has always been a hands-on director when it comes to the magic of creating motion pictures and inviting audiences into the behind-the-scenes processes) including documentaries, interviews, and more. Should this version of Pinocchio go down as a classic, Criterion has everyone else beat with this sensational release ahead of the game.
Under-Seen Choice: Blast of Silence
Allen Baron’s neo-noir, indie classic, Blast of Silence, is back in the collection. To be honest, I didn’t really know it was there in the first place, and neither did many others, apparently. I’ve seen a few avid collectors with this film in their possession, and so I believe this was out of print for at least some time. It’s back now and only available on Blu-ray (and, from what I can tell, all of the features are the same as before, including production photos, a making-of video, and a graphic novel adaptation of the film by Sean Phillips which is quite awesome in its own right), but maybe this forgotten film’s re-admittance into the collection is reason enough to rejoice.
Andreas Babiolakis has a Masters degree in Film and Photography Preservation and Collections Management from Toronto Metropolitan University, as well as a Bachelors degree in Cinema Studies from York University. His favourite times of year are the Criterion Collection flash sales and the annual Toronto International Film Festival.