Radiance Films General Discussion & Wishlist

[FrauBlucher]

@filmsRadiance

Fran Simeoni
Today is my last day @ArrowFilmsVideo
After twelve amazing years I've decided to move on and try my own thing. It's been a hell of a journey that I've been privileged to be a part of, made some amazing friends and had incredible experiences.
I'm so proud of all I've achieved and leave behind a great team who will continue to do brilliant work. I couldn't believe it then and can't now. I got to work on some of my most cherished films and made real discoveries along the way too.
Too many amazing titles to name Dassin, Boro, Bavas, Miikes, Taviani, Night of the Hunter, Rosi, Petri, Sullivan's Travels, Rivette, Ludwig, Thief, noirs, Olmi, Cronenberg, Carpenter, Kieslowski, Jodo, De Palma, Ring, Ferrara, Park, Human Condition, Imamura, Fukasaku on and on...
Arrow will continue to release amazing films but hope you'll check in on my future endeavours @filmsradiance where I'll be focused on BD releases of more favourites and discoveries, with a slightly different bent to Arrow. It's empty now but I'll be adding things as they get done

[Finch]

Would be most welcome if Radiance Films took care of all the Hideo Gosha films (for the UK market at least) that Criterion have been sitting on for years. That's the most pressing rescue job that comes to mind right now.

A UK Blu-Ray of Midnight with Claudette Colbert if no one else has it, ditto Trouble in Paradise

A Blu-Ray of the 1919 version of J'Accuse

Blu-Rays of Hiroshi Shimizu's films (daren't hope for some Naruse after the dreadful uptake on the MoC/BFI sets)

Raul Ruiz, especially City of Pirates

[vsski]

Like many here I loved the Arrow Academy line so I have high hopes for the label.
I second everything Finch is listing here and would love to also see more Glauber Rocha and Lav Diaz and some more Kobayashi, Kinoshita and Honda, but available elements and restorations are likely a problem not to speak of commercial viability.

[Glowingwabbit]

I would temper expectations until we actually get some titles announced to know what the direction will be. They just hired Kat Ellinger to produce titles so one would hope that is to focus on her strength when it comes to European erotica/sleaze/horror.

[MichaelB]

Lots of people are recommending titles on Blu-ray.com, with some excellent suggestions - but inevitably some, like early Paul Verhoeven films, whose unavailability famously has nothing to do with UK labels not wishing to acquire them.

[Kauno]

Lots of people are recommending titles on Blu-ray.com, with some excellent suggestions - but inevitably some, like early Paul Verhoeven films, whose unavailability famously has nothing to do with UK labels not wishing to acquire them.

For what reason is Spetters a different case?

[dwk]

That film is owned by MGM.

[swo17]

Raul Ruiz, especially City of Pirates

Real talk: What are the barriers to releasing much of his '80s work? City of Pirates is essential but at least has an English-friendly DVD you can import. What about all these others that are completely MIA?

On Top of the Whale
Manoël on the Island of Marvels
Mammame
Life Is a Dream
The Blind Owl

If there were a Kickstarter for such a boxset, I would gladly contribute $1,000 to it

[MichaelB]

For what reason is Spetters a different case?

Out of Verhoeven's seven Dutch features, Spetters and Flesh + Blood weren't produced by Rob Houwer.

Not coincidentally, those are the two that are available on Blu-ray.

[Glowingwabbit]

Raul Ruiz, especially City of Pirates

Real talk: What are the barriers to releasing much of his '80s work? City of Pirates is essential but at least has an English-friendly DVD you can import. What about all these others that are completely MIA?

On Top of the Whale
Manoël on the Island of Marvels
Mammame
Life Is a Dream
The Blind Owl

If there were a Kickstarter for such a boxset, I would gladly contribute $1,000 to it

You're speaking my language Swo. I'd happily sell off half my collection for those films.

[beamish14]

Will this finally be the label that brings us Peter Greenaway’s The Baby of Macon? I’m still hoping we get an HD release of Static (1985) in my lifetime, too.

[beamish14]

Lots of people are recommending titles on Blu-ray.com, with some excellent suggestions - but inevitably some, like early Paul Verhoeven films, whose unavailability famously has nothing to do with UK labels not wishing to acquire them.

I hope that if those titles make it onto Blu-Ray that they will retain Verhoeven’s wonderful commentaries that he recorded for Anchor Bay

[Calvin]

Raul Ruiz, especially City of Pirates

Yes please. Also any/all Deville, Rozier, Muratova, Makhmalbaf, Mohammad-Ali Talebi, or Nils Malmros would be most welcome.

[therewillbeblus]

Raul Ruiz, especially City of Pirates

Real talk: What are the barriers to releasing much of his '80s work? City of Pirates is essential but at least has an English-friendly DVD you can import. What about all these others that are completely MIA?

On Top of the Whale
Manoël on the Island of Marvels
Mammame
Life Is a Dream
The Blind Owl

If there were a Kickstarter for such a boxset, I would gladly contribute $1,000 to it

These are all mostly great ideas, but even something like La Recta Provincia, one of Ruiz’ best, wouldn’t really need any restoration work- just subs. And while slightly less polished in the scans I’ve seen, Love Torn in a Dream is probably his best film that would need the least cleanup done. I’m all for prioritizing Manoël on the Island of Marvels though, and although I won’t get my hopes up (considering I believe only zedz is an equally vocal champion of it as one of Ruiz’ best), Treasure Island would be a holy grail resto job. I’ll stop being greedy and say the truth: that any Ruiz would be release of the year

[ryannichols7]

I would temper expectations until we actually get some titles announced to know what the direction will be. They just hired Kat Ellinger to produce titles so one would hope that is to focus on her strength when it comes to European erotica/sleaze/horror.

the thing with Kat that I love though is how eclectic she really is. she has no problem showing up for Chabrol, The Creamator, Morocco, Jancsó, Hitchcock, and countless others that kinda go beyond the genres you named. she's a perfect companion to Fran on this sort of endeavor as both usually play to a wide range of films very well...much like Arrow used to be.

[dadaistnun]

I imagine any Ruiz-heads here are already well aware, but Cinémathèque française has La Recta Provincia plus 2K restorations of Berenice, On Top of the Whale, Three Sad Tigers, and Dialogue of Exiles available for streaming on their site, and Mubi has Three Crowns of the Sailor.

I know there was a two part Ruiz series in New York not that long ago (around the time of Mysteries of Lisbon?), but nothing compared to this one at Cinémathèque in 2016, proof that prints of some of these films actually still exist in some form (All the Clouds Are Clocks?!).

[swo17]

Muratova

Hear hear. I feel ashamed for not having banged this drum in a while

[What A Disgrace]

Realistically speaking, they'll probably try to acquire more commercially saleable genre titles before (or in conjunction with) acquiring more obscure art house and classical fare. It's getting harder and harder to figure out what those actually are, of course, with Arrow and co. attacking those angles aggressively in the UK market. I could see them releasing some Spanish horror, though, which remains conspicuously unexplored in the UK. The work of Narciso Ibáñez Serrador, for example, and the many films of Paul Naschy. Perhaps some 70s US oddities like Blue Sunshine and Let's Scare Jessica to Death?

[domino harvey]

Has there been any announcement of any titles being released by this label? We should probably withhold listing every Director we want to see until we have a better idea of what market this label is going after, no?

EDIT As glowingwabbit already said!

[Glowingwabbit]

Has there been any announcement of any titles being released by this label? We should probably withhold listing every Director we want to see until we have a better idea of what market this label is going after, no?

EDIT As glowingwabbit already said!

And here I was about to list a 100 titles not on blu-ray that I really wanted.

[EddieLarkin]

I kind of get a Fun City mixed with Arrow Academy vibe from Fran's comment on Blu-ray.com:

I'd love to focus on deeper cuts, I've seen loads of amazing films but a lot were challenged for various reasons or just felt to be too off piste, or too commercially challenged. Now I feel I can take more risks I might consider them again...

[Calvin]

Radiance (I assume Fran?) will soo be popping in to chat with us here

[rapta]

I kind of get a Fun City mixed with Arrow Academy vibe from Fran's comment on Blu-ray.com:

I'd love to focus on deeper cuts, I've seen loads of amazing films but a lot were challenged for various reasons or just felt to be too off piste, or too commercially challenged. Now I feel I can take more risks I might consider them again...

No joke, that’s kinda what I’m hoping it’ll be like (maybe with an Indicator/Imprint style of new extras and attention to detail). Then again maybe I’m just describing my ideal label! As someone said on BR.com, hoping they can get Fidelity in Motion on the encodes…

Fran’s asking for lists of title recommendations by the way, so get your suggestions in! I listed some on BR.com that immediately came to mind but might think up a few more now I’ve seen others’ suggestions…

[EddieLarkin]

Kozintsev's Shakespeare adaptations (or any highly regarded Shakespeare adaptations for that matter, that have yet to make it to HD) would be my most wanted titles from any label. No idea about the rights or masters situation, Mr Bongo perhaps still have them tied up in the UK?

[Glowingwabbit]

It would be nice to see him dip his toes back into Iranian cinema specifically with more Mohsen Makhmalbaf (Calvin mentioned him already). I know the Arrow set didn't sell well but those weren't titles he's well known for so they kind of set themselves up to fail (even though the set is absolutely wonderful). Hell even the films by the rest of the Makhmalbaf family would be great.