Hello!

Just a quick blurb today for upcoming discs — Criterion’s December titles include a title that’s legend around my household. I got to see Wim Wenders’ three-movie, 4.5 hour recut of Until the End of the World back in 1996, in a special screening. It’s his ultimate Road Movie, ‘dance around the world.’ Warners distributed the hacked-down original 2.5 hour U.S. release and wouldn’t cooperate, Wenders only exhibited his marathon triple-bill expanded version here and there, now and then… in 2001 I caught it with my family at the Cinematheque, and talked as many friends as I could into seeing it with me.

My old article on the movie was one of the more popular DVD Savant pages back in the beginning, in 1998… the piece ended up as a big concept comparison between UTEOTW and Bertrand Tavernier’s La mort en direct.

The wise Wim Wenders never let go of the films he made. When UTEOTW has reverted to his control again, Wenders did a full remaster job. It screened once on TCM, but edited in one piece, without being serialized as three separate features. I have a feeling that that’s how it might be from now on, even though the intermission breaks made us feel like we were experiencing a new kind of New Wave Roadshow. This will be a special holiday — I even like Criterion’s cover art.

Also up from Criterion in December — the amazing pre-Code shocker The Story of Temple Drake, Kelly Reichardt’s Old Joy and Ronald Neame’s Tunes of Glory.

Thanks for reading! — Glenn Erickson