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Turns out Criterion might not have California Split after all: http://www.bbfc.co.uk/releases/california-split-1974

Or they might do, but at least not for a while (Sony would have hung onto it if they had plans for Criterion, as they'd want to release it in both US/Canada and the UK). Either way I am ecstatic this went to a good home - it's possibly my favourite Altman!

Fingers crossed this is a December title, but if not then January or February will be nice too. I'm pre-ordering it immediately, either way!

If this came out in December, it would be a banner ending to a banner year for a banner label

So the runtime listed is 12 seconds shorter than the theatrical. I assume this will be still be trimmed because of the music?

domino harvey wrote: ↑

Mon Oct 08, 2018 1:00 pm

If this came out in December, it would be a banner ending to a banner year for a banner label

Someone on BR.com just pointed out that the BBFC listing says "RELEASE DATES 21/01/2019" so I'm guessing this is actually a January title after all. Still, good start to the year!

dwk wrote: ↑

Mon Oct 08, 2018 1:07 pm

So the runtime listed is 12 seconds shorter than the theatrical. I assume this will be still be trimmed because of the music?

I imagine that whatever Indicator releases will reflect the best materials they could assemble, so let's not start expecting the worst based on a twelve second reported discrepancy

Very excited for more Altman!

domino harvey wrote: ↑

Mon Oct 08, 2018 1:12 pm

dwk wrote: ↑

Mon Oct 08, 2018 1:07 pm

So the runtime listed is 12 seconds shorter than the theatrical. I assume this will be still be trimmed because of the music?

I imagine that whatever Indicator releases will reflect the best materials they could assemble, so let's not start expecting the worst based on a twelve second reported discrepancy

I had forgotten how extensive the DVD cuts were, but the BBFC's runtimes are (or should be) correct, so something is still missing. But it is a vast improvement over the previous release.

Twelve seconds reported difference could easily be explained several different ways and does not necessarily indicate missing footage

The run time is the same as on IMDB, 108 minutes. The Sony DVD, which was very decent considering the music cuts, is 105 minutes.

domino harvey wrote: ↑

Mon Oct 08, 2018 1:37 pm

Twelve seconds reported difference could easily be explained several different ways and does not necessarily indicate missing footage

In my experience, a twelve-second discrepancy is often down to something as banal as a missing distributor ident, or one playing at a different length.

In fact, this is why Arrow missed the fact that Shivers was initially cut, because the running times of their first master and the uncut version matched far more closely than they should have done, and with the exception of just one scene the cuts were so tiny (mere frames in a couple of cases) as to be easily missed except by Cronenberg obsessives. The cause for the closer-than-expected timing similarities turned out to be a double-length animated Lionsgate ident.

And if California Split was shown to the BBFC in 1975 with a Columbia Pictures ident AND a local Columbia-Warner one, as the listing certainly implies... well, that's most likely your answer.

MichaelB wrote: ↑

Mon Oct 08, 2018 2:35 pm

And if California Split was shown to the BBFC in 1975 with a Columbia Pictures ident AND a local Columbia-Warner one, as the listing certainly implies... well, that's most likely your answer.

Sounds good.

Caught this in 35 tonight. Can confirm the color timing on the DVD in the Beaver review is directionally accurate. Many scenes have a strong golden hue which are related to backgrounds/lighting. The film was 108 minutes.

And what a great film! Really quite laugh out loud funny which gets serious in a way you really don't see coming. Elliot Gould is absolutely amazing, even better than he is in Long Goodbye. The primary relationships between Gould/Segal and Gould's roommates is really sweet. Thematically it has a lot going on, and a lot to say about friendship. In its own warped way it's like a road-trip movie, with actual road trips, but also two figures coming into each other's lives. I really enjoyed it a great deal.

Lastly, if the scenes with the woman playing piano at the end are primarily what seems to be cut on the DVD, that's a big shame. It may be small but her presence in the film definitely sticks out and generates a few good laughs. Wouldn't want to be without it. There is cross--cutting with her playing on camera, and her songs being played in the background back at a card table so I imagine it must be weird without it.

The cover for this was teased in a recent Indicator promo, so it's presumably on deck soon

Awesome.

Yeah it was a flyer that came with this month's titles. I assume it's going to be the four July titles, unless something comes up that month (personally I'd only go for California Split and Birdy this month, as I'm not sure about the other two).

If I had to hazard a guess, I'd say that Husbands and California Split are the long awaited spines 46 and 47. They fit with the "big name auteur" theme of spines 48 (Night of the Demon) and 49 (Passenger), and Indicator's spines do occasionally have a sequential theme going for them, or so I think.

What A Disgrace wrote: ↑

Sun Apr 14, 2019 10:58 am

If I had to hazard a guess, I'd say that Husbands and California Split are the long awaited spines 46 and 47. They fit with the "big name auteur" theme of spines 48 (Night of the Demon) and 49 (Passenger), and Indicator's spines do occasionally have a sequential theme going for them, or so I think.

True, Husbands would be excellent. It could just as easily be Gloria though, another Cassavetes title over at Columbia, of which the TT release had no extras. I guess we'll find out in due time!

I asked John at Indicator whether the July titles were set in stone yet and he said they weren't, so there's still a possibility both 46 and 47 could be announced in a couple of weeks. Might be more complicated than that, though (masters, extras etc).

What A Disgrace wrote: ↑

Sun Apr 14, 2019 10:58 am

If I had to hazard a guess, I'd say that Husbands and California Split are the long awaited spines 46 and 47. They fit with the "big name auteur" theme of spines 48 (Night of the Demon) and 49 (Passenger), and Indicator's spines do occasionally have a sequential theme going for them, or so I think.

Is there a chance that Cassavetes' HUSBANDS is going to come to Indicator? If so I hope they get the BBC making of...and also about 15 years ago at the BFI they played the extended version of Husbands which ran about 154mins. They started the first reel and about 8 minutes in a guy ran on stage to announce that they had been given the UCLA full restored version that had only played at the NY film festival when it came out in 1970. It would be great to get the theatrical and an extended cut.

I wouldn’t hold your breath hoping for BBC-produced extras on a UK boutique label.

Or ITV-produced ones, come to that: they’ve become just as hard to deal with.

(Hence the lack of the South Bank Show on the making of Scum.)

Which is unfortunate. I think those archival TV clips on the BFI Alan Clarke set were some of the more interesting extras included.

Curious about why this is still unreleased I emailed Indicator and they replied stating that it is still due (hopefully early next year) and it is still undergoing restoration work.

charal wrote: ↑

Tue Dec 10, 2019 2:37 am

Curious about why this is still unreleased I emailed Indicator and they replied stating that it is still due (hopefully early next year) and it is still undergoing restoration work.

If the restoration turns out as great as Indicator's Birdy then it will be well worth the wait.

It’s a restoration job & not a remaster?

Very excited.

To tide you over until Indicator's release, this has popped up on Amazon Prime with the music reportedly intact.

Thanks for that. I don't know who wrote that review of the film,
but it's a good one.