Żuławski's L'amour braque from Mondo Vision, Almodóvar and Other DVD Updates

Mondo Vision has announced the third of their nine Andrzej Żuławski releases, L'amour braque, for 15 October. Like La femme publique and L'important c'est d'aimer before it, there will be two versions to choose from: a standard edition and a limited Premium Signature edition. The film marked Żuławski's first collaboration with his then-muse Sophie Marceau, who would star in all of the rest of his French productions before they separated in 2001 after La fidélité. Francis Huster and Tchéky Karyo also star.

I've been told that Sony will be releasing all, or most, of the films from their ¡Viva Pedro! box set, released at the beginning of 2007. Law of Desire and Matador will become available individually for the first time in the US, and the remastered versions of both All About My Mother and Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown will be back in circulation. I would imagine the same for Bad Education, Talk to Her and The Flower of My Secret, but unlike the other two, they were just repackaged into the set. All will/might(?) be out 3 November, just in time for Broken Embraces.

Some date changes: Water Bearer has moved the release of OMG/HaHaHa to 12 October and announced Philippe Vallois' We Were One Man [Nous étions un seul homme] for the same day. TLA has pushed their release of Shank from October to 8 December. And finally, Cinema Guild moved Jerichow's release date to 27 October.

The only Blu-ray release I came across that was of any interest was Kathryn Bigelow's Near Dark from Lionsgate on 10 November. Expect that awful Twilight-looking cover art as well. The rest of the DVD announcements are below, in descending order of release.

- A Lady of Chance, 1928, d. Robert Z. Leonard, Warner Archive, 18 August, w. Norma Shearer
- Speedway, 1929, d. Harry Beaymont, Warner Archive, 18 August
- Shopping for Fangs, 1997, d. Quentin Lee, Justin Lin, Pathfinder, 6 October, w. John Cho
- West 32nd, 2007, d. Michael Kang, Pathfinder, 13 October, w. John Cho
- Carnal Uptopia [Sonhos e Desejos/O Balé da Utopia], 2006, d. Marcelo Santiago, Pathfinder, 20 October
- The Heartbreak Yakuza, 1987, d. Masato Harada, Cinema Epoch, 10 November
- Holes in My Shoes, 2006, d. David Wachs, Alive Mind, 10 November
- Hurt, 2009, d. Barbara Stepansky, Monterey, 10 November, w. Melora Walters, William Mapother
- The Merry Gentlemen, 2008, d. Michael Keaton, The Weinstein Company, 10 November, w. Michael Keaton, Kelly Macdonald
- Tora-San, Volume 1: Films 1-4, d. Yoji Yamada, Azuma Morisaki, Shun-ichi Kobayashi, AnimEigo, 10 November
- Rome, The Complete Series, 2005-2007, HBO, also on Blu-ray, 17 November
- Toi et moi, 2006, d. Julie Lopes-Curval, Koch Lorber, 24 November, w. Marion Cotillard, Julie Depardieu, Jonathan Zaccaï

L'important c'est d'aimer in June

Mondo Vision announced L'important c'est d'aimer as the next of their Andrzej Żuławski titles to be released on DVD in the US. Like La femme publique, it will be available in standard and limited signature editions on 16 June. The film stars Romy Schneider (in what she considered her best role), Klaus Kinski and Jacques Dutronc, and it comes highly recommended.

Good news for Żuławski fans

The studio Mondo Vision looks to follow up their release of Andrzej Żuławski's La femme publique, which they released in limited and standard releases last November, with a number of the director's other films. They had already acquired L'important c'est d'aimer, with Romy Schneider, and L'amour braque, with Sophie Marceau, but they've added six more of Żuławski's films to their roster (unfortunately his last film La fidélité is not one of them). They are La note bleue [The Blue Note], Diabeł [The Devil], Possession, Trzecia część nocy [The Third Part of the Night], Szamanka [Shaman Woman] and Na srebrnym globie [The Silver Globe]. Facets previously released disappointing editions of The Devil and The Silve Globe (with the title Under the Silver Globe), so pristine transfers are something to definitely look forward to. This would also explain why Blue Underground canceled their re-release of Possession last year. As soon as any of these are announced for purchase, I'll be sure to let you know.

Mondo Vision?

A studio I've never heard of, Mondo Vision, has announced a 2-disc set for Andrzej Żuławski's La femme publique, starring Valérie Kaprisky, Lambert Wilson and Patrick Bauchau, for 30 September. Mondo Vision also owns the rights to two other Żuławski films: L'amour braque, with Sophie Marceau and Tchéky Karyo, and L'important c'est d'aimer, with Romy Schneider and Klaus Kinski. I will let you know when those two are announced. Stay tuned!