Stanley Kubrick Visionary Filmmaker Collection [Blu-ray]

This DVD set is fantastic. As promised, a full collection, and truly awesome. It was everything I expected and ordered. Very satisifed. The "best of" Stanley Kubrick on blu-ray DVD. I"m excited to watch this fantastic collection of his works.

All these films look amazing and a great value for all these films. Sadly the botched version of The Shinning is in here making this pack not as great and Barry Lyndon, while a beautiful film, not really what Kubrick was known for, the only reason I can think this was part of it was that this was a UK release. That all said this is a great collection off Kubrick films especially for the quantity and quality of the films you get in this set.

How can you NOT watch the films of Stanley Kubrick in high definition? He gave so much care to cinematography, and his films are never just talking heads -- the visual component is always extraordinary and was always at the cutting edge. Take the fast lens he helped develop for the candlelight scenes in BARRY LYNDON, or the work he did on the Steadicam technology. This collection also seems to contain all the bonus material that each individual disk contains on its own. Nothing was sacrificed to make this a set. Although I'm not a technician, all the films look quite beautiful and sound fantastic. While I wouldn't call LOLITA a "later film," this collection starts with LOLITA, and then has 2001 and all the films he made after that (after 1968). And what a great price! The set also includes an extra disk, with STANLEY KUBRICK: A LIFE IN PICTURES, which is a long and super-complete documentary reviewing his life and his work. I think it's one of the best films made about a filmmaker that I've seen. To complete your Kubrick collection, in addition to this set, you should get the Criterion editions of SPARTACUS and THE KILLING. The later also includes his second feature, KILLER'S KISS, which I'm rather fond of -- made for cheap, it seems, but with great cinematography of New York, reminiscent of the photographs Kubrick took for LOOK Magazine during his career as a photographer. FEAR and DESIRE is available as a separate disk, and so is the other quintessential Kubrick film, DR. STRANGELOVE. I highly recommend this set as a good set of transfers and extra features, and at a very good price.

My review is for the 2011 Visionary Filmmaker Collection (8 Blu-Ray Set). I make specific note of that because sometimes Amazon groups reviews with alternate editions, and I don’t want to mislead the reader. This set is exquisite! It is by no means a complete Kubrick collection, but for the price (when I purchased it was $28.87) it is very worthwhile. Anyone who loves Kubrick doesn’t need a boring essay upon the greatness of the movies themselves…that is self-evident. My focus is to give you a few technical details and let you know what you’re buying if you invest in this box. Edition This is a European Import. The great news is that the discs are Region Free. I had no issues playing them on my American Blu-Ray players, and the disc art features cool Euro art and detail! Packaging There is nothing special really about the box. Each disc is pressed onto its own plastic insert. No booklets or nice additions, but the box is fairly sturdy. The Films Lolita (1962) – Ratio: 1.66.1 Widescreen. This is the original theatrical size. 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968) – 2.35.1 Cinerama Widescreen; the original size. This is the only film Kubrick ever made in the full Panavision format. Supposedly because he hated the cropped look that it received for television, and that’s where he assumed most people watched his movies. A Clockwork Orange (1971) – 1.66.1 Widescreen. This is the original theatrical size. Barry Lyndon (1975) – This 2011 Blu-Ray is at: 1.78.1. This is not the correct ratio. It should be at 1.66.1. You’ll have to get the Criterion Blu-Ray to get this one right. The Shining (1980) International Version – Ratio: 1.78.1. This is incorrect; The Shining was shown internationally at 1.66.1 and in America at 1.85.1. So far there is no release of either of these ratios. Even more irritating is that the Open Matte 1.33.1 version is on DVD, but not HI-DEF Blu-Ray. The Open Matte is very probably the version Kubrick preferred. Also…you’ll want to know that this is the International Cut which only runs two hours! That was fine with me because every other edition that I own is the American Cut which runs approximately forty-five minutes longer. Full Metal Jacket (1987) – 1.78.1 incorrect ratio. The original is 1.66.1. As far as I know, all the Blu-Rays of this are in 1.78.1. Eyes Wide Shut (1999) International Version – 1.78.1 incorrect ratio. Should be 1.66.1. All the Blu-Ray releases that I am aware of are this ratio. But this is however the superior 159 minute International Cut! It is far better, and has uncensored nude scenes. Much of the American print has fake computer-generated gimmickry rather than the actual real nude parts. Extra Features I do believe that all featurettes included are on previous releases. Disc 8 includes the doc ‘Stanley Kubrick: A Life In Pictures’, which first appeared on the 2001 DVD box set. My conclusion is that this is good set to buy, especially if you don’t own these films or all of them already. Obviously you’d want the longer version of The Shining to accompany this. As much as I love Kubrick’s works, I would buy practically anything that comes out! But I want you guys to have the facts before you invest the money. Thanks For Reading

My set of disks was delivered sooner than I expected and in excellent condition. The description says there are 8 disks. Isn't anyone curious to know what movies are included? I couldn't find a simple, all-inclusive list anywhere. Here is a list, for the benefit of other customers: Lolita 2001: A Space Odyssey A Clockwork Orange Barry Lyndon The Shining Full Metal Jacket Eyes Wide Shut That's seven movies. The last disk contains a biopic of Kubrick and a shorter one of Malcolm McDowell. In my opinion, the pictures and sound of the disks is first-rate, as one would expect of Blu-ray. There are many special features and each movie offers a remarkably large choice of spoken languages and subtitle languages. The price for all this is very reasonable, in my opinion. I noticed the criticisms of the cuts in "The Shining." All I can say is the cuts didn't bother me. Warner Brothers has used a bizarre method of labelling these disks, that I hope their competitors will not copy. When you look at one of these disks you will see a picture and some writing, most of it in foreign languages. What you will not see, until you put on your reading glasses and look very closely, is the name of the movie. The largest writing on the "Lolita" disk is typical: "No recomendada menores 13 anos." I think that means "Not recommended for children under 13 years old" in some Romance language. The picture is intended to evoke the movie. For example, a spaceship appears on the "2001" disk. Despite this annoyance I'd say this set of movies is a very good bargain.

Big fan of his fine work! All of his best films in blue ray did it justice when I lay my eyes on my T.V. The sounds were greatly clear and the picture beautiful as it was made to be. I enjoy the behind the scenes and documentary about the production of each film. Great collection to keep if your a fan of collection great masterpieces.

7 Kubrick films, the major work missing Dr. Strangelove and Sparticus. I can't really complain about the case because of the price. It's the "no frills" packaging, but still cheaper than all of the movies and the doc individually on bluray. I've been watching these films for years, and these blurays look better on my PS3 and 60"HDTV than any version I've seen before. Aspect ratios are correct, sounds great too. I wonder about the country of origin with this set, the WB website on the case is .uk, there's plenty of spanish, italian and german on the discs, as well as the EU rating systems. No big deal, all the discs play, and did I mention the price? And honestly, I prefer the blu plastic case as opposed to the paper "sleeves" in the more expensive US edition. If the plastic clip breaks, I can just put them in loose plastic sleeves, safe and sound, and cheap! 50th anniversary of Strangelove is 2014, special edition en route.

A lot of reviews complain about the absence of Dr Strangelove, but that's kind of stupid. It tells you what you're getting - if you want different movies, then buy different movies. The packaging is not exciting, but it's adequate. The Shining in this set is the edited version. The last six Kubrick films are the very best, and I've always liked Lolita more than Strangelove anyway. Blu-rays of that and Barry Lyndon alone make the price (about $27 at time of review) worth it. And it was about time I got BDs of the glorious 2001 and my favorite film, A Clockwork Orange. I wanted the Masterpiece collection, but that would mean paying upwards of $160. This box is a great value.