West 11

An American housewife (Jennifer Jones) vacationing in Italy reluctantly decides to put an end to her brief affair with an Italian academic (Montgomery Clift). She flees to Rome’s Stazione Termini, where she bids him farewell, but he begs her to stay. The film’s plot is simple; its production was not. The troubled collaboration between director Vittorio De Sica and producer David O. Selznick resulted in two cuts of the same film. De Sica’s version, Terminal Station, was screened at a length of one-and-a-half hours, but after disappointing previews, Selznick severely re-edited it and changed the title to Indiscretion of an American Wife without De Sica’s permission. The Criterion Collection is proud to present both versions of this controversial release.

A flamboyantly blood-spattered samurai revenge picture with a twist: the implacable seeker of retribution is a slender female (Meiko Kaji) with a flawless ivory complexion and a dead-center killer stare. Born in prison, Snowblood is raised by a martial priest and trained to fulfill a single purpose: tracking down, and dismembering (or bisecting), the four cackling fiends who killed her father and persecuted her mother to an early grave. Adapted from another manga comic book written by Kasuo Koike, whose most famous work became the legendary Lone Wolf and Cub film series, this 1973 programmer stays close to its pulp-paper roots: images from the comics are deployed in a couple of montage sequences, and the story is divided into four chapters drawn from the monthly manga installments. Stalwart leading man Toshio Kurasawa plays a crusading journalist who writes a series of Japanese dime novels based on Snowblood's exploits, and manages to flush out a couple of the evildoers in the process.

In 1917 a 21 year old Buster Keaton walked on to a film set for the very first time and without a single retake made his screen debut in a comedy sketch in Arbuckle's 'The Butcher Boy'. This collection includes 13 of the 14 films that Arbuckle and Keaton made together (one remains lost) and all of the 19 independent shorts Buster made after getting his own studio in 1920. It charts Buster's early development as one of the greatest performers and directors in the history of film comedy.

In Mauritania, it's thought that half of the women get divorced at least once. In some predominantly Muslim countries divorce is discouraged and can be challenging for women to initiate. However, in this West African country steeped in Islamic heritage, local tribal traditions have normalised the practice of women ditching their husbands. Reporter Ayshah Tull meets the women who are beating any suggestion of stigma in the wake of divorce by throwing lavish parties to celebrate their new single status.

War threatens London as Miss Pettigrew, a destitute governess, filches a client's card from her agency and presents herself at the door. A singer named Delysia Lafosse wants a social secretary as she seeks a West

When his long-lost outlaw father returns, Tommy "White Knife" Stockburn goes on an adventure-filled journey across the Old West with his five brothers.

Recounts and analyses great lies that have changed the course of history. An illuminating examination of wide scale disinformation and cunning deceptions with serious geopolitical, historic and human consequences. Between an investigation and a forensic analysis. The biggest bluffs in our history.

Awarded three Emmys and hailed by Variety as "a rare moment in the symbiosis of the arts and broadcasting", Leonard Bernstein's?Young People's Concerts?left their mark on television history. Aired at prime-time on CBS from 1958 to 1972, 52 one-hour programs were written and hosted by Leonard Bernstein, "certainly the most influential American maestro of the 20th century" (The New York Times). With the New York Philharmonic and guest artists providing live music, these programs brought musical concepts and music history to life for generations of viewers.

Sixteen of these 18 cartoons have never previously been released on DVD. Most of these titles feature Porky Pig, and the rest star lesser known Warner Bros. cartoon characters.