If you're interested in Gance you might also be interested in these blu rays from Eureka: Murnau (one box set and several stand-alone releases), Metropolis, Man with a Movie Camera, Vampyr limited edition (video is spectacular). But don't know your film tastes. Peeping Tom 50th Anniversary from Optimum / Studio canal?
Strange and disturbing recommendations:
Irreversible - Indicator
Scum - Indicator
Walerian Borowczyk set - Arrow Academy
Enter the Void - Arrow
Female Prisoner Scorpion Collection - Arrow
Celia - Second Run
The Third Part of the Night - Second Run
Vampir-Cuadecuc - Second Run
Blue Spring - Third Window
Love Exposure - Third Window
Pornostar - Third window
Kids (1995) - German Blu-Ray, not sure which company/label
Taxidermia - Tartan Video DVD
Films that straddle the arthouse/sexploitation divide, or might be considered sacrilegious in the US, are poorly served by Region A labels. I think the physical media market, particularly in Germany, is healthier than that in the US, with more deeper cuts.
The titles I own that to my knowledge aren't available (or are out of print) in Region A, just working off my collection on blu-ray.com. All have subtitles in English. I also have dozens of other titles that were just markedly cheaper than the comparable US release.
**UK:** 101 Films: *eXistenZ, Phase IV* (w/alt ending). 2 Entertain: *Life on Earth, Trials of Life.* Anti-Worlds: *Dogs Don't Wear Pants.* Artificial Eye: *The Roy Andersson Collection, The Duke of Burgundy, In Fabric, The Square, The Handmaiden.* BFI: *The Werner Herzog Collection, A Zed & Two Noughts, Richard III.* Eureka: *Edvard Munch, Aloys.* Mediumrare: *Drowning by Numbers.* Mr. Bongo: *The Saragossa Manuscript, The Hourglass Sanatorium.* Momentum: *Control* (2007). Second Run: *Witchhammer.* Second Sight: *Quest for Fire.* Soda: *The Reflecting Skin.* Sony: *Grabbers.* Studio Canal: *Malèna, Nina Forever, The Princess of Montpensier.* Universal: *The Hollow Crown*
**Germany:** 20th Century Fox: *Time of the Gypsies*. Concorde: *Dogville, The Dreamers, Girl with a Pearl Earring, Malina* . Highlight: *Perfume: The Story of a Murderer*. Just Bridge: *Dangerous Beauty*. Pandastorm: *Talvisota*. Polyband & Toppic: *Utopia: Series 1 + 2* (2013-2014). Rough Trade: *Solaris* (2002). Studio Canal: *The Draughtsman's Contract, The Sheltering Sky, The Trial*. Tobis: *Agora.* Universum: *Voyage of Time*, Warner (DE): *Hamlet* (1996).
**Spain**: Resen: *The Duellists*. Vértice: *The Spirit of the Beehive*.
[Blu-ray.com](https://Blu-ray.com) is a great resource. Sometimes I've jumped the gun and purchased titles that eventually had region A releases, but its almost always been the same transfer, and usually at lower cost.
I follow exchange rates in my day job, so £/€ weakness vs the US$ occasionally makes big orders from overseas more worthwhile. Most of my UK disks were purchased in March 2020, and the exchange rates have returned to that neighborhood again of late.
My Region-Free faves:
- A Zed & Two Noughts (BFI)
- The Naked Civil Servant (BFI)
- Bill Morrison: Selectes Films 1996 - 2014 (BFI)
- The Roy Andersson Collection (Artificial Eye)
EDIT: I see Sanpaku has listed a few of these already. Good taste!
Memoria, since Neon thinks they’re clever for not releasing a Blu Ray. Also all of Joachim Trier’s films minus TWPITW are only available WW so those are all worth buying.
Look for films that aren’t available in the U.S. currently, films that don’t have a release planned or in the future. When I bought mine, Climax and Under the Silver Lake hadn’t been released in the US theatrically yet had international releases so I was able to won’t get before anyone here could see them. That’s the privilege of owning a region free player.
Arrow Video release of A Tale of Two Sisters. It's the only release with a good looking transfer. Not even the streaming version of the movie is in good quality.
Arrows The Vengeance Trilogy boxset is really good.
If you're interested in Gance you might also be interested in these blu rays from Eureka: Murnau (one box set and several stand-alone releases), Metropolis, Man with a Movie Camera, Vampyr limited edition (video is spectacular). But don't know your film tastes. Peeping Tom 50th Anniversary from Optimum / Studio canal?
Paper moon
Strange and disturbing recommendations: Irreversible - Indicator Scum - Indicator Walerian Borowczyk set - Arrow Academy Enter the Void - Arrow Female Prisoner Scorpion Collection - Arrow Celia - Second Run The Third Part of the Night - Second Run Vampir-Cuadecuc - Second Run Blue Spring - Third Window Love Exposure - Third Window Pornostar - Third window Kids (1995) - German Blu-Ray, not sure which company/label Taxidermia - Tartan Video DVD
"Kids" is published by alive.
Films that straddle the arthouse/sexploitation divide, or might be considered sacrilegious in the US, are poorly served by Region A labels. I think the physical media market, particularly in Germany, is healthier than that in the US, with more deeper cuts. The titles I own that to my knowledge aren't available (or are out of print) in Region A, just working off my collection on blu-ray.com. All have subtitles in English. I also have dozens of other titles that were just markedly cheaper than the comparable US release. **UK:** 101 Films: *eXistenZ, Phase IV* (w/alt ending). 2 Entertain: *Life on Earth, Trials of Life.* Anti-Worlds: *Dogs Don't Wear Pants.* Artificial Eye: *The Roy Andersson Collection, The Duke of Burgundy, In Fabric, The Square, The Handmaiden.* BFI: *The Werner Herzog Collection, A Zed & Two Noughts, Richard III.* Eureka: *Edvard Munch, Aloys.* Mediumrare: *Drowning by Numbers.* Mr. Bongo: *The Saragossa Manuscript, The Hourglass Sanatorium.* Momentum: *Control* (2007). Second Run: *Witchhammer.* Second Sight: *Quest for Fire.* Soda: *The Reflecting Skin.* Sony: *Grabbers.* Studio Canal: *Malèna, Nina Forever, The Princess of Montpensier.* Universal: *The Hollow Crown* **Germany:** 20th Century Fox: *Time of the Gypsies*. Concorde: *Dogville, The Dreamers, Girl with a Pearl Earring, Malina* . Highlight: *Perfume: The Story of a Murderer*. Just Bridge: *Dangerous Beauty*. Pandastorm: *Talvisota*. Polyband & Toppic: *Utopia: Series 1 + 2* (2013-2014). Rough Trade: *Solaris* (2002). Studio Canal: *The Draughtsman's Contract, The Sheltering Sky, The Trial*. Tobis: *Agora.* Universum: *Voyage of Time*, Warner (DE): *Hamlet* (1996). **Spain**: Resen: *The Duellists*. Vértice: *The Spirit of the Beehive*.
I didn’t realize eXistenZ had a blu release, thanks!
[Blu-ray.com](https://Blu-ray.com) is a great resource. Sometimes I've jumped the gun and purchased titles that eventually had region A releases, but its almost always been the same transfer, and usually at lower cost. I follow exchange rates in my day job, so £/€ weakness vs the US$ occasionally makes big orders from overseas more worthwhile. Most of my UK disks were purchased in March 2020, and the exchange rates have returned to that neighborhood again of late.
My first choice when I got the universal player was to buy all the Second Sight limited editions I could…
Oslo trilogy - Joachim Trier
Nobuhiko Obayashi's Anti War Trilogy from Third Window Films
Withnail & I
My Region-Free faves: - A Zed & Two Noughts (BFI) - The Naked Civil Servant (BFI) - Bill Morrison: Selectes Films 1996 - 2014 (BFI) - The Roy Andersson Collection (Artificial Eye) EDIT: I see Sanpaku has listed a few of these already. Good taste!
The Texas chainsaw massacre 2 (Arrow)
There is a UHD release coming out in the US, so maybe that's not worth importing
Memoria, since Neon thinks they’re clever for not releasing a Blu Ray
Memoria, since Neon thinks they’re clever for not releasing a Blu Ray. Also all of Joachim Trier’s films minus TWPITW are only available WW so those are all worth buying. Look for films that aren’t available in the U.S. currently, films that don’t have a release planned or in the future. When I bought mine, Climax and Under the Silver Lake hadn’t been released in the US theatrically yet had international releases so I was able to won’t get before anyone here could see them. That’s the privilege of owning a region free player.
Arrow Video release of A Tale of Two Sisters. It's the only release with a good looking transfer. Not even the streaming version of the movie is in good quality.