Criterion going Blu in October

High-definition titles will have same price as standard-def DVD

By Laurence Lerman -- Video Business, 5/8/2008

MAY 8 | The Criterion Collection will issue titles from its prestigious library in the Blu-ray Disc format beginning in October.

Though no specific release dates have been scheduled yet, Criterion did state that the new editions will contain high-definition picture and audio for both the feature as well as the supplemental material included on each disc.

The Blu-ray discs will have the same price point as their standard-definition Criterion counterparts, which are priced between $29.95 and $39.95.

Titles slated to be issued in Blu-ray include Wes Anderson’s Bottle Rocket, Francois Truffaut’s The 400 Blows, Jean-Luc Godard’s Contempt, H.G. Clouzot’s The Wages of Fear, Bernardo Bertolucci’s The Last Emperor (both a box set edition and a stand-alone version) and a new edition of Nicolas Roeg’s Walkabout, featuring new supplements and a new transfer.

Image Entertainment, which has already released titles on Blu-ray, distributes Criterion product.