For those with more than a couple bills really burning a hole in their pocket, and/or a really beloved arthouse aficionado with a birthday forthcoming, time is running out on a special preorder offer for the deluxe, 50-disc (you read that right) box set Essential Art House: 50 Years of Janus Films. Along with some of the greatest films by the greatest filmmakers of all time — from Bergman to Kurosawa to Hitchcock — Essential Art House
comes with a lavishly illustrated, 240-page hardcover book, which tells the story
of Janus Films through an essay by film historian Peter Cowie, a
tribute from Martin Scorsese and extensive notes on all 50 included movies. The set streets October 24, but pre-orders get a $200 discount on the $850 retail price tag, as well as two complimentary Criterion T-shirts or
hats, free shipping and an entry into a raffle to win 25 free
Criterion DVDs. For more information, visit the Janus Films web site.