“What would I do without Letterboxd?” Despite having been very much alive in the pre-Letterboxd era, that question did cross my mind recently—and not just because I write here. Letterboxd is the only thing that’s ever compelled me to keep a consistent record of my film-watching habits, as the cemetery of half-filled notebooks I have stashed away somewhere can attest. But meeting a Letterboxd member who prints out paper copies of his top ten every year to make a zine—hello, Matthew—got me thinking about offline equivalents.

An informal poll on the social-media platform formerly known as Twitter revealed that there are film fans out there who have been keeping spreadsheets since the late ’90s, organized by genre, star rating and theatrical vs. home viewing. There are people who lovingly paste ticket stubs into scrapbooks—digital tickets are, obviously, unpopular with this crowd—and who print lists of movies to keep in their wallets. Then there are the bullet journalers, and the Notes appers. A few chaotic souls keep records on sheets of loose-leaf paper, or through elaborate Post-it note systems.

Many of them also have Letterboxd s, and all are doing personal archival work in their own ways. The nerdier, the better, I say.

Rolling Thunder

Available on 4K Blu-ray April 23 from Shout! Factory.

Rolling Thunder is being upgraded to 4K this April by Shout! Factory, which also released it on regular old Blu-ray a few years back. The set goes for US$39.98 retail, significantly less than the $2,550 in silver dollars—“one for every day you were in Hanoi’s hell hole!”—Devane’s character is awarded in the film. (I’ll save you the click: that’s $13,058 in 2024 money.)

I Am Cuba

Available on 4K UHD Blu-ray April 23 from The Criterion Collection.

On the opposite end of the war-movie spectrum is I Am Cuba, a film that suggests ing a war—or, in this case, a revolution—is not only good for you but it will fill you with a sense of pride and belonging like nothing you’ve ever experienced. Of course, this 1964 Soviet/Cuban co-production is technically a propaganda film, so some flattening of the issues is to be expected. The movie flopped with the public in both Cuba and the Soviet Union, and was nearly lost as a result. Still, it’s so well made that nothing could keep it down.

Every shot in I Am Cuba would be the best shot of another, lesser film, and the actual best shots in the movie are jaw-dropping. There is no such thing as a throwaway in director Mikhail Kalatozov’s approach to filmmaking: even minor moments—a shot to establish that someone walked across a room, say—are filmed at impossibly beautiful angles, with thoughtful composition and wide-angle photography that would make Orson Welles cry. American Cinematographer published an article a few years back explaining how some of these seemingly unattainable images—the camera floating above a funeral procession, ing through walls at a dance club—were captured. And the ingenuity (and agility!) involved is astonishing.

Since the style is the substance of our discussion of this film—although you can engage in political debate in the comments of reibureibu’s review, if you like—I’ll let you look up the content of each of its four segments on your own, and concentrate on Letterboxd member responses. “We’re losing our sh–t for CGI long takes when this movie exists?” Jake asks. Jamie says it’s “simply put, one of the most powerful pieces of cinema that has ever been crafted,” which “has to be seen in order to be believed,” according to Dirk Diggler (speaking of movies with tracking shots through parties…). Stephen adds that “to love film is to love Soy Cuba.”

Kalatozov and his comrades have very much earned their place in The Criterion Collection, where I Am Cuba bows in 4K UHD/Blu-ray this month.

Nostalgia

Available on 4K UHD Blu-ray April 23 from Kino Lorber.

But you, dear Letterboxd column reader, are more curious and open-minded. You can appreciate the ephemeral ache of the characters’ longing for a place and time that never existed except in their own minds. You find perfectly centered long shots slowly pulling back to reveal exquisitely composed tableaus thrilling. Barring all that, you can appreciate the colors. My god, the colors! Shades of watery green and gray have never looked more exquisite—in a gloomy kind of way, of course.

Much of Nostalgia takes place at a crumbling Italian hot spring, where Russian poet Andrei (Oleg Yankovskiy) is attempting to find inspiration for his biography of an eighteenth-century composer who died by suicide after a stay at the same resort. Tarkovsky films the resort in a neutral monochrome palette that makes any variation—skin tones, mossy stones, the warm flame of a single candle—pop. It all builds, slowly, to what Andre calls “easily one of the greatest shots… in cinematic history.”

It’s a vibe, in short. And though the story and symbolism can be cryptic, the emotions attached to them come through loud and clear. “Tarkovsky’s images are grand, emotional, and moving, both literally and metaphysically,” Brendan says. It’s a sentiment Yi Jan echoes, writing that “through Tarkovsky’s lenses, everything seems to have a higher, more personal meaning.” Wes gets even more abstract, saying, “the only way I think I could accurately get across how this made me feel is to record my dreams and play them out.” Marinate in it with Kino Lorber’s new 4K UHD edition.

Dogfight / True Love

Available on Blu-ray April 30 and 23 from The Criterion Collection and Kino Lorber, respectively.

After the success of True Love, Warner Bros. hired Savoca to direct a script by long-time TV writer Bob Comfort. The result was Dogfight, a film I feared would be hard to watch thanks to its premise—a group of off-duty Marines hold a contest to see who can bring the least attractive date to a party—but was actually as sweet and tender as could be. That’s in large part to Lili Taylor and River Phoenix’s “beautifully delicate and well-balanced performances” as our mismatched central couple. They make this, as Sydney describes it, “one of the few movies I’ve ever seen where the two leads seemed like real people who felt real love for each other.”

Credit must also go to Savoca, of course, for creating a safe, warm environment in which her actors could be truly vulnerable with one another, resulting in a film that Lizzy says is so “infused with love and care that it practically glows”. I found myself feeling very protective of these characters and invested in their fates, and I can’t wait to visit them again.

Kumiko, the Treasure Hunter

Re-release in theaters and on digital now from Bleecker Street.