'The Qatsi Trilogy' Announced and Detailed for Blu-ray

A boxed set containing Godfrey Reggio's film trilogy will arrive on Blu-ray in December.

In an early announcement to retailers, Criterion has slated 'The Qatsi Trilogy' for Blu-ray on December 11.

'Koyaanisqatsi' - Godfrey Reggio's 'Koyaanisqatsi' is an astonishing collage; the film shuttles the viewer from one jaw-dropping vision to the next, moving from images of untouched nature to others depicting human beings' increasing reliance on technology.

'Powaqqatsi' - Five years after Godfrey Reggio stunned audiences with 'Koyaanisqatsi,' he joined forces again with composer Philip Glass and other collaborators for a second chapter. Here, Reggio turns his sights on third world nations in the southern hemisphere.

'Naqoyqatsi' - With a variety of cinematic techniques, including slow motion, time-lapse, and computer-generated imagery, the film tells of a world that has completely transitioned from a natural environment to a human-made one.

The 3-disc Blu-ray set will feature 1080p video, DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 soundtrack, and supplements include: Essence of Life, an interview program with Reggio and composer Philip Glass on Koyaanisqatsi; New interview with cinematographer Ron Fricke about Koyaanisqatsi; Early forty-minute demo version of Koyaanisqatsi with a scratch soundtrack by Allen Ginsberg, along with a new introduction by Reggio; New interview with Reggio about Koyaanisqatsi's original visual concept, with behind-the-scenes footage; Impact of Progress, an interview program with Reggio and Glass on their collaboration; Inspiration and Ideas, an interview with Reggio about his greatest influences and teachers; Anima Mundi (1992), Reggio's twenty-eight-minute montage of images of over seventy animal species, scored by Glass; Video afterword by Reggio on the trilogy; The Making of "Naqoyqatsi," a brief documentary featuring interviews with the production crew; Panel discussion on Naqoyqatsi from 2003, with Reggio, Glass, editor Jon Kane, and music critic John Rockwell; Music of "Naqoyqatsi," an interview with Glass and cellist Yo-Yo Ma; Television spots and an interview with Reggio relating to his 1970s multimedia privacy campaign in New Mexico; Trailers ; and a booklet featuring essays on the trilogy by film scholar Scott MacDonald, Rockwell, and author and environmentalist Bill McKibben.

Suggested list price for the Blu-ray is $79.95.

You can find the latest specs for 'The Qatsi Trilogy' linked from our Blu-ray Release Schedule, where it's indexed under December 11.