Ben Cheshire wrote:For those starved for more after this box, are there any go-to works to try next?
The most obvious choice would probably be to pick up Husbands (Which I have not yet seen but is under the Christmas tree). As it stands, I believe the best available DVD is the new Sony release which has a commentary and a tribute to Cassvetes.
It certainly doesn't entice everybody, but I am quite a supporter of his stuido made
A Child is Waiting. There's a fairly nice DVD (barebones though it is) available from Optimum in the Uk which you can pick up on Amazon for usually under £5. It was a pretty unhappy experience for Cassavetes, and he was removed from the film during the editing stage due to conflicts (I believe) with the producer(s), but despite it's constraints (particularly with the uncharacteristically controlled camera), it still carries a filtered verité you would associate with his independant work in regard to many of the classroom scenes, and features a few familiar faces from his later works (namely John Marley and Gena Rowlands). It may be Cassavetes-lite, but I still found it quite a commanding piece and certainly worth the time to see if you enjoy his work.
You may also want to delve into his 1980 film
Gloria. It feels a little more clumsy than his earlier more free-spirited work, but it has a lot of charm, many beautifully handled scenes and a fine performance from Gena Rowlands. It reminded me alot of Paul Morrisey's later work, particularly
Mixed Blood which also lost the free-spirit that flowed through
Flesh and
Trash, but made up for in the excellent performances and assured direction.
If you enjoyed the box set, you may wish to try
Mikey and Nicky by Elaine May which has a pretty nice release from HVE, and a few very funny stories about Cassavete's in the interviews.
EDIT: I would also highly recommend
The Films of Morris Engel collection from Kino. Absolutely beautiful filmmaking, and an independant [pre-Cassavetes] maverick.