Criterion Channel Diary: March and April
By Austin Johnson
The past couple months have changed a massive chunk of people’s lives. We have to work together more than ever and be an attentive unit. A lot of people have stopped working, including myself. I have been quarantining at home and watching a massive amount of stuff. In the middle of March, when I officially stopped working, I signed up for the Criterion Channel. I don’t know how it took me so long to finally get with the program, but holy shit it has been an eye opening experience and so enjoyable to have access to so many wonderful films. I have a one year old daughter, so we use Disney Plus and Hulu a lot. I love cartoons and animated films so it works for everybody, but when she goes to bed, I like to fire up the Criterion Channel to watch something I’ve never seen before.
The first thing I did when I downloaded the app to our Roku was just scroll through the many categories and interesting titles. I was struck by this one category called, “Adventures in Moviegoing” where a director, writer, or actor chooses a few films from the Criterion Collection and then talks about them for a few minutes afterwards. I searched David Lynch and noticed that there are numerous shorts I’ve never had access to. I couldn’t believe how many foreign films were at my grasp. That was a month and a half ago and I still can’t believe that the Criterion Channel is real.
At the end of each month, I’m going to share the journey I took and how I chose the films I watched on the Criterion Channel. We will also have a review of each of these films up because I write them as I watch them. So, the rating I gave each film will be next to it. This first go around will include March and April because I didn’t officially watch a film on the service until March 20th. After this one it will be just each month and definitely vary in volume. Here’s the list of films I’ve watched on the Criterion Channel so far…
White Material (2009) - 9
Y Tu Mama Tambien (2001) - 10
Tomboy (2011) - 9
La Ciénaga (2001) - 9
Fat Girl (2001) - 7
Black Girl (1966) - 9
Water Lilies (2007) - 8
Girlhood (2014) - 10
The Daytrippers (1996) - 9
The Big Heat (1953) - 9
Kinetta (2005) - 7
A Man Escaped (1956) - 9
Dogtooth (2009) - 10
Delicatessen (1991) - 8
David Holzman’s Diary (1967) - 8
Near Dark (1987) - 8
The Fits (2015) - 10
House of Games (1987) - 9
Blind Alley (1939) - 8
Daddy Longlegs (2009) - 9
Three Days of the Condor (1975) - 9
Foxy Brown (1974) - 8
The Grifters (1990) - 8
Breathless (1960) - 8
A Woman is a Woman (1961) - 8
Vivre Sa Vie (1962) - 9
Hollywood Shuffle (1987) - 9
The Crimson Kimono (1959) - 8
Alps (2011) - 9
I mentioned earlier that I was struck by the “Adventures in Moviegoing” section of the app and that’s actually how I picked the first film I watched. Barry Jenkins is a writer/director that I have fallen in love with the past few years because of Moonlight and If Beale Street Could Talk. He has some picks under the AIM section, so I decided to start with his first pick, White Material from 2009 which was written and directed by the legendary Claire Denis from France and stars Isabelle Huppert, who has the second most César nominations of all time. They’re a French dream team and Huppert is unforgettable in White Material. I trusted Barry Jenkins after that pick so I went ahead and watched his second pick, Y Tu Mama Tambien. That’s one of my favorites that I’ve watched on the service so far. It was written by Alfonso Cuarón and his brother, Carlos. Alfonso directed and Emmanuel Lubezki was the cinematographer. Everything about the film is pretty much perfect, but it’s not for everyone. It’s not perfect in the way Toy Story is perfect, but it is if you’re up for psychological and sexual authenticity. It can be taken in many ways, but it is an undeniably beautiful film.
The last new film I got to see in theaters was Portrait of a Lady on Fire. I say new because Connor and I went to see Tommy Boy right before the theaters shut down. That’s really great because the third film I watched on Criterion was Tomboy, which was directed by Celine Sciamma who also directed Portrait of a Lady on Fire. The service put her first three films up so I just had to because Portrait is a fucking great film. After Tomboy, I knew the lady was no joke so I put the other two on hold.
I went back to Barry’s picks after Tomboy and watched La Ciénaga , which is the debut for Argentinian director, Lucrecia Martel. That’s a visually stunning film and I am open to seeing more of her work for sure. Barry has three other picks that I’ll watch at some point in the future, but I decided to pick a random film after La Ciénaga. I went to the “21st Century Cinema” section and picked a film called Fat Girl. It’s a French film written and directed by Catherine Breillat that sort of shook me. I think it’s the one I’m least likely to rewatch out of all these films, because it’s tough to digest due to its sexual content. I’m pretty open minded when it comes to what’s happening in films, but Fat Girl shows some pretty harrowing stuff. After that, I watched a film that just changes a word in that title. It’s called Black Girl from 1966 and it’s known as the first Sub-Saharan African film made by an African filmmaker to be recognized worldwide. It’s a very powerful film that I think is a must see.
I decided to check out Céline Sciamma's other two films next, so I watched her debut from 2008, Water Lilies and then Girlhood from 2014. Sciamma has become one of my favorite directors rapidly and Girlhood would probably be top pick if I had to choose a single favorite from the films I’ve watched so far. She uses a lot of female characters in her films and tells these brilliant stories from perspectives that we just don’t get enough of.
After finishing up Sciamma's filmography, I took a couple wild turns and watched The Daytrippers from 1996 and The Big Heat from 1953. Just a 43 year gap between the two. The Daytrippers is a unique comedy and The Big Heat is an intense piece of film noir. Both awesome films for very different reasons. After those two random picks, I decided to start watching the Yorgos Lanthimos collection which contains his first three films before he exploded in 2016 with The Lobster. I got to see The Lobster and The Favourite in theaters and then I watched The Killing of a Sacred Deer at home. Those are his more recent films and they all fucking rule. I was delighted to be able to go back and see the stuff that came before. I started with Kinetta from 2005 which is a complete mind bender. I didn’t quite grasp it and maybe that’s the point but it didn’t grab me like his newer stuff so I put the other two on hold.
I went back to the AIM section and checked out Paul Dano’s picks. The 50’s is a decade I don’t have much experience with and Dano has A Man Escaped from 1956 as one of his picks and my goodness does he have good taste. A Man Escaped is one of the best war films I’ve ever seen and the approach it takes is extremely unique. After that one, I went straight back to Lanthimos and watched Dogtooth from 2009. That’s another one of my favorite films that I’ve watched on the service. I had read and heard great things about it, but I wasn’t expecting the mind fuck that I got. I put Lanthimos's third film on hold because I wanted to savor it.
The Criterion Channel has a section for films leaving at the end of each month, so I figured it would be smart to check out some of those. I watched Delicatessen, which is an extremely off the wall dark comedy about a landlord who also works as a butcher in post-apocalyptic France. I enjoyed that one a lot and followed it up with something completely different called David Holzman’s Diary. That one was also under the “Leaving April 30th” section. It’s filmed like a documentary but it’s not. It’s a sort of film that I'm always looking out for. It’s aimless at times but always thought provoking because of the authenticity. I typically like that kind of formula and David Holzman’s Diary really commits to itself. I stayed in the “Leaving April 30th” section and chose Near Dark next. Near Dark is something I had heard of because I’m familiar with Kathryn Bigelow’s recent work like The Hurt Locker, Zero Dark Thirty, and Detroit. Near Dark was just the second film she directed and it is extremely 80’s. I enjoyed it a lot and I think it could be a great Filmgazm episode one day, due to its vampirical tone.
The Criterion Channel adds new content constantly and they put some stuff right at the top of the explore page. This colorful ad for The Fits grabbed my attention and I’m really glad it did because it is one of the coolest films that I’ve ever seen. The Fits follows an 11-year-old girl who struggles to fit in with a dance team. It’s Anna Rose Holmer’s debut and only film so far, but I’ll be first in line whenever she directs another one.
The next film I watched also came from the “Leaving April 30th” section. It’s this really intense gambling/conning film called House of Games from '87. I adore stories about people in that world, so I had a blast watching that one. After that, I stumbled upon a film from 1939 called Blind Alley. It was under the newly added section and I just haven’t seen very many 30’s films so I went for it. It’s the oldest one I’ve watched on Criterion so far, but it’s a pretty smart and gritty film. Fast forward 70 years to 2009 and that’s when the next film I watched came out. Daddy Longlegs is a film I had been wanting to see for a few years because the Safdie brothers blew me away in 2017 with Good Time and then followed that up with the high octane Uncut Gems this past December. The Criterion Channel added a Josh and Benny Safdie collection not too long ago that contains some shorts and their first two feature length films, The Pleasure of Being Robbed and Daddy Longlegs. Those guys have put together a really nice filmography and I honestly don’t know what to expect next.
The Criterion Channel also added this really cool collection of 13 films called “70’s Style Icons” that has some absolute classics. I decided to knock out a couple films that had already been on my radar. The first was Three Days of the Condor and the second was Foxy Brown. Robert Redford is a dude I need to go back and watch more of because he is captivating as hell in Three Days. I have seen a fair amount of films starring Pam Grier, but Foxy Brown just makes me want more of her stunning performances. She has been one of my favorite actresses ever since I saw Jackie Brown in high school. I’ll be checking out that section in the future for sure, but after those two I watched a 90’s film called The Grifters that contains three fucking perfect performances from John Cusack, Anjelica Huston, and Annette Benning. I’ve grown up watching all three of them in all kinds of random stuff, so it was cool to see them all doing their thing 30 years ago.
Jean-Luc Godard is one of those directors that you simply can’t escape if you're a cinephile. He’s been one of the most influential figures in film history for decades now and I finally got around to watching some of his films, because Criterion has a collection of over 20 films directed by him right now. I have been interested in French films in general lately, so I felt it was right to go back and start properly. I watched the first three films he directed in order from Breathless to A Woman Is a Woman to Vivre Sa Vie. All three of them showcase extreme skill from Godard, but Vivre Sa Vie is easily my favorite. It’s unique, well-acted, and heavy.
After introducing myself to Jean-Luc Godard’s work, I went for an 80’s cult classic called Hollywood Shuffle. Robert Townsend wrote, directed, and starred in the film as the main character. I won’t be forgetting Hollywood Shuffle anytime soon and it’s definitely a kind of film I want to share with all of my friends. This 50’s film called The Crimson Kimono caught my eye next. It’s a really cool film because it brings up themes that you don’t typically see from something in that era. The last film I watched on the service in April was a Yorgos Lanthimos film I had on hold for so long. It’s called Alps and it’s the last film before The Lobster, which was my introduction to Lanthimos's work altogether. Alps is extremely bizarre but you’re always in good hands visually with Lanthimos. If you like any of his recent films, then definitely check his old ones out because you can tell it’s his work right away and it will surely entertain you.
I was able to watch twenty-nine films that I’ve never seen before on the Criterion Channel. Like I said earlier, I’ve been watching a lot of family friendly content with my family through Hulu, Disney Plus, Netflix, etc. I signed up for Criterion to check stuff out in my own time and broaden my horizons. Of course, we were inhaling stuff because of the quarantine but that could change in the future. I may not be able to get to twenty nine new films on just this service every month, but I’m very grateful for the opportunity to see things I haven’t been able to before.
I clearly have some favorites out of those 29 films that I gave a 10, but what was really great is that I didn’t watch anything that was bad. Every single film had something to offer, but I’m always going to have my favorites. I’m also aware that what I personally connect with may not have the same impact on everybody else. I do think there are films that are just straight up awesome no matter what you like. I think you have to separate your own fandom sometimes when you’re recommending films to people. For example, my favorite director is Paul Thomas Anderson and my favorite film directed by him is Magnolia, but I’m totally aware that it probably isn’t his “best” film. Depending on how many films I’m able to get to each month, I’ll give my personal favorites and then I’ll give my recommendations. The amount of favorites and recommendations will vary just like the amount films I watch altogether will vary. This first time around I have five personal favorites and five recommendations for anyone that is looking for a really solid film.
Personals
5. Vivre Sa Vie
4. Dogtooth
3. The Fits
2. Y Tu Mama Tambien
1. Girlhood
Recommendations
5. House of Games
4. Three Days of the Condor
3. Hollywood Shuffle
2. A Man Escaped
1. Black Girl
The first thing I did when I downloaded the app to our Roku was just scroll through the many categories and interesting titles. I was struck by this one category called, “Adventures in Moviegoing” where a director, writer, or actor chooses a few films from the Criterion Collection and then talks about them for a few minutes afterwards. I searched David Lynch and noticed that there are numerous shorts I’ve never had access to. I couldn’t believe how many foreign films were at my grasp. That was a month and a half ago and I still can’t believe that the Criterion Channel is real.
At the end of each month, I’m going to share the journey I took and how I chose the films I watched on the Criterion Channel. We will also have a review of each of these films up because I write them as I watch them. So, the rating I gave each film will be next to it. This first go around will include March and April because I didn’t officially watch a film on the service until March 20th. After this one it will be just each month and definitely vary in volume. Here’s the list of films I’ve watched on the Criterion Channel so far…
White Material (2009) - 9
Y Tu Mama Tambien (2001) - 10
Tomboy (2011) - 9
La Ciénaga (2001) - 9
Fat Girl (2001) - 7
Black Girl (1966) - 9
Water Lilies (2007) - 8
Girlhood (2014) - 10
The Daytrippers (1996) - 9
The Big Heat (1953) - 9
Kinetta (2005) - 7
A Man Escaped (1956) - 9
Dogtooth (2009) - 10
Delicatessen (1991) - 8
David Holzman’s Diary (1967) - 8
Near Dark (1987) - 8
The Fits (2015) - 10
House of Games (1987) - 9
Blind Alley (1939) - 8
Daddy Longlegs (2009) - 9
Three Days of the Condor (1975) - 9
Foxy Brown (1974) - 8
The Grifters (1990) - 8
Breathless (1960) - 8
A Woman is a Woman (1961) - 8
Vivre Sa Vie (1962) - 9
Hollywood Shuffle (1987) - 9
The Crimson Kimono (1959) - 8
Alps (2011) - 9
I mentioned earlier that I was struck by the “Adventures in Moviegoing” section of the app and that’s actually how I picked the first film I watched. Barry Jenkins is a writer/director that I have fallen in love with the past few years because of Moonlight and If Beale Street Could Talk. He has some picks under the AIM section, so I decided to start with his first pick, White Material from 2009 which was written and directed by the legendary Claire Denis from France and stars Isabelle Huppert, who has the second most César nominations of all time. They’re a French dream team and Huppert is unforgettable in White Material. I trusted Barry Jenkins after that pick so I went ahead and watched his second pick, Y Tu Mama Tambien. That’s one of my favorites that I’ve watched on the service so far. It was written by Alfonso Cuarón and his brother, Carlos. Alfonso directed and Emmanuel Lubezki was the cinematographer. Everything about the film is pretty much perfect, but it’s not for everyone. It’s not perfect in the way Toy Story is perfect, but it is if you’re up for psychological and sexual authenticity. It can be taken in many ways, but it is an undeniably beautiful film.
The last new film I got to see in theaters was Portrait of a Lady on Fire. I say new because Connor and I went to see Tommy Boy right before the theaters shut down. That’s really great because the third film I watched on Criterion was Tomboy, which was directed by Celine Sciamma who also directed Portrait of a Lady on Fire. The service put her first three films up so I just had to because Portrait is a fucking great film. After Tomboy, I knew the lady was no joke so I put the other two on hold.
I went back to Barry’s picks after Tomboy and watched La Ciénaga , which is the debut for Argentinian director, Lucrecia Martel. That’s a visually stunning film and I am open to seeing more of her work for sure. Barry has three other picks that I’ll watch at some point in the future, but I decided to pick a random film after La Ciénaga. I went to the “21st Century Cinema” section and picked a film called Fat Girl. It’s a French film written and directed by Catherine Breillat that sort of shook me. I think it’s the one I’m least likely to rewatch out of all these films, because it’s tough to digest due to its sexual content. I’m pretty open minded when it comes to what’s happening in films, but Fat Girl shows some pretty harrowing stuff. After that, I watched a film that just changes a word in that title. It’s called Black Girl from 1966 and it’s known as the first Sub-Saharan African film made by an African filmmaker to be recognized worldwide. It’s a very powerful film that I think is a must see.
I decided to check out Céline Sciamma's other two films next, so I watched her debut from 2008, Water Lilies and then Girlhood from 2014. Sciamma has become one of my favorite directors rapidly and Girlhood would probably be top pick if I had to choose a single favorite from the films I’ve watched so far. She uses a lot of female characters in her films and tells these brilliant stories from perspectives that we just don’t get enough of.
After finishing up Sciamma's filmography, I took a couple wild turns and watched The Daytrippers from 1996 and The Big Heat from 1953. Just a 43 year gap between the two. The Daytrippers is a unique comedy and The Big Heat is an intense piece of film noir. Both awesome films for very different reasons. After those two random picks, I decided to start watching the Yorgos Lanthimos collection which contains his first three films before he exploded in 2016 with The Lobster. I got to see The Lobster and The Favourite in theaters and then I watched The Killing of a Sacred Deer at home. Those are his more recent films and they all fucking rule. I was delighted to be able to go back and see the stuff that came before. I started with Kinetta from 2005 which is a complete mind bender. I didn’t quite grasp it and maybe that’s the point but it didn’t grab me like his newer stuff so I put the other two on hold.
I went back to the AIM section and checked out Paul Dano’s picks. The 50’s is a decade I don’t have much experience with and Dano has A Man Escaped from 1956 as one of his picks and my goodness does he have good taste. A Man Escaped is one of the best war films I’ve ever seen and the approach it takes is extremely unique. After that one, I went straight back to Lanthimos and watched Dogtooth from 2009. That’s another one of my favorite films that I’ve watched on the service. I had read and heard great things about it, but I wasn’t expecting the mind fuck that I got. I put Lanthimos's third film on hold because I wanted to savor it.
The Criterion Channel has a section for films leaving at the end of each month, so I figured it would be smart to check out some of those. I watched Delicatessen, which is an extremely off the wall dark comedy about a landlord who also works as a butcher in post-apocalyptic France. I enjoyed that one a lot and followed it up with something completely different called David Holzman’s Diary. That one was also under the “Leaving April 30th” section. It’s filmed like a documentary but it’s not. It’s a sort of film that I'm always looking out for. It’s aimless at times but always thought provoking because of the authenticity. I typically like that kind of formula and David Holzman’s Diary really commits to itself. I stayed in the “Leaving April 30th” section and chose Near Dark next. Near Dark is something I had heard of because I’m familiar with Kathryn Bigelow’s recent work like The Hurt Locker, Zero Dark Thirty, and Detroit. Near Dark was just the second film she directed and it is extremely 80’s. I enjoyed it a lot and I think it could be a great Filmgazm episode one day, due to its vampirical tone.
The Criterion Channel adds new content constantly and they put some stuff right at the top of the explore page. This colorful ad for The Fits grabbed my attention and I’m really glad it did because it is one of the coolest films that I’ve ever seen. The Fits follows an 11-year-old girl who struggles to fit in with a dance team. It’s Anna Rose Holmer’s debut and only film so far, but I’ll be first in line whenever she directs another one.
The next film I watched also came from the “Leaving April 30th” section. It’s this really intense gambling/conning film called House of Games from '87. I adore stories about people in that world, so I had a blast watching that one. After that, I stumbled upon a film from 1939 called Blind Alley. It was under the newly added section and I just haven’t seen very many 30’s films so I went for it. It’s the oldest one I’ve watched on Criterion so far, but it’s a pretty smart and gritty film. Fast forward 70 years to 2009 and that’s when the next film I watched came out. Daddy Longlegs is a film I had been wanting to see for a few years because the Safdie brothers blew me away in 2017 with Good Time and then followed that up with the high octane Uncut Gems this past December. The Criterion Channel added a Josh and Benny Safdie collection not too long ago that contains some shorts and their first two feature length films, The Pleasure of Being Robbed and Daddy Longlegs. Those guys have put together a really nice filmography and I honestly don’t know what to expect next.
The Criterion Channel also added this really cool collection of 13 films called “70’s Style Icons” that has some absolute classics. I decided to knock out a couple films that had already been on my radar. The first was Three Days of the Condor and the second was Foxy Brown. Robert Redford is a dude I need to go back and watch more of because he is captivating as hell in Three Days. I have seen a fair amount of films starring Pam Grier, but Foxy Brown just makes me want more of her stunning performances. She has been one of my favorite actresses ever since I saw Jackie Brown in high school. I’ll be checking out that section in the future for sure, but after those two I watched a 90’s film called The Grifters that contains three fucking perfect performances from John Cusack, Anjelica Huston, and Annette Benning. I’ve grown up watching all three of them in all kinds of random stuff, so it was cool to see them all doing their thing 30 years ago.
Jean-Luc Godard is one of those directors that you simply can’t escape if you're a cinephile. He’s been one of the most influential figures in film history for decades now and I finally got around to watching some of his films, because Criterion has a collection of over 20 films directed by him right now. I have been interested in French films in general lately, so I felt it was right to go back and start properly. I watched the first three films he directed in order from Breathless to A Woman Is a Woman to Vivre Sa Vie. All three of them showcase extreme skill from Godard, but Vivre Sa Vie is easily my favorite. It’s unique, well-acted, and heavy.
After introducing myself to Jean-Luc Godard’s work, I went for an 80’s cult classic called Hollywood Shuffle. Robert Townsend wrote, directed, and starred in the film as the main character. I won’t be forgetting Hollywood Shuffle anytime soon and it’s definitely a kind of film I want to share with all of my friends. This 50’s film called The Crimson Kimono caught my eye next. It’s a really cool film because it brings up themes that you don’t typically see from something in that era. The last film I watched on the service in April was a Yorgos Lanthimos film I had on hold for so long. It’s called Alps and it’s the last film before The Lobster, which was my introduction to Lanthimos's work altogether. Alps is extremely bizarre but you’re always in good hands visually with Lanthimos. If you like any of his recent films, then definitely check his old ones out because you can tell it’s his work right away and it will surely entertain you.
I was able to watch twenty-nine films that I’ve never seen before on the Criterion Channel. Like I said earlier, I’ve been watching a lot of family friendly content with my family through Hulu, Disney Plus, Netflix, etc. I signed up for Criterion to check stuff out in my own time and broaden my horizons. Of course, we were inhaling stuff because of the quarantine but that could change in the future. I may not be able to get to twenty nine new films on just this service every month, but I’m very grateful for the opportunity to see things I haven’t been able to before.
I clearly have some favorites out of those 29 films that I gave a 10, but what was really great is that I didn’t watch anything that was bad. Every single film had something to offer, but I’m always going to have my favorites. I’m also aware that what I personally connect with may not have the same impact on everybody else. I do think there are films that are just straight up awesome no matter what you like. I think you have to separate your own fandom sometimes when you’re recommending films to people. For example, my favorite director is Paul Thomas Anderson and my favorite film directed by him is Magnolia, but I’m totally aware that it probably isn’t his “best” film. Depending on how many films I’m able to get to each month, I’ll give my personal favorites and then I’ll give my recommendations. The amount of favorites and recommendations will vary just like the amount films I watch altogether will vary. This first time around I have five personal favorites and five recommendations for anyone that is looking for a really solid film.
Personals
5. Vivre Sa Vie
4. Dogtooth
3. The Fits
2. Y Tu Mama Tambien
1. Girlhood
Recommendations
5. House of Games
4. Three Days of the Condor
3. Hollywood Shuffle
2. A Man Escaped
1. Black Girl