This podcast focuses on the Eclipse Series, box set editions of lost, forgotten, or overshadowed films recently revived by the Criterion Collection. Hosts David Blakeslee and Trevor Berrett give an overview of each set and offer their perspectives on the unique treasures they find inside. In this last of four episodes, David and Trevor discuss six “School Films” (Two Solutions for One Problem, So Can I, Tribute to Teachers, Toothache, Orderly or Disorderly, and Homework) from Eclipse Series 47: Abbas Kiarostami – Early Shorts and Features. Eleven other films included in this set are covered in earlier episodes.

About the films:

Long before he became one of the most renowned artists in world cinema, the great Iranian filmmaker Abbas Kiarostami began his cinematic career at Tehran’s Institute for the Intellectual Development of Children and Young Adults (a.k.a. Kanoon), where he honed his distinctive style and themes. During his first decades as a filmmaker, Kiarostami moved freely among documentary, narrative, and even animation, and between joyous short films made for children and subtle works exploring the struggles of adolescents. Often using the classroom as a laboratory, he probed social and political tensions in Iranian society during the turbulent years before and after the 1979 revolution. Spanning his very first short, Bread and Alley (which the director called the “mother of all my films”); other underseen early revelations, like Experience and The Traveler; and nonfiction masterpieces such as Homework, the graceful, warm, and playful works collected here find moments of transcendent poetry within everyday life, and use deceptively simple premises to express universal truths about the human condition.

Subscribe to the podcast via RSS or in iTunes.

Episode Links

Part 1: Beginnings and Journeys (featuring Colors, Bread and Alley, Breaktime, and The Traveler)
Part 2: Adolescence and Poverty (featuring Experience and A Wedding Suit)
Part 3: Political Allegories (featuring Solution No. 1, First Case, Second Case, The Chorus, Fellow Citizen, and First Graders)

Abbas Kiarostami

• The Criterion Collection
• The Criterion Channel
• Abbas Kiarostami’s Childhood Films (Criterion Channel documentary short, suggested viewing mentioned on inside cover of the set)
• Wikipedia
• Letterboxd
• Kiarostami Foundation
• The American Scholar
• British Journal of Photography
• Harper’s
• Henna Platform
• The Point
• Senses of Cinema
• ShotDeck
• Sight & Sound
• Mania Akbari Tells Her Story
• Criterion – In Memoriam

Box Set Reviews

• Blu-ray.com
• Home Theater Forum
• Let’s Talk Criterion (video)
• Under the Radar

Two Solutions for One Problem (1975)

• The Criterion Collection
• The Criterion Channel
• Wikipedia
• Letterboxd
• Kiarostami Foundation
• Cagey Films
• Cinephilic Musings
• The Cultural Me
• Webs of Significance

So Can I (1975)

• The Criterion Collection
• The Criterion Channel
• Wikipedia
• Letterboxd
• Kiarostami Foundation

Tribute to Teachers (1977)

• The Criterion Collection
• The Criterion Channel
• Letterboxd
• Kiarostami Foundation
• Webs of Significance

Toothache (1980)

• The Criterion Collection
• The Criterion Channel
• Wikipedia
• Letterboxd
• Kiarostami Foundation

Orderly or Disorderly (1981)

• The Criterion Collection
• The Criterion Channel
• Wikipedia
• Letterboxd
• Cagey Films
• Kiarostami Foundation

Homework (1989)

• The Criterion Collection
• The Criterion Channel
• Wikipedia
• Letterboxd
• Kiarostami Foundation
• Errata (podcast)
• Senses of Cinema

Contact us

• David Blakeslee ( TikTok / YouTube / Facebook / CriterionCast / Blog )
• Trevor Berrett ( Instagram / Website / The Mookse and the Gripes Podcast )

In this special episode of Criterion Cast, David Blakeslee interviews Aaron West, a longtime contributor to this site, about his new book The A24 New Wave, which will publish in May 2026. Their conversation gives a brief overview of A24’s history since the company began distributing films in 2012 (with their big breakthrough Spring Breakers) and went on from there to accelerate the careers of many of today’s most influential and respected directors, actors, and other talents. A24 has released many of the most impactful movies of the past decade-plus and this book offers insights and behind-the-scenes details on how those projects came together. Aaron also describes his creative process and shares some early insights on his plans for upcoming volumes exploring other chapters of cinema history.

About the Book:

The A24 New Wave is the story of the foundation of the indie film powerhouse that championed new voices and transformed cinema. This comprehensive book explores the A24 way, their business practices, and the great cinema that changed the way movies are marketed and seen. Includes in-depth stories about filmmakers Barry Jenkins, Robert Eggers, Greta Gerwig, Sean Baker, Ari Aster, and so many more.

For more information on how to order the book, visit CineJourneys!

Press Release 

Contact us:

• David Blakeslee ( TikTok / YouTube / Facebook / CriterionCast / Blog )

• Aaron West ( CineJourneys / Letterboxd / Bluesky / Instagram )

This podcast focuses on the Eclipse Series, box set editions of lost, forgotten, or overshadowed films recently revived by the Criterion Collection. Hosts David Blakeslee and Trevor Berrett give an overview of each set and offer their perspectives on the unique treasures they find inside. In this episode, David and Trevor discuss five films (Solution No. 1, First Case/Second Case, The Chorus, Fellow Citizen, and First Graders) from Eclipse Series 47: Abbas Kiarostami – Early Shorts and Features. Thirteen other films included in this set are covered in other episodes.

About the films:

Long before he became one of the most renowned artists in world cinema, the great Iranian filmmaker Abbas Kiarostami began his cinematic career at Tehran’s Institute for the Intellectual Development of Children and Young Adults (a.k.a. Kanoon), where he honed his distinctive style and themes. During his first decades as a filmmaker, Kiarostami moved freely among documentary, narrative, and even animation, and between joyous short films made for children and subtle works exploring the struggles of adolescents. Often using the classroom as a laboratory, he probed social and political tensions in Iranian society during the turbulent years before and after the 1979 revolution. Spanning his very first short, Bread and Alley (which the director called the “mother of all my films”); other underseen early revelations, like Experience and The Traveler; and nonfiction masterpieces such as Homework, the graceful, warm, and playful works collected here find moments of transcendent poetry within everyday life, and use deceptively simple premises to express universal truths about the human condition.

Subscribe to the podcast via RSS or in iTunes.

Episode Links

Part 1: Beginnings and Journeys (featuring Colors, Bread and Alley, Breaktime, and The Traveler)
Part 2: Adolescence and Poverty (featuring Experience and A Wedding Suit)

Abbas Kiarostami

• The Criterion Collection
• The Criterion Channel
• Abbas Kiarostami’s Childhood Films (Criterion Channel documentary short, suggested viewing mentioned on inside cover of the set)
• Wikipedia
• Letterboxd
• The American Scholar
• British Journal of Photography
• Harper’s
• The Point
• Senses of Cinema
• ShotDeck
• Sight & Sound
• Criterion – In Memoriam

Box Set Reviews

• Blu-ray.com
• Home Theater Forum
• Let’s Talk Criterion (video)
• Under the Radar

Solution No. 1 (1978)

• The Criterion Collection
• Letterboxd
• Kiarostami.org
• Notes on Cinematograph

First Case, Second Case (1979)

• The Criterion Collection
• The Criterion Channel
• Wikipedia
• Letterboxd
• Kiarostami.org
• Notes on Cinematograph
• Webs of Significance

The Chorus (1982)

• The Criterion Collection
• Wikipedia
• Letterboxd
• Kiarostami.org
• Notes on Cinematograph
• Asian Movie Pulse

Fellow Citizen (1983)

• The Criterion Collection
• Wikipedia
• Letterboxd
• Kiarostami.org
• Senses of Cinema
• Pierre Henry’s “Psyche Rock” (featured in soundtrack, mentioned in episode):

First Graders (1984)

• The Criterion Collection
• The Criterion Channel
• Wikipedia
• Letterboxd
• Kiarostami.org
• Notes on Cinematograph
• Filmofiles Hideout

Contact us

• David Blakeslee ( TikTok / YouTube / Facebook / CriterionCast / Blog )
• Trevor Berrett ( Instagram / Website / The Mookse and the Gripes Podcast )

In our annual episode focusing on The Criterion Collection’s releases from the past year – and there’s a lot to celebrate! – we’ve assembled a panel of CriterionCast regulars to share our favorite releases of 2025. David Blakeslee from Criterion Reflections hosts this discussion, which also includes Aaron West and Brad McDermott.

Subscribe to the podcast via RSS or in iTunes

Episode Notes

Aaron’s List

• Favorite Cover/Packaging: I Know Where I’m Going by Thinh Dihn
• Favorite Releases
  1. Anora
  2. The Grifters
  3. Flow

Brad’s List

• Favorite Cover/Packaging: Altered States by Richey Beckett
• Favorite Releases
  1. Eyes Wide Shut
  2. Born in Flames
  3. Return to Reason: 4 Films by Man Ray

David’s List

• Favorite Cover/Packaging: The Wages of Fear by Juan Esteban R.
• Favorite Releases
  1. Eclipse Series 47: Abbas Kiarostami – Early Shorts and Features
  2. Sorcerer
  3. Él

Criterion 2025 Factoids

• 82 Total Releases (including Janus Contemporaries/Criterion Premieres, Eclipse 47, and Wes Anderson Archive)
• 50 new spine numbers (The Mother and the Whore #1245 thru David Byrne’s American Utopia #1294, though House Party #1287 was delayed until 2026)
• 25 Upgrades/Reissues of previous spine numbers (including Laserdiscs)
• 16 Standard Upgrades from Blu-ray to 4K
• 2 Blu-ray to 4K Upgrades were new packages (Wages of Fear, Umbrellas of Cherbourg)
• 4 In-print DVDs to 4K Upgrades
• 4 OOP DVDs returned, 3 to 4K Upgrades, 1 to Blu-ray
• 11 of the new spine numbers released in DVD format
• Only three-format (4K/BR/DVD) releases of 2025 were:
• The Mother and the Whore
• The Wages of Fear
• Anora
• Shoeshine
• Flow
• David Byrne’s American Utopia

Episode Credits

• Brad McDermott ( Instagram / Letterboxd / Gallery)
• Aaron West ( CineJourneys / Substack )
• David Blakeslee ( TikTok / Website / Facebook / Letterboxd )

Past Favorites of the Year Episodes

• Episode 216 – Criterion Collection Favorites of 2024
• Episode 215 – Criterion Collection Favorites of 2023
• Episode 214 – Criterion Collection Favorites of 2022
• Episode 213 – Criterion Collection Favorites of 2021
• Episode 212 – Criterion Collection Favorites of 2020
• Episode 202 – Criterion Collection Favorites of 2019
• Episode 195 – Criterion Collection Favorites of 2018
• Episode 189: Criterion Collection Favorites of 2017
• Episode 180: Criterion Collection Favorites of 2016
• Episode 167: Criterion Collection Favorites of 2015
• Episode 152: Our Favorite Criterion Collection Releases from 2014
• Episode 145: Our Favorite Criterion Collection Releases from 2013
• Episode 135: Favorite Criterion Collection Releases of 2012
• Episode 108: Our Favorite Criterion Collection Releases of 2011
• Episode 63.5: Top Criterion Collection Releases of 2010

This podcast focuses on the Eclipse Series, box set editions of lost, forgotten, or overshadowed films recently revived by the Criterion Collection. Hosts David Blakeslee and Trevor Berrett give an overview of each set and offer their perspectives on the unique treasures they find inside. In this episode, David and Trevor discuss two films (Experience and A Wedding Suit) from Eclipse Series 47: Abbas Kiarostami – Early Shorts and Features. Thirteen other films included in this set will be covered in future episodes.

About the films:

Long before he became one of the most renowned artists in world cinema, the great Iranian filmmaker Abbas Kiarostami began his cinematic career at Tehran’s Institute for the Intellectual Development of Children and Young Adults (a.k.a. Kanoon), where he honed his distinctive style and themes. During his first decades as a filmmaker, Kiarostami moved freely among documentary, narrative, and even animation, and between joyous short films made for children and subtle works exploring the struggles of adolescents. Often using the classroom as a laboratory, he probed social and political tensions in Iranian society during the turbulent years before and after the 1979 revolution. Spanning his very first short, Bread and Alley (which the director called the “mother of all my films”); other underseen early revelations, like Experience and The Traveler; and nonfiction masterpieces such as Homework, the graceful, warm, and playful works collected here find moments of transcendent poetry within everyday life, and use deceptively simple premises to express universal truths about the human condition.

Subscribe to the podcast via RSS or in iTunes.

Episode Links

Part 1: Beginnings and Journeys (featuring Colors, Bread and Alley, Breaktime, and The Traveler)

Part 3: Political Allegories (featuring Solution No. 1, First Case, Second Case, The Chorus, Fellow Citizen, and First Graders)

Abbas Kiarostami

• The Criterion Collection
• The Criterion Channel
• Abbas Kiarostami’s Childhood Films (Criterion Channel documentary short, suggested viewing mentioned on inside cover of the set)
• Wikipedia
• Letterboxd
• The American Scholar
• British Journal of Photography
• Harper’s
• The Point
• Senses of Cinema
• ShotDeck
• Sight & Sound
• Criterion – In Memoriam

Box Set Reviews

• Blu-ray.com
• Home Theater Forum
• Let’s Talk Criterion (video)
• Under the Radar
• Wall Street Journal

Experience (1973)

• The Criterion Collection
• The Criterion Channel
• Wikipedia
• Letterboxd
• In Review Online
• Senses of Cinema

A Wedding Suit (1976)

• The Criterion Collection
• The Criterion Channel
• Wikipedia
• Letterboxd
• In Review Online
• Senses of Cinema

Contact us

• David Blakeslee ( TikTok / YouTube / Facebook / CriterionCast / Blog )
• Trevor Berrett ( Instagram / Website / The Mookse and the Gripes Podcast )

This podcast focuses on the Eclipse Series, Blu-ray box set editions of lost, forgotten, or overshadowed films recently revived by the Criterion Collection. Hosts David Blakeslee and Trevor Berrett give an overview of each set and offer their perspectives on the unique treasures they find inside. In this episode, David and Trevor discuss four films (Colors, Bread and Alley, Breaktime, and The Traveler) from Eclipse Series 47: Abbas Kiarostami – Early Shorts and Features. Thirteen other films included in this set will be covered in future episodes.

About the films:

Long before he became one of the most renowned artists in world cinema, the great Iranian filmmaker Abbas Kiarostami began his cinematic career at Tehran’s Institute for the Intellectual Development of Children and Young Adults (a.k.a. Kanoon), where he honed his distinctive style and themes. During his first decades as a filmmaker, Kiarostami moved freely among documentary, narrative, and even animation, and between joyous short films made for children and subtle works exploring the struggles of adolescents. Often using the classroom as a laboratory, he probed social and political tensions in Iranian society during the turbulent years before and after the 1979 revolution. Spanning his very first short, Bread and Alley (which the director called the “mother of all my films”); other underseen early revelations, like Experience and The Traveler; and nonfiction masterpieces such as Homework, the graceful, warm, and playful works collected here find moments of transcendent poetry within everyday life, and use deceptively simple premises to express universal truths about the human condition.

Subscribe to the podcast via RSS or in iTunes.

Episode Links

Part 2: Adolescence and Poverty (featuring Experience and A Wedding Suit)
Part 3: Political Allegories (featuring Solution No. 1, First Case, Second Case, The Chorus, Fellow Citizen, and First Graders)

Abbas Kiarostami

• The Criterion Collection
• The Criterion Channel
• Abbas Kiarostami’s Childhood Films (Criterion Channel documentary short, suggested viewing mentioned on inside cover of the set)
• Wikipedia
• Letterboxd
• The American Scholar
• British Journal of Photography
• Harper’s
• The Point
• Senses of Cinema
• ShotDeck
• Sight & Sound
• Criterion – In Memoriam

Box Set Reviews

• Blu-ray.com
• Under the Radar

Colors

• The Criterion Collection
• The Criterion Channel
• Wikipedia
• Letterboxd
• Le Cinema Club

Bread and Alley

• The Criterion Collection
• The Criterion Channel
• Wikipedia
• Letterboxd
• High on Films
• An Awadh Boy’s Panorama

Breaktime

• The Criterion Collection
• The Criterion Channel
• Letterboxd
• Sabzian

The Traveler

• The Criterion Collection
• The Criterion Channel
• Wikipedia
• Letterboxd
• In Review Online
• Senses of Cinema

Contact us

• David Blakeslee ( TikTok / YouTube / Facebook / CriterionCast / Blog )
• Trevor Berrett ( Instagram / Website / The Mookse and the Gripes Podcast )

A new release from the Criterion Collection represents yet another successful retrieval of an important film originally released by that company on the Laserdisc format they specialized in for 15 years or so before they started releasing movies on DVD. Carnal Knowledge, Mike Nichols’ 1971 follow up to Catch-22, functioned as a lightning rod for candid conversations and high-stakes legal proceedings in the immediate aftermath of its release and still shows plenty of potential for stoking fresh discussions and charged debates about how so many men relate to women in regard to sexuality and committed relationships. I had a chance to review the new 4K edition and this post is a collection of various clips I’ve made about the film, both recently and back in October of 2019 when I reviewed the film as part of my ongoing Criterion Reflections podcast that covers films published on various formats by Criterion in the chronological order of the films’ original releases.

For the sake of convenience and to provide maximal coverage of my response to the film itself, I’ve attached the episode to this post, which should include it in the CriterionCast Master Feed in your favorite podcast player of choice, or you can just listen to it here on this page. I want to thank Richard Doyle and Grant Douglas Bromley for their contributions from nearly six years ago – they brought great insights and well-informed perspectives into the conversation and made it a much more interesting talk than if it was just me speaking into a microphone by myself! We even got into the question of whether we thought Criterion would be willing to re-publish a film that was in many ways so centered on two men who brought so much casual misogyny and chauvinistic privilege into their mutual assumptions about what they were looking for in their relationships with the women in their lives. (Remember, the fall of 2019 was still the heyday of the #MeToo movement that rose to prominence just a couple years earlier.) Even though that question was obviously answered with an emphatic YES! when the package’s release was announced back in April, it made sense at that time to consider how Carnal Knowledge‘s biting dialogues and unblinking candor in depicting unchecked male privilege would be received by a younger audience that in many ways had been brought up with a much stronger critical eye toward so much of the received conventional wisdom espoused by Jack Nicholson’s manipulative alpha-dog Jonathan and his unknowingly codependent sidekick Sandy, played by Art Garfunkel.

For those unfamiliar with what goes on over the course of Carnal Knowledge‘s 98 minute running time, here’s my quick summary: Jonathan and Sandy are a pair of American college buddies in the years following World War II. We meet them as they are on the verge of young adulthood, with their primary interest consisting of figuring out how far they could go at any given opportunity to enhance their experience of sexual encounters with whatever women were willing to allow them to pursue their respective quests. Unlike Summer of ’42, a film that was pretty big at the time and touched on similar themes of blossoming sexuality among young people of that time, Carnal Knowledge was not content to remain confined to a particular season of a specific year. Instead, the film drops in on its male protagonists at crucial moments over the next two decades, zeroing in on life-defining junctures that occur in the 1950s and 1960s, finally culminating in a pair of scenes set in 1971, completely contemporaneous with when the movie first began its public screenings. The presence of Candice Bergen (as Susan, pictured above opposite Jack Nicholson) takes place in the early scenes set in the 1940s, while Ann-Margret’s Bobbie character (shown below) brings her own shattering vitality to the forefront when she enters the film (and more importantly, Jonathan’s life) in scenes that take place in the mid-1960s, after both Jonathan and Sandy have experienced both failures and successes in various aspects of their lives that serve mainly to embitter them toward the possibility of finding satisfying long-term stability in their relationships with anyone, maybe not even themselves.

In one of the clips I embedded below, I made the mistaken observation that Ann-Margret won a Best Supporting Actress Oscar for her portrayal of Bobbie, but she was only a nominee – the award that year went instead to Cloris Leachman for her work in The Last Picture Show. (That had to have been a tough call for quite a few of the voters! I know I’d be torn, though I think I’d be inclined to go with Ann-Margret in this case.) However, she did win the Golden Globe Award in that category for her incredibly evocative, unforgettable, and fearless performance of a woman enveloped in a web of relational toxicity that only traps its victims more inextricably the harder they try to fight their way out of it.

Tucked inside a densely packed slate of recently-published titles that could realistically compete for some of the most compelling releases of the year, Carnal Knowledge may run the risk of being overlooked by the likes of such heavyweight and long-anticipated entries like Killer of Sheep, Sorcerer, and The Big Heat, along with magnificent 4K reissues like Barry Lyndon, Brazil, and the The Adventures of Antoine Doinel box set of five films directed by Francois Truffaut. While I was deeply impressed by my initial viewing of Carnal Knowledge back in 2019 when I covered it on my podcast, I never got the sense that there were a lot of folks clamoring for it to find a way back into in-print status with the Criterion Collection. I’m glad to see that they’ve gone ahead and put it out there, especially in the waning days of another half-off sale at Barnes & Noble (and the accompanying price match offered by Amazon). I have to acknowledge that this may be a tough watch for some viewers whose experience might uncomfortably parallel the lives we see projected onto the screen, or who might find it painful to empathize with characters who never find their way toward landing on a satisfying resolution. This is in every sense of the word an “adult” film, one that is probably going to be most appreciated by those who’ve been through a few of these wretchedly awkward post-traumatic break-up encounters over the course of their years. I know that I’ll be surfing around on Letterboxd, IMDb, and various online review sites in the near future to see how Mike Nichols and company’s work is being received in 2025 once the disc goes into broader circulation. For now though, here are a pair of short videos from the past couple weeks to accompany the more extended response that Grant, Richard and I had back in 2019.

First, let’s start with this preview clip that I made the same day (or maybe the next) after I had just received my review copy from Criterion. I provide a more extended look at the packaging, especially noting the “more substantial than usual these days” printed insert, a 42 page booklet that comes with the film. I was delighted to see that! And the essay by Moira Weigel is excellent, let me confirm. (I had just glanced over the opening paragraphs when I made the clip.) It also includes a short “haul video” in the intro portion where I show the discs I had just recently brought home when the B&N 50% off sale began at the end of June:

@dee.ell.bee my preview of the upcoming #criterioncollection release of #CarnalKnowledge (1971) directed by #MikeNichols ♬ Moonlight Serenade – Glenn Miller

Following that, here’s my proper review of Carnal Knowledge that I posted on both TikTok and YouTube, and now here. I’ll embed the YT version:

Finally, I’ll carry over the links that I put together for the show notes page from my 2019 podcast for anyone who wants to engage more fully with what others have had to say about Mike Nichols, screenwriter Jules Feiffer, and Carnal Knowledge in years past:

Mike Nichols

• The Criterion Collection
• Broadway World
• Gold Derby
• HBO “Becoming Mike Nichols”
• New York Times
• PBS “Faces of America”
• Playbill

Jules Feiffer

• Wikipedia
• Official Site (Archived)
• Yale Podcast Network (2019 interview about the making of Carnal Knowledge)

Carnal Knowledge

• The Criterion Collection (1991 LD essay written by Bruce Eder)
• The Criterion Collection (2025 edition)
• Wikipedia
• Cleveland Press (1971)
• Life Magazine (1971)
• New York Times (1971)
• Roger Ebert (1971)
• The Village Voice (1971)
• New York Times (1973) – Georgia Supreme Court Obscenity Ruling
• Cinephilia & Beyond
• Film at Lincoln Center (2011 interview with Mike Nichols)
• Cinepinion
• Common Sense Media (Parents Guide)
• Dennis Schwarz
• Dreams Are What Le Cinema Is For
• Emmanuel Levy
• Every 70’s Movie
• Ferdy on Films
• Only the Cinema
• Pop Optiq
• TCM

• David Blakeslee [ YouTube / TikTok / Website / Facebook / Letterboxd ]
• Grant Douglas Bromley [ Letterboxd ]
• Richard Doyle [ Letterboxd ]

Criterion Reflections is David Blakeslee’s ongoing project to watch all of the films included in the Criterion Collection in chronological order of their original release. Each episode of Season 5: 1973 features a discussion about films that were destined to eventually bear the Criterion imprint, whether published on physical media or made available on their streaming platform. In this episode, David has 1:1 conversations with four different guests (returning: Derek J. Power and Jordan Essoe, with Michael Palli and Imani Payne making their first visits to the podcast) to hear their thoughts about Scenes From a Marriage, directed by Ingmar Bergman. Two different edits of the film available on Blu-ray and DVD from the Criterion Collection, included in the Ingmar Bergman’s Cinema box set, and also available in the Criterion Channel’s streaming library.

EPISODE LINKS:

INGMAR BERGMAN

• The Criterion Collection
• The Criterion Channel
• IngmarBergman.se (Official)
• Wikipedia
• Letterboxd
• Britannica
• Senses of Cinema
• TCM

SCENES FROM A MARRIAGE

• The Criterion Collection
• The Criterion Channel (Television)
• The Criterion Channel (Theatrical)
• Wikipedia
• Boston Phoenix (1974)
• New York Times (1974)
• Roger Ebert (1974)
• Village Voice (1974)
• Bill’s Movie Emporium
• Corndog Chats
• Derek Winnert
• Images Journal
• Movie Steve
• Slant
• Sonic Cinema
• Spirituality and Practice
• Through the Shattered Lens

PREVIOUSLY:

COME ON CHILDREN

UP NEXT:

ZATOICHI’S CONSPIRACY

MORE!

• Criterion Reflections blog (1922 – 1967)
• Criterion Reflections columns on CriterionCast (1968)
• The Eclipse Viewer
• A Journey Through the Eclipse Series

CONTACT:

• David Blakeslee [ YouTube / TikTok / Website / Facebook / Letterboxd ]
• Derek J. Power [ Website ]
• Michael Palli [ Instagram / Letterboxd ]
• Imani Payne [ ]
• Jordan Essoe [ Website ]

This episode of Criterion Cast features a conversation with director/screenwriter Matthew Gentile, as he and host David Blakeslee discuss the ARGENTINE NOIR bundle currently streaming on the Criterion Channel. As the name implies, this is a collection of six films noir originally released in Argentina during the 1950s. Here’s how the Channel describes the set:

Argentina gave rise to some of the finest and most fascinating crime thrillers of the postwar noir boom—pitch-black tales of lust, greed, guilt, and deception suffused with the passionate intensity of tango and sculpted in striking expressionist shadows. This selection of newly restored films from the Perón era brings together some of the most intriguing examples of Argentine noir, including two atmospheric Cornell Woolrich adaptations (IF I SHOULD DIE BEFORE I WAKE, NEVER OPEN THAT DOOR), a female-centered remake of Fritz Lang’s M (THE BLACK VAMPIRE), and a searing adaptation of Richard Wright’s landmark novel NATIVE SON starring the writer himself. Set amid the smoky nightclubs and dark alleys of Buenos Aires and laced with bitterly ironic social critique, these stylish, suspenseful journeys into existential dread are ripe-for-discovery gems from one of Latin America’s major film industries.

Episode Links:

• Argentine Noir on the Criterion Channel
• CriterionCast episode on Matthew’s feature film American Murderer (published October 2022)

Never Open That Door / If I Should Die Before I Wake

• The Criterion Channel
• Flicker Alley
• Wikipedia
• Cinema Sentries
• Film Frenzy
• Films Graded
• Heart of Noir
• Journeys in Darkness and Light
• Laura’s Miscellaneous Musings
• Pop Matters
• Shadowplay
• Slant

The Beast Must Die

• The Criterion Channel
• Flicker Alley
• Wikipedia
• CageyFilms
• Cineaste
• Laura’s Miscellaneous Musings
• Slant

The Bitter Stems

• The Criterion Channel
• Flicker Alley
• Wikipedia
• CageyFilms
• Cineaste
• Laura’s Miscellaneous Musings
• Slant
• TCM

The Black Vampire

• The Criterion Channel
• Flicker Alley
• Wikipedia
• Boulder Weekly
• CageyFilms
• Dennis Schwartz
• Die, Danger, Die, Die, Kill!
• Laura’s Miscellaneous Musings
• Less Hat, Moorhead
• Out of the Past

Native Son

• The Criterion Channel
• Kino Lorber
• Wikipedia
• New York Times (1951)
• New York Times (2016)
• Variety (1951)
• 1More Film Blog
• Austin Chronicle
• Chicago Film Society
• Houston Chronicle
• Literary Hub
• Michael J. Cinema
• Movie Nation
• National Review
• Reel Talk
• ScreenFish
• Sight Lines

CONTACT US:

• David Blakeslee [ YouTube / TikTok / Website / Facebook / Letterboxd ]
• Matthew Gentile [ Website / Instagram ]

Criterion Reflections is David Blakeslee’s ongoing project to watch all of the films included in the Criterion Collection in chronological order of their original release. Each episode of Season 5: 1973 features a discussion about films that were destined to eventually bear the Criterion imprint, whether published on physical media or made available on their streaming platform. In this episode, David and guest William Remmers review Come On Children, directed by Allan King. This episode also includes a discussion about the film that David had in 2012 with Rob Nishimura and Josh Brunsting from his former podcast, The Eclipse Viewer. The film is included in the Eclipse Series box set The Actuality Dramas of Allan King and is also available in the Criterion Channel’s streaming library.

EPISODE LINKS:

ALLAN KING

• The Criterion Collection
• The Criterion Channel
• Letterboxd
• Wikipedia
• Allan King Films Collection  (official site)
• The Guardian
• The Independent
• Los Angeles Times
• Slant
• Tenk

COME ON CHILDREN

• The Criterion Collection
• The Criterion Channel
• Wikipedia
• CriterionCast (David’s review from 2012)
• Back Row Handy
• Durrell Bowman
• MovieChat
• Nursing Shorelines
• Reddit
• Rush Forum
• Tenk
• The Gear Page

PREVIOUSLY:

GODZILLA VS. MEGALON

UP NEXT:

SCENES FROM A MARRIAGE

MORE!

• Criterion Reflections blog (1922 – 1967)
• Criterion Reflections columns on CriterionCast (1968)
• The Eclipse Viewer
• A Journey Through the Eclipse Series

CONTACT:

• David Blakeslee [ YouTube / TikTok / Website / Facebook / Letterboxd ]
• William Remmers [ Instagram / Letterboxd ]

Criterion Reflections is David Blakeslee’s ongoing project to watch all of the films included in the Criterion Collection in chronological order of their original release. Each episode of Season 5: 1973 features a discussion about films that were destined to eventually bear the Criterion imprint, whether published on physical media or made available on their streaming platform. In this episode, David and guests Richard Doyle and David Seeley review Godzilla vs. Megalon, directed by Jun Fukuda. The film is included in the Criterion Collection box set Godzilla: The Showa-Era Films (Spine #1000) and is also available in the Criterion Channel’s streaming library.

EPISODE LINKS:

JUN FUKUDA

• The Criterion Collection
• The Criterion Channel
• Letterboxd
• Wikipedia
• Wikizilla
• Godzilla Cineaste
• Toho Kingdom
• David Milner (1994 interview with Fukuda)

GODZILLA

• The Criterion Collection
• The Criterion Channel
• Wikipedia
• Monster Wiki
• Daisuke Beppu (7-part video series)
• Den of Geek
• Kaijucast
• Vulture

GODZILLA VS. MEGALON

• The Criterion Collection
• The Criterion Channel
• Wikipedia
• Wikizilla
• Gojipedia
• Letterboxd
• Allusions of Grandeur
• B & S About Movies
• Moria
• Toho Kingdom
• Godzilla vs. Hedorah (1971) – link to Criterion Reflections episode
• Godzilla vs. Gigan (1972) – link to Criterion Reflections episode

PREVIOUSLY:

HARD TRUTHS / HARD LABOUR

UP NEXT:

COME ON CHILDREN

MORE!

• Criterion Reflections blog (1922 – 1967)
• Criterion Reflections columns on CriterionCast (1968)
• The Eclipse Viewer
• A Journey Through the Eclipse Series

CONTACT:

• David Blakeslee [ YouTube / TikTok / Website / Facebook / Letterboxd ]
• Richard Doyle [ Letterboxd ]
• David Seeley [ FilmSwap Podcast ]

Criterion Reflections is David Blakeslee’s ongoing project to watch all of the films included in the Criterion Collection in chronological order of their original release. Each episode of Season 5: 1973 features a discussion about films that were destined to eventually bear the Criterion imprint, whether published on physical media or made available on their streaming platform. In this episode, David and guest Ethan Magnan review Hard Labour, directed by Mike Leigh. The film is part of the Criterion Channel streaming library and included in Mike Leigh at the BBC, a bundle of eight teleplays he directed for the British Broadcasting Corporation between 1973-1984. David and Ethan also discuss Hard Truths, also directed by Mike Leigh, which premiered at festivals in 2024, opening in the USA and the UK in January 2025.

EPISODE LINKS:

MIKE LEIGH

• The Criterion Collection
• The Criterion Channel
• Wikipedia
• Letterboxd
• JustWatch
• Actorhub
• BFI
• The Guardian
• IndieWire

HARD LABOUR

• The Criterion Channel
• Wikipedia
• Letterboxd
• Internet Archive
• YouTube
• BFI ScreenOnline
• Lights in the Dusk

HARD TRUTHS

• Wikipedia
• Letterboxd
• Film Comment
• Hammer to Nail
• The Independent
• Jacobin

PREVIOUSLY:

PAPER MOON

UP NEXT:

GODZILLA VS. MEGALON

MORE!

• Criterion Reflections blog (1922 – 1967)
• Criterion Reflections columns on CriterionCast (1968)
• The Eclipse Viewer
• A Journey Through the Eclipse Series

CONTACT:

• David Blakeslee [ YouTube / TikTok / Website / Facebook / Letterboxd ]
• Ethan Magnan [ X ]

Criterion Reflections is David Blakeslee’s ongoing project to watch all of the films included in the Criterion Collection in chronological order of their original release. Each episode of Season 5: 1973 features a discussion about films that were destined to eventually bear the Criterion imprint, whether published on physical media or made available on their streaming platform. In this episode, David and guests Richard Doyle, Eric Grant, and Joshua Wilson review Paper Moon, directed by Peter Bogdanovich. The film was released on 4K UHD and Blu-ray by the Criterion Collection in November 2024.

EPISODE LINKS:

PETER BOGDANOVICH

• The Criterion Collection
• The Criterion Channel
• Letterboxd
• Wikipedia
• BFI – Where to Begin with Peter Bogdanovich
• Directors Guild of America
• IndieWire
• LA Weekly
• MassLive
• Salt Lake Tribune
• Senses of Cinema
• Shepherd Express
• TCM (podcast)
• Vulture
• New York Times (obituary)

PAPER MOON

• The Criterion Collection
• Wikipedia
• Letterboxd
• JustWatch
• AFI (American Film Institute)
• Boston Phoenix (1973)
• Cavalier Daily (1973)
• New York Times (1973)
• Reeling Back (1973)
• Roger Ebert (1973)
• Village Voice (1973)
• Cinema Retro
• Cinepassion
• Common Sense Media
• CriterionCast (David’s review from November 2024)
• Culled Culture
• Derek Winnert
• Dreams Are What Le Cinema Is For
• Every 70s Movie
• Nighthawk News
• Slant
• TCM

Trixie Delight Shares Her Philosophy of Life

PREVIOUSLY:

THE LONG GOODBYE

UP NEXT:

HARD LABOUR

MORE!

• Criterion Reflections blog (1922 – 1967)
• Criterion Reflections columns on CriterionCast (1968)
• The Eclipse Viewer
• A Journey Through the Eclipse Series

CONTACT:

• David Blakeslee [ YouTube / TikTok / Website / Facebook / Letterboxd / BlueSky ]
• Richard Doyle [ Letterboxd ]
• Eric Grant [ Website / BlueSky / Instagram / Letterboxd ]
• Josh Wilson [ BlueSky / Letterboxd ]

In our annual episode focusing on The Criterion Collection’s releases from the past year – and there’s a lot to celebrate! – we’ve assembled a panel of CriterionCast regulars to share our favorite releases of 2024. David Blakeslee from Criterion Reflections hosts this discussion, which also includes Aaron West (CineJourneys), Josh Hornbeck (Criterion Channel Surfing), and longtime site contributor Brad McDermott.

Subscribe to the podcast via RSS or in iTunes

Episode Notes

Josh’s List

• Favorite Cover/Packaging: Three Revolutionary Films by Ousmane Sembène by Ify Chiejina
• Favorite Releases
  1. Chantal Akerman Masterpieces, 1968-1978
  2. The Underground Railroad
  3. Peeping Tom

Brad’s List

• Favorite Cover/Packaging: Querelle by Astra Zero
• Favorite Releases
  1. I Walked With a Zombie/The Seventh Victim: Produced by Val Lewton
  2. Werckmeister Harmonies
  3. Three Revolutionary Films by Ousmane Sembène

Aaron’s List

• Favorite Cover/Packaging: No Country for Old Men by Juan Esteban R.
• Favorite Releases
  1. Pat Garrett and Billy the Kid
  2. Gregg Araki’s Teen Apocalypse Trilogy
  3. Eric Rohmer’s Tales of the Four Seasons

David’s List

• Favorite Cover/Packaging: Paper Moon by Raphael Geroni
• Favorite Releases
  1. Black God White Devil
  2. The Runner
  3. Nothing But a Man

Miscellaneous
(random stuff mentioned in the episode)

• Janus Films Streaming Library – Letterboxd List by Michael Hutchins
• CineJourneys
• The Eclipse Viewer – Chantal Akerman in the Seventies
• Grand Rapids Film Society

Episode Credits

• Josh Hornbeck ( Website | Instagram | Letterboxd )
• Brad McDermott ( Instagram / Letterboxd / Gallery)
• Aaron West ( CineJourneys / Substack )
• David Blakeslee ( TikTok / Website / Facebook / Letterboxd )

Past Favorites of the Year Episodes

• Episode 215 – Criterion Collection Favorites of 2023
• Episode 214 – Criterion Collection Favorites of 2022
• Episode 213 – Criterion Collection Favorites of 2021
• Episode 212 – Criterion Collection Favorites of 2020
• Episode 202 – Criterion Collection Favorites of 2019
• Episode 195 – Criterion Collection Favorites of 2018
• Episode 189: Criterion Collection Favorites of 2017
• Episode 180: Criterion Collection Favorites of 2016
• Episode 167: Criterion Collection Favorites of 2015
• Episode 152: Our Favorite Criterion Collection Releases from 2014
• Episode 145: Our Favorite Criterion Collection Releases from 2013
• Episode 135: Favorite Criterion Collection Releases of 2012
• Episode 108: Our Favorite Criterion Collection Releases of 2011
• Episode 63.5: Top Criterion Collection Releases of 2010

Criterion Reflections is David Blakeslee’s ongoing project to watch all of the films included in the Criterion Collection in chronological order of their original release. Each episode of Season 5: 1973 features a discussion about films that were destined to eventually bear the Criterion imprint, whether published on physical media or made available on their streaming platform. In this episode, David and guests Richard Doyle and Robert Taylor review The Long Goodbye, directed by Robert Altman. The film has streamed on the Criterion Channel several times, most recently in early 2024 as part of a bundle showcasing cat movies.

EPISODE LINKS:

ROBERT ALTMAN

• The Criterion Collection
• The Criterion Channel
• Wikipedia
• Letterboxd
• JustWatch
• BFI – Where to Begin with Robert Altman
• Cinema Dailies
• Consequence
• Film Comment (1974)
• IndieWire
• Senses of Cinema
• TSPDT
• Vanity Fair (2006)
• New York Times (obituary)

THE LONG GOODBYE

• Kino Lorber
• Wikipedia
• Letterboxd
• JustWatch
• Boston Phoenix (1973)
• New York Magazine (1973)
• New York Times (1973)
• Pittsburgh Press (1973)
• Roger Ebert (1973)
• Roger Ebert (2006)
• Village Voice (1973)
• Battleship Pretension
• CageyFilms
• Cats on Film
• Cereal at Midnight
• Cinepassion
• CriterionCast (2010)
• Dennis Schwarz
• Every 70s Movie
• The Movie Waffler
• The Robert Taylor Odyssey
• Rock! Shock! Pop!
• Scopophilia
• Slant
• ZekeFilm

THE LONG GOODBYE SOUNDTRACK – Music Composed and Conducted by John Williams (20 Variations on a Theme)

PREVIOUSLY:

LOVE AND ANARCHY

UP NEXT:

PAPER MOON

MORE!

• Criterion Reflections blog (1922 – 1967)
• Criterion Reflections columns on CriterionCast (1968)
• The Eclipse Viewer
• A Journey Through the Eclipse Series

CONTACT:

• David Blakeslee [ YouTube / TikTok / Website / Facebook / Letterboxd / BlueSky ]
• Richard Doyle [ Letterboxd ]
• Robert Taylor [ Website ]

Criterion Reflections is David Blakeslee’s ongoing project to watch all of the films included in the Criterion Collection in chronological order of their original release. Each episode of Season 5: 1973 features a discussion about films that were destined to eventually bear the Criterion imprint, whether published on physical media or made available on their streaming platform. In this episode, David and guest Richard Doyle review Love and Anarchy, directed by Lina Wertmüller. The film streamed on the Criterion Channel in 2019 as part of a bundle showcasing her films.

EPISODE LINKS:

LINA WERTMÜLLER

• The Criterion Collection
• The Criterion Channel
• Wikipedia
• Letterboxd
• JustWatch
• Film Reference
• Cineaste
• Lenny
• New York Times
• Roger Ebert

LOVE AND ANARCHY

• Kino Lorber
• Wikipedia
• Letterboxd
• JustWatch
• JumpCut (1974)
• New York Times (1974)
• Parallax View/Movietone News (1975)
• Another Gaze
• Blu-ray.com
• DVD Savant
• Every 70s Movie
• Filmotomy
• High-Def Digest
• Off Screen
• Strictly Film School
• The Film Experience

PREVIOUSLY:

DON JUAN, OR IF DON JUAN WERE A WOMAN

UP NEXT:

THE LONG GOODBYE

MORE!

• Criterion Reflections blog (1922 – 1967)
• Criterion Reflections columns on CriterionCast (1968)
• The Eclipse Viewer
• A Journey Through the Eclipse Series

CONTACT:

• David Blakeslee [ YouTube / TikTok / Website / Facebook / Letterboxd ]
• Richard Doyle [ Letterboxd ]

Criterion Reflections is David Blakeslee’s ongoing project to watch all of the films included in the Criterion Collection in chronological order of their original release. Each episode of Season 5: 1973 features a short video clip in which David offers a few thoughts about films that were destined to eventually bear the Criterion imprint, whether published on physical media or made available on their streaming platform. These clips will occasionally be accompanied by lengthier podcast episodes including other guests for films that call for more in-depth coverage. In this episode, David reviews Don Juan (or if Don Juan Were a Woman), directed by Roger Vadim and starring Brigitte Bardot. The film streams on the Criterion Channel as part of their permanent collection.

EPISODE LINKS:

ROGER VADIM

• The Criterion Collection
• The Criterion Channel
• Wikipedia
• Letterboxd
• The Guardian (obituary)
• New York Times (obituary)

BRIGITTE BARDOT

• The Criterion Collection
• The Criterion Channel
• Wikipedia
• Letterboxd
• Brigitte-Bardot.fr (Official)
• Getty Images
• New Wave Film
• Vogue

DON JUAN (OR IF DON JUAN WERE A WOMAN)

• The Criterion Channel
• Wikipedia
• Letterboxd
• JustWatch
• AV Club
• The Critical Eye
• DVD Savant (2009)
• DVD Talk (2001)
• DVD Talk (2009)
• Flipside Movie Emporium
• The Spinning Image
• This Island Rod

PREVIOUSLY:

THE GAME OF CLONES

UP NEXT:

LOVE AND ANARCHY

MORE!

• Criterion Reflections blog (1922 – 1967)
• Criterion Reflections columns on CriterionCast (1968)
• The Eclipse Viewer
• A Journey Through the Eclipse Series

CONTACT:

• David Blakeslee [ YouTube / TikTok / Website / Facebook / Letterboxd ]

This special episode of the podcast steps away from the usual coverage of films with a Criterion connection to discuss The Game of Clones: Bruceploitation Collection Vol. 1, a recently released box set from Severin Films. The set includes the 2023 documentary Enter the Clones of Bruce, plus 12 (or 14) more martial arts films originally released between 1973-1985 that all feature one or more of the actors who were cast for both their fighting prowess and their physical resemblance to Bruce Lee, whose death in 1973 created a void that these movies sought to fill. This episode features a conversation between host David Blakeslee and Michael Worth, who is featured prominently throughout the box set as he gives brief video introductions to each film, provides several commentary tracks, and written essays in the lavishly illustrated booklet that includes dozens of archival posters from his personal collection. Michael’s decades-long enthusiasm for these films was a major factor in pulling this project together and its publication is nothing less than the realization of a dream. David also has an appearance in the set as he provided a commentary track for Cameroon Connection (1985) starring Bruce Le. Listen in as Michael and David fill you in on how this collection of rare and long-neglected films was assembled, Michael’s experiences as he tracked down film elements and creative contributors from all around the world, and how Enter the Clones of Bruce, the documentary he helped to produce, was received during its run through the festival circuit since it premiered in late 2023.

LINKS:

• Severin Films (official site, and only source for the full edition featuring an 8th bonus disc!)
• The Bruceploitation Blog
• The Bruceploitation Bible (Facebook page)
• The Clones Cast (hosted by Michael Worth and Matthew Whitaker)

REVIEWS:

• Blu-ray.com
• Dead Pit Radio (YouTube)
• The Fanatical Dragon (YouTube)
• Fu for Thought (YouTube)
• Martial Arts Theater (YouTube)
• Reddit
• Rock! Shock! Pop! Part 1 / Part 2 / Part 3 / Part 4

PREVIOUSLY:

CHARLOTTE’S WEB

NEXT:

DON JUAN (OR IF DON JUAN WERE A WOMAN)

MORE!

• Criterion Reflections blog (1922 – 1967)
• Criterion Reflections columns on CriterionCast (1968)
• The Eclipse Viewer
• A Journey Through the Eclipse Series

CONTACT US:

• David Blakeslee [ Website / TikTok / Facebook / Letterboxd / Instagram/ Twitter ]
• Michael Worth [ Twitter / Instagram / The Pearl River Collection / The Bruceploitation Blog ]

Criterion Reflections is David Blakeslee’s ongoing project to watch all of the films included in the Criterion Collection in chronological order of their original release. Each episode of Season 5: 1973 features a short video clip in which David offers a few thoughts about films that were destined to eventually bear the Criterion imprint, whether published on physical media or made available on their streaming platform. These clips will occasionally be accompanied by lengthier podcast episodes including other guests for films that call for more in-depth coverage. In this episode, David is joined by Robert Cioffi to discuss Charlotte’s Web, directed by Charles Nichols and Iwao Takamoto. In 2020, the film streamed on the Criterion Channel in a limited engagement and is currently available on Blu-ray and DVD and through numerous streaming services.

EPISODE LINKS:

HANNA-BARBERA PRODUCTIONS

• Wikipedia
• Letterboxd
• Cartoon Network Wiki
• Hanna-Barbera Wiki
• Illustration History

CHARLOTTE’S WEB (film)

• The Criterion Channel
• Wikipedia
• Letterboxd
• JustWatch
• Pittsburgh Press (1973)
• New York Times (1973)
• Village Voice (February 1973)
• Village Voice (March 1973)
• Common Sense Media
• Derek Winnert
• Every 70s Movie
• Moria
• The Spinning Image
• Spirituality & Practice
• Tips from Chip

CHARLOTTE’S WEB (book)

• Harper Collins
• Clever Academy (Original Text PDF)
• Wikipedia
• New York Times (1952)
• The New Yorker (1999)

PREVIOUSLY:

THE HARDER THEY COME

UP NEXT:

SPECIAL EPISODE – THE GAME OF CLONES

MORE!

• Criterion Reflections blog (1922 – 1967)
• Criterion Reflections columns on CriterionCast (1968)
• The Eclipse Viewer
• A Journey Through the Eclipse Series

CONTACT:

• David Blakeslee [ YouTube / TikTok / Website / Facebook / Letterboxd ]
• Robert Cioffi [ Facebook ]

Criterion Reflections is David Blakeslee’s ongoing project to watch all of the films included in the Criterion Collection in chronological order of their original release. Each episode of Season 5: 1973 features a short video clip in which David offers a few thoughts about films that were destined to eventually bear the Criterion imprint, whether published on physical media or made available on their streaming platform. These clips will occasionally be accompanied by lengthier podcast episodes including other guests for films that call for more in-depth coverage. In this episode, David is joined by Richard Doyle, Josh Hornbeck, Brad McDermott, and James Merritt to discuss The Harder They Come, directed by Perry Henzell. In 2000, the Criterion Collection published the film on DVD as Spine 83. It is currently streaming on the Criterion Channel and available on Blu-ray and DVD in editions published by Shout! Factory.

EPISODE LINKS:

PERRY HENZELL

• Wikipedia
• Letterboxd
• Caribbean Beat
• Jakes Hotel
• Jamaicans.com
• RastaStudio
• ReggaeZine
• The Guardian (obituary)
• New York Times (obituary)

THE HARDER THEY COME

• The Criterion Collection
• The Criterion Channel
• Shout! Factory
• Wikipedia
• Letterboxd
• JustWatch
• Boston Phoenix (1973)
• New York Times (1973)
• Roger Ebert (1973)
• Variety (1972)
• Cinepassion
• Cole Smithey
• Criterion Confessions
• Criterion Contraption
• Every 70s Movie
• Fanboy Nation
• Midnight Only
• Rock! Shock! Pop!
• Salon
• San Francisco Chronicle
• Slant
• Spinning Image
• TCM

PREVIOUSLY:

BLACK CAESAR

UP NEXT:

CHARLOTTE’S WEB

MORE!

• Criterion Reflections blog (1922 – 1967)
• Criterion Reflections columns on CriterionCast (1968)
• The Eclipse Viewer
• A Journey Through the Eclipse Series

CONTACT:

• David Blakeslee [ YouTube / TikTok / Website / Facebook / Letterboxd ]
• Richard Doyle [ Letterboxd ]
• Josh Hornbeck [Website / Twitter / Instagram / Letterboxd ]
• Brad McDermott [ Instagram / Letterboxd / Gallery ]
• James Merritt [ YouTube / Instagram / X ]

Criterion Reflections is David Blakeslee’s ongoing project to watch all of the films included in the Criterion Collection in chronological order of their original release. Each episode of Season 5: 1973 features a short video clip in which David offers a few thoughts about films that were destined to eventually bear the Criterion imprint, whether published on physical media or made available on their streaming platform. These clips will occasionally be accompanied by lengthier podcast episodes including other guests for films that call for more in-depth coverage. In this episode, David is joined by Richard Doyle and James Merritt to discuss Black Caesar, directed by Larry Cohen. In 2022, the film streamed on the Criterion Channel in a limited engagement and is currently available on Blu-ray and DVD in editions published by Olive Films and through numerous streaming services.

EPISODE LINKS:

LARRY COHEN

• Wikipedia
• Letterboxd
• JustWatch
• Larry Cohen Filmmaker (official)
• Greasy Kid Stuff
• The Ringer
• Hollywood Reporter (obituary)

BLACK CAESAR

• Wikipedia
• Letterboxd
• JustWatch
• Boston Phoenix (1973)
• New York Times (1973)
• Pittsburgh Press (1973)
• Village Voice (1973)
• 1000 Misspent Hours
• 2500 Movies Challenge
• Attack of the 50 Ft. DVD!
• Blood Brothers Films
• Cinepassion
• Classic Film & TV Café
• The Devil’s Reviews
• DVD Drive-In
• DVD Talk
• Every 70s Movie
• Expelled Grey Matter
• Lessons of Darkness
• Misan[trope]y
• Obsessive Movie Nerd
• Q Network
• Dennis Schwarz
• Shameless Self Expression
• The Spinning Image
• World Film Geek

PREVIOUSLY:

WATTSTAX

UP NEXT:

THE HARDER THEY COME

MORE!

• Criterion Reflections blog (1922 – 1967)
• Criterion Reflections columns on CriterionCast (1968)
• The Eclipse Viewer
• A Journey Through the Eclipse Series

CONTACT:

• David Blakeslee [ YouTube / TikTok / Website / Facebook / Letterboxd ]
• Richard Doyle [ Letterboxd ]
• James Merritt [ YouTube / Instagram / X ]

Criterion Reflections is David Blakeslee’s ongoing project to watch all of the films included in the Criterion Collection in chronological order of their original release. Each episode of Season 5: 1973 features a short video clip in which David offers a few thoughts about films that were destined to eventually bear the Criterion imprint, whether published on physical media or made available on their streaming platform. These clips will occasionally be accompanied by lengthier podcast episodes including other guests for films that call for more in-depth coverage. In this episode, David is joined by guests Richard Doyle and James Merritt to discuss Wattstax, directed by Mel Stuart. In 2022, the film streamed on the Criterion Channel in a limited engagement and is currently available on DVD through Warner Archive and numerous streaming services.

EPISODE LINKS:

MEL STUART

• Wikipedia
• Letterboxd
• JustWatch
• Directors Guild of America
• International Documentary Association
• The Guardian (obituary)

WATTSTAX

• Wikipedia
• Letterboxd
• Los Angeles Times (1973)
• New York Times (1973)
• AV Club
• DVD Talk
• Every 70s Movie
• The Guardian
• MonsterMovieMusic
• New Directions in Music
• Panorama of the Mountains
• Public Transportation Snob
• Shameless Self Expression
• The Spinning Image
• Martin Teller
• Shaun Watson

PREVIOUSLY:

THE BOSS

UP NEXT:

BLACK CAESAR

MORE!

• Criterion Reflections blog (1922 – 1967)
• Criterion Reflections columns on CriterionCast (1968)
• The Eclipse Viewer
• A Journey Through the Eclipse Series

CONTACT:

• David Blakeslee [ TikTok / Website / Facebook / Letterboxd ]
• Richard Doyle [ Letterboxd ]
• James Merritt [ YouTube / Instagram / X ]

Criterion Reflections is David Blakeslee’s ongoing project to watch all of the films included in the Criterion Collection in chronological order of their original release. Each episode of Season 5: 1973 features a short video clip in which David offers a few thoughts about films that were destined to eventually bear the Criterion imprint, whether published on physical media or made available on their streaming platform. These clips will occasionally be accompanied by lengthier podcast episodes including other guests for films that call for more in-depth coverage. In this episode, David discusses The Boss, directed by Fernando Di Leo. In early 2023, the film streamed on the Criterion Channel in a limited engagement and is currently available on Blu-ray through Raro Video in partnership with KinoLorber. The video clip below was recorded in ??? 2024, and the supplemental podcast episode was recorded in ??? 2024 with guest Richard Doyle.

EPISODE LINKS:

FERNANDO DI LEO

• The Criterion Collection
• The Criterion Channel
• Kanopy
• Wikipedia
• Letterboxd
• Collider
• Film Comment
• New York Times
• Parallax View
• Rock! Shock! Pop!
• ScreenAnarchy
• Slant

THE BOSS

• Kino Lorber/Raro Video
• Wikipedia
• Letterboxd
• 10K Bullets
• Alex on Film
• Cinematic Revelations
• Comeuppance Reviews
• Confluence of Cult
• Keith and the Movies

POLIZIOTTESCHI

• Wikipedia
• Letterboxd
• CrimeReads
• Film Lifestyle
• Furious Cinema
• Grindhouse Cinema Database
• IndieWire
• Little White Lies
• Multiglom
• Perisphere
• Strange Vice

PREVIOUSLY:

LUDWIG

UP NEXT:

WATTSTAX

MORE!

• Criterion Reflections blog (1922 – 1967)
• Criterion Reflections columns on CriterionCast (1968)
• The Eclipse Viewer
• A Journey Through the Eclipse Series

CONTACT:

• David Blakeslee [ TikTok / Website / Facebook / Letterboxd ]
• Richard Doyle [ Letterboxd ]

Criterion Reflections is David Blakeslee’s ongoing project to watch all of the films included in the Criterion Collection in chronological order of their original release. Each episode of Season 5: 1973 features a short video clip in which David offers a few thoughts about films that were destined to eventually bear the Criterion imprint, whether published on physical media or made available on their streaming platform. These clips will occasionally be accompanied by lengthier podcast episodes including other guests for films that call for more in-depth coverage. In this episode, David discusses Ludwig, directed by Luchino Visconti. In 2022, the film streamed on the Criterion Channel in a limited engagement and is currently available on Blu-ray through Arrow Video. The video clip below was recorded in January 2024, and the supplemental podcast episode was recorded in February 2024 with guest Brad McDermott.

EPISODE LINKS:

LUCHINO VISCONTI

• The Criterion Collection
• The Criterion Channel
• Wikipedia
• Letterboxd
• BFI – Where to Begin with Luchino Visconti
• IndieWire
• New York Times
• Senses of Cinema
• TIFF
• TSPDT

LUDWIG

• Arrow Video
• Wikipedia
• Letterboxd
• Boston Phoenix (1973)
• Cleveland Press (1973)
• New York Times (1973)
• Pittsburgh Press (1973)
• Roger Ebert (1973)
• Village Voice (1973)
• Arts Journal
• Criterion Confessions
• Derek Winnert
• Eternality Tan
• Film Comment
• French Films
• Good Efficient Butchery
• Movie Steve
• Rock! Shock! Pop!
• Slant
• The Spinning Image
• Village Voice (2017)
• The Wee Review
• Werk.re

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THE AGE OF THE MEDICI

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THE BOSS

MORE!

• Criterion Reflections blog (1922 – 1967)
• Criterion Reflections columns on CriterionCast (1968)
• The Eclipse Viewer
• A Journey Through the Eclipse Series

CONTACT:

• David Blakeslee [ TikTok / Website / Facebook / Letterboxd ]
• Brad McDermott [ Instagram / Letterboxd / Gallery ]

Criterion Reflections is David Blakeslee’s ongoing project to watch all of the films included in the Criterion Collection in chronological order of their original release. Each episode of Season 5: 1973 features a short video clip in which David offers a few thoughts about films that were destined to eventually bear the Criterion imprint, whether published on physical media or made available on their streaming platform. These clips will occasionally be accompanied by lengthier podcast episodes including other guests for films that call for more in-depth coverage. In this first episode of Season 5, David discusses The Age of the Medici, directed by Roberto Rossellini. The film is available on DVD in the Criterion Collection’s Eclipse Series and also streams on the Criterion Channel. The video clip below was recorded in January 2024. A segment from a past episode of The Eclipse Viewer featuring David and Trevor Berrett’s discussion of The Age of the Medici recorded in October 2014 is also included here.

This essay is an update of David’s 2011 review of the film published on this site.

Upon winning the Venice Film Festival’s Golden Lion Award in 1959 for Il Generale Della Rovere, the artistically ambitious yet self-deprecating director Roberto Rossellini soon afterwards expressed ambivalence toward that film, despite its indisputable success. It wasn’t too much further along into his career that the great pioneer of Neorealism, after proving that he could crank out a hit movie if he really wanted to, finally turned his back on commercial aspirations, choosing instead to produce films on his own terms that attempted to elevate the consciousness and inform the intellect of his audience, or at least those who chose to make the effort to follow wherever his vision led.

That decision resulted in a radical shift in direction for Rossellini for the final phase of his life’s work. From that point forward, Rossellini focused on films that sought to capture the essential ideas, technological breakthroughs and cultural milestones of centuries long past that continue to wield a powerful influence on our contemporary world. Three of those films are presented to us in Eclipse Series 14: Rossellini’s History Films – Renaissance and Enlightenment. They’re among his last productions, all shot and released in the early 1970s. In this clip, I’ll focus on the longest of the set by taking a pilgrimage in time, back to The Age of the Medici.

If you’re new to these films, here’s what you’re in for: a drily performed, historically detailed and highly literate re-enactment of pivotal episodes in the unfolding of European civilization, especially in regard to the development of the “big ideas” that shaped the modern society we now take for granted. True to the convictions of a man who could state sincerely that “cinema is dead,” Rossellini makes no attempt in these films to stir our emotions through conventional plot devices or hook us in via charismatic personalities, dramatic narrative twists or any of the usual ploys that gratify the crowds. He knew, with supreme confidence, that the subjects of his study were important in their own right, with little need for manipulative embellishments. If that significance was not readily self-evident to members of his audience, he was content to let them go their own way, distracting themselves with their banal entertainments until they were capable of recognizing the value of the hefty substance he placed before them. And if that sounds haughty, arrogant, pretentious to you, then go ahead and stop reading right now. You’re simply not ready to dig into The Age of the Medici, let me be the first to tell you.

Of course, summing up the conflicts of an era as complex and multi-faceted as the emergence of what we now refer to as The Renaissance in 15th century Florence, Italy requires a large canvas, which is why Rossellini delivers this history in a video approximation of one of the favored artistic formats of that era, the triptych. The Age of the Medici is a three-part TV miniseries, each episode focusing our gaze on an important element of a larger story. Part 1, “The Exile of Cosimo,” chronicles the rise of Cosimo de Medici, head of a prominent merchant family whose uncanny business sense enlarged his fortune to the point where he was able to wield massive power and influence, not through the authority of the church or by brandishing the raw military might of monarchs, but through the uniquely persuasive effects of cold hard cash. The series opens with Cosimo attending his father’s funeral, learning the terms of his inheritance, and then swiftly setting in motion the machinations to put that money to work, advancing his personal leverage to steer the course of his own destiny, and in the process, shape the future of European civilization. The Medici were forerunners of today’s ultrarich, able to bend the forces of law, politics, religion, art, culture and even science in ways that favored their ambitions and solidified their grip on power.

Of course, no would-be giant among men makes his way to the top without facing his share of formidable obstacles, and Cosimo found his adversary in Rinaldo degli Albizzi, head of the rival Florentine clan who mistrusted the Medicis’ motives and sought the means to cast them as disreputable, or even criminals, if they could only find appropriately damning evidence to back up their suspicions.

But before we get into a necessarily brief recap of the storyline, a few words are in order about the verisimilitude with which Rossellini captures the spirit of old Florence. As the screencaps show, he had to resort to some creative-but-cheap special effects that some might find cheesy, but I consider admirable. Clearly working on a limited budget, Rossellini had no ability to build suitably convincing replicas of either the Florentine skyline circa 1430 or the several stages of progress achieved in Cosimo’s lifetime on the facade and dome of the Basilica Santa Maria del Fiore. He resorted to hand-painted 2-D mockups that don’t really convince anyone, but they’re brave efforts in any case. Watching the cathedral transition from rough wooden structure to something resembling the ornate extravagance we’ve come to associate with the Renaissance over the course of four and a half hours is one of the small pleasures I enjoyed. And don’t worry, there are more than enough authentic examples of period architecture and costumery to satisfy Renaissance purists. Though Rossellini doesn’t allow his camera to revel in the scenery the way a director like Franco Zeffirelli did, I have no complaints; the settings are often quite wonderful to behold.

A main theme of the series is the slipperiness and malleability of supposedly eternal principles like law and ethics. This dialog-heavy script requires some close listening and even supplemental reading in order to pick up all the nuances it contains. The gist of it though is how increasingly sophisticated (or you could say, hypocritical) the various powers-that-be are forced to become in order to maintain the appearance of respect for ancient religious traditions (for example, the prohibitions against usury) while crafting legal loopholes such as those allowing merchants to operate pawn shops. Those who have agreed to pay a financial penalty and assume the social status of moral reprobates are signified by a red drape on their storefront, in effect given legal permission to break sacred law, reaping tidy profits for both entrepreneurs and the city fathers, and leaving matters of conscience to the individual shopkeepers to sort out for themselves.

Building on such evasive tricks so neatly woven into the emerging economic order, the stage is set to observe how Cosimo maneuvers his way through the legal, religious, and political snares set before him. When his capitalistic instincts lead him to oppose a conflict between Florence and a neighboring city-state (because war is bad for business), he’s scapegoated by the Albizzis after the battle goes poorly and the Florentine forces are routed. Cosimo is summoned to appear before the Signoria, the local council of magistrates, where he faces certain arrest, imprisonment, and possible execution. But Cosimo unwaveringly faces his accusers, intently pursuing a high-stakes experiment to see if his economic clout is able to produce the result he thinks it ought.

And so it turns out that, even within the confines of his lonesome prison cell, Cosimo somehow has the means to arrange for a messenger to visit his captor and drop off a gift, a simple leather bag stuffed with gold coins. And wouldn’t you know, in the very next scene, prisoner and magistrate are seated at the same table, passing knives back and forth to each other, warmly negotiating the terms of a settlement bound to disappoint those who thought they’d seen the last of Cosimo as a free and living man.

It may be worth pointing out that The Age of the Medici was broadcast in 1973, the same year that Francis Ford Coppola released The Godfather. Perhaps it’s no coincidence that the stories of these two prominent Italian families, known for using both legitimate and ruthless means of establishing their fortunes, both came out around the same time? There’s certainly enough of a Mafioso flavor in Cosimo’s smooth criminality to make the mental connection for many viewers, especially in a scene when the word vendetta is used to describe the punishment meted out on a poor soul who broke the code of honor by sharing silk-weaving secrets with others outside their ancient and notoriously secretive guild.

And just as central as economics and politics are to Rossellini’s ideas, so also art figures prominently in the story of the emerging Medici dynasty. Episode 2, “The Power of Cosimo,” depicts his return from exile in Venice, more coldly calculating and relentlessly ambitious after a few years spent plotting his ever-so-respectably applied revenge. Though Cosimo’s not beyond enforcing compliance through the administration of pain, he’d much rather get his point across building sublime monuments and establishing himself as a prominent patron of the arts. And what a time to be in that business, as the Italian Renaissance was about to burst into full bloom. Masaccio’s “Expulsion from Eden” and Donatello’s statue of King David are just two of the famous masterpieces put into historical context, enabling us to see the works as something beyond merely fancy ornaments as they’re often regarded nowadays. The locals respond to them with indignation and confusion, unsettled by innovative, sensual details that call older traditions into question. We’re reminded that progress in the visual arts is not simply an exploration of aesthetic vanities, then or now. Each breakthrough, each shifting perspective in the portrayal of the human figure, carries with it larger implications about how we regard and value life, and how we understand our place in the cosmos.

But before we lose ourselves entirely in ponderous highbrow musings, Rossellini injects moments of visceral brutality to keep our feet firmly planted on the ground. Art, architecture, philosophy, and religion may all seek in their own way to inspire heavenly meditations, but there’s still a dark, dirty, competitive world we each live in that has to be reckoned with as well.

Episode 3 shifts the focus away from Cosimo (though he still plays an important part) and on to another important Renaissance figure, “Leon Battista Alberti: Humanist.” This final installment is the most philosophically dense of the three, and one that I recommend to anyone who’s looking for a well-rounded overview of the mindset of that era. Here Rossellini really indulges his appetite for extended rhetorical exchanges, with characters routinely tossing out profundities and speculations that are worth pausing the film to ponder a bit before proceeding on to the next priceless nugget of insight. Of course, some of the philosophical musings that so preoccupied these men (and this is, for sure, a man’s world on screen; women are almost entirely silent during the scarce moments when they even appear) may not be so relevant for many viewers, but for those whose taste in movies runs toward the cerebral and analytical, I think there’s a lot to chew on here, and it makes these discs very rewatchable if you’re into that sort of thing.

One thing I will add here is that even though the default setting for the DVD and streaming presentations of these films is Italian, there’s absolutely no reason why an English-speaking viewer should watch it with subtitles instead of the dubbed English audio track, unless you just enjoy the sound of people speaking the language native to that setting. The program was originally filmed in English, in the hopes that it could be sold to a forerunner of today’s PBS TV network. That plan fell through, so they dubbed an Italian language track over the top, and then re-dubbed an English track later on when it eventually was picked up for American distribution. The net effect is that the English dub actually syncs better with the actors’ mouths than the Italian does. The subtitles really only help if you need them to follow the progression of the dialog. Unfortunately, the streaming version only includes the Italian audio track, so if you want to hear the film in English, you’ll have to get access to the Eclipse Series DVDs.

So yeah, these late Rossellini’s are definitely not among the thrillingest, sexiest, awesomest offerings to be found either in the Eclipse Series or on the Criterion Channel, there’s no arguing that. But they do serve as important and unique specimens of what film can accomplish and preserve for the sake of a small but appreciative audience. Maybe even more significantly, they represent a lost utopian possibility for what one visionary director hoped the medium of television could become. Rossellini’s desire to provide solid, historically informed visualizations of defining moments in our cultural heritage, without either the dumbing down of content or the hyping up of conventional potboiler gimmicks deemed necessary to win a mass audience, hasn’t shown itself to be all that commercially viable. It’s fair to speculate that if Rossellini himself hadn’t established his reputation so profoundly in the 1940s and 50s, films like those he made in the late 60s and 70s might not even be revisited today. Still, watching The Age of the Medici makes me mourn just a bit for the wasted potential of commercial cable TV and what an entity like the History Channel might have become, if had we more directors of Rossellini’s singular integrity and intelligence working behind the cameras.

EPISODE LINKS:

ROBERTO ROSSELLINI

• The Criterion Collection
• The Criterion Channel
• Wikipedia
• Letterboxd
• JustWatch
• Far Out (Beginner’s Guide)
• Senses of Cinema
• TCM
• Through the Clutter (41 films, ranked)
• TSPDT

THE AGE OF THE MEDICI

• The Criterion Collection
• The Criterion Channel
• Wikipedia
• Letterboxd
• New York Times (1979)
• Cinepassion
• Criterion Confessions
• Dennis Grunes
• Dennis Schwarz
• DVD Talk
• What I Watched Last Night

PREVIOUSLY:

Intro to Season 5

UP NEXT:

LUDWIG

MORE!

• Criterion Reflections blog (1922 – 1967)
• Criterion Reflections columns on CriterionCast (1968)
• The Eclipse Viewer
• A Journey Through the Eclipse Series

CONTACT:

• David Blakeslee [ TikTok / Website / Facebook / Letterboxd ]

After six years as a podcast, preceded by eight years as a blog, my long-running project Criterion Reflections once again takes a new turn to become… a short form video clip YouTube kind of thing! After I wrapped up my coverage of Criterion-connected films of 1972 in Season 4 of my podcast last year, I felt another change was in order, just to keep it fresh and make sure it stays fun. Of course I continue to enjoy making podcasts, drawing great satisfaction from digitally capturing a lively and smart conversation about film with my friends that I can share with other friends and even revisit myself somewhere down the road. But this 10 minute video offers an explanation of my reasons and a preview of some of the movies I’ll be watching in the months ahead as I investigate the best that cinema had to offer the world in 1973.

FILMS MENTIONED:

• The Age of the Medici
• Ludwig
• The Harder They Come
• Godzilla vs. Megalon
• Come On Children
• Shall We Go to Your Place or My Place or Each Go Home Alone?
• Scenes from a Marriage
• Zatoichi’s Conspiracy
• Visions of Eight
• Day for Night
• Fantastic Planet
• The Holy Mountain
• The Friends of Eddie Coyle
• A River Called Titas
• Enter the Dragon / Bruce Lee: The Man and the Legend
• Touki Bouki
• F for Fake
• Dry Wood / Hot Pepper
• Mean Streets
• The Spirit of the Beehive
• Don’t Look Now
• Badlands
• World on a Wire
• Flesh for Frankenstein
• Lady Snowblood
• Amarcord

Besides the titles listed above, I plan to include quite a few others that currently stream on the Criterion Channel and maybe a few others that the Channel featured in the past. I look forward to continued exploration and hope you’re able to check in with me here from time to time to see and hear my latest progress report!

PREVIOUSLY:

STATE OF SIEGE

NEXT:

THE AGE OF THE MEDICI

CONTACT US:

• David Blakeslee [ TikTok / Website / Facebook / Letterboxd ]

In our annual episode focusing on The Criterion Collection’s releases from the past year – and there’s a lot to celebrate – we’ve assembled a panel of CriterionCast regulars to share our favorite releases of 2023. David Blakeslee from Criterion Reflections hosts this discussion, which also includes Aaron West (CineJourneys), Josh Hornbeck (Criterion Channel Surfing), and longtime site contributors Jordan Essoe and Brad McDermott.

Subscribe to the podcast via RSS or in iTunes

Episode Notes

Jordan’s List

• Favorite Cover/Packaging: Thelma & Louise by Sam Hadley
• Favorite Releases
  1. Godland
  2. The Eight Mountains
  3. No Bears

Aaron’s List

• Favorite Cover/Packaging: Tod Browning’s Sideshow Shockers by Raphael Geroni
• Favorite Releases
  1. After Hours
  2. Inland Empire
  3. One False Move

Brad’s List

• Favorite Cover/Packaging: The Adventures of Baron Munchausen by Abigail Giuseppe
• Favorite Releases
  1. The Trial
  2. Pasolini 101
  3. The Watermelon Woman

Josh’s List

• Favorite Cover/Packaging: Pasolini 101 by Eric Skillman
• Favorite Releases
  1. Small Axe
  2. Two Films by Marguerite Duras
  3. This is Not a Burial, It’s a Resurrection

David’s List

• Favorite Cover/Packaging: Lars von Trier’s Europe Trilogy by Fred Davis
• Favorite Releases
  1. Pasolini 101
  2. The Ranown Westerns
  3. The Red Balloon and Other Stories

Episode Credits

• Jordan Essoe ( Website / Oregon Arts / Instagram )
• Aaron West ( CineJourneys / Substack )
• Brad McDermott ( Instagram / Letterboxd / Gallery)
• Josh Hornbeck ( Website | Twitter | Instagram | Letterboxd )
• David Blakeslee ( TikTok / Website / Facebook / Letterboxd )

Past Favorites of the Year Episodes

• Episode 214 – Criterion Collection Favorites of 2022
• Episode 213 – Criterion Collection Favorites of 2021
• Episode 212 – Criterion Collection Favorites of 2020
• Episode 202 – Criterion Collection Favorites of 2019
• Episode 195 – Criterion Collection Favorites of 2018
• Episode 189: Criterion Collection Favorites of 2017
• Episode 180: Criterion Collection Favorites of 2016
• Episode 167: Criterion Collection Favorites of 2015
• Episode 152: Our Favorite Criterion Collection Releases from 2014
• Episode 145: Our Favorite Criterion Collection Releases from 2013
• Episode 135: Favorite Criterion Collection Releases of 2012
• Episode 108: Our Favorite Criterion Collection Releases of 2011
• Episode 63.5: Top Criterion Collection Releases of 2010

Critic and YouTube creator Celeste de la Cabra joins Josh for a journey into the Criterion Channel’s permanent, streaming-only library, and conclude their conversation about the films of Japanese filmmaker and the master of kaiju cinema, Ishirō Honda.

Episode Links

• The Criterion Channel
• The Criterion Channel Club Facebook Group
• Michael Hutchin’s Letterboxd List of Streaming-Only Criterion Titles
• Michael Hutchins’s Letterboxd List of Limited Engagements
• Frankenstein vs. Baragon, Directed by Ishirō Honda
• The War of the Gargantuas, Directed by Ishirō Honda
• Space Amoeba, Directed by Ishirō Honda

Where to Find Us Online

• Celeste de la Cabra: Patreon | YouTube | Letterboxd | Instagram
• Josh Hornbeck: Website | Twitter | Instagram | Letterboxd
• Criterion Channel Surfing: Facebook | Twitter
• Logo by Doug McCambridge: DPM Designs | Good Times, Great Movies | Schitt’s and Giggles | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | Letterboxd

Support the Show

• CriterionCast
• Criterion Channel Surfing
• List of Criterion Channel Surfing Supporters

Criterion Reflections is David Blakeslee’s ongoing project to watch all of the films included in the Criterion Collection in chronological order of their original release. Each episode of this fourth season of the podcast features conversations with a variety of guests offering insights on movies that originally premiered in 1972 and were destined to eventually bear the Criterion imprint. In this, the final episode of Season 4, David is joined by Trevor Berrett and Brad McDermott to discuss State of Siege, directed by Costa-Gavras. The film is available on DVD and Blu-ray from the Criterion Collection and is currently streaming on the Criterion Channel.

Episode Links:

COSTA-GAVRAS

• The Criterion Collection
• The Criterion Channel
• Wikipedia
• Letterboxd
• Directors Guild of America
• DW
• Film Lifestyle
• The Guardian
• Huffpost
• TCM

STATE OF SIEGE

• The Criterion Collection
• The Criterion Channel
• Wikipedia
• Letterboxd
• Boston Phoenix (1973)
• Pittsburgh Press (1973)
• Roger Ebert (1973)
• Vancouver Province (1973)
• Village Voice (4/19/1973)
• Village Voice (4/26/1973)
• Battleship Pretension
• CageyFilms
• Cinepassion
• Eternality Tan
• QNetwork
• Jerry Saravia
• Slant
• Spirituality and Practice

PREVIOUSLY:

CRIES AND WHISPERS

UP NEXT:

INTRO TO SEASON 5

MORE!

• Criterion Reflections blog (1922 – 1967)
• Criterion Reflections columns on CriterionCast (1968)
• The Eclipse Viewer
• A Journey Through the Eclipse Series

CONTACT US:

• David Blakeslee [ TikTok / Website / Facebook / Letterboxd ]
• Trevor Berrett [ Twitter / Website ]
• Brad McDermott [ Website / Letterboxd / Instagram ]

Trevor Berrett and David Blakeslee are pleased to present Inside the Box, a podcast series that explores the riches in the various box sets released by The Criterion Collection. In this episode, they discuss The Complete Jean Vigo. This box set contains the films À propos de Nice (1930), Taris (1988), Zéro de conduite (1933), and L’Atalante (1934).

Even among cinema’s legends, Jean Vigo stands apart. The son of a notorious anarchist, Vigo had a brief but brilliant career making poetic, lightly surrealist films before his life was cut tragically short by tuberculosis at age twenty-nine. Like the daring early works of his contemporaries Jean Cocteau and Luis Buñuel, Vigo’s films refused to play by the rules. This set includes all of Vigo’s titles: À propos de Nice, an absurdist, rhythmic slice of life from the bustling coastal city; Taris, an inventive short portrait of a swimming champion; Zéro de conduite, a radical, delightful tale of boarding-school rebellion that has influenced countless filmmakers; and L’Atalante, widely regarded as one of cinema’s finest achievements, about newlyweds beginning their life together on a canal barge. These are the witty, visually adventurous works of a pivotal film artist.

Episode Links

• The Complete Jean Vigo
  • À propos de Nice (1930)
  • Zéro de conduite (1933)
  • L’Atalante (1934)

• Jean Vigo
  • Wikipedia
  • Far Out Magazine: “The Life and Times of Jean Vigo: The Man Who Influenced the French New Wave,” by Swapnil Dhruv Bose
  • The New York Times: “Jean Vigo: A Short and Ferocious Life,” by Joan Dupont

Episode Credits

• Trevor Berrett (Twitter/Website)
• David Blakeslee (TikTok/Website)

Complete Jean Vigo (Criterion Collection) (Blu-ray)

$27.10

$39.95

in stock

The Complete Jean Vigo [Criterion Collection] [2 Discs] [Blu-ray]

$27.99

The Complete Jean Vigo (A propos de Nice / Taris / Zero de conduite / L'atalante) (The Criterion Collection) [Blu-ray]

$32.28

$39.95

in stock

10 new from $29.78, 3 used from $22.95

Complete Jean Vigo (Criterion Collection)

$32.86

$39.95

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Amazon price updated: April 12, 2026 3:00 pm

Criterion Reflections is David Blakeslee’s ongoing project to watch all of the films included in the Criterion Collection in chronological order of their original release. Each episode of this fourth season of the podcast features conversations with a variety of guests offering insights on movies that originally premiered in 1972 and were destined to eventually bear the Criterion imprint. In this episode, David is joined by Brad McDermott, Derek J. Power, Daniel Humphrey, and first-time guest James Bogdanski to discuss Cries and Whispers, directed by Ingmar Bergman. The film is available on DVD and Blu-ray from the Criterion Collection and is currently streaming on the Criterion Channel.

Episode Links:

INGMAR BERGMAN

• The Criterion Collection
• The Criterion Channel
• IngmarBergman.se (Official)
• Wikipedia
• Letterboxd
• Britannica
• Senses of Cinema
• TCM

CRIES AND WHISPERS

• The Criterion Collection
• The Criterion Channel
• IngmarBergman.se
• Screenplay/Scenario written by Bergman
• Wikipedia
• Letterboxd
• New York Times (1972)
• The New Yorker (1973)
• Pittsburgh Press (1973)
• Roger Ebert (1973)
• Village Voice (1972)
• 1001 Movies
• Alternate Ending
• Basement Rejects
• Bill’s Movie Emporium
• The Criterion Contraption
• Critical Popcorn
• Dennis Schwartz
• Every 70s Movie
• The Film Corner
• The Film Sufi
• Filmotomy
• The Guardian
• History of the Academy Awards
• In Their Own League
• Reel Views
• Roger Ebert (2002)
• Slant
• Sonic Cinema
• Spirituality & Practice
• Through the Shattered Lens

PREVIOUSLY:

DON’T PLAY US CHEAP

UP NEXT:

STATE OF SIEGE

MORE!

• Criterion Reflections blog (1922 – 1967)
• Criterion Reflections columns on CriterionCast (1968)
• The Eclipse Viewer
• A Journey Through the Eclipse Series

CONTACT US:

• David Blakeslee [ TikTok / Website / Facebook / Letterboxd ]
• Brad McDermott [ Website / Letterboxd / Instagram ]
• Derek J. Power [ Website ]
• James Bogdanski [ Facebook / X / Instagram ]
• Daniel Humphrey [ Website / Book: Queer Bergman – Sexuality, Gender, and the European Art Cinema ]

Friend-of-the-show Michael Hutchins returns for a deep dive into the Criterion Channel’s permanent, streaming-only library, and a conversation about three films from Spanish filmmaker Carlos Saura – Cousin Angelica, Elisa, Vida Mía, and Los Ojos Vendados.

Episode Links

• The Criterion Channel
• The Criterion Channel Club Facebook Group
• Michael Hutchin’s Letterboxd List of Streaming-Only Criterion Titles
• Michael Hutchins’s Letterboxd List of Limited Engagements
• Cousin Angelica, Directed by Carlos Saura
• Elisa, Vida Mía, Directed by Carlos Saura
• Los Ojos Vendados, Directed by Carlos Saura

Where to Find Us Online

• Michael Hutchins: Letterboxd
• Josh Hornbeck: Website | Twitter | Instagram | Letterboxd
• Criterion Channel Surfing: Facebook | Twitter | Instagram
• Logo by Doug McCambridge: DPM Designs | Good Times, Great Movies | Schitt’s and Giggles | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | Letterboxd

Support the Show

• CriterionCast
• Criterion Channel Surfing
• List of Criterion Channel Surfing Supporters

Criterion Reflections is David Blakeslee’s ongoing project to watch all of the films included in the Criterion Collection in chronological order of their original release. Each episode of this fourth season of the podcast features conversations with a variety of guests offering insights on movies that originally premiered in 1972 and were destined to eventually bear the Criterion imprint. In this episode, David is joined by Richard Doyle and Aaron Strand to discuss Don’t Play Us Cheap, directed by Melvin Van Peebles. The film was released in the box set Melvin Van Peebles: Essential Films, and is currently streaming on the Criterion Channel.

Episode Links:

MELVIN VAN PEEBLES

• The Criterion Collection
• The Criterion Channel
• Letterboxd
• Wikipedia
• Black Film Archive
• BlackPast
• Directors Guild of America (video interview)
• Film School Rejects
• The History Makers
• Ohio Wesleyan University (MVP’s alma mater)
• Pop Matters
• Red Bull Music Academy (2008 lecture)
• TCM 
• Third Man Books
• Variety – Ten Essential Works 
• New York Times (obituary)
• Behind the Slate (podcast series on Melvin Van Peebles)
• Criterion Reflections Episode 50 – Sweet Sweetback’s Baadassss Song

DON’T PLAY US CHEAP

• The Criterion Collection
• The Criterion Channel
• Wikipedia
• Letterboxd
• Playbill (original Broadway theatrical program)
• AV Club
• Cinepassion
• Department of Afro American Research Arts & Culture
• Every 70s Movie
• National Review
• Pop Matters
• Slant
• Behind the Slate

PREVIOUSLY:

HANZO THE RAZOR

UP NEXT:

CRIES AND WHISPERS

MORE!

• Criterion Reflections blog (1922 – 1967)
• Criterion Reflections columns on CriterionCast (1968)
• The Eclipse Viewer
• A Journey Through the Eclipse Series

CONTACT US:

• David Blakeslee [ TikTok / Website / Facebook / Letterboxd ]
• Richard Doyle [ Letterboxd ]
• Aaron Strand [ Website / Instagram (personal) / TikTok / Podcast / Instagram (podcast) ]

Criterion Reflections is David Blakeslee’s ongoing project to watch all of the films included in the Criterion Collection in chronological order of their original release. Each episode of this fourth season of the podcast features conversations with a variety of guests offering insights on movies that originally premiered in 1972 and were destined to eventually bear the Criterion imprint. In this episode, David is joined by Richard Doyle and David Seeley to discuss three films featuring Hanzo the Razor, all starring Shintaro Katsu, best known for his portrayal of Zatoichi the Blind Swordsman. The films were released between 1972 and 1974, and are currently streaming on the Criterion Channel.

Episode Links:

SHINTARO KATSU

• The Criterion Collection
• The Criterion Channel
• Letterboxd
• Wikipedia
• Cagey Films
• Eastern Kicks

HANZO THE RAZOR

• The Criterion Channel
  • Sword of Justice
  • The Snare
  • Who’s Got the Gold?
• Wikipedia
• Letterboxd
  • Sword of Justice
  • The Snare
  • Who’s Got the Gold?
• Apocalypse Later
• Asian Movie Pulse
• Filmofile’s Hideout
• Grindhouse Database
• Hong Kong Cinema: View from the Brooklyn Bridge
• MyReviewer
• No Name Movie Blog
• Projected Figures
• The Spinning Image
• Toho Kingdom

PREVIOUSLY:

SISTERS

UP NEXT:

DON’T PLAY US CHEAP

MORE!

• Criterion Reflections blog (1922 – 1967)
• Criterion Reflections columns on CriterionCast (1968)
• The Eclipse Viewer
• A Journey Through the Eclipse Series

CONTACT US:

• David Blakeslee [ TikTok / Website / Facebook / Letterboxd ]
• Richard Doyle [ Letterboxd ]
• David Seeley [ FilmSwap Podcast ]

Critic and YouTube creator Celeste de la Cabra joins Josh for a journey into the Criterion Channel’s permanent, streaming-only library, and a conversation about three films from Japanese filmmaker and the master of kaiju cinema, Ishirō Honda.

Episode Links

• The Criterion Channel
• The Criterion Channel Club Facebook Group
• Michael Hutchin’s Letterboxd List of Streaming-Only Criterion Titles
• Michael Hutchins’s Letterboxd List of Limited Engagements
• Matango, Directed by Ishirō Honda
• Atragon, Directed by Ishirō Honda
• Dogora, Directed by Ishirō Honda

Where to Find Us Online

• Celeste de la Cabra: YouTube | Letterboxd | Instagram
• Josh Hornbeck: Website | Twitter | Instagram | Letterboxd
• Criterion Channel Surfing: Facebook | Twitter | Instagram
• Logo by Doug McCambridge: DPM Designs | Good Times, Great Movies | Schitt’s and Giggles | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | Letterboxd

Support the Show

• CriterionCast
• Criterion Channel Surfing
• List of Criterion Channel Surfing Supporters

Friend-of-the-show Michael Hutchins returns for a deep dive into the Criterion Channel’s permanent, streaming-only library, and a conversation about the next three films from Spanish filmmaker Carlos Saura.

Episode Links

• The Criterion Channel
• The Criterion Channel Club Facebook Group
• Michael Hutchin’s Letterboxd List of Streaming-Only Criterion Titles
• Michael Hutchins’s Letterboxd List of Limited Engagements
• Honeycomb, Directed by Carlos Saura
• The Garden of Delights, Directed by Carlos Saura
• Ana and the Wolves, Directed by Carlos Saura

Where to Find Us Online

• Michael Hutchins: Letterboxd
• Josh Hornbeck: Website | Twitter | Instagram | Letterboxd
• Criterion Channel Surfing: Facebook | Twitter | Instagram
• Logo by Doug McCambridge: DPM Designs | Good Times, Great Movies | Schitt’s and Giggles | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | Letterboxd

Support the Show

• CriterionCast
• Criterion Channel Surfing
• List of Criterion Channel Surfing Supporters

Criterion Reflections is David Blakeslee’s ongoing project to watch all of the films included in the Criterion Collection in chronological order of their original release. Each episode of this fourth season of the podcast features conversations with a variety of guests offering insights on movies that originally premiered in 1972 and were destined to eventually bear the Criterion imprint. In this episode, David is joined by first-time guest Robert Baum and Richard Doyle to discuss Sisters, directed by Brian De Palma.

Episode Links:

BRIAN DE PALMA

• The Criterion Collection
• The Criterion Channel
• Letterboxd
• Wikipedia
• Cineaste
• Cinephilia & Beyond
• Film Comment
• FilmDaze
• JustWatch
• MovieWeb
• ScreenRant
• Senses of Cinema
• They Shoot Pictures, Don’t They?

SISTERS

• The Criterion Collection
• The Criterion Channel
• Wikipedia
• Letterboxd
• Boston Phoenix (1973)
• Pittsburgh Press (1973)
• Roger Ebert (1973)
• Roger Ebert (2018)
• Village Voice (1973)
• Cinepassion
• Dennis Schwarz
• Life Between Frames
• Midnight Only
• Reverse Shot
• Rock! Shock! Pop!
• Slant
• Tilt Magazine

PREVIOUSLY:

EIGHT HOURS DON’T MAKE A DAY

UP NEXT:

HANZO THE RAZOR TRILOGY

MORE!

• Criterion Reflections blog (1922 – 1967)
• Criterion Reflections columns on CriterionCast (1968)
• The Eclipse Viewer
• A Journey Through the Eclipse Series

CONTACT US:

• David Blakeslee [ TikTok / Website / Facebook / Letterboxd ]
• Robert Baum [ Letterboxd ]
• Richard Doyle [ Letterboxd ]

Trevor Berrett and David Blakeslee are pleased to present Inside the Box, a podcast series that explores the riches in the various box sets released by The Criterion Collection. In this episode, they discuss The Qatsi Trilogy. This box set contains the films Koyaanisqatsi (1983), Powaqqatsi (1988), and Naqoyqatsi (2002).

A singular artist and activist, Godfrey Reggio is best known for the galvanizing films of The Qatsi Trilogy. Astonishingly photographed, and featuring unforgettable, cascading scores by Philip Glass, these are immersive sensory experiences that meditate on the havoc humankind’s obsession with technological advancement has wreaked on our world. From 1983’s Koyaanisqatsi to 1988’s Powaqqatsi to 2002’s Naqoyqatsi, Reggio takes us on a journey from the ancient to the contemporary, from nature to industry, exploring life out of balance, in transformation, and as war, all the while keeping our eyes wide with wonder.

Episode Links

• • The Qatsi Trilogy
    • Koyaanisqatsi (1983)
    • Powaqqatsi (1988)
    • Naqoyqatsi (2002)
  • Godfrey Reggio
    • Koyaanisqatsi.org
    • Pomegranate Arts
    • Wikipedia

    Episode Credits

    • Trevor Berrett (Twitter/Website)
    • David Blakeslee (TikTok/Website)

Criterion Reflections is David Blakeslee’s ongoing project to watch all of the films included in the Criterion Collection in chronological order of their original release. Each episode of this fourth season of the podcast features conversations with a variety of guests offering insights on movies that originally premiered in 1972 and were destined to eventually bear the Criterion imprint. In this episode, David is joined by Josh Hornbeck, William Remmers, and David Seeley to discuss Eight Hours Don’t Make a Day, directed by Rainer Werner Fassbinder.

Episode Links:

RAINER WERNER FASSBINDER

• The Criterion Collection
• The Criterion Channel
• Letterboxd
• Wikipedia
• JustWatch
• Fassbinder Foundation
• Slate
• TSPDT

Eight Hours Don’t Make a Day

• The Criterion Collection
• The Criterion Channel
• Wikipedia
• Letterboxd
• Fassbinder Foundation
• CriterionCast (2018 Theatrical Review)
• ArtForum
• Cagey Films
• Cinetarium
• DiscDish
• Film Comment
• Film International
• Ion Cinema
• New York Times
• The Mookse and the Gripes
• PopMatters
• Slant
• Village Voice
• World Cinema Review
• World Socialist Website

PREVIOUSLY:

LAST TANGO IN PARIS

UP NEXT:

SISTERS

MORE!

• Criterion Reflections blog (1922 – 1967)
• Criterion Reflections columns on CriterionCast (1968)
• The Eclipse Viewer
• A Journey Through the Eclipse Series

CONTACT US:

• David Blakeslee [ TikTok / Website / Facebook / Letterboxd ]
• Josh Hornbeck [ Website / Instagram / Letterboxd ]
• William Remmers [ Instagram / Letterboxd ]
• David Seeley [ Facebook / Podcast / YouTube ]

Critic and YouTube creator Celeste de la Cabra joins Josh for a journey into the Criterion Channel’s permanent, streaming-only library, and a conversation about three films from Japanese filmmaker and the master of kaiju cinema, Ishirō Honda.

Episode Links

• The Criterion Channel
• The Criterion Channel Club Facebook Group
• Michael Hutchin’s Letterboxd List of Streaming-Only Criterion Titles
• Michael Hutchins’s Letterboxd List of Limited Engagements
• Rodan, Directed by Ishirō Honda
• The Mysterians, Directed by Ishirō Honda
• Varan the Unbelievable, Directed by Ishirō Honda

Where to Find Us Online

• Celeste de la Cabra: YouTube | Letterboxd | Instagram
• Josh Hornbeck: Website | Twitter | Instagram | Letterboxd
• Criterion Channel Surfing: Facebook | Twitter | Instagram
• Logo by Doug McCambridge: DPM Designs | Good Times, Great Movies | Schitt’s and Giggles | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | Letterboxd

Support the Show

• CriterionCast
• Criterion Channel Surfing
• List of Criterion Channel Surfing Supporters

Criterion Reflections is David Blakeslee’s ongoing project to watch all of the films included in the Criterion Collection in chronological order of their original release. Each episode of this fourth season of the podcast features conversations with a variety of guests offering insights on movies that originally premiered in 1972 and were destined to eventually bear the Criterion imprint. In this episode, David is joined by Stephanie Conti, Richard Doyle, and Josh Hornbeck to discuss Last Tango in Paris, directed by Bernardo Bertolucci.

Episode Links:

Bernardo Bertolucci

• The Criterion Collection
• The Criterion Channel
• Wikipedia
• Letterboxd
• Far Out
• Senses of Cinema
• They Shoot Pictures, Don’t They?
• Guardian (obituary)

 Last Tango in Paris

• • The Criterion Collection
  • Wikipedia
  • Letterboxd
  • New Yorker (Pauline Kael, 1972)
  • Roger Ebert (1972)
  • New York Times (1973)
  • Pittsburgh Press (1973)
  • Village Voice (Molly Haskell, 1972)
  • Village Voice (Andrew Sarris, 1973)
  • 1001 Movies
  • A Potpourri of Vestiges
  • Cinepassion
  • Cinesthesia
  • Cole Smithey
  • Dennis Schwarz
  • Derek Winnert
  • Every 70s Movie
  • Film Fanatic
  • Movie Magazine International
  • Scoopy
  • Slant
  • Wide Screenings

PREVIOUSLY:

THE KING OF MARVIN GARDENS

UP NEXT:

EIGHT HOURS DON’T MAKE A DAY

MORE!

• Criterion Reflections blog (1922 – 1967)
• Criterion Reflections columns on CriterionCast (1968)
• The Eclipse Viewer
• A Journey Through the Eclipse Series

CONTACT US:

• David Blakeslee [ TikTok / Website / Facebook / Letterboxd ]
• Stephanie Conti [ Website / YouTube / Instagram / Letterboxd ]
• Josh Hornbeck [ Website / Instagram / Letterboxd ]
• Richard Doyle [ Letterboxd ]

Criterion Reflections is David Blakeslee’s ongoing project to watch all of the films included in the Criterion Collection in chronological order of their original release. Each episode of this fourth season of the podcast features conversations with a variety of guests offering insights on movies that originally premiered in 1972 and were destined to eventually bear the Criterion imprint. In this episode, David is joined by Richard Doyle to discuss The King of Marvin Gardens, directed by Bob Rafelson.

Episode Links:

Bob Rafelson

• BobRafelson.com (Official Site)
• The Criterion Collection
• Wikipedia
• Letterboxd
• American Cinematheque
• Dartmouth Alumni Magazine
• The Guardian
• Hollywood Reporter 
• New York Times
• TCM
• Variety

The King of Marvin Gardens

• The Criterion Collection
• Wikipedia
• Letterboxd
• New York Times (1972)
• Pittsburgh Press (1973)
• Village Voice (1972)
• The Guardian (1999)
• Basement Rejects
• BFI
• Cinematic Revelations
• Cold War Film & Culture
• Dennis Schwarz
• Derek Winnert
• Film Comment
• Filmycks
• Grand Classics
• Spirituality and Practice
• The Stop Button
• Talkhouse
• TCM

Criterion Reflections Reviews of AMERICA LOST AND FOUND: THE BBS STORY

• HEAD
• EASY RIDER
• FIVE EASY PIECES
• DRIVE, HE SAID
• A SAFE PLACE
• THE LAST PICTURE SHOW

PREVIOUSLY:

LOVE IN THE AFTERNOON

UP NEXT:

LAST TANGO IN PARIS

MORE!

• Criterion Reflections blog (1922 – 1967)
• Criterion Reflections columns on CriterionCast (1968)
• The Eclipse Viewer
• A Journey Through the Eclipse Series

CONTACT US:

• David Blakeslee [ TikTok / Website / Facebook / Letterboxd ]
• Richard Doyle [ Letterboxd ]

Trevor Berrett and David Blakeslee are pleased to present Inside the Box, a podcast series that explores the riches in the various box sets released by The Criterion Collection. In this episode, they discuss The Infernal Affairs Trilogy. This box set contains the films Infernal Affairs (2002), Infernal Affairs II (2003), and Infernal Affairs III (2003).

The Hong Kong crime drama was jolted to new life with the release of the Infernal Affairs trilogy, a bracing, explosively stylish critical and commercial triumph that introduced a dazzling level of narrative and thematic complexity to the genre with its gripping saga of two rival moles—played by superstars Tony Leung Chiu-wai and Andy Lau Tak-wah—who navigate slippery moral choices as they move between the intersecting territories of Hong Kong’s police force and its criminal underworld. Set during the uncertainty of the city-state’s handover from Britain to China and steeped in Buddhist philosophy, these ingeniously crafted tales of self-deception and betrayal mirror Hong Kong’s own fractured identity and the psychic schisms of life in a postcolonial purgatory.

Episode Links

• • The Infernal Affairs Trilogy
    • Infernal Affairs (2002)
    • Infernal Affairs II (2003)
    • Infernal Affairs III (2003)

Episode Credits

• Trevor Berrett (Twitter/Website)
• David Blakeslee (TikTok/Website)

The Infernal Affairs Trilogy (The Criterion Collection) [Infernal Affairs/Infernal Affairs II/Infernal Affairs III] [Blu-ray]

$64.99

$99.95

in stock

9 new from $64.99, 1 used from $72.76

Amazon price updated: April 12, 2026 2:50 pm

Friend-of-the-show Michael Hutchins returns for a deep dive into the Criterion Channel’s permanent, streaming-only library, and a conversation about three films from Spanish filmmaker Carlos Saura.

Please note: This conversation was recorded several weeks before Saura’s death and contains out-of-date references to him continuing to work.

Episode Links

• The Criterion Channel
• The Criterion Channel Club Facebook Group
• January New Releases
• Michael Hutchin’s Letterboxd List of Streaming-Only Criterion Titles
• Michael Hutchins’s Letterboxd List of Limited Engagements
• The Hunt, Directed by Carlos Saura
• Peppermint Frappé, Directed by Carlos Saura
• Stress Is Three, Directed by Carlos Saura

Where to Find Us Online

• Michael Hutchins: Letterboxd
• Josh Hornbeck: Website | Twitter | Instagram | Letterboxd
• Criterion Channel Surfing: Facebook | Twitter | Instagram
• Logo by Doug McCambridge: DPM Designs | Good Times, Great Movies | Schitt’s and Giggles | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | Letterboxd

Support the Show

• CriterionCast
• Criterion Channel Surfing
• List of Criterion Channel Surfing Supporters

Criterion Reflections is David Blakeslee’s ongoing project to watch all of the films included in the Criterion Collection in chronological order of their original release. Each episode of this fourth season of the podcast features conversations with a variety of guests offering insights on movies that originally premiered in 1972 and were destined to eventually bear the Criterion imprint. In this episode, David is joined by Matthew Gasteier to discuss Love in the Afternoon, directed by Éric Rohmer.

Episode Links:

Éric Rohmer

• The Criterion Collection
• The Criterion Channel
• Wikipedia
• Letterboxd
• Senses of Cinema

Love in the Afternoon

• The Criterion Collection
• The Criterion Channel
• Wikipedia
• Letterboxd
• Boston Phoenix (1972)
• New York Times (1972)
• Roger Ebert (1972)
• Village Voice (1972)
• Cinepassion
• Spirituality & Practice
• Steemit
• Yellow Barrel

Six Moral Tales (links to David’s earlier reviews)

• THE BAKERY GIRL OF MONCEAU
• SUZANNE’S CAREER
• LA COLLECTIONNEUSE
• MY NIGHT AT MAUD’S (1)
• MY NIGHT AT MAUD’S (2)
• CLAIRE’S KNEE

PREVIOUSLY:

THE DISCREET CHARM OF THE BOURGEOISIE

UP NEXT:

THE KING OF MARVIN GARDENS

MORE!

• Criterion Reflections blog (1922 – 1967)
• Criterion Reflections columns on CriterionCast (1968)
• The Eclipse Viewer
• A Journey Through the Eclipse Series

CONTACT US:

• David Blakeslee [ TikTok / Website / Facebook / Letterboxd ]
• Matthew Gasteier [ The Complete Podcast ]

This episode features a conversation between site contributor David Blakeslee, host of Criterion Reflections, and Cyberexboyfriend, a social media creator who’s active on TikTok, YouTube and other sites. Their discussion continues a dialogue that began on TikTok in December 2022 as they shared observations about the Criterion Collection and its influence on establishing the concept of a canon in classic and contemporary cinema. After recapping and expanding on the points they made in their original exchange, their talk branches out to address other topics including the plight and perils of engaging with audiences whose interests and attention spans have been shaped by the very apps we use to forge those connections.

How the Conversation Began:

Cyberexboyfriend’s original post:

@cyberexboyfriend Replying to @jepo893 #greenscreen it’s not about my taste but seeing the scope of cinema beyond post-French new wave European male cinema. I’m still thankful but tf this is getting old #movies #filmtok #criterioncollection #films ♬ original sound – cyberexboyfriend

David’s cordial response:

@dee.ell.bee A cordial response to @cyberexboyfriend’s recent comments about the #CriterionCollection ♬ original sound – David Blakeslee

Cyberexboyfriend’s thoughtful rejoinder:

@cyberexboyfriend #greenscreen @David Blakeslee like I hope this clarifies the crux of what I was getting at and my argument, cause we’re arguing a lot of ideas and principles here, a lot of it can feel like pointing at a film and having someone point at something in response. It’s like Valley of the Dolls vs Beyond The Valley and the relationship both have to film culture at large. There are a lot of levels to this because at the end of the day we will never know, why or why not something was included but I know in my heart of hearts this doesn’t just come down to “my taste” or “rights.” Yes I know they are not the only game in town but at the same time it’s about more than that. I know in a perfect world we can’t have everything but I also feel like I get kinda shut down when I bring this up. Idk this isn’t a fun conversation to have and there’s a lot of weight, baggage and abstracts a play here. I hope this articulates what I was alluding to better, this isn’t a hyper black or white thing. #criterion #response #filmtok #stich #blacktiktok ♬ original sound – cyberexboyfriend

David’s considerate reply:

@dee.ell.bee I’m enjoying this exchange with @cyberexboyfriend so I hope you don’t mind if I go on a bit further with it #criterioncollection #filmcanon #inclusion #gatekeeping ♬ original sound – David Blakeslee

…and from there we got on Skype to talk it through some more and made a plan to record this podcast. We hope you enjoy listening in! Please follow, like, share, and subscribe!

CONTACT US:

• David Blakeslee [ TikTok / Website / Facebook / Letterboxd ]
• Cyberexboyfriend [ TikTok / YouTube / Polaroid Radio / Cardd ]

We are still back and still a little behind. Our guest was Dave Eves. He and Jill share their favorite Criterions of 2022. We also talk about February and March 2023 announcements, as well as immediate reactions to the Sight & Sound 100 list. With the upcoming announcements, we took a deep dive into Romeo and Juliet and the impacts of the lawsuit filed by the young stars. 

Episode Links

Romeo and Juliet: Olivia Hussey and Leonard Whiting sue over 1968 film’s ‘sexual abuse’
BFI’s Sight and Sound poll results

Criterion Reflections is David Blakeslee’s ongoing project to watch all of the films included in the Criterion Collection in chronological order of their original release. Each episode of this fourth season of the podcast features conversations with a variety of guests offering insights on movies that originally premiered in 1972 and were destined to eventually bear the Criterion imprint. In this episode, David is joined by Derek J. Power, Travis Trudell, Brad McDermott and Dave Eves to discuss The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie, directed by Luis Buñuel.

Episode Links:

Luis Buñuel

• The Criterion Collection
• The Criterion Channel
• Wikipedia
• Letterboxd
• The Art Story
• Far Out
• Film Comment
• Roger Ebert
• Senses of Cinema
• TCM
• Wrong Reel (podcast episode with guest Dave Eves)
• New York Times (obituary)

The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie

• The Criterion Collection
• Wikipedia
• Letterboxd
• New York Times (1972)
• New York Times (2022)
• Pittsburgh Press (1973)
• Roger Ebert (1972)
• Village Voice (1972)
• Criterion Confessions
• The Criterion Contraption
• Dennis Schwarz
• Every 70s Movie
• The Guardian
• Images Film Journal
• Moria
• Parallax View
• The Pink Smoke
• The Reprobate
• SFGate
• Slant
• Spirituality & Practice
• The Stop Button
• Inside the Box – Episode 9 – Three Films by Luis Buñuel

PREVIOUSLY:

SOUNDER

UP NEXT:

LOVE IN THE AFTERNOON

MORE!

• Criterion Reflections blog (1922 – 1967)
• Criterion Reflections columns on CriterionCast (1968)
• The Eclipse Viewer
• A Journey Through the Eclipse Series

CONTACT US:

• David Blakeslee [ TikTok / Website / Facebook / Letterboxd ]
• Dave Eves [ Twitter ]
• Brad McDermott [ Website / Letterboxd / Instagram ]
• Derek J. Power [ Website ]
• Travis Trudell [ The Complete Podcast ]

Criterion Channel Surfing is back from hiatus with its first episode of 2023! Friend-of-the-show Michael Hutchins joins our host, Josh Hornbeck, for a conversation about the Criterion Channel’s new additions for January 2023.

Episode Links

• The Criterion Channel
• The Criterion Channel Club Facebook Group
• January New Releases
• Michael Hutchin’s Letterboxd List of Streaming-Only Criterion Titles
• Michael Hutchins’s Letterboxd List of Limited Engagements

Where to Find Us Online

• Michael Hutchins: Letterboxd
• Josh Hornbeck: Website | Twitter | Instagram | Letterboxd
• Criterion Channel Surfing: Facebook | Twitter | Instagram
• Logo by Doug McCambridge: DPM Designs | Good Times, Great Movies | Schitt’s and Giggles | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | Letterboxd

Support the Show

• CriterionCast
• Criterion Channel Surfing
• List of Criterion Channel Surfing Supporters

In our annual episode focusing on The Criterion Collection’s releases from the past year – and there’s a lot to celebrate – we’ve assembled a panel of CriterionCast regulars to share our favorite releases of 2022. David Blakeslee from Criterion Reflections hosts this discussion, which also includes Aaron West (Criterion Now), Josh Hornbeck (Criterion Channel Surfing), and longtime site contributor Jordan Essoe.

Subscribe to the podcast via RSS or in iTunes

Episode Notes

Josh’s List

• Favorite Cover/Packaging: The Celebration by Century.Studio
• Favorite Releases
  1. Time
  2. Faya dayi
  3. Eve’s Bayou

Aaron’s List

• Favorite Cover/Packaging: Eve’s Bayou by Nessim Higson
• Favorite Releases
  1. Malcolm X
  2. The Piano
  3. The Celebration

Jordan’s List

• Favorite Cover/Packaging: Hôtel du Nord by Karolis Strautniekas
• Favorite Releases
  1. Exotica
  2. Adoption
  3. Drive My Car

David’s List

• Favorite Cover/Packaging: Pink Flamingos by Jaxon Northon (interior portrait)
• Favorite Releases
  1. Three Films by Mai Zetterling
  2. The Girl Can’t Help It
  3. Raging Bull

Episode Credits

• Jordan Essoe (Twitter / Website)
• Aaron West (Twitter)
• Josh Hornbeck (Twitter / Website)
• David Blakeslee (TikTok / Website)

Past Favorites of the Year Episodes

• Episode 213 – Criterion Collection Favorites of 2021
• Episode 212 – Criterion Collection Favorites of 2020
• Episode 202 – Criterion Collection Favorites of 2019
• Episode 195 – Criterion Collection Favorites of 2018
• Episode 189: Criterion Collection Favorites of 2017
• Episode 180: Criterion Collection Favorites of 2016
• Episode 167: Criterion Collection Favorites of 2015
• Episode 152: Our Favorite Criterion Collection Releases from 2014
• Episode 145: Our Favorite Criterion Collection Releases from 2013
• Episode 135: Favorite Criterion Collection Releases of 2012
• Episode 108: Our Favorite Criterion Collection Releases of 2011
• Episode 63.5: Top Criterion Collection Releases of 2010