Along with the releases of Criterion editions with exclusive supplementary features, there are collections honouring the composer Henry Mancini (Victor/Victoria) and Hollywood legend Myrna Loy. Here are the 7 best films on Criterion Channel Now Streaming.
1. Midnight Run (1988)
Director- Martin Brest
Jonathan “The Duke” Mardukas, a former Mafia accountant who had jumped bail, is the target of bounty hunter Jack Walsh’s assignment. The FBI is a little ashamed when Jack quickly locates The Duke because they had been unsuccessful in finding him. Jack has to take The Duke from New York to Los Angeles in order to collect his $100,000 fee. But Marvin Dorfler, a rival bounty hunter, the FBI, and the Mafia have other plans. The two meet each other and form a curious connection throughout their protracted cross-country journey to LA.
2. Sweet Smell Of Success (1957)
Director- Alexander Mackendrick
When egotistical Broadway columnist J. J. Hunsecker repeatedly ignores him, success-starved publicity agent Sidney Falco is unable to perform his duties. Falco can gain Hunsecker’s favour by doing a special favour: ending the relationship between Susan, Hunsecker’s cherished younger sister, and her boyfriend, hip jazz guitarist Steve Dallas. Sycophant Falco, who is underpaid for his vital services, misleads inferior press representatives until he secures a fantastic story that portrays Dallas as a communist in the grip of a reefer madness. Although the prank doesn’t help Falco’s situation, it does result in a confrontation between Dallas and Hunsecker and a lose-lose situation for Susan. Nobody wins in a city without pity because it’s a nasty, dog-eat-dog world where karma comes around for the weak.
3. The Proposition (2005)
Director- John Hillcoat
Captain Stanley and his men capture Charlie and Mike Burns, two of the three Burns brothers, in rural Australia in the late nineteenth century. They are accused of invading the Hopkins farm, raping Mrs. Hopkins while she was pregnant, and killing the entire family. The gang’s leader and oldest brother, Arthur Burns, is still at large and has taken refuge in a mountain cave. Charlie is offered the chance to kill Arthur within nine days in exchange for a pardon and, more crucially, to prevent the execution of his adored younger brother Mike.
4. Donbass (2018)
Director- Sergei Loznitsa
In the Eastern Ukrainian region of the Donbass, there is a hybrid war that combines open hostilities with widespread gang-perpetrated robberies. War is referred to as love in the Donbass, propaganda is stated as fact, and hatred is referred to as love. It’s not about a particular area, nation, or political structure; rather, it’s about humanity and civilization as a whole. Every single one of us matters.
5. Valley Girl (1983)
Director- Martha Coolidge
Beautiful girl Julie Richman, along with her egotistical lover Tommy, is enmeshed in the extravagant, pink-clad lifestyle of the San Fernando Valley. But during a party, Randy, an edgy Hollywood punk, captures Julie’s attention, and an odd romance begins. Julie is forced to choose between sticking with Tommy and taking a chance with Randy because she is torn between doing what her superficial friends want her to do and embracing a more unconventional lifestyle.
6. We Are The Best! (2013)
Director- Lukas Moodysson
Bobo, a typical 13-year-old student in Stockholm in the early 1980s who lives with her divorced mother, draws inspiration from groups like KSMB and Ebba Grön and rejects the notion that punk music is no longer relevant. The girls decide to form a band, picking up musical instruments for the first time, thanks to the fact that they share a love of music with their classmate Klara and with the assistance of the skilled but reserved eighth-grader Hedvig. However, unexpectedly, what began as a joke will soon become a reality. With a song already in their possession, this ambitious Punk band, driven by young defiance, will reach for the stars without any consideration for what others may think, just because THEY ARE THE BEST.
7. The Wolfpack (2015)
Director- Crystal Moselle
The Angulo brothers, who live alone in a Lower East Side apartment in Manhattan, get knowledge of the outside world from the movies they watch. The brothers, known as “The Wolfpack,” spent their childhood playing out their favourite movies with elaborate handcrafted decorations and costumes. One of the brothers decides to return to the outside world, which upends their entire universe.
These are the movie list you don’t want to miss and we’re excited to update you on upcoming best films on Criterion Channel.
