The Criterion Collection

Kiss Me Deadly

Robert Aldrich

David MacDonald: “It's a solid film noir, but it's developed an inexplicable following of fanatic worshippers. Watch "The Big Sleep," dudes.”

3 Women

Robert Altman

Bottle Rocket

Wes Anderson

David MacDonald: “Not my favorite of his by FAR, but it's cool seeing how Wes Anderson got started out. And it is a pretty good movie.”

The Darjeeling Limited

Wes Anderson

David MacDonald: “This is my 2nd favorite Anderson after Royal Tenenbaums. As usual, the writing's great, the directing is picturesque and I love all the main actors.”

Rushmore

Wes Anderson

David MacDonald: “I finally got around to watching this after I'd already seen all of his other movies, but now I think it's my second favorite (Royal Tenenbaums!).”

The Royal Tenenbaums

Wes Anderson

David MacDonald: “My personal favorite Wes Anderson movie; it has the same overwhelming charm of his other work, but with a much bleaker feeling overall.”

Harold and Maude

Hal Ashby

David MacDonald: “Looked it up on Netflix as soon as I heard it was getting released; since then I've been waiting impatiently for the blu-ray. Awesome movie.”

Carlos

Olivier Assayas

A Night to Remember

Roy Ward Baker

David MacDonald: “The best treatment of the Titanic story I've seen, with a great script and cast.”

Eating Raoul

Paul Bartel

David MacDonald: “One of the most twisted, crazy and hilarious comedies ever made, this movie blends social satire with the darkest of dark humor.”

The Seventh Seal

Ingmar Bergman

David MacDonald: “I mean, come on. This movie is to cinema what wheat is to food. It's just a staple of film culture.”

The Magician

Ingmar Bergman

David MacDonald: “Maybe not as good as The Seventh Seal, but it's a great movie, and it was almost entirely ripped off for "The Illusionist."”

Smiles of a Summer Night

Ingmar Bergman

Fanny and Alexander Box Set

Ingmar Bergman

David MacDonald: “Bergman is the MAN.”

Summer Interlude

Ingmar Bergman

David MacDonald: “This was released bare-bones along with a loaded release of Summer with Monika, but I far prefer this one. It's subtler and more heartbreaking.”

Eclipse Series 4: Raymond Bernard

Raymond Bernard

The Last Emperor

Bernardo Bertolucci

David MacDonald: “A beautifully shot cinematic treasure. Every frame is a work of art, and the story itself is bittersweet and gratifying.”

Shallow Grave

Danny Boyle

David MacDonald: “One of the few Criterion movies I saw BEFORE it was in the collection. I've always been a Danny Boyle fan and it's nice to see him represented here.”

By Brakhage: An Anthology, Volumes One and Two

Stan Brakhage

David MacDonald: “Some of the most beautiful and esoteric films ever made; I especially loved Eye Myth, The Garden of Earthly Delights and The Dante Quartet.”

Port of Shadows

Marcel Carné

Les visiteurs du soir

Marcel Carné

David MacDonald: “A beautiful escapist fantasy during the height of the French Occupation. This is my favorite style of French cinema.”

Modern Times

Charlie Chaplin

David MacDonald: “One of my favorite movies of all time. Chaplin is one of the comedy greats, up there with Mel Brooks, the Three Stooges and the Marx Brothers.”

The Great Dictator

Charles Chaplin

David MacDonald: “Not as classic or as funny as Moden Times, but a great Chaplin movie, and one with a heart.”

The Gold Rush

Charles Chaplin

David MacDonald: “Second favorite Chaplin after Modern Times; this movie is just genius.”

Heaven’s Gate

Michael Cimino

David MacDonald: “The last Western masterpiece, an epic story told with unbounded skill and sincerity, and aided by a massive budget and an all-star cast.”

The Wages of Fear

Henri-Georges Clouzot

Beauty and the Beast

Jean Cocteau

David MacDonald: “Cocteau gets a lot of flak for this movie even today, but I found it to be a thoroughly delightful take on the fairy tale with beautiful visuals.”

Repo Man

Alex Cox

David MacDonald: “Repo man is always intense. Come on, let's go do some crimes!”

Fiend Without a Face

Arthur Crabtree

David MacDonald: “A classic, I love these old B horror movies.”

Dead Ringers

David Cronenberg

David MacDonald: “Ahhhh, so good! I've really grown to love Cronenberg, and I hope we'll eventually see more of his films come into the fold.”

Videodrome

David Cronenberg

David MacDonald: “After seeing The Fly, I was like "Dude, I need more Cronenberg. Like, NOW." Then I saw this and I was like "MO-O-O-ORE!!!"”

Cronos

Guillermo del Toro

David MacDonald: “We need more del Toro in the collection.”

The Silence of the Lambs

Jonathan Demme

David MacDonald: “Whenever people whine to me that Criterion only has obscure movies that no one's ever heard of, this is usual the first movie I point to. So classic.”

Something Wild

Jonathan Demme

David MacDonald: “Maybe not the greatest or the most original movie in the world, but it was very fun to watch. You can tell Tarantino watched this movie.”

Charade

Stanley Donen

David MacDonald: “A true classic. Cary Grant; Audrey Hepburn; Henry Mancini... Geniuses at work.”

Pierre Etaix

Pierre Etaix

David MacDonald: “Very happy that they decided to release these films as a Blu-ray box set instead of an Eclipse; they're fantastic movies that deserve our adoration.”

The BRD Trilogy

Rainer Werner Fassbinder

David MacDonald: “I haven't seen the second two yet, but The Marriage of Maria Braun was very engaging, it's really stuck with me since I watched it.”

World on a Wire

Rainer Werner Fassbinder

David MacDonald: “I found this very difficult to get through. Good visuals, but not much else.”

Lonesome

Paul Fejos

David MacDonald: “A short, simple and charming story of young love, told in a unique and visually engrossing way made more impressive by the fact that it's from 1928.”

8½

Federico Fellini

David MacDonald: “Fellini and european surrealism are both somewhat lost on me, but I enjoyed this movie for what it was.”

Amarcord

Federico Fellini

David MacDonald: “This is the only Fellini film I've seen so far, but it makes me want to watch a LOT more.”

The Game

David Fincher

David MacDonald: “Many dislike this movie because they think a movie with a twist should rely solely on that twist, and this defies that idea by being genuinely fun.”

Stagecoach

John Ford

David MacDonald: “I get tired of Westerns very easily, but when I'm in the mood for one, it's either John Wayne or Clint Eastwood every time.”

A Hollis Frampton Odyssey

Hollis Frampton

Shock Corridor

Samuel Fuller

The Naked Kiss

Samuel Fuller

David MacDonald: “I did really enjoy this; it was a good movie. I just... I couldn't get into it as much as some of these other movies. I don't know why...”

Gomorrah

Matteo Garrone

David MacDonald: “A shocking and sobering look into the modern-day Italian underground; I couldn't tear my eyes away.”

Time Bandits

Terry Gilliam

David MacDonald: “The weakest Terry Gilliam movie in the collection, but an awesome movie nonetheless. This is when he still wasn't sure what to do post-Python.”

Brazil

Terry Gilliam

David MacDonald: “I FREAKING LOVE TERRY GILLIAM.”

Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas

Terry Gilliam

David MacDonald: “Finally upgraded to the blu-ray, it's a great transfer and my favorite film in the entire collection, sometimes in the entire world.”

A Woman Is a Woman

Jean-Luc Godard

David MacDonald: “After watching (and loving) Breathless, I decided to start going through Godard in chronological order, so I could follow his train of thought.”

Pierrot le fou

Jean-Luc Godard

David MacDonald: “This movie really grew on me; I didn't like it much at first, but now I really have it stuck in my head. What a great color scheme.”

Vivre sa vie

Jean-Luc Godard

David MacDonald: “The ending made me laugh. It's the only Godard movie I've ever seen with a humorous ending. (EDIT; now I've seen Pierrot le fou).”

Breathless

Jean-Luc Godard

David MacDonald: “Don't need to comment on how great THIS movie is, but I will say that it has the most exhaustive and engaging special features in the collection.”

Weekend

Jean-Luc Godard

David MacDonald: “This movie will make you question your sanity until it finally drives you insane, this making your questioning of said sanity reasonable.”

Three Outlaw Samurai

Hideo Gosha

David MacDonald: “I love samurai movies, and this one is very action/adventure oriented, which I really enjoyed.”

Robinson Crusoe on Mars

Byron Haskin

David MacDonald: “Classic sci-fi. I mean, srsly, giant spaceships, hot alien babes, what-have-you. Well, I guess Friday wasn't really hot, or a babe. Still...”

Two-Lane Blacktop

Monte Hellman

David MacDonald: “Possibly the coolest movie ever made.”

The Harder They Come

Perry Henzell

David MacDonald: “Awesome movie.”

The Lady Vanishes

Alfred Hitchcock

David MacDonald: “I grew up on Hitchcock's American stuff (Mainly "North by Northwest), but he's got some gems from his British period.”