Current

An online magazine covering film culture past and present

“A Radical Democracy of Images”: Mike Mills on His Work Outside of Feature Filmmaking
“A Radical Democracy of Images”: Mike Mills on His Work Outside of Feature Filmmaking

The filmmaker looks back on the experiences that have shaped his creative life, including his time in art school, his work as a graphic designer and music-video director, and his early interest in documentary cinema.

By Kim Hendrickson

The Films of Mike Mills: A Human Space
The Films of Mike Mills: A Human Space

In his fiction features Beginners, 20th Century Women, and C’mon C’mon, the acclaimed director casts a sensitive gaze on the rich psychodynamics of human relationships and the hidden interconnections of our unconscious motivations.

By Joachim Trier

Get Me Out of Here: Harry Dean Stanton in Straight Time
Get Me Out of Here: Harry Dean Stanton in Straight Time

In one of his greatest performances, the celebrated actor shows off his range by fusing the two modes that defined his career: the misanthropic provocateur and the soulful survivor-witness.

By Jonathan Lethem

Cruel Story of Youth: A Blank Generation
Cruel Story of Youth: A Blank Generation

In his second feature film, Nagisa Oshima explores the alienation of young Japanese people and their doomed attempts to assert themselves in a corrupt and increasingly conservative society.

By Chris Fujiwara

The Criterion Channel’s August 2026 Lineup

Channel Calendars

The Criterion Channel’s August 2026 Lineup

Among this month’s highlights are a collection of rock biopics that go beyond cliché to explore the elusive place where inspiration sparks and musical legends are born.

Hud: No Place for Heroes
Hud: No Place for Heroes

A career-altering artistic breakthrough for director Martin Ritt, this dark tale of a family’s downfall daringly exposes the mythology of the western hero as empty and morally bankrupt.

By Gabriel Miller

Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore: At Home in the World
Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore: At Home in the World

Made in close collaboration with its star, Ellen Burstyn, Martin Scorsese’s first film for a major studio is a warm, openhearted portrait of a woman who endeavors a drastic reshaping of her life.

By Stephanie Zacharek

The Crying Game’s Legacy as Transgender Representation
The Crying Game’s Legacy as Transgender Representation

Though it became the subject of cultural hysteria upon its release in 1992, Neil Jordan’s film can be appreciated today as a rare and remarkably nuanced depiction of a cisgender man and a trans woman falling in love.

By Willow Catelyn Maclay

The Crying Game: Identity Crises
The Crying Game: Identity Crises

Neil Jordan achieved major international success with this complex exploration of identity and desire set against the turbulence of the Troubles in Northern Ireland.

By Tasha Robinson

Věra Chytilová’s Boldly Antiauthoritarian Take on Teen Horror

Deep Dives

Věra Chytilová’s Boldly Antiauthoritarian Take on Teen Horror

A characteristically rebellious work from the Czechoslovak New Wave pioneer, Wolf’s Hole explores the perilous absurdities of groupthink through the story of eleven youths held captive at a skiing retreat.

By Grace Byron

Courtney Love Looks Back on Her Life as a Movie Star
Courtney Love Looks Back on Her Life as a Movie Star

The beloved rock musician reflects on her formative experiences as an actor and her close collaborations with directors Miloš Forman and Alex Cox.

By Yasi Salek

It Was Just an Accident: The Humanity of Doubt
It Was Just an Accident: The Humanity of Doubt

Shot clandestinely in Iran in just twenty-five days, Jafar Panahi’s acclaimed eleventh feature is a philosophical examination of political ethics that transforms into a comedy of manners and a psychological thriller.

By Sheida Dayani

Video

Room Tone 2025
On Film  – 25 Dec 2025

Spotlight

Under the Influence

In this ongoing series of videos, contemporary filmmakers talk to us about the movies that have had a lasting impact on their work.