The Class

Jan 29, 2018 — In the latest episode of Observations on Film Art, now playing on the Criterion Channel on FilmStruck, professor Jeff Smith discusses Robert Altman’s playful experimentation with genre in his 1992 film The Player.

Nov 11, 2016 — This week’s Friday Night Double Feature on the Criterion Channel demonstrates how much suspense a superb director can wring from an intriguing premise without resorting to yelling “boo!” or splashing gore.

Nov 8, 2016 — This adaptation of one of the most influential series in manga history is a delirious mix of breathtaking swordplay and pop vulgarity.

Nov 8, 2016 — The Austin-based filmmaking duo chat with us about the influence of Louis Malle and their new short film, which takes inspiration from the director’s Black Moon.

Nov 26, 2001 — Peter Weir’s first film to be released in America insists on the tangible power of spiritual life.

Dec 6, 1987 — Mike Nichols’s treatment of a young man’s initiation into the mysteries of sex at the hands of an older married woman has become a model for this common fantasy.

Mar 24, 2026 — In this true-crime epic, Martin Scorsese combines his career-long exploration of amoral gangsterism with a sobering meditation on what it means to live on American soil.

Mar 6, 2026 — Jonathan Rosenbaum returns to the Reader, there’s a new Cineaste, plus: Hiroshi Shimizu, John Akomfrah, and Robert Vas.

Jan 15, 2026 — SXSW and Slamdance unveil full lineups, and the Berlinale fills out its Forum, Panorama, Generation, and Classics programs.

Nov 18, 2025 — A pre-Code aviation epic that makes pioneering use of the era’s innovations in cinematic color and sound, Howard Hughes’s directorial debut was Hollywood’s first modern portrait of World War I.