Jul 30, 2019 — One Scene Though he works in the highly stylized realm of the horror genre, Ari Aster’s acute attention to the fraught dynamics of intimate relationships—evident in his psychologically penetrating new film Midsommar—makes it easy to see how he draws inspiration...

Mar 24, 2011 — Costumer Lindy Hemming began her decades-long collaboration with Mike Leigh at London’s Hampstead Theater Club, where the director, with his now legendary method of extended improvisation, was guiding his company toward what would become, in April 1977, Abigail’s Party. “At...

Mar 28, 2011 — Topsy-Turvy is both an anomaly among the films of Mike Leigh and, contrary as it may seem, a Rosetta stone. On the one hand, it is Leigh’s only costume picture and only biopic—a far cry from the bittersweet, realistic films...

Jan 26, 2011 —

The writer and director talks about how Girlfight reflects the vibrant spirit of director Karyn Kusama, praises Topsy-Turvy as his favorite Mike Leigh film, and takes home Hell’s Angels to watch with his wife, Hollywood historian Karina Longworth.

The award-winning actor, writer, and director shares his love for the hard-boiled voice-over in Blast of Silence, praises the exquisite acting and production design of Topsy-Turvy, and selects favorites by his frequent collaborators Joel and Ethan Coen.

Sep 26, 2013 — “It’s silly to choose ten, but okay!” wrote Donald Fagen, the American songwriter and musician best known as the cofounder and lead singer of Steely Dan, when presented with the task of picking his favorite titles in the Criterion Collection....

Apr 2, 2019 — Mike Leigh’s endless fascination with human behavior is palpable in every one of the films he’s made over the course of his nearly fifty-year career. With an acute sensitivity to rhythm, character, and setting, he extracts extraordinary moments from the...

Jul 17, 2024 — This month, we’re celebrating the expansive, archetype-exploding films of Paul Thomas Anderson, as well as the career of his frequent collaborator Philip Seymour Hoffman.

Jun 12, 2024 — This summer, we’re bringing back one of our favorite seasonal themes with a hard-boiled Neonoir collection. Plus: Pop Shakespeare, Times Square, and Columbia Screwball.