The Criterion Collection
Essays
Jul 11, 1988 — Cinema has given us any number of tales of the criminal underworld, and explorations of the mindsets of murderers—yet there’s been nothing quite like Shohei Imamura’s searing work.
Sneak Peeks
Aug 27, 2014 — In this excerpt from a 1999 interview produced by the Directors Guild of Japan, director Shohei Imamura talks about the personal investigative approach he took to making the 1979 serial killer drama Vengeance Is Mine, for which he viewed himself...
Aug 26, 2014 — Define the Japanese New Wave however you like—there are innumerable possible launching points, and the name players in the fifties and sixties were old and young and in between—but from any juncture, Shohei Imamura was a primary figure and, at...
Aug 28, 2025 — Made for public television, this moving vérité documentary about three terminally ill cancer patients is one of the purest expressions of the director’s career-long preoccupation with human fragility.
On the Channel
Aug 19, 2026 — This month’s highlights include a retrospective dedicated to the always-provocative Abel Ferrara, the classic series Neon Genesis Evangelion, and a collection of high-energy tales of female rockers.
On the Channel
Jul 17, 2025 — Among this month’s highlights are a spotlight on ’90s soundtracks, a celebration of Hong Kong icon Sammo Hung, and a retrospective of the work of Spanish auteur Bigas Luna.
On the Channel
Apr 17, 2024 — Three of this month’s programs blast back to the turbulent midcentury moment when old Hollywood gave way to something new.
On the Channel
Sep 29, 2021 — Celebrate the spooky month with our collection dedicated to cinema’s most legendary monsters and a series of chilling home-invasion thrillers.
The Daily
May 29, 2025 — The rise of fascism upended the childhoods of both filmmakers.
The Daily
Mar 31, 2025 — Steeped in theater history, Shinoda infused centuries-old tales with twentieth-century dynamism.