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Criterion Channel streaming service launches April 8 (US/Canada)
- Thread starter UnpopularBlargh
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I didn't realize I was the last post is I'll just out it here for the next page!
I've heard lots of things about "The Piano", so now's my chance to watch that. Great to see some Buñuel love as well.
Super annoying that this is only up for a month.
How am I supposed to watch 18 kinos in two weeks?
Watched THX 1138 but honestly didn't care for it that much. The visuals are cool though, but I think it was just too slow and disjointed for me. Anyone got recommendations from the sci-fi collection? I'll probably check out the Cronenberg one.
Also watched Symbiopsychotaxiplasm the other night. It's super weird but kinda amazing and I loved it. If you're not familiar it's a weird meta documentary where the director is shooting a film while another film crew is filming him, without anyone really knowing what's going on. Highly recommended, it's under 90 minutes.
Also watched Symbiopsychotaxiplasm the other night. It's super weird but kinda amazing and I loved it. If you're not familiar it's a weird meta documentary where the director is shooting a film while another film crew is filming him, without anyone really knowing what's going on. Highly recommended, it's under 90 minutes.
So far I've only caught Demon Seed, which has kind of an interesting premise (sentient AI takes over automated house) that is seemingly more relevant today with the introduction of consumer-grade smart homes. There's a surprising use of practical effects when the AI takes on a tangible form in the shape of a set of transforming pyramids, and fans of archaic computer graphics will enjoy some of the visual sequences in the movie. I am just now realizing that the Simpsons Treehouse of Horror episode with Pierce Brosnan as the killer robot house was a parody of this movie.
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The stream is fine and in surprisingly good shape. I just want a disc.
Shivers is a good one. If you haven't seen The Brood definitely check that out next. Cronenberg's best 70s film and the first film of his that feels mature.
The lack of console apps is still ridiculous. I bought a firetv 4k stick for this after discovering that it didn't work with any of the (literally) 12 possible devices I already owned. and after reading that two of my devices WERE supported in their spec list (they later deleted the erroneous page).
I still can't fathom why they aren't even working on it.
I still can't fathom why they aren't even working on it.
Already saw it. I think that's a much better movie than Shivers. I did enjoy parts of Shivers though and I like the premise it's like a predictor of the AIDS scare and a conservative nightmare rolled into one.
it really irritates me. casting to my TV only sometimes works and it always wants to buffer. I have a roku stick in the bedroom, but I would rather not transport it back and forth to the living room set. it's mounted to the wall and I have all my cables hidden inside the wall.
oh well, I guess it'll have to do for now.
Ah yeah, Cronenberg gets his commercial start making rough but incredibly evocative films, and then makes the transition to full on high quality weird arthouse director more successfully than anyone else coming to mind. Has a longer and more consistent career than almost any of his peers (Craven, Carpenter, etc)... he's more like David Lynch in that respect, and also in that no matter what kind of film he's making, it's usually obvious that it's his work.
There's a huge list of Criterion's I'm hoping for an upgrade on, and this is one for sure.
Yeah, very annoying. I would totally subscribe to this if the app was on ps4/other things.
It used to say "Smart TV" on the supported page (and Xbox actually) but when I pinged customer service (who were responsive) it seemed like they didn't think the lack of support was an issue, and even weirder, had zero plans to EVER support consoles - at least anecdotally based on the response I received. I can't even fathom why. Not only are these things quite easy to port*, there are containers and templates from the console companies that can save dev effort. One support dude mentioned something about IP security as if to say a console wasn't beefy enough to support their anti piracy stuff.
Like... >????
* nothing in development is easy, So I mean relatively speaking. Which is why there are console apps for even excruciatingly obscure or small streaming services.
I know that can make Shivers (and its follow up Rabid) tough for some—they seem very sex-negative, to say the least. Still makes for a captivating panicked delusion.
I just finished Shivers myself.
Definitely not the best movie I've seen on the channel that's for sure.
Definitely not the best movie I've seen on the channel that's for sure.
The lack of apps would be super frustrating, but it becomes infuriating when you consider that you can't use the built-in web browser either, but also the DRM that prevents streaming on many setups (my desktop setup for instance). I have multiple laptops, a desktop, several smart TVs and consoles in my home and absolutely none of them can actually stream Criterion
Just subscribed for the first time and jumped into that paranoia/surveillance collection.
The Conversation and Blow Out make for a fun double feature. Blown away by Conversation, Blow Out was interesting but didn't live up to the hype for me. (First time seeing both)
The Conversation and Blow Out make for a fun double feature. Blown away by Conversation, Blow Out was interesting but didn't live up to the hype for me. (First time seeing both)
oh yeah i forgot about pc - when i first encountered thisat the back of my mind i was thinking if all else fails i can hook up my laptop.
i hope it suceeds but man if it fails this is strike one through three.
i would definitely temper your expectations on that method
it gets super finicky about multiple monitors and hdmi cords and cites their drm
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I feel the opposite, loved blow out was let down by conversation. The lives of others I haven't seen yet but blow up which blow out is inspired by is better than all of them probably. I don't think it's on the channel but it's s criterion disc movie so it will come at some point.
It's very very fickle with Windows tablet/laptop combo things and flatout doesn't work on Chromebooks
I believe it's because the display needs to explicitly declare it's supporting HDCP (like let's say, a TV), and not every PC/laptop/tablet display does that. But honestly, there is no reason for Criterion to be more strict than others like Netflix, for example.
Watched Desperately Seeking Susan with the wife the other day and man that is a movie that could only exist in that specific moment of time.
Wild how it's plotted like a screwball farce but then directed in such a relaxed, lightly humanistic way.
Wild how it's plotted like a screwball farce but then directed in such a relaxed, lightly humanistic way.
Westworld is legitimately pretty interesting. Better than the TV series at least.
Deciding where to go next with the '70s sci-fi series. Z.P.G. and God Told Me To are two under the radar ones I've heard good things about, while Death Race 2000 and Soylent Green are two well-known ones I've heard okay things about.
Deciding where to go next with the '70s sci-fi series. Z.P.G. and God Told Me To are two under the radar ones I've heard good things about, while Death Race 2000 and Soylent Green are two well-known ones I've heard okay things about.
Death Race is a cult favorite but I saw it a few years ago and thought it was really terrible.
I'm actually planning to watch Soylent Green today. Want to get to Logan's Run and maybe Westworld at some point too.
Ultimate Warrior is the kind of cheese I enjoy from what I think of when I think 70s scifi, like Logan's Run, starcrash or zardoz. its not great and I'm not sure id recommend unless you knew what you were getting into, but at least it's exactly what you expect.
Demons seed was just kind of a bad 2001 with some Rosemary's baby thrown in.
Demons seed was just kind of a bad 2001 with some Rosemary's baby thrown in.
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Maybe I'll set up Soylent Green, Ultimate Warrior, and Z.P.G. next then. Death Race doesn't sound worth it and I've only seen bad things about Demon Seed.
There's also The Terminal Man which was apparently a big favorite of both Kubrick and Terrence Malick, I'm keeping that in the back pocket.
I didn't love Logan's Run but it is kinda the platonic ideal of this series, in that it's speculative sci-fi that feels very '70s. The most '70s thing about it being that it establishes a future where nobody wears bras. It doesn't work out its idea too well but the lo-fi sets and sfx are mostly charming and neat.
There's also The Terminal Man which was apparently a big favorite of both Kubrick and Terrence Malick, I'm keeping that in the back pocket.
I didn't love Logan's Run but it is kinda the platonic ideal of this series, in that it's speculative sci-fi that feels very '70s. The most '70s thing about it being that it establishes a future where nobody wears bras. It doesn't work out its idea too well but the lo-fi sets and sfx are mostly charming and neat.
im sure demons seed has its fans. as mentioned up the page some of the practical effects are pretty interesting at the very least
well i wasn't going to watch the terminal man but now I sure as hell am
charming is a good way to describe Logan's Run. Its goofy as hell and could only ever exist in that small time frame
Soylent Green was quite good! A good example of a movie not just living solely off its plot twist. In fact knowing it ahead of time gives you a better appreciation of the film's world building and where it's heading. It feels like a logical outcome of the story, rather than just swerving for the sake of swerving.
Heston may have been too old for this role though.
Heston may have been too old for this role though.
I enjoyed The Terminal Man. I can see why Kubrick liked it, some parts felt like someone trying to copy his style. And one part in particular seems to have influenced a very famous part of The Shining (it could be unrelated or from the book I don't know that much about it) so much so it seems kind of crazy looking back on it.
I don't know why Malick liked it in particular, but he likes random stuff.
Be warned the first hour is pretty slow. I thought it was still interesting and the way they handled some initial information was pretty well done, but I wouldn't blame someone if they thought it was boring.
I don't know why Malick liked it in particular, but he likes random stuff.
Be warned the first hour is pretty slow. I thought it was still interesting and the way they handled some initial information was pretty well done, but I wouldn't blame someone if they thought it was boring.
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Watched A Face in the Crowd last night and really enjoyed it. Andy Griffith's performance was electric and there is a 'on-the-rise' montage in the middle that was amazing
I need to get to this soon, I think it's expiring at the end of the month.
Incredible movie. Griffith is magnetic, it's crazy that it was his debut. And yeah the montage is amazing, love the song and use of animation. Still relevant to this day, in fact perhaps more than ever.
Yeah, that expiration was what got me off my ass to finally watch it. Definitely recommend it.
It's a movie that definitely screams for a reevaluation in a post-Trump landscape. Basic beats have been done in other flicks but the movie's tone and performances ensured its power hasn't been blunted
going from that to the andy griffith show is some crazy whiplash, or you can think he's still like that deep down playing the yokels for fools (maybe that's just my headcannon although I'm not sure what he's getting out of it)
i remember there being a whole spat of theses out about how this was the movie that explained Donald Trump and his rise. after watching it I thought it was just the republican party in general of the last 40 years. i think it explains Nixon, Reagan, and both bushes better than trump. Think of how it ends and how people would react. in today's world the followers wouldn't blink an eye, we're too far gone. we blew past this movie and barely anyone noticed
Yeah, as pessimistic as the movie is it still assumes people would care if someone outed themselves as a fraud. The ending sequence with the applause machine is 100% something I could see in the last days of this White House, though. (Subbing out the spoilered element for, like, hearts on tweets or whatever.)
Yeah an insane performance by Griffith and a great predictor of American politics. That movie and Ace in the Hole together both very prophetic about where American society was headed.
I love Ace in the Hole so much. Really due for a rewatch on it