The Criterion Channel is kicking off the new year strong with a lineup of movies the includes a few deep dives into the catalogues of acclaimed directors (including Cameron Crowe, Sean Baker, and Paolo Sorrentino), a lengthy playlist with movies starring Nicole Kidman, and themed collections that seem right up my alley. There’s a lot here that I’m either excited to see for the first time or revisit.
The January 2025 Criterion Channel lineup includes:
Surveillance Cinema
A 15 film collection exploring the intersection between personal privacy and the evolvement of technology. The Surveillance Cinema playlist includes:
- Modern Times (1936)
- The Anderson Tapes (1971)
- THX 1138 (1971)
- The Conversation (1974)
- Camera Buff (1979)
- Death Watch (1980)
- Body Double (1984)
- Sliver (1993)
- Gattaca (1997)
- The End of Violence (1997)
- The Truman Show (1998)
- Demonlover (2002)
- Minority Report (2002)
- The Lives of Others (2006)
- A Scanner Darkly (2006)
Starring Nicole Kidman
A 9 film collection highlighting the careers works of Nicole Kidman (coinciding with her role in the recently released Babygirl). The Nicole Kidman playlist includes:
- Dead Calm (1989)
- To Die For (1995)
- The Portrait of a Lady (1996)
- Eyes Wide Shut (1999)
- The Hours (2002)
- Birth (2004)
- The Stepford Wives (2004)
- Margot at the Wedding (2007)
- The Paperboy (2012)
Three by Cameron Crowe
A 3 film collection examining the breakthrough and rise to the mainstream for filmmaker Cameron Crowe, who would become a pillar for youthful filmmaking before the turn of the century. The Cameron Crowe triple feature includes:
- Say Anything . . . (1989)
- Singles (1992)
- Almost Famous (2000)
Three by Sean Baker
A 3 film collection highlighting the early works of Sean Baker, one of cinema’s great current filmmakers (coinciding with the awards campaign for his Palme d’Or-winning Anora). The Sean Baker triple feature includes:
- Take Out (2004)
- Prince of Broadway (2008)
- Starlet (2012)
Love in Disguise
An 11 film collection that includes many of the trickiest love stories in the first half of the twentieth century. The Love in Disguise playlist includes:
- Monte Carlo (1930)
- Love Me Tonight (1932)
- This Is the Night (1932)
- Thirty Day Princess (1934)
- Desire (1936)
- The Princess Comes Across (1936)
- Midnight (1939)
- The Flame of New Orleans (1941)
- The Lady Eve (1941)
- The Major and the Minor (1942)
- Frenchman’s Creek (1944)
Cast Against Type: Heroes as Villains
An 11 film collection that captures the best performances cast against convention. These leading men and women are typically considered the protagonists of the films they are in, but that’s not the case for the movies on this collection. The Heroes as Villains playlist includes:
- Night Must Fall (1937)
- In Name Only (1939)
- The Velvet Touch (1948)
- Red River (1948)
- Don’t Bother to Knock (1952)
- Angel Face (1953)
- A Face in the Crowd (1957)
- The Killers (1964)
- The Boston Strangler (1968)
- Once Upon a Time in the West (1968)
- The Boys from Brazil (1978)
David Bowie Changes
A 5 collection containing many of David Bowie‘s most indelible filmed performances. As unconventional as performers come, no two David Bowie credits were the same. This playlist includes:
- The Man Who Fell to Earth (1976)
- Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence (1983)
- The Linguini Incident (1991)
- Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me (1992)
- Basquiat (1996)
What Else is Coming to The Criterion Channel in January 2025
The other additions to The Criterion Channel in January 2025 include a playlist dedicated to the craft of acting led by Ethan Hawke, the Criterion Collection editions of A Face in the Crowd, Hunger, and Still Walking, three films directed by Paolo Sorrentino, and the debut documentary from Nickel Boys‘ director RaMell Ross Hale County This Morning, This Evening.
