Criterion Channel Surfing is back from hiatus with its first episode of 2023! Friend-of-the-show Michael Hutchins joins our host, Josh Hornbeck, for a conversation about the Criterion Channel’s new additions for January 2023.

In our annual episode focusing on The Criterion Collection’s releases from the past year – and there’s a lot to celebrate – we’ve assembled a panel of CriterionCast regulars to share our favorite releases of 2022. David Blakeslee from Criterion Reflections hosts this discussion, which also includes Aaron West (Criterion Now), Josh Hornbeck (Criterion Channel Surfing), and longtime site contributor Jordan Essoe.

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Criterion Reflections is David Blakeslee’s ongoing project to watch all of the films included in the Criterion Collection in chronological order of their original release. Each episode of this fourth season of the podcast features conversations with a variety of guests offering insights on movies that originally premiered in 1972 and were destined to eventually bear the Criterion imprint. In this episode, David is joined by David Seeley to discuss Sounder, directed by Martin Ritt.

Trevor Berrett and David Blakeslee are pleased to present Inside the Box, a podcast series that explores the riches in the various box sets released by The Criterion Collection. In this episode, they discuss 3 Films by Roberto Rossellini Starring Ingrid Bergman. This untraditional box set contains the films Stromboli (1950), Europe ’51 (1952), and Journey to Italy (1954).

In the late 1940s, the incandescent Hollywood star Ingrid Bergman found herself so stirred by the revolutionary neorealist films of Roberto Rossellini that she sent the director a letter, introducing herself and offering her talents. The resulting collaboration produced a series of films that are works of both sociopolitical concern and metaphysical melodrama, each starring Bergman as a woman experiencing physical dislocation and psychic torment in postwar Italy. It also famously led to a scandalous affair and eventual marriage between filmmaker and star, and the focus on their personal lives in the press unfortunately overshadowed the extraordinary films they made together. Stromboli, Europe ’51, and Journey to Italy are intensely moving portraits that reveal the director at his most emotional and the glamorous actress at her most anguished, and that capture them and the world around them in transition.

Criterion Reflections is David Blakeslee’s ongoing project to watch all of the films included in the Criterion Collection in chronological order of their original release. Each episode of this fourth season of the podcast features conversations with a variety of guests offering insights on movies that originally premiered in 1972 and were destined to eventually bear the Criterion imprint. In this episode, David is joined by Robert Taylor and Richard Doyle to discuss Zatoichi in Desperation, directed by Shintaro Katsu.

Criterion Reflections is David Blakeslee’s ongoing project to watch all of the films included in the Criterion Collection in chronological order of their original release. Each episode of this fourth season of the podcast features conversations with a variety of guests offering insights on movies that originally premiered in 1972 and were destined to eventually bear the Criterion imprint. In this episode, David is joined by Jason Beamish and Richard Doyle to discuss The Last House on the Left, directed by Wes Craven. The film previously streamed on the Criterion Channel but was not available on that service at the time of this recording.

Now that we’re back, we had some catching up to do. This week Drew Morton joined to go back through all of the months that we missed during hiatus. We were surprised how many months that was. We did sort of a speed record for the 2022 releases, getting into a little more detail on a few. We then looked at the recent January 2023 announcements in a little more detail. We had some interesting discussions about Sarah Polley, Atom Egoyan, and also the tendency for directors to change films for the home media release. Apologies for Aaron’s audio. Accidentally used the internal Mac mic but we think you’ll get used to it.

Canopy Film Club – Chapter 1 – Cinematography

Criterion Reflections is David Blakeslee’s ongoing project to watch all of the films included in the Criterion Collection in chronological order of their original release. Each episode of this fourth season of the podcast features conversations with a variety of guests offering insights on movies that originally premiered in 1972 and were destined to eventually bear the Criterion imprint. In this episode, David is joined by Aaron West to discuss Blacula, directed by William Crain and currently streaming on the Criterion Channel.

This special episode of Criterion Cast features an interview with Matthew Gentile, director and writer of AMERICAN MURDERER:

Based on a true story, this riveting thriller follows Jason Derek Brown (Tom Pelphrey), a charismatic con man bankrolling his extravagant lifestyle through a series of scams. On Brown’s trail: Lance Leising (Ryan Phillippe), a dogged FBI special agent determined to put Brown behind bars. When Brown’s funds run low and his past catches up with him, he plots his most elaborate scheme yet, pitting himself against Leising in a deadly game of cat and mouse — and becoming the most unlikely and elusive fugitive on the FBI’s most-wanted list.

Why do we fall for con artists? Is it that they’re smart and the victims are gullible, or is it something deeper? This is the question at the heart of AMERICAN MURDERER.

As a kid, I was obsessed with crime — so much so that I would browse the Top Ten Most Wanted list, hoping to help the FBI catch a fugitive. One of them made a distinct impression on me: Jason Derek Brown, a surfer dude with spiky blonde hair and a smirk on his face. Compared to Osama Bin Laden and Whitey Bulger, he just didn’t fit the profile.

On the surface, AMERICAN MURDERER is a cat-and-mouse thriller about a fugitive and the FBI agent who has been tasked with bringing him to justice. But what fascinates me about Jason’s story isn’t the crime itself; it’s how he impacted the people who loved him. That’s why I chose to tell his story through multiple perspectives. Whether the audience likes Jason or not – by the end of the film, they will get a 360-degree view of who he was.

With AMERICAN MURDERER, my intention is to guide the audience to look directly into the eyes of a dark soul and shine a light on how he became this way. Thus the film poses another question: can we take a human being who is rotten to the core and move an audience to a place of compassion? I believe that we can.

Intro/Outro Music: “Visiting My Toys”, composed by Scott Gentile – from the American Murderer Original Soundtrack

Criterion Reflections is David Blakeslee’s ongoing project to watch all of the films included in the Criterion Collection in chronological order of their original release. Each episode of this fourth season of the podcast features conversations with a variety of guests offering insights on movies that originally premiered in 1972 and were destined to eventually bear the Criterion imprint. In this episode, David is joined by Richard Doyle and David Seeley to discuss Ciao! Manhattan, Greaser’s Palace and Bone, three films released in July 1972, all currently streaming on the Criterion Channel.