How did you all do during the Flash Sale? Coinciding with the release of Killers of the Flower Moon, hopefully a copy was procured during this semi-annual event. We are now a quarter of the way through the year, the Oscars are done, and it feels as if the 2026 film season can take its first steps as the 2025 film season soaks into history. This coming month, Criterion will be maintaining its high quantity of releases with three 4K upgrades, a Criterion Premieres release, a brand new 4K release, a new Eclipse Series release, and, to top it all off, a new box set celebrating three classics from an American great (you get all that?). No more wasting time, let me run it down.
Gilda (1946)
Anytime I think of this movie I always think of that scene from The Shawshank Redemption. Obviously, it’s the one scene everyone would know – “Gilda, are you decent?” “Me?”. That’s the priceless Hollywood charm you can’t replicate. Rita Hayworth is a treat to watch and it shows here. A dangerous game of lust between a kingpin’s henchman and the kingpin’s wife, Gilda is a visually rich, morally sultry picture that feels as fresh a watch today as it was back in 1946. Plus, I’ve said this before, but 4K restorations of black and white films are just as visually enriching as one of those pictures in color. Gilda is a 4K+Blu-Ray combo pack featuring a new 4K digital restoration.
Trouble in Paradise (1932)
Ernst Lubitsch, as a filmmaker, is one-of-one. His films, usually characterized by the ‘Lubitsch Touch’, appear to exist in a realm of reality that isn’t attached to any point and time. Trouble in Paradise is no different from that mantra. While this film was made and released during the Hays Code, it was during a period prior to rigid enforcement and is made as an act of defiance. Trouble in Paradise is about thievery and romance in Europe – delightfully devilish and brimming with style. This film would be a major inspiration for Wes Anderson’s The Grand Budapest Hotel. Trouble in Paradise is a 4K+Blu-Ray combo pack featuring a new 4K digital restoration.
Monty Python’s Life of Brian (1979)
British comedy was led by Monty Python in the 1970s and includes a number of films as well as the hilarious television program – Monty Python’s Flying Circus. One of Monty Python’s best films is Life of Brian which is about a Judean man named Brian who is mistaken for the Messiah during the time of Jesus. Expectations of comedy and film were constantly challenged under the Monty Python eye, and this film is no different. Considered blasphemous upon release, Monty Python’s Life of Brian was banned in multiple countries but now is considered a comedy great. The reverberations of Monty Python’s influence are still going strong in both film and television. Monty Python’s Life of Brian is a 4K release with a new 4K digital restoration supervised by Monty Python member and filmmaker Terry Gilliam.
Resurrection (2025)
In a new release from Criterion’s ‘Criterion Premieres’ line of films, Resurrection is a freshly released film from Chinese filmmaker, Bi Gan. Resurrection is an epic film spanning different time periods and visual styles in the form of cinematic chapters. The film premiered at the Cannes Film Festival and won the Special Prize. Criterion Premieres is a line of films that releases new Janus Film releases with minimal special features and Resurrection will release on Blu-Ray.
Point Blank (1967)
Not to be confused by the similarly named, and equally Criterion-worthy film, Point Break – Point Blank is a stylish revenge thriller that has had some form of influence on all revenge thrillers that came after. The endlessly cool Lee Marvin goes on a storm of vengeance in Los Angeles and anyone who is a fan of gangster films owes it to themselves to watch this (I will certainly be picking this up). Point Blank is a 4K+Blu-Ray combo pack featuring a new director approved 4K digital restoration.
Eclipse Series 48: Kinuyo Tanaka Directs
Japanese actress Kinuyo Tanaka spent most of the 1950s, as well as the early 1960s, directing her own films. The film industry, at the time, didn’t allow much room for female filmmakers to flourish and Kinuyo Tanaka made 6 feature films – all about women defying social norms. Tanaka criticized issues revolving around arranged marriage, the female body, imperialism, sex work, religious persecution, and love. The films are Love Letter, The Moon Has Risen, Forever a Woman, The Wandering Princess, Girls of the Night, and Love Under the Crucifix and they are all featured in a Blu-Ray box set.
John Singleton’s Hood Trilogy
John Singleton was one of America’s greatest filmmakers whose career unfortunately slowed down around the mid-2000s. While we did get a handful of excellent films from him, the lack of consistent releases is a Hollywood tragedy. Throughout his career, Singleton made films that represented his upbringing in Los Angeles in what Criterion would dub as his ‘Hood Trilogy’. Singleton’s directorial debut, Boyz n the Hood, was a devastating but brilliant film that ingrained itself into a part of American culture. His follow up, Poetic Justice, put musical superstar Janet Jackson onto the film scene and furthered Tupac Shakur’s acting capabilities after his excellent work on Juice. Then, after two films outside of the ‘hood’ setting, he returned to what would eventually be his last written feature film with Baby Boy. Originally written for Tupac Shakur before his murder in 1996, Baby Boy stars R&B artist Tyrese Gibson and rap legend Snoop Dogg. John Singleton’s Hood Trilogy is a 4K box set featuring a previously director approved 4K digital restoration of Boyz n the Hood, and new 4K digital restorations of Poetic Justice and Baby Boy.
