We’re big fans of the growing realm of digital film distribution here at CHUD (exemplified by Devin’s plainly laid-out thoughts on the subject yesterday), and we’ve especially enjoyed the enthusiasm with which DVD publisher Criterion has embraced this new media paradigm.
In the last few months they’ve built up a presence on Netflix’s Instant Watch streaming service in a big way, with two large releases of titles that we covered for you.
…and now those happy restorers of films fine and foreign have created a channel on Hulu for the purpose of adding new titles on a rolling basis (meaning old ones will disappear as new ones are added, so the catalogue will fluctuate and you’ll have to keep up!).
They’ve started things off with six episodes of Zatoichi: The Blind Swordsman– The Tale of Zatoichi, The Tale of Zatoichi Continues, New Tale of Zatoichi, The Fugitive, On the Road, and Zatoichi and the Chest of Gold.
“All six films star Shintaro Katsu in his most iconic role, as the legendary blind masseur who lives by the yakuza code and answers his foes with a deadly cane sword.”
UPDATE: As several helpful Chewers (including a commenter) have pointed out, you can already find Criterion material on Hulu that extends beyond the Zatoichi series!
Mr Arkadin
The Last Days of Disco
Charade
The Lady Vanishes
Slacker
39 Steps
This is a Hulu joint, so only available to US streamers, but it’s just one more way for film lovers to access films they would otherwise never have a chance to see.
A messy road is ahead, but the future looks bright for cinephiles!
(thanks to Criterion Cast)