Blood and Black Lace (1964) | May 31

Inspector Sylvester is assigned to investigate the violent murder of a fashion house model by a masked assailant. As the investigation proceeds, all of the house’s various sins – including corruption, abortions, blackmail, and drug addiction – begin to come to light. It turns out that Isabella had kept a diary detailing these vices, and now almost every employee becomes nervous. – JustWatch.com

Director: Mario Bava

Cast: Cameron Mitchell, Eva Bartok, Thomas Reiner, Ariana Gorini, Dante DiPaolo, Mary Arden, Franco Ressel

Country: Italy

Distributor: VCI Entertainment

Rating: R

Runtime: 1 hour, 28 minutes

Platform: Prime Video

Special Programming: Classic Cinema, Midnight Movies

Where to Watch

Mandabi (1968) | May 31

A money order from a relative in Paris throws the life of a Senegalese family man out of order. He deals with corruption, greed, problematic family members, the locals and the changing from his traditional way of living to a more modern one. – JustWatch.com

Director: Ousmane Sembene

Cast: Makhouredia Gueye, Ynousse N’Diaye, Isseu Niang, Mustapha Ture, Mouss Diouf, Christoph Colomb, Serigne N’Diayes

Country: Senegal

Distributor: Janus Films

Rating: Not Rated

Runtime: 1 hour, 30 minutes

Platform: The Criterion Channel

Special Programming: Classic Cinema

Special Events: Shorts Included

Where to Watch

Smooth Talk (1985) | May 31

Based on the short story, “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been,” by Joyce Carol Oates, this film chronicles 15-year-old Connie’s sexual awakening in the Northern California suburbs. Her experimentation gets out of hand when the mysterious Arnold Friend takes an interest in her. – JustWatch.com

Director: Joyce Chopra

Cast: Laura Dern, Treat Williams, Mary Kay Place, Levon Helm, Elizabeth Berridge, Margaret Welsh, Sara Inglis

Country: United States

Distributor: Janus Films

Rating: PG-13

Runtime: 1 hour, 32 minutes

Platform: The Criterion Channel

Special Programming: Classic Cinema

Special Events: Filmmaker Conversations, Shorts Included

Where to Watch

Filmmaker Conversations

Joyce at 34 (1971)

Girls at 12 (1975)

Clorae and Albie (1976)

Women Make Film: A New Road Movie Through Cinema, Parts 1-3 (2019) | May 31

As told through clips from 183 female directors, this epic history of the cinema focuses on women’s integral role in the development of film art. Using almost a thousand film extracts from thirteen decades and five continents, Mark Cousins asks how films are made, shot and edited; how stories are shaped and how movies depict life, love, politics, humour and death, all through the compelling lens of some of the world’s greatest filmmakers – all of them women. – JustWatch.com

Director: Mark Cousins

Cast: Tilda Swinton, Jane Fonda, Kerry Fox, Debra Winger, Thandiwe Newton, Sharmila Tagore

Country: United Kingdom

Distributor: Janus Films

Rating: Not Rated

Runtime: 3 hours, 12 minutes

Platform: The Criterion Channel

Special Programming: Documentary Cinema, Long-Form Cinema

Where to Watch

Nationtime (1972) | May 31

A report on the National Black Political Convention held in Gary, Indiana, in 1972, a historic event that gathered Black voices from across the political spectrum, among them Jesse Jackson, Dick Gregory, Coretta Scott King, Richard Hatcher, Amiri Baraka, Charles Diggs, and H. Carl McCall. – JustWatch.com

Director: William Greaves

Cast: Sidney Poitier, Amiri Baraka, Coretta Scott King, Dick Gregory, Jesse Jackson, Bobby Seale, Harry Belafonte, Isaac Hayes

Country: United States

Distributor: Kino Lorber

Rating: Not Rated

Runtime: 1 hour, 20 minutes

Platform: The Criterion Channel

Special Programming: Documentary Cinema, Classic Cinema

Where to Watch