Björk’s witchy big-screen debut, three starring Michael Caine, and Hollywood’s greatest humanist

We’ve got an eclectic mix of movies this week, with something special for the classic Hollywood fans: a spotlight on director William Wyler. NEWSLETTER - DECEMBER 27, 2019 What’s Playing A guide to the Criterion Channel. If you haven’t already subscribed, [click here]( for a 14-day free trial and explore the more than 1,800 titles and thousands of supplemental features available to stream. [Directed by William Wyler]( One of Hollywood’s preeminent directors, William Wyler was infamous among actors and crew for his exacting standards. His meticulous methods paid off in some of the richest, most complex human dramas of the studio era—powerful character-driven works grounded in a vivid psychological realism. Looking for a place to start? Every film in this retrospective is a stunner, but if we had to choose just three, we’d recommend Dodsworth, one of Hollywood’s most compassionate tales of love and marriage; The Little Foxes, featuring a searing performance by frequent Wyler collaborator Bette Davis; and The Best Years of Our Lives, a shattering antiwar drama that won Oscars for best picture and best director. [Last Call for MGM Musicals]( Our smash series, featuring some of classic Hollywood's most unforgettable melodies and dazzling choreography, must end December 31! [3 Starring Michael Caine]( With his much-impersonated cockney accent, sly grin, and signature blend of humor and grit, Michael Caine has been a British screen legend for six decades and counting. Here’s a trio of his best! [The Art of the Heist]( Perhaps the only thing more fun than watching a cinematic heist unfold is watching it unravel, as evidenced by these twelve classics, including Le cercle rouge, The Italian Job, and The Killing. [Mise-en-scène in My Brilliant Career]( Professor Jeff Smith explores how director Gillian Armstrong created a uniquely feminine “western” in which self-realization is tied to creative expression. [Homoerotic for the Holidays]( Queer desire smolders behind bars in two holiday tales: Harry Lighton’s short Wren Boys and Nagisa Oshima’s Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence. [The Juniper Tree]( We’re proud to present the streaming premiere of late, unsung visionary Nietzchka Keene’s stunning feature debut, a medieval-set fable of witchcraft and persecution, starring a young Björk. [Love Notes]( Ernst Lubitsch’s beloved holiday-time charmer The Shop Around the Corner plays alongside a musical spin on the same story, In the Good Old Summertime, starring Judy Garland and Van Johnson. [Oliver!]( Winner of six Academy Awards, Carol Reed’s rollicking adaptation of the West End musical hit traces an orphan’s journey through the Victorian London underworld. [Leaving December 31]( The clock is ticking on a number of great movies we've programmed on the Criterion Channel: The Hitch-Hiker (Ida Lupino, 1953) The Unbearable Lightness of Being (Philip Kaufman, 1988) The Devil’s Backbone (Guillermo del Toro, 2001) The Fog of War (Errol Morris, 2003) The Devils (Ken Russell, 1971) It’s Always Fair Weather (Gene Kelly and Stanley Donen, 1955) [Click here]( a full list of films leaving the service on December 31. To view this e-mail in your browser, click [here.]( For further information on Criterion and our products, please visit our website at [criterion.com.]( To start streaming the Criterion Channel, please visit [criterionchannel.com.]( If you are not already on our mailing list and would like to be added, please [click here]( to register at [criterion.com](. To unsubscribe, [click here.]( © 2019 The Criterion Collection.