Horror cinema’s queer undercurrents . . . Plus: Steven Soderbergh’s lumi nous coming-of-age story

The latest installment in our Queersighted series shines a light on the darker corners of queer cinema. NEWSLETTER - NOVEMBER 21, 2020 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 2,000 titles and thousands of supplemental features available to stream. [Queersighted: Queer Fear]( We’re freaking ourselves out in this installment of Queersighted, which features a selection of movies that cast illumination on some of the darker corners of queer cinema. From Victorian-tinged gothic ghost stories and campy creaky-house movies to gory explorations of forbidden desires and contemporary psychological thrillers, these films remind us that queerness has traditionally been seen as the ultimate fear for hetero life, an inchoate threat that cannot be contained. But even when queer figures are cast as villains, their erotic charisma is often the source of these films’ delights—after all, when it comes to horror, it’s the monsters who get top billing. Plus: check out a new [conversation]( between series programmer Michael Koresky and filmmaker and critic Farihah Zaman. Looking for a place to start? Watch Edgar G. Ulmer’s The Black Cat for a taste of the psychosexual experimentation that flourished in pre-Code Hollywood, then turn to the exquisite gothic atmosphere of The Picture of Dorian Gray and The Uninvited for two examples of the ways in which queer subtext has continued to haunt mainstream horror. We’re Here to Help If you have questions, comments, or feedback about the Criterion Channel, please reach out to channelhelp@criterion.com! We’d love to hear from you. [Ngozi Onwurah]( The British-Nigerian filmmaker introduces her visionary Welcome II the Terrordome—the first theatrically released British film directed by a Black woman—and five eclectic shorts. [Pre-Code Joan Blondell]( Don’t miss this spotlight on classic Hollywood’s consummate scene-stealing sidekick—the vivacious, wisecracking, irreverent Joan Blondell—available through the end of the month. [Short Films by Sky Hopinka]( With a new introduction by the filmmaker, these transcendent meditations reclaim the ethnopoetic form as a vehicle for ecstatic personal expression. [Three by Nadav Lapid]( The Israeli auteur introduces three of his visceral explorations of identity and otherness, which find bold and unexpected ways to confront his country’s fractured national consciousness. [Swallows and Amazons]( Set sail for adventure in this enchanting adaptation of Arthur Ransome’s children’s classic, a summer idyll bursting with wit, wonder, and early-twentieth-century period detail. EDITION #698  [King of the Hill]( For his first Hollywood studio production, Steven Soderbergh crafted this jewel of a growing-up story, based on the memoir by A. E. Hotchner. SUPPLEMENTAL FEATURES: Interviews with Soderbergh and Hotchner, a video essay by Kogonada, and Soderbergh’s feature The Underneath. 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.]( © 2020 The Criterion Collection :: 215 Park Ave S. New York, NY 10003