Movie Buffs Rejoice: Hulu Plus to Stream Criterion Collection

Movie geeks – this one’s for you.

Hulu announced today that they will offer up the entire Criterion Collection of classic films streaming interruption-free as part of its $7.99/month Hulu Plus offering.

From the work of American directors like Wes Anderson, Charlie Chaplin and Orson Welles to foreign directors like Fellini and Kurosawa, Criterion offers up the type of movies that cinema buffs and aspiring film pros consider to be required viewing. While there are no blockbusters to be found in the Criterion lineup, the new Hulu offering is a great way for anyone interested in film to get a (relatively cheap) film education.

“The Criterion Collection is likely the preeminent distribution brand in the minds of movie buffs,” said Eugene Wei, Senior Vice President of Audience for Hulu in a press release.

“They’ve earned that title in two key ways. One is by curating and licensing rights to a library of truly great, enduring movies. Secondly, when they bring those movies to the world, they do so with an attention to detail and quality that can only come from the purest love and respect for movies as an art form. That’s why we’re thrilled to announce that we’ve added the Criterion Collection exclusively to our Hulu Plus service today,” said Wei.

Hulu Plus will launch over 150 Criterion movies starting today, and will be adding more titles each month. Eventually, Hulu promises to include 800 Criterion films for on-demand viewing.

The initial launch list includes classics like The 400 Blows, L’Avventura, The Battle of Algiers, Breathless, La Jetée, Jules and Jim, M, Pickpocket, Playtime, Rashomon, Seven Samurai, La Strada, and The Wages of Fear.

The eventual roster of films will include a who’s who of international directors, including: Antonioni, Bergman, Bresson, Bunuel, Chabrol, Chaplin, Clouzot, Cocteau, Dreyer, Eisenstein, Fassbinder, Fellini, Godard, Kaurismaki, Kieslowski, Kurosawa, Lang, Malle, Ozu, Renoir, Tati, Truffaut, Varda, and Welles.