Pasolini, Chabrol, and Other Arty Newcomers

Claude Chabrol's The Bridesmaid

Through its agreements with distributors such as Film Movement, Indie Crush, Zeitgeist Films, Asian Crush, and First Run Features, Amazon has quietly pieced together a respectable catalog of foreign and indie titles on its Prime service, many of them exclusives. Yes, a lot of these may be obscure to mainstream audiences (some justifiably), but among them are plenty of unsung and forgotten jewels. (See the Foreign section of this site's Only On Prime page for a few older examples.)

This month Amazon added two Pier Paolo Pasolini films—his first feature, 1961's Accatone, along with 1967's Oedipus Rex. As the director of such controversial fare as Arabian Nights, Canterbury Tales, and Salo, Pasolini isn't for everyone. But given his importance to European cinema in the 1960s and '70s, it's nice to see these (less salacious) examples of his earlier work available to stream.

Another important European filmmaker was the incredibly prolific Claude Chabrol. As one of the French New Wave directors who came into their own in the late 1950s and early '60s (including Jean Luc Godard, Francois Truffaut, and Jacques Rivette), Chabrol first made his mark with Les Bonnes Femmes (1960). He went on to distinguish himself with a long and vital career that included a string of acclaimed thrillers, making him, in many ways, France's answer to Alfred Hitchcock. Aside from a half dozen or so Criterion titles available exclusively on Hulu, Chabrol's work is severely underrepresented in the streaming world, so it's nice to see Les Bonnes Femmes and Merci Pour Le Chocolat (2000) joined by 2004's The Bridesmaid (never to be confused with the comedy Bridesmaids!) on Prime. [Note: It's been pointed out to me that Les Bonnes Femmes is set to expire on July 31—so catch it soon.]

Irma Vep

As a kind of tribute to France's silent and New Wave cinema, Olivier Assayas' Irma Vep (1997) is one of the more appealing curiosities. Starring Hong Kong favorite Maggie Cheung (In the Mood for Love) and New Wave mainstay Jean-Pierre Léaud (The 400 Blows, Masculin Féminin), the film is funny and haunting and occasionally incomprehensible. But it's as fun to puzzle over as it is to look at (especially Ms. Cheung in her leather catsuit), and will leave you with only a touch of resentment at its typically French ending. A fitting companion piece is 1996's Paris Was a Woman, a documentary about the numerous female writers and artists (think Stein, Toklas, Beach, Baker) who called Paris their home in the years before WWII.

Another distinctly arthouse entry is the South Korean Virgin Stripped Bare by Her Bachelors (2000). Director Hong Sang-soo has long been a favorite of international film festivals, and is known for 2004's Woman Is the Future of Man, Woman on the Beach (2006), and In Another Country (2012).

The 1972 English version of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland is also now available for Prime members. This rarely seen musical adaptation features a Who's Who of British greats, including Peter Sellers, Dudley Moore, Ralph Richardson, and Michael Crawford, with Fiona Fullerton in the title role.

Last but not least, Amazon continues to fill out its HBO catalog, with the third season of Boardwalk Empire and the fifth of True Blood now joining the ranks.

The full list of July's mid-month PRIME ONLY notable titles:

MOVIES
Accatone (1961)
Alice's Adventures in Wonderland (1972)
The Bridesmaid (2004)
Examined Life (2009)
Gigante (2009)
Irma Vep (1997)
Oedipus Rex (1967)
Paris Was a Woman (1996)
Slow West (2015)
Virgin Stripped Bare by Her Bachelors (2000)
Two Men in Town (2014)

HBO
Boardwalk Empire: Season 3 (2012)
True Blood: Season 5 (2012)