Netflix’s “Milestone Movies” Collection Celebrates Classic Films From 1974
It’s awfully easy to criticize Netflix for devaluing cinema and ruining the theatrical experience. But as The Playlist’s Edward Davis notes, many who work at Netflix are undoubtedly movie lovers, which might help to explain their most recent collection.
Titled “Milestone Movies,” it features a selection of classic films that all turn 50 years old this year, and it’s packed with amazing titles from some of cinema’s greatest filmmakers, including Robert Altman, Francis Ford Coppola, and Martin Scorsese. What’s more, the films run the gamut from dramas and comedies to a couple of martial arts cult classics. (Read the official announcement on Netflix’s “Tudum” blog.)
Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore by Martin Scorsese
After her husband’s death, a singer with a preteen son takes a job as a diner server in Arizona and falls in love with a rugged local rancher. Stars Ellen Burstyn, Kris Kristofferson, and Alfred Lutter.
Black Belt Jones by Robert Clouse
Martial artist Black Belt Jones leaps into action and takes on a group of mobsters trying to muscle in on his friend’s downtown karate studio. Stars Jim Kelly, Gloria Hendry, and Scatman Crothers.
Blazing Saddles by Mel Brooks
A greedy villain’s scheme to destroy a frontier town by appointing a Black sheriff goes off the rails in Mel Brooks’ outrageous Western spoof. Stars Cleavon Little, Gene Wilder, and Slim Pickens.
California Split by Robert Altman
Two gamblers with nothing in common except bad luck discover they make an unbeatable team and take on the reigning world poker champion. Stars George Segal, Elliott Gould, and Ann Prentiss.
Chinatown by Roman Polanski
A private investigator on a routine adultery case in 1930s Los Angeles uncovers an intricate web of lies, political corruption and murder. Stars Jack Nicholson, Faye Dunaway, and John Huston.
The Conversation by Francis Ford Coppola
An audio surveillance expert grows increasingly paranoid when he suspects that a couple whose conversation he’s been hired to record will be murdered. Stars Gene Hackman, John Cazale, and Allen Garfield.
Death Wish by Michael Winner
After his family is brutally attacked, a man fed up with the justice system takes matters into his own hands to get vengeance in this action thriller. Stars Charles Bronson, Hope Lange, and Vincent Gardenia.
The Front Page by Billy Wilder
Eager to quit his job and get married, a reporter in 1920s Chicago finds himself lured back on the beat when his editor offers a story too big to resist. Stars Jack Lemmon, Walter Matthau, and Susan Sarandon.
The Gambler by Karel Reisz
After a bad run at a casino leaves him $44,000 in debt to a mobster, a professor with a gambling addiction tries in vain to win the money back. Stars James Caan, Paul Sorvino, and Lauren Hutton.
The Great Gatsby by Jack Clayton
Mysterious millionaire Jay Gatsby longs for Daisy Buchanan, who’s married to unfaithful Tom, making for a tragic love triangle. Stars Robert Redford, Mia Farrow, and Bruce Dern.
It’s Alive by Larry Cohen
An ordinary couple’s newborn baby turns out to be a fanged mutant who escapes from the delivery room and sets out on a grisly killing spree. Stars John P. Ryan, Sharon Farrell, and James Dixon.
The Little Prince by Stanley Donen
A pilot who’s forced down in the Sahara Desert listens to a boy’s magical stories about distant planets and strange people and animals. Stars Steven Warner, Joss Ackland, and Clive Revill.
The Lords of Flatbush by Martin Davidson, Stephen F. Verona
In 1950s Brooklyn, two teenage members of the Lords of Flatbush gang confront the realities of adulthood in this nostalgic coming-of-age drama. Stars Perry King, Sylvester Stallone, and Henry Winkler.
Manoranjan by Shammi Kapoor
After getting fired, a police officer connects with a prostitute he met on the job in a red-light district and sets out to keep her off the streets. Stars Sanjeev Kumar, Zeenat Aman, and Shammi Kapoor.
Murder on the Orient Express by Sidney Lumet
When a passenger is found dead aboard the Orient Express, investigator Hercule Poirot sifts through an eccentric group of suspects to find the killer. Stars Albert Finney, Lauren Bacall, and Ingrid Bergman.
The Parallax View by Alan J. Pakula
While investigating the assassination of a leading U.S. senator, a journalist uncovers a conspiracy involving a shadowy multinational corporation. Stars Warren Beatty, Paula Prentiss, and William Daniels.
The Street Fighter
Martial arts legend Sonny Chiba stars as a ruthless mercenary fighting anyone who gets between him and a mob-targeted heiress in this influential film. Stars Sonny Chiba, Goichi Yamada, and Yutaka Nakajima.
In addition to this 1974 collection, Netflix will also release similar collections of classic films from 1984, 1994, and 2004 in April, July, and October, respectively.