Some Criterion Collection months are stronger than others, and June 2026 is one of the better ones. There are the expected classics and upgrades, sure, but the more interesting part of this slate is how much of it feels a little sharper and less predictable than usual. “West Indies: The Fugitive Slaves of Liberty,” “High Art,” “Hairspray,” “Desperate Living,” “It Was Just an Accident,” and “Magellan” give the month a real range, from repertory staples to films that still feel disruptive, bruising, or politically charged.
That range starts right away on June 2 with Bob Rafelson’s “Five Easy Pieces” and Stanley Donen’s “Charade,” both getting 4K UHD and Blu-ray combo editions. “Five Easy Pieces” remains one of the great American films of drift and dislocation, with Jack Nicholson’s Bobby Dupea still carrying that sour, restless 1970s energy that never really goes out of style. “Charade,” by contrast, is pure movie-star craft—Audrey Hepburn, Cary Grant, Paris, glamour, menace, and a little darkness tucked beneath all that polish. Those are the obvious shelf-pleasers, and Criterion knows it.
The more exciting turn comes a week later with “West Indies: The Fugitive Slaves of Liberty,” which arrives on Blu-ray June 9. Hondo’s 1979 film is the kind of title that gives a monthly slate some real purpose. Set aboard a massive mock slave ship and spanning centuries of colonial violence, it is a Pan-African musical spectacle, a political reckoning, and a furious act of historical reclamation all at once. Criterion’s new 4K restoration should finally give the film the sort of attention it has long deserved, and it’s easily one of the month’s most important releases.
June 16 brings “High Art,” one of the strongest titles in the whole package and an especially welcome addition to the collection. Cholodenko’s debut feature, with Ally Sheedy, Radha Mitchell, and Patricia Clarkson, is one of those late-1990s films that feels both deeply of its moment and totally undiminished by time—cool without being complacent, seductive without romanticizing the damage it depicts. Criterion’s director-approved edition includes a new 4K restoration, a conversation between Cholodenko and Karyn Kusama, new cast interviews, and Cholodenko’s 1997 short “Dinner Party.”
June 23 is when the slate gets especially fun. The Criterion Collection is releasing John Waters’ “Hairspray” and “Desperate Living” on the same day, each with 4K UHD and Blu-ray editions, plus standalone Blu-ray options. That pairing says a lot about Waters all by itself. “Hairspray,” starring Ricki Lake, Divine, Debbie Harry, and Sonny Bono, is still the accessible one, the film where the filmmaker’s subversive instincts and pop sweetness met in a way that somehow turned into a mainstream hit without sanding off the politics. “Desperate Living,” with Mink Stole, Jean Hill, and Edith Massey, is the cracked, nasty sibling—Waters’ antifascist fairy tale dragged through the gutter, full of warped rebellion and grotesque humor. Seeing both films arrive together makes the month feel less like a random stack of titles and more like a good conversation.
That same day also brings Lav Diaz’s “Magellan,” released through Criterion Premieres. Fresh from theaters, the film stars Gael García Bernal as Ferdinand Magellan and strips the old explorer myth down to something far uglier and more punishing. At 163 minutes, it is not exactly casual viewing, but Diaz has never been interested in ease. What he does here is attack the romance of conquest head-on, turning a supposedly heroic figure into a vessel for obsession, zealotry, and colonial brutality. It’s a severe film, but a necessary one, and its inclusion gives the month a contemporary title with real heft.
The June 30 releases close things out well. Jafar Panahi’s “It Was Just an Accident,” which won the Palme d’Or and was nominated for both Best International Feature and Best Original Screenplay at the Oscars, arrives in 4K UHD, Blu-ray, and DVD. The film follows a former political prisoner who believes he has found the guard who tortured him, then pushes that revenge premise into murkier moral territory. Panahi’s work has carried unusual urgency for years, and that remains true here.
The same day also brings Carlos Saura’s “Eclipse Series 6: Carlos Saura’s Flamenco Trilogy,” collecting “Blood Wedding,” “Carmen,” and “El amor brujo.” For anyone interested in dance on film, Spanish cinema, or movies built around movement and rhythm rather than conventional narrative comfort, that set should be one of the easiest recommendations in the lineup.
Rodrigo Perez is the founder and editor-in-chief of The Playlist, which he launched in 2007. He has worked in entertainment journalism since 2000, including at MTV, and has written for SPIN, IndieWire, Pitchfork, Complex, Magnet, and various music, film, and entertainment publications over the past two decades.
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