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This Wednesday, Baz Luhrmann's cinematic re-visioning of F. Scott Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby will Charleston its way into Cannes, kicking off the most anticipated film festival of the year. And with premieres by everyone from Nicolas Winding Refn and James Franco to Clare Denis and the Coen brothers, there's more than enough to ignite plenty of excitement. But for those of us that will, sadly, not be in attendance, we can still celebrate with our own at home festival, looking back on some of the most beloved Cannes winners from the past. And this week on Hulu, the Criterion Collection has made some of their greatest works of film available for your viewing pleasure. From Wim Wenders' absolutely perfect existential romantic yearning masterpiece Paris, Texas to MIchaelangelo Antonioni's iconic and breathtakingly beautiful L'Avventura and many a goody in between, see what took home top prizes at festivals of yore. So in case you just cannot decide where to start, here are some brief previews of the cinematic magic in store. Enjoy.

Earlier this week, we were pleased to report that iconic German director Wim Wenders was set to begin production on his latest film, Every Thing Will Be Fine, starting this summer with James Franco leading the picture. On that note, we spoke about the excitement of discovering your favorite filmmaker had something new underway—that childlike sense of thrill from only imagining what the feature could be. And when it comes to a younger set of directors, there are more than a plethora of people whose careers I'm quite excited for and anticipating to watch develop as they establish themselves in a new generation of cinematic masters. But in the last half-decade or so, there have been few filmmakers whose work has moved me as strongly as that of Norwegian director Joachim Trier. His two films Repirse and Oslo, August 31st are not only two of my favorite films of their respective years, but two of my most beloved films ever.

Discovering that your favorite director is heading into production on a new film holds excitement akin to waking up as a child on Christmas morning—for me at least. It's the dreamy time when you can only imagine what the film would be—before the inundation of set photos, stills, trailers, etc.—of course, it never disappoints in your mind.

1984 was a good year for Harry Dean Stanton. Not only did he lead Wim Wenders existential romantic yearning masterpiece Paris, Texas, but he also starred as Bud in Alex Cox's classic Repo Man alongside a young and spritely Emilio Estevez . And whereas Paris, Texas has been a Criterion Collection staple for some time now, Repo Man gets its collection release today, and with it comes Three Reasons why you'll love this movie. Their reasons are simple: it's a punk classic, a sci-fi classic, and a cult classic all wrapped in one.

Hey y'all, it's Ry Cooder birthday and this calls for celebration. The iconic American guitarist, singer, and composer has been wrapping us in a dusty world of sound since the late 1960s, creating his own idiosyncratic style that mixes a fine blend of genres—folk and blues to tex-mex and rock to jazz and soul. Just the coolest dude, Cooder has also scored some of the most memorable soundtracks of the 50 years from Nicolas Roeg's Performance to, perhaps his best work, Wim Wenders' Paris, Texas. His sound conjures up vivid images of desolate and beautiful American landscapes, making you long for escape to a somewhere warm in a "vast country where nobody [knows you]. Somewhere without language, or streets." So grab some tequila, saddle up in front of a sunset, and have a listen. Enjoy.

So, from now until noon on the 27th, all in-stock Blu-rays and DVDs are 50% off, and all you have to do is enter their code and voilà! I certainly understand that remembering what you wanted in the first place—let alone making a decision—is hard enough, so I’ve compiled the best Collectors Sets available on the site that you otherwise probably wouldn’t be able to shell out the money for. From American New Wave classics to German melodramas and everything in between, here’s a helpful reminder of what you should be purchasing today.

Obviously, the best Valentine's Day presents always come in the form of Hulu. And on this wrecked day of love, Hulu has given us the delightful gift of making all of their Criterion films free to the world through the weekend. With over 800 absolutley wonderful classics and rarities to choose from, you may find yourself scrolling through their lists endlessly until you realize, whoops three hours has gone by and I still haven't watched anything. So, to prevent any more wasted time pondering over what to watch, here's a list of some of the best films now available to watch for free from rare German masterpieces from the 1970s to experimental early-'90s American cinema. Enjoy.

Jonathon Demme has said, "I don't think it's sacrilegious to remake any movie, including a good or even great movie." And he's right, some films only grow with adaptation and allow for a new perspective on a world we already love. However, some fall flat and prove entirely unnecessary—like last year's remake of Straw Dogs, for example. What was point of that film? There's no way it could have even compared to the cinemaitc audacity and penetrating violence of the Sam Peckinpah's 1971 original in its cultural context and the repercussions it faced with censorship of the time. However, it's always interesting when a director remakes is own work, as Michael Haneke did with Funny Games in 2007. But it's the original film that one should always watch first. And this week, Hulu and the Criterion Collection will be highlighting their favorite originals, all later adapted into other works. From Wim Wenders' philosophical meditation on love, longing, and the desire for existence in 1980s Berlin with Wings of Desire (later to become City of Angels) to Jean-Luc Godard's seminal 1960 nouvelle vague classic Breathless (needlessly remade in 1983 with Richard Gere), these originals will remind you what's it's like to witness a truly incredible film for the first time. 

When one thinks of cinematic depictions of Germany in the 1980s, the mind usually imagines a world drained of color—the desolate grey coldness lingering through the air between the tortured souls that fill the streets à la Wim Wenders’ Wings of Desire. But with Christian Petzold’s latest Silver Bear-winning drama, Barbara, we see this antithesis of that bleakness: a film rich with the nature and color, void of symbols and the dark veil of oppression. However, the lush and vibrant physical atmosphere is juxtaposed by the psychology of the film’s titular character, who must restrain her emotions and build a wall around herself as a means of preservation. 

Welcome to Cinematic Panic, a new column in which I anxiously watch all of the Criterion Collection films that have either slipped under my radar or have fueled my film obsession and then share my personal rambling insights as to what makes them so damn good. This week, I take a look at Wim Wenders's classic Paris, Texas.