Turner Classic Movies announced that their FilmStruck streaming service will be terminated on Nov. 29.
Founded in 2016, FilmStruck was not just a place to view classic and Indie films, but a service that provided invaluable knowledge of film culture.
Cinephiles, film students, and casual viewers alike could view a vast library of selections including, but not limited to, Warner Classic movies and films in special editions from the renowned Criterion Collection.
FilmStruck will be remembered as a celebration of film as a true art form.
The end of the service is the loss of an anomaly in the realm of streaming.
Popular platforms such as Netflix, Hulu, YouTube Red, and Amazon Prime consistently and aggressively lead the production of new and marketable content.
At a price of $6.99 a month and $99 a year, FilmStruck focused on the preservation and promotion of more unique works. They also offered a plan, which included access to the complete Criterion Collection at $10.99 a month. The Criterion Collection is known for distributing “important classic and contemporary films,” and their DVDs usually sell upwards of $20 for a single copy. These films are representative of different iconic eras in film, perspectives on life, and artistic stylings, regardless of status.
Many are unhappy with FilmStruck’s impending revocation because they feel it was a resource that challenged widespread dissatisfaction in a world with ‘uninspired’ mainstream content.
Professionals and casual viewers alike appreciated the catalog of films not currently competing to break massive box-office records or garner the most controversy.
Nicholas Messina, a specialist professor of communication and FilmStruck member, discussed a large issue with modern film culture, “The monopolization of Hollywood, contemporarily, has resulted in the rehashing and releasing of sequels and prequels at staggering rates. Audiences get tired of this.”
Messina continued, “FilmStruck’s shutting down will deal a serious blow to the future of production and cinema. Film, at the end of the day, is art and FilmStruck was our L’Accademia, our Louvre, our Met. It was a collection of some of the finest pieces ever created.”
With a barrage of content accessible to us at any time, it can be difficult to wade through the muck of entertainment only made to appeal to temporary trends or emotions.
The importance of meaningful and well-analyzed cinema will always be prevalent, and FilmStruck provided high-quality access to such works. Artists such as Barbra Streisand and Guillermo del Toro have recently petitioned to change the fate of the service, and a public petition to save FilmStruck has reached 50,000 signatures in the past few days.
If there is no chance of its saving, many hope there will be another means for access to as extensive a film library as FilmStruck, to fill the need to view great works that may have been forgotten.
PHOTO COURTESY of Entropy
