I had a sinking feeling this morning as I pulled into the driveway and saw that I had received an email with the subject “Important information about FilmStruck.” What awaited me was my greatest fear brought to life. FilmStruck, the streaming service that catered to classic film fans was shutting down.
As a lover of classic and art house films, to say I’m heartbroken just doesn’t do it justice. Every week the service brought in new films by classic directors while making sure there was a good rotation of seasonal films as well as mainstay classics. Why just yesterday as I laid in bed feeling like ass I was able to watch a man with cheetah nipples spray milk onto another mans face thanks to this service. Because of FilmStruck, I was able to convince my girlfriend to watch jidaigeki films, and now in a little over a month it will all be gone.
I’m not saying this is the beginning of the bubble bursting on streaming services but it’s definitely a warning pop. This is especially apparent since the fatal blow came from Turner and Warner Bros. Digital Networks. Yes, Warner Bros. The same company that just recently launched a DC comic-centric streaming service that seemingly no one wants, as well as announcing plans for a new streaming service to host all their movies shut down the best streaming service for film fans.
No specific reason has been given and I have reached out to FilmStruck for more clarification on this matter but the two leading suspects are lack of subscribers or preparing for the aforementioned launch of Warners own service. Criterion has said that they are monitoring the situation and plan to move forward with their mission of bringing their collection of films to everyone, so there is hope that they will find a new streaming service rather quickly. Turner’s collection on the other hand I fear will have to wait for the Warner Bros. service or simply cease to exist in streaming form anymore.
FilmStruck will cease operations on November 29th. Annual subscribers will be given a prorated refund on their remaining subscription, and monthly subscribers will not have to pay anything starting today. I’ll close this out with a quote from my favorite musician, John Darnielle of the Mountain Goats.
Good things never last
Bad things never die
