The 3 Penny Opera (1931) Directed by G.W. Pabst - At the end of a century in London, Bandit Mack the Knife marries Polly without the knowledge of her father, Peachum, the `King of the Beggars`.
3 Women (1977) Directed by Robert Altman - Millie Lammoreaux (Shelley Duvall) considers herself irresistible to men, though in fact men have little trouble resisting her. Mysterious teenager Pinky Rose (Sissy Spacek), Millie's fellow physical therapist at a desert spa who becomes her roommate at a singles-only apartment building, at first appears worshipful of Millie's self-confidence but soon seems to be taking over aspects of her personality.
The 39 Steps(1935) Directed by Alfred Hitchcock - While on vacation in London, Canadian Richard Hannay (Robert Donat) becomes embroiled in an international spy ring related to the mysterious "39 steps." Then he meets agent Annabella Smith (Lucie Mannheim), who is soon killed in his apartment. He must elude the police, who are hunting him for murder, while he tries to stop Professor Jordan (Godfrey Tearle) from sending secrets out of the country. Hannay is assisted by Pamela (Madeleine Carroll), an unwilling accomplice who discovers the truth.
400 Blows (1959) Directed by François Truffaut - For young Parisian boy Antoine Doinel (Jean-Pierre Léaud), life is one difficult situation after another. Surrounded by inconsiderate adults, including his neglectful parents (Claire Maurier, Albert Remy), Antoine spends his days with his best friend, Rene (Patrick Auffray), trying to plan for a better life. When one of their schemes goes awry, Antoine ends up in trouble with the law, leading to even more conflicts with unsympathetic authority figures.
49th Parallel (1941) Directed by Michael Powell - In the early days of World War II, a German U-boat is sunk in Canada's Hudson Bay. Hoping to evade capture, a small band of German soldiers led by commanding officer Lieutenant Hirth (Eric Portman) attempts to cross the border into the United States, which has not yet entered the war and is officially neutral. Along the way, the German soldiers encounter brave men such as French-Canadian fur trapper Johnnie (Laurence Olivier) and soldier Andy Brock (Raymond Massey).
À Nos Amours (1983) Directed by Maurice Pialat - Fifteen-year-old Suzanne (Sandrine Bonnaire) sleeps around to escape from her deteriorating home life. Her father (Maurice Pialat) physically abuses her, her mother (Evelyn Ker) is hopelessly distant and her brother, Robert (Dominique Besnehard), is an unrepentant bully. Promiscuity provides Suzanne with her only refuge, so she takes pains to keep love out of the equation, thus avoiding any more potential pain. Yet her evolving relationship with her friend Luc risks turning into something real.
À nous la Liberté (1931) Directed by René Clair - Louis (Raymond Cordy), a convict, escapes from prison and takes on legitimate work, making his way up in the business world. Eventually becoming the head of a successful factory, Louis opts to modernize his company with mechanical innovations. But when his friend Émile (Henri Marchand) finally leaves jail years later and reunites with Louis, the past catches up with them. The two, worried about being apprehended by police, long to flee the confines of industry.
Ace in the Hole (1951) Directed by Billy Wilder - With flaws that outweigh his talent, reporter Chuck Tatum (Kirk Douglas) has bounced across the country from job to job. Winding up in New Mexico, Tatum gets work from the local newspaper, but finds that there's not much in the way of pressing news. However, when Tatum catches wind of a treasure hunter (Richard Benedict) trapped in a mineshaft, he turns the story into a media sensation. Soon Tatum is using unscrupulous tactics to draw out the situation, an approach that comes back to haunt him.
An Actor’s Revenge (1963) Directed by Kon Ichikawa - A Kabuki actor exacts a bloody revenge after he encounters the wealthy businessman who destroyed his family.
Alexander Nevsky (1938) Directed by Sergei Eisenstein - When German knights invade Russia, Prince Alexander Nevsky (Nikolai Cherkasov) must rally his people to resist the formidable force. After the Teutonic soldiers take over an eastern Russian city, Alexander stages his stand at Novgorod, where a major battle is fought on the ice of frozen Lake Chudskoe. While Alexander leads his outnumbered troops, two of their number, Vasili (Nikolai Okhlopkov) and Gavrilo (Andrei Abrikosov), begin a contest of bravery to win the hand of a local maiden.
Ali: Fear Eats the Soul (1974) Directed by Rainer Werner Fassbender - Emmi Kurowski (Brigitte Mira), a cleaning lady, is lonely in her old age. Her husband died years ago, and her grown children offer little companionship. One night she goes to a bar frequented by Arab immigrants and strikes up a friendship with middle-aged mechanic Ali (El Hedi ben Salem). Their relationship soon develops into something more, and Emmi's family and neighbors criticize their spontaneous marriage. Soon Emmi and Ali are forced to confront their own insecurities about their future.
All Night Long (1962) Directed by Basil Dearden - Johnnie Cousin (Patrick McGoohan) is an up-and-coming jazz drummer who wants to start his own band, but he needs a singer. He attempts to court Delia (Marti Stevens), a famous retired singer, but to no avail. When it becomes clear to him that Delia won't play with him, Johnnie tries to convince Delia's husband Aurelius (Paul Harris) that Delia is cheating on him. His attempts to end their marriage may cost Johnnie his own. Many jazz greats of the 1960s perform in this update of Othello.
All That Heaven Allows (1955) Directed by Douglas Sirk - Predicated on a May-December romance. The difference here is that the woman, attractive widow Cary Scott (Jane Wyman), is considerably older than the man, handsome gardener-landscaper Ron Kirby (Rock Hudson). Throwing conventional behavior to the winds and facing social ostracism, Cary pursues her romance with Ron, who is unjustly perceived as a fortune-hunter by Cary's friends and family -- especially her priggish brother Ned (William Reynolds).
All That Jazz (1979) Directed by Bob Fosse - When he is not planning for his upcoming stage musical or working on his Hollywood film, choreographer/director Joe Gideon (Roy Scheider) is popping pills and sleeping with a seemingly endless line of women. The physical and mental stress begins to take a toll on the ragged perfectionist. Soon, he must decide whether or not his non-stop work schedule and hedonistic lifestyle are worth risking his life. The film is a semi-autobiographical tale written and directed by the legendary Bob Fosse.
Alphaville (1965) Directed by Jean-Luc Godard - Government agent Lemmy Caution (Eddie Constantine) is dispatched on a secret mission to Alphaville, a dystopian metropolis in a distant corner of the galaxy. Caution is hot on the trail of rogue agent Henri Dickson (Akim Tamiroff) and a scientist named Von Braun, the creator of Alpha 60, a computer that uses mind control to rule over residents of Alphaville. Caution is aided in his quest to destroy the despotic computer ruler by Von Braun's own daughter, Natacha (Anna Karina).
Anatomy of a Murder (1959) Directed by Otto Preminger - Semi-retired Michigan lawyer Paul Biegler (James Stewart) takes the case of Army Lt. Manion (Ben Gazzara), who murdered a local innkeeper after his wife (Lee Remick) claimed that he raped her. Over the course of an extensive trial, Biegler parries with District Attorney Lodwick (Brooks West) and out-of-town prosecutor Claude Dancer (George C. Scott) to set his client free, but his case rests on the victim's mysterious business partner (Kathryn Grant), who's hiding a dark secret.
And Everything is Going to Be Fine (2010) Directed by Steven Soderbergh - The late Spalding Gray was a master of the intelligent monologue, as evidenced by the acclaimed 1987 film version of his one-man show "Swimming to Cambodia." Director Steven Soderbergh examines the work of this witty and articulate but nonetheless troubled performer through segments from his stories and interview footage. This is the story of Spalding Gray told through the words of Spalding Gray, in roughly chronological order and with no outside commentary.
And the Pursuit of Happiness (1988) Directed by Louis Malle - After acknowledging his own immigrant background, Malle tries to present the range of immigrant experiences in the US during the 1980's. In an attempt to be comprehensive, the film includes interviews with migrant workers and illegal entrants along the Mexican border, conversations with an enterprising Indian motel owner, coverage of industrious African and Asian families in the cities, an extensive interview with the first Costa Rican astronaut, visits with Cuban exiles in Miami, several conversations with West Indian poet Derek Walcott, an extended portrait of the deposed Nicaraguan General Samoza (the surviving brother of Anastasio Somoza Debayle) and his extended family. The film finishes with a brief visit to the Russian Jewish community in Brooklyn, NY to tie in with the centenary of the Statue of Liberty.
And the Ship Sails On (1983) Directed by Federico Fellini - In 1914, a cruise ship sets sail from Naples to spread the ashes of beloved opera singer Edmea Tetua (Janet Suzman) near Erimo, the isle of her birth. During the voyage, the eclectic array of passengers discovers a group of Serbian refugees aboard the vessel. Peace and camaraderie abound until the ship is descended upon by an Austrian flagship. The Serbians are forced to board it, but naturally they resist, igniting a skirmish that ends in destruction.
Andrei Rublev (1966) Directed by Andrei Tarkovsky - An expansive Russian drama, this film focuses on the life of revered religious icon painter Andrei Rublev (Anatoliy Solonitsyn). Drifting from place to place in a tumultuous era, the peace-seeking monk eventually gains a reputation for his art. But after Rublev witnesses a brutal battle and unintentionally becomes involved, he takes a vow of silence and spends time away from his work. As he begins to ease his troubled soul, he takes steps towards becoming a painter once again.
An Angel at My Table (1990) Directed by Jane Campion - Based on the autobiographical work of New Zealand writer Janet Frame, this production depicts the author at various stage of her life. Afflicted with mental and emotional issues, Frame grows up in an impoverished family and experiences numerous tragedies while still in her youth, including the deaths of two of her siblings. Portrayed as an adult by Kerry Fox, Frame finds acclaim for her writing while still in a mental institution, and her success helps her move on with her life.
Antichrist (2009) Directed by Lars Von Trier - While a married couple (Willem Dafoe, Charlotte Gainsbourg) is having sex, their infant son in a nearby room falls out a window to his death. She becomes distraught and is hospitalized, but her husband, who is a psychiatrist, attempts to treat her. Deciding that she needs to face her fears, he takes her to a cabin in the woods where she spent a previous summer with the boy. Once they are there, she becomes more unhinged and starts perpetrating sexual violence on her husband and herself.
Ariel (1988) Directed by Aki Kaurismäki - The film tells the story of Taisto Kasurinen (Turo Pajala), a Finnish coal miner who must find a way to live in the big city after the mine closes.
Army of Shadows (1969) Directed by Jean-Pierre Melville - This adaptation of the book by Joseph Kessel paints an understated, unglamorous portrait of the French Resistance during World World II. Betrayed by an informant, Philippe Gerbier (Lino Ventura) finds himself trapped in a torturous Nazi prison camp. Though Gerbier escapes to rejoin the Resistance in occupied Marseilles, France, and exacts his revenge on the informant, he must continue a quiet, seemingly endless battle against the Nazis in an atmosphere of tension, paranoia and distrust.
Ashes and Diamonds (1958) Directed by Andrzej Wajda - It's May 1945, and Nazi Germany has just surrendered. The war is over, but not in Poland. As the German soldiers vacate, the remaining Russian forces and Polish resistance fighters must work out the hierarchies of power in "liberated" Communist Poland. A Polish assassin (Zbigniew Cybulski) is given orders to kill a Russian soldier (Waclaw Zastrzezynsky) whom he, days before, was fighting alongside, and this moral conflict makes him question the goals for which he has been fighting.
Au Hasard Balthazar (1966) Directed by Robert Bresson - This thoughtful and unique French film reveals the surprisingly deep connection between Marie (Anne Wiazemsky), a sensitive farm girl, and her cherished donkey, Balthazar. Though Marie and Balthazar are eventually separated when she gets older, the tale follows both the young woman and the donkey as they contend with the hardships of the world. Although Marie and Balthazar often encounter cruelty from the various people they meet, they also find small moments of beauty.
Au Revoir Les Enfants (1987) Directed by Louis Malle - In 1943, Julien (Gaspard Manesse) is a student at a French boarding school. When three new students arrive, including Jean Bonnett (Raphael Fejto), Julien believes they are no different from the other boys. What Julien doesn't know is that the boys are actually Jews who are evading capture by the Nazis. While Julien doesn't care for Jean at first, the boys develop a tight bond -- while the head of the school, Père Jean (Philippe Morier-Genoud), works to protect the boys from the Holocaust.
Autumn Sonata (1978) Directed by Ingmar Bergman - After a seven-year absence, Charlotte Andergast (Ingrid Bergman) travels to Sweden to reunite with her daughter Eva (Liv Ullmann). The pair have a troubled relationship: Charlotte sacrificed the responsibilities of motherhood for a career as a classical pianist. Over an emotional night, the pair reopen the wounds of the past. Charlotte gets another shock when she finds out that her mentally impaired daughter, Helena (Lena Nyman), is out of the asylum and living with Eva.
Babette’s Feast (1987) Directed by Gabriel Axel - Beautiful but pious sisters Martine (Birgitte Federspiel) and Philippa (Bodil Kjer) grow to spinsterhood under the wrathful eye of their strict pastor father on the forbidding and desolate coast of Jutland, until one day, Philippa's former suitor sends a Parisian refugee named Babette (Stéphane Audran) to serve as the family cook. Babette's lavish celebratory banquet tempts the family's dwindling congregation, who abjure such fleshly pleasures as fine foods and wines.
Badlands (1973) Directed by Terence Malick - Inspired by real-life killers Charles Starkweather and Caril-Ann Fugate, this tale of crime and love begins in a dead-end town. Teenage girl Holly (Sissy Spacek) angers her father (Warren Oates) when she begins dating an older and rebellious boy (Martin Sheen). After a conflict between Holly and her father erupts in murder, the young lovers are forced to flee. In the ensuing crime spree, they journey through the Midwest to the Badlands of Montana, eluding authorities along the way.
Bad Timing (1980) Directed by Nicolas Roeg - Alex Linden (Art Garfunkel) is a psychiatrist living in Vienna who meets Milena Flaherty (Theresa Russell) through a mutual friend. Though Alex is quite a bit older than Milena, he's attracted to her young, carefree spirit. Despite the fact that Milena is already married, their friendship quickly turns into a deeply passionate love affair that threatens to overtake them both. When Milena ends up in the hospital from an overdose, Alex is taken into custody by Inspector Netusil (Harvey Keitel).
Ballad of Gregorio Cortez (1982) Directed by Robert M. Young - After Gregorio Cortez (Edward James Olmos), who speaks no English, is falsely accused of stealing a horse by Texas Rangers, a scuffle breaks out in which Gregorio kills a sheriff and his own brother is shot. Now forced to go on the run, Gregorio has to leave his family and set out alone. Meanwhile, a reporter starts to piece together the story and realizes the incident stemmed from a tragic misunderstanding. Eventually, Gregorio is caught and put on trial for murder.
The Bakery Girl of Monceau (1963) Directed by Eric Rohmer - Although he is searching for the real object of his desire, a law student (Barbet Schroeder) flirts with a pretty bakery worker.
Band of Outsiders (1964) Directed by Jean-Luc Godard - Cinephile slackers Franz (Sami Frey) and Arthur (Claude Brasseur) spend their days mimicking the antiheroes of Hollywood noirs and Westerns while pursuing the lovely Odile (Anna Karina). The misfit trio upends convention at every turn, be it through choreographed dances in cafés or frolicsome romps through the Louvre. Eventually, their romantic view of outlaws pushes them to plan their own heist, but their inexperience may send them out in a blaze of glory -- which could be just what they want.
Barry Lyndon(1975) Directed by Stanley Kubrick - Acclaimed adaptation of William Makepeace Thackeray's novel, in which a likable young Irishman changes into a conniving, manipulative rogue. The protagonist finds himself homeless after taking part in a fake duel and is then captured by a Prussian highwayman, and meets up with a spy, but his fortunes change when he marries a wealthy titled woman in order to secure his future.
Battle of Algiers (1966) Directed by Gillo Pontecorvo - Paratrooper commander Colonel Mathieu (Jean Martin), a former French Resistance fighter during World War II, is sent to 1950s Algeria to reinforce efforts to squelch the uprisings of the Algerian War. There he faces Ali la Pointe (Brahim Haggiag), a former petty criminal who, as the leader of the Algerian Front de Liberation Nationale, directs terror strategies against the colonial French government occupation. As each side resorts to ever-increasing brutality, no violent act is too unthinkable.
The Beales of Grey Gardens(2006) Directed by Albert Maysles, David Maysles and Ian Markiewicz - This film is a follow-up to the celebrated 1975 documentary Grey Gardens about Jackie Kennedy's aunt and cousin, "Big" Edie and "Little" Edie Beale. This film is composed entirely of footage not used in the original documentary that was shot at the Beale estate in East Hampton.
Beasts of No Nation (2015) Directed by Cary Joji Fukunaga - As civil war rages in Africa, a fierce warlord (Idris Elba) trains a young orphan (Abraham Attah) to join his group of guerrilla soldiers.
Beau Travail (1999) Directed by Claire Denis - Foreign Legion officer, Galoup, recalls his once glorious life, leading troops in the Gulf of Djibouti. His existence there was happy, strict and regimented, but the arrival of a promising young recruit, Sentain, plants the seeds of jealousy in Galoup's mind. He feels compelled to stop him from coming to the attention of the commandant who he admires, but who ignores him. Ultimately, his jealousy leads to the destruction of both Sentain and himself.
Beauty and the Beast (1946) Directed by Jean Cocteau - The story of a gentle-hearted beast in love with a simple and beautiful girl. She is drawn to the repellent but strangely fascinating Beast, who tests her fidelity by giving her a key, telling her that if she doesn't return it to him by a specific time, he will die of grief. She is unable to return the key on time, but it is revealed that the Beast is the genuinely handsome one. A simple tale of tragic love that turns into a surreal vision of death, desire, and beauty.
Bed and Board (1970) Directed by François Truffaut - Parisian everyman Antoine Doinel (Jean-Pierre Léaud) has married his sweetheart Christine Darbon (Claude Jade), and the newlyweds have set up a cozy domestic life of selling flowers and giving violin lessons while Antoine fitfully works on his long-gestating novel. As Christine becomes pregnant with the couple's first child, Antoine finds himself enraptured with a young Japanese beauty (Mademoiselle Hiroko). The complications change the course of their relationship forever.
Before the Rain (1994) Directed by Milcho Manchevski - This acclaimed Macedonian drama presents intersecting romantic storylines set both in that country and abroad. A young monk named Kiril (Grégoire Colin) becomes involved with Zamira (Labina Mitevska), an Albanian girl accused of murder, while far away in London, Aleksander (Rade Serbedzija), a weary photojournalist, meets with his married lover, Anne (Katrin Cartlidge). When Aleksander returns to his Macedonian village, his life crosses paths with characters from earlier in the film.
Being John Malkovich (1999) Directed by Spike Jonze - In this quirky cult-favorite comedy, unemployed New York City puppeteer Craig Schwartz (John Cusack) reluctantly takes a temp job as a filing clerk for the eccentric Dr. Lester (Orson Bean). While at work, Craig discovers a portal that leads into the mind of renowned actor John Malkovich. When he lets his attractive coworker Maxine (Catherine Keener) in on the secret, they begin both an unusual business scheme and an odd relationship that involves Craig's restless wife, Lotte (Cameron Diaz).
Being There (1979) Directed by Hal Ashby - Simple-minded Chance (Peter Sellers), a gardener who has resided in the Washington, D.C., townhouse of his wealthy employer for his entire life and been educated only by television, is forced to vacate his home when his boss dies. While wandering the streets, he encounters business mogul Ben Rand (Melvyn Douglas), who assumes Chance to be a fellow upper-class gentleman. Soon Chance is ushered into high society, and his unaffected gardening wisdom makes him the talk of the town.
Bergman Island(2021) Directed by Mia Hansen-Løve - Two American filmmakers retreat to Fårö island for the summer and hope to find inspiration where Bergman shot his most celebrated films. As the days pass by, the lines between fantasy and reality begin to blur, and the couple is torn apart.
Berlin Alexanderplatz (1980) Directed by Rainer Werner Fassbender - Rainer Werner Fassbinder’s controversial, fifteen-hour Berlin Alexanderplatz, based on Alfred Döblin’s great modernist novel, was the crowning achievement of a prolific director who, at age thirty-four, had already made over thirty films. Fassbinder’s immersive epic follows the hulking, childlike ex-convict Franz Biberkopf (Günter Lamprecht) as he attempts to “become an honest soul” amid the corrosive urban landscape of Weimar-era Germany. With equal parts cynicism and humanity, Fassbinder details a mammoth portrait of a common man struggling to survive in a viciously uncommon time.
Bicycle Thieves (1948) Directed by Vittorio De Sica - Unemployed Antonio Ricci (Lamberto Maggiorani) is elated when he finally finds work hanging posters around war-torn Rome. His wife, Maria (Lianella Carell), sells the family's bed linens to retrieve Antonio's bicycle from the pawnshop so he can take the job. However, disaster strikes when Antonio's bicycle is stolen, and his new job is doomed unless he can find the thief. With the help of his lively son, Bruno (Enzo Staiola), Antonio combs the city, growing increasingly desperate for justice.
The Big City (1963) Directed by Satyajit Ray - Arati (Madhabi Mukherjee) takes a job as a door-to-door saleswoman in Calcutta's wealthy neighborhoods, in defiance of her traditionally minded husband, Subrata (Anil Chatterjee), and his live-in parents. Emulating her Anglo-Indian friend and co-worker Edith (Vicky Redwood), who speaks as an equal to the men she encounters on the job, Arati quickly becomes her firm's top salesperson. When Subrata loses his job, the power dynamic in the family begins to shift.
Bigger Than Life (1956) Directed by Nicolas Ray - After school teacher Ed Avery (James Mason) faints and is hospitalized, doctors diagnose him with a fatal arterial illness and tell him he has a few months to live. Ed agrees to an experimental treatment with cortisone, and makes what appears to be a miraculous recovery. However, upon his return home, his wife, Lou (Barbara Rush), notices severe mood shifts in him. His friend and coworker Wally (Walter Matthau) also perceives the changes, and discovers that Ed has been abusing the cortisone.
The Bitter Tears of Petra Von Kant(1972) Directed by Rainer Werner Fassbender - Two women (Hanna Schygulla, Irm Hermann) form a sexual triangle with a fashion designer (Margit Carstensen) in her arty apartment.
Black Moon (1975) Directed by Louis Malle - A host of bizarre characters dominates a tale about a girl (Cathryn Harrison) on the run from warring forces in a futuristic country.
Black Narcissus (1947) Directed by Michael Powell - A group of Anglican nuns, led by Sister Clodagh (Deborah Kerr), are sent to a mountain in the Himalayas. The climate in the region is hostile and the nuns are housed in an odd old palace. They work to establish a school and a hospital, but slowly their focus shifts. Sister Ruth (Kathleen Byron) falls for a government worker, Mr. Dean (David Farrar), and begins to question her vow of celibacy. As Sister Ruth obsesses over Mr. Dean, Sister Clodagh becomes immersed in her own memories of love.
Black River (1956) Directed by Masaki Kobayashi - A love triangle that develops between a good-natured student, his innocent girlfriend, and a coldhearted petty criminal to reveal a nation slowly succumbing to lawlessness and violence.
Blast of Silence (1961) Directed by Allen Baron - A hit man (Allen Baron) comes to New York to kill a gangster and gets the gun from a big guy (Larry Tucker) with a beard.
Blithe Spirit (1945) Directed by David Lean -Skeptical novelist Charles Condomine (Rex Harrison) invites self-proclaimed medium Madame Arcati (Margaret Rutherford) to his home for a séance, hoping to gather material for a new book. When the hapless psychic accidentally summons the spirit of Condomine's late wife, Elvira (Kay Hammond), his home and life are quickly turned into a shambles as his wife's ghost torments both himself and his new bride, Ruth (Constance Cummings). David Lean directed this adaptation of Noel Coward's hit play.
The Blob (1958) Directed by Irvin S. Yeaworth - A drive-in favorite, this sci-fi classic follows teenagers Steve (Steven McQueen) and his best girl, Jane (Aneta Corseaut), as they try to protect their hometown from a gelatinous alien life form that engulfs everything it touches. The first to discover the substance and live to tell about it, Steve and Jane witness the blob destroying an elderly man and grow to a terrifying size. But no one else has seen the goo, and policeman Dave (Earl Rowe) refuses to believe the kids without proof.
Blood for Dracula (1974) Directed by Paul Morrissey - Deathly ill Count Dracula (Udo Kier) and his slimy underling, Anton (Arno Juerging), travel to Italy in search of a virgin's blood. They're welcomed at the crumbling estate of indebted Marchese Di Fiore (Vittorio De Sica), who's desperate to marry off his daughters to rich suitors. But there, instead of pure women, the count encounters incestuous lesbians with vile blood and Marxist manservant Mario (Joe Dallesandro), who's suspicious of the aristocratic Dracula.
Blood of a Poet (1932) Directed by Jean Cocteau - Filmmaker Jean Cocteau's abstract collection of images loosely connected to the feelings within a poet's heart and soul.
Blood Wedding (1981) Directed by Carlos Saura - A Spanish dance troupe gathers in a threadbare studio to perform a dress rehearsal for a flamenco interpretation of Federico Garcia Lorca's play "Blood Wedding." Choreographer and lead dancer Leonardo (Antonio Gades) is interviewed as the rest of the troupe makes final back-stage preparations. Without dialogue and through their movements alone, the dancers tell the tragic tale of two doomed lovers and a bridegroom who meet their fates in a violent knife fight.
Blow Out (1981) Directed by Brian De Palma - While recording sound effects for a slasher flick, Jack Terri (John Travolta) stumbles upon a real-life horror: a car careening off a bridge and into a river. Jack jumps into the water and fishes out Sally (Nancy Allen) from the car, but the other passenger is already dead -- a governor intending to run for president. As Jack does some investigating of his tapes, and starts a perilous romance with Sally, he enters a tangled web of conspiracy that might leave him dead.
Blue (1993) Directed by Krzysztof Kieslowski - Julie (Juliette Binoche) is haunted by her grief after living through a tragic auto wreck that claimed the life of her composer husband and young daughter. Her initial reaction is to withdraw from her relationships, lock herself in her apartment and suppress her pain. But avoiding human interactions on the bustling streets of Paris proves impossible, and she eventually meets up with Olivier (Benoît Régent), an old friend who harbors a secret love for her, and who could draw her back to reality.
Blue is the Warmest Color(2013) Directed by Abdellatif Kechiche - A French teen (Adèle Exarchopoulos) forms a deep emotional and sexual connection with an older art student (Léa Seydoux) she met in a lesbian bar.
Boat People(1982) Directed by Ann Hui - Shiomi Akutagawa (George Lam), a Japanese photojournalist, travels to Vietnam to document life under communist rule. Government officials are all too happy to take him on a tour of villages that are clean, happy and healthy. But Shiomi is restless. He manages to break away from the government tour and sets out on his own. He meets Cam (Season Ma), a young boy, and a villager's mistress (Cora Miao), who become his guides to the Vietnam the government doesn't want anyone to see.
Bob Le Flambeur(1956) Directed by Jean-Pierre Melville - In Paris, Bob Montagne (Roger Duchesne) is practically synonymous with gambling -- and winning. He is kind, classy and well-liked by virtually everyone in town, including police inspector Ledru (Guy Decomble). However, when Bob's luck turns sour, he begins to lose friends and makes the most desperate gamble of his life: to rob the Deauville casino during Grand Prix weekend, when the vaults are full. Unfortunately, Bob soon learns that the game is rigged and the cops are onto him.
Border Radio(1987) Directed by Allison Anders - Los Angeles rockers Jeff (Chris D.), Dean (John Doe) and Dave flee to Mexico and back after robbing a club owner who owes them.
The Bostonians (1984) Directed by James Ivory - Based on Henry James' novel, Merchant-Ivory's The Bostonians tells the story of Olive Chancellor, a 19th-century Boston woman dedicated to the suffrage movement who takes Verena Tarrant, a radical young woman, under her wing. But her cousin is a male chauvinist who wants to marry and domesticate the young woman and a battle of wills ensues over her future.
Bowling for Columbine (2002) Directed by Michael Moore - Political documentary filmmaker Michael Moore explores the circumstances that lead to the 1999 Columbine High School massacre and, more broadly, the proliferation of guns and the high homicide rate in America. In his trademark provocative fashion, Moore accosts Kmart corporate employees and pleads with them to stop selling bullets, investigates why Canada doesn't have the same excessive rate of gun violence and questions actor Charlton Heston on his support of the National Rifle Association.
Branded to Kill(1967) Directed by Seijin Suzuki - After botching his latest assignment, a third-ranked Japanese hit man becomes the target of another assassin.
Brazil (1985) Directed by Terry Gilliam - Low-level bureaucrat Sam Lowry (Jonathan Pryce) escapes the monotony of his day-to-day life through a recurring daydream of himself as a virtuous hero saving a beautiful damsel. Investigating a case that led to the wrongful arrest and eventual death of an innocent man instead of wanted terrorist Harry Tuttle (Robert De Niro), he meets the woman from his daydream (Kim Greist), and in trying to help her gets caught in a web of mistaken identities, mindless bureaucracy and lies.
Breaking the Waves(1996) Directed by Lars Von Trier - In a small and religious coastal town, a simple, devoutly religious Scottish woman, Bess McNeill (Emily Watson), finds a partner in an oil rig worker from Norway, Jan Nyman (Stellan Skarsgard). However, the relationship grows strained when Nyman breaks his neck in a horrific work accident on the rig and becomes paralyzed. Unable to perform sexually and suffering mentally from the accident as well, Jan convinces Bess to have sex with other men, which she comes to believe is God's work.
Breathless(1960) Directed by Jean-Luc Godard - Petty thug Michel (Jean-Paul Belmondo) considers himself a suave bad guy in the manner of Humphrey Bogart, but panics and impulsively kills a policeman while driving a stolen car. On the lam, he turns to his aspiring journalist girlfriend, Patricia (Jean Seberg), hiding out in her Paris apartment while he tries to pull together enough money to get the pair to Italy. But when Patricia learns that her boyfriend is being investigated for murder, she begins to question her loyalties.
Brief Encounter(1945) Directed by David Lean - Returning home from a shopping trip to a nearby town, bored suburban housewife Laura Jesson (Celia Johnson) is thrown by happenstance into an acquaintance with virtuous doctor Alec Harvey (Trevor Howard). Their casual friendship soon develops during their weekly visits into something more emotionally fulfilling than either expected, and they must wrestle with the potential havoc their deepening relationship would have on their lives and the lives of those they love.
A Brief History of Time(1991) Directed by Errol Morris - In part an adaptation of cosmologist Stephen Hawking's popular book about his theories of the universe, this documentary also shows Hawking's daily life as he deals with the ALS that renders him virtually immobile and unable to speak without the use of computer. Hawking's friends, family, former classmates and peers are interviewed about not only his theories but the man himself. Director Errol Morris uses creative graphics to visually illustrate Hawking's complex ideas.
Bringing Up Baby (1938) Directed by Howard Hawks - Harried paleontologist David Huxley (Cary Grant) has to make a good impression on society matron Mrs. Random (May Robson), who is considering donating one million dollars to his museum. On the day before his wedding, Huxley meets Mrs. Random's high-spirited young niece, Susan Vance (Katharine Hepburn), a madcap adventuress who immediately falls for the straitlaced scientist. The ever-growing chaos -- including a missing dinosaur bone and a pet leopard -- threatens to swallow him whole.
Broadcast News (1987) Directed by James L. Brooks - Intelligent satire of American television news. A highly strung news producer finds herself strangely attracted to a vapid anchorman even though she loathes everything he personifies. To make matters worse, her best friend, a talented but not particularly telegenic news reporter, is secretly in love with her.
The Brood (1979) Directed by David Cronenberg - A mad doctor (Oliver Reed) tries psychoplasmic therapy on a raging woman (Samantha Eggar) soon to be a mother.
The Browning Version (1951) Directed by Anthony Asquith - Andrew Crocker-Harris (Michael Redgrave) has been forced from his position as the classics master at an English public school due to poor health. As he winds up his final term, he discovers not only that his wife, Millie (Jean Kent), has been unfaithful to him with one of his fellow schoolmasters (Nigel Patrick), but that the school's students and faculty have long disdained him. However, an unexpected act of kindness causes Crocker-Harris to re-evaluate his life's work.
Burden of Dreams(1982) Directed by Les Blank - German director Werner Herzog begins work on his 1982 epic "Fitzcarraldo" but soon runs into serious setbacks, from casting problems to his own stubborn refusal to use special effects. After having to reshoot much of the film because the lead actor was recast, his crew must then haul an old-fashioned steamboat over a mountain using manpower alone. With a resolve bordering on insanity, Herzog struggles to realize his vision, vowing to see the film completed -- even if it leads to his undoing.
By BrakhageDirected by Stan Brakhage - Working outside the mainstream, the wildly prolific, visionary Stan Brakhage made more than 350 films over a half century. Challenging all taboos in his exploration of “birth, sex, death, and the search for God,” he turned his camera on explicit lovemaking, childbirth, even autopsy. Many of his most famous works pursue the nature of vision itself and transcend the act of filming. Some, including the legendary Mothlight, were created without using a camera at all, as he pioneered the art of making images directly on film, by drawing, painting, and scratching. With these two volumes, we present the definitive Brakhage collection—fifty-six of his works, from across his career, in high-definition digital transfers.
Calcutta(1969) Directed by Louis Malle - This documentary by famed French director Louis Malle explores the extremity and vibrancy of Calcutta through video clips of its people, art and ceremonies, with limited narration. From the wealthy to the poverty-stricken, from the healthy to the lepers, from slums to palaces and everything in between, no corner of the city is left unexplored. This film provides a canvas on which the brilliant diversity of this city of eight million is expressed in rich color and depth.
The Cameraman(1928) Directed by Buster Keaton - In this silent classic, photographer Buster (Buster Keaton) meets Sally (Marceline Day), who works as a secretary for the newsreel department at MGM, and falls hard. Trying to win her attention, Buster abandons photography in order to become a news cameraman. In spite of his early failures with a motion camera, Sally takes to him as well. However, veteran cameraman Stagg (Harold Goodwin) also fancies Sally, meaning Buster will need to learn how to film quickly before he loses his job.
Capricious Summer(1968) Directed by Jiří Menzel - Antonin (Rudolf Hrusínský) and his aging buddies, one a former military man and the other a priest, are trying to unwind during their summer vacation at a resort. Those plans are jettisoned, however, when a circus performer arrives at the retreat, along with his young and attractive assistant, and sets up shop by entertaining the guests with magic and big-top events. What first seems a bother to Antonin and his friends soon starts awakening memories of their own youth.
Carlos(2010) Directed by Olivier Assayas - Carlos, directed by Olivier Assayas, is an epic, intensely detailed account of the life of the infamous international terrorist Ilich Ramírez Sánchez—also known as Carlos the Jackal. One of the twentieth century’s most wanted fugitives, Carlos was committed to violent left-wing activism throughout the seventies and eighties, orchestrating bombings, kidnappings, and hijackings in Europe and the Middle East. Assayas portrays him not as a criminal mastermind but as a symbol of seismic political shifts around the world, while the magnetic Édgar Ramírez brilliantly embodies him as a swaggering global gangster. Criterion presents the complete, uncut, director-approved, five-and-a-half-hour version of Carlos.
Carmen(1983) Directed by Carlos Saura - Antonio (Antonio Gades) is a choreographer who falls madly in love with the sultry star (Laura del Sol) of his flamenco-infused production of "Carmen." While his feelings for Laura are strong, he cares just as strongly about the show. On top of his fierce emotions, Antonio is confused about the proper direction for the performance. Before long, his affection mutates into jealousy, and the lovers' tale begins to reflect the famous tragedy of the opera they perform on stage.
Carnival of Souls(1963) Directed by Herk Harvey - Mary Henry (Candace Hilligoss) ends up the sole survivor of a fatal car accident through mysterious circumstances. Trying to put the incident behind her, she moves to Utah and takes a job as a church organist. But her fresh start is interrupted by visions of a fiendish man (Herk Harvey). As the visions begin to occur more frequently, Mary finds herself drawn to the deserted carnival on the outskirts of town. The strangely alluring carnival may hold the secret to her tragic past.
Casque D’or(1952) Directed by Jacques Becker - Ex-convict Georges Manda (Serge Reggiani) returns to the free world determined to go straight and takes a steady job as a carpenter. Unable to completely shake his connections with the underground, he meets with a former prison mate, older gangster Félix Leca (Claude Dauphin), who introduces him to his mistress, the sweet but guarded Marie "Casque d'Or" (Simone Signoret). Marie and Georges fall into a passionate relationship, driving Félix to do everything in his power to ruin the couple.
Celine and Julie Go Boating (1974) Directed by Jacques Rivette - When Celine (Juliet Berto) goes traipsing across a Parisian park, unwittingly dropping first a scarf, then other objects, Julie (Dominique Labourier) cannot help but follow her, picking up each item. So begins a fanciful relationship between the two, which soon sees Celine sharing Julie's apartment and each of them playfully switching identities in their daily lives. As they increasingly indulge their fantasies, they find themselves trying to rescue a young girl from a supposedly haunted house.
Certified Copy(2010) Directed by Abbas Kiarostami - While touring Tuscany, Italy, promoting his new book, English author James (William Shimell) meets French store owner Elle (Juliette Binoche), and the two hit it off, deciding to spend a free day together. They travel to a nearby town, get coffee, visit a museum and pretend to be recently married in what turns out to be a popular wedding destination. As these two strangers get to know each other, however, it becomes clear there's more to their new relationship than meets the eye.
Charulata (1967) Directed by Satyajit Ray - In 1870s India, Charulata (Madhabi Mukherjee) is an isolated, artistically inclined woman who sees little of her busy journalist husband, Bhupati (Sailen Mukherjee). Realizing that his wife is alienated and unhappy, he convinces his cousin, Amal (Soumitra Chatterjee), to spend time with Charulata and nourish her creative impulses. Amal is a fledgling poet himself, and he and Charulata bond over their shared love of art. But over time a sexual attraction develops, with heartbreaking results.
Chasing Amy(1997) Directed by Kevin Smith - A comic-book writer stumbles upon the love of his life, only to discover that she is gay. The situation is exacerbated by his roommate and professional partner who becomes increasingly threatened by the possibility that he will be replaced. The third film in writer-director's New Jersey trilogy, following on from `Clerks' and `Mallrats'.
Che(2008) Directed by Steven Soderberg - Far from a conventional biopic, Steven Soderbergh’s film about Che Guevara is a fascinating exploration of the revolutionary as an icon. Daring in its refusal to make the socialist leader into an easy martyr or hero, Che paints a vivid, naturalistic portrait of the man himself (Benicio Del Toro, in a stunning, Cannes-award-winning performance), from his overthrow of the Batista dictatorship to his 1964 United Nations trip to the end of his short life. Composed of two parts, the first a kaleidoscopic view of the Cuban Revolution and the second an all-action dramatization of Che’s failed campaign in Bolivia, Che is Soderbergh's most epic vision.
Children of Paradise(1945) Directed by Marcel Carné - In this expansive drama, the lovely and enigmatic Parisian actress Garance (Arletty) draws the attention of various men in her orbit, including the thoughtful mime Baptiste (Jean-Louis Barrault) and the ambitious actor Frédérick (Pierre Brasseur). Though Garance and Baptiste have an undeniable connection, their fortunes shift considerably, pushing them apart as well as bringing them back together, even as they pursue other relationships and lead separate lives.
A Christmas Tale(2008) Directed by Arnaud Desplechin - When steely French matriarch Junon (Catherine Deneuve) learns she has leukemia, she asks her children and grandchildren at the family Christmas gathering to see if they are eligible to become bone marrow donors. This causes deep friction in the family, especially between Junon's daughter Elizabeth (Anne Consigny) and son Henri (Mathieu Amalric), who already have a tumultuous relationship. Their mother's sickness also recalls the traumatic loss of their brother Joseph when they were children.
Chronicle of a Summer (1961) Directed by Jean Rouch and Edgar Morin - Few films can claim as much influence on the course of cinema history as Chronicle of a Summer. The fascinating result of a collaboration between filmmaker-anthropologist Jean Rouch and sociologist Edgar Morin, this vanguard work of what Morin termed cinéma- vérité is a brilliantly conceived and realized sociopolitical diagnosis of the early sixties in France. Simply by interviewing a group of Paris residents in the summer of 1960—beginning with the provocative and eternal question “Are you happy?” and expanding to political issues, including the ongoing Algerian War—Rouch and Morin reveal the hopes and dreams of a wide array of people, from artists to factory workers, from an Italian émigré to an African student. Chronicle of a Summer’s penetrative approach gives us a document of a time and place with extraordinary emotional depth.
Chungking Express (1994) Directed by Wong Kar Wai - Every day, Cop 223 (Takeshi Kaneshiro) buys a can of pineapple with an expiration date of May 1, symbolizing the day he'll get over his lost love. He's also got his eye on a mysterious woman in a blond wig (Brigitte Lin), oblivious of the fact she's a drug dealer. Cop 663 (Tony Leung Chiu Wai) is distraught with heartbreak over a breakup. But when his ex drops a spare set of his keys at a local cafe, a waitress (Faye Wong) lets herself into his apartment and spruces up his life.
City Lights (1931) Directed by Charlie Chaplin - A hapless but resilient tramp (Charlie Chaplin) falls in love with a blind flower girl (Virginia Cherrill) on the tough city streets. Upon learning that she and her grandmother are to be evicted from their home, the tramp undertakes a series of attempts to provide them with the money they need, all of which end in humiliating failure. But after a drunken millionaire (Harry Myers) lavishly rewards him for saving his life, the tramp can change the flower girl's life forever.
Claire’s Knee(1970) Directed by Eric Rohmer - Jerome (Jean-Claude Brialy) decides to prepare for a lifetime of matrimony by enjoying one last vacation by himself. Upon arriving at his lakeside destination, however, he finds Aurora (Aurora Cornu), a love from his past who is staying nearby. Through Aurora, Jerome is introduced to two teenage sisters, Laura (Béatrice Romand) and Claire (Laurence De Monaghan). Although Laura is smitten with Jerome, it is Claire -- or, more precisely, her knee -- that fascinates the soon-to-be-married man.
Claudine(1974) Directed by John Berry - Claudine (Diahann Carroll) is a single mother in New York City who endures an exhausting commute to the suburbs where she works as a maid for wealthy families. In one carefully tended white community, she meets Roop (James Earl Jones), a charismatic but irresponsible garbage collector. Romance quickly ensues, but Claudine doubts that their relationship is good for her six children, and Rupert, despite his good nature, is reluctant to take on fatherhood.
Close-Up(1990) Directed by Abbas Kiarostami - While reading a novel by Iranian director Mohsen Makhmalbaf on the bus, Ali Sabzian strikes up a conversation with a pretty girl, Mahrokh Ahankhah. When she tells him her family admires Makhmalbaf's work, Ali pretends to be the filmmaker to impress her. Becoming friendly with the Ahankhahs, Ali tells them he is preparing a new movie, but when they uncover his true identity, he is arrested for fraud. This film reenacts the true story of the incident, with Ali and the family playing themselves.
Cold War (2018) Directed by Paweł Pawlikowski - Set against the backdrop of the 1950s Cold War in Poland, two people of differing backgrounds and temperaments begin an almost impossible romance.
The Color of Pomegranates(1969) Directed by Sergei Parajanov - This avant-garde film by Russian director Sergei Parajanov depicts the life of revered 18th-century Armenian poet and musician Sayat-Nova (Vilen Galstyan). Portraying events in the life of the artist from childhood up to his death, the movie addresses in particular his relationships with women, including his muse (Sofiko Chiaureli). The production tells Sayat-Nova's dramatic story by using both his poems and largely still camerawork, creating an impressionistic work.
The Confession (1970) Directed by Costa-Gavras - In 1950s communist Czechoslovakia, a government minister, a war veteran who has long been a loyal party man, leads a relatively comfortable life with wife Lise. However, he soon finds himself under surveillance, then under arrest. He has no idea what his offense is, but agents for the totalitarian regime interrogate and torture him, aiming to use their unending power to gain a false confession for supposed crimes against the state.
A Constant Forge(2000) Directed by Charles Kiselyak - One of the great mavericks of cinema, John Cassavetes has earned a reputation as the godfather of American independent movies. The actor-turned-filmmaker invented a realist style of unadorned narrative films heavily influenced by documentaries. This in-depth analysis of Cassavetes' life and work features interviews with key collaborators and ensemble regulars, and explores the making of classics like "The Killing of a Chinese Bookie," "Opening Night" and "A Woman Under the Influence."
Contempt(1963) Directed by Jean-Luc Godard - A philistine in the art film business, Jeremy Prokosch (Jack Palance) is a producer unhappy with the work of his director. Prokosch has hired Fritz Lang (as himself) to direct an adaptation of "The Odyssey," but when it seems that the legendary filmmaker is making a picture destined to bomb at the box office, he brings in a screenwriter (Michel Piccoli) to energize the script. The professional intersects with the personal when a rift develops between the writer and his wife (Brigitte Bardot).
Coup De Torchon(1981) Directed by Bertrand Tavernier - Hapless Lucien Cordier (Philippe Noiret) is the beleaguered police chief of a small town in French colonial Senegal. The local criminals openly mock Lucien's inability to put a stop to their illegal enterprises, and his unfaithful and shrewish wife Huguette (Stéphane Audran) is having a blatant affair with Nono (Eddy Mitchell), whom Lucien believes is her brother. When the humiliations finally become too much for him to bear, Lucien takes matters into his own hands.
The Cranes are Flying(1957) Directed by Mikhail Kalatozov - Veronika (Tatyana Samoylova) and Boris (Aleksey Batalov) come together in Moscow shortly before World War II. Walking along the river, they watch cranes fly overhead, and promise to rendezvous before Boris leaves to fight. Boris misses the meeting and is off to the front lines, while Veronika waits patiently, sending letters faithfully. After her house is bombed, Veronika moves in with Boris' family, into the company of a cousin with his own intentions.
Cria Cuervos (1977) Directed by Carlos Saura - A little girl (Ana Torrent) and her sisters are placed with an aunt (Geraldine Chaplin) in Madrid after their father dies during adultery.
Cries and Whispers (Blu) (1972) Directed by Ingmar Bergman - As Agnes (Harriet Andersson) slowly dies of cancer, her sisters are so deeply immersed in their own psychic pains that they can't offer her the support she needs. Maria (Liv Ullmann) is wracked with guilt at her husband's suicide, caused by his discovery of her extramarital affair. The self-loathing, suicidal Karin (Ingrid Thulin) seems to regard her sister with revulsion. Only Anna (Kari Sylwan), the deeply religious maid who lost her young child, seems able to offer Agnes solace and empathy.
Cronos(1992) Directed by Guillermo Del Toro - Antique dealer Jesus Gris (Federico Luppi) stumbles across Cronos, a 400-year-old scarab that, when it latches onto him, grants him youth and eternal life -- but also a thirst for blood. As Jesus enjoys his newfound vitality, he's unaware that a dying old man, Dieter de la Guardia (Claudio Brook), has sent his nephew, Angel (Ron Perlman), to find the scarab and bring it back to him. But Jesus will not give immortality up easily, even risking the life of his orphan granddaughter (Tamara Shanath).
Crumb (Blu) (1994) Directed by Terry Zwigoff - Filmmaker Terry Zwigoff creates a complex but affectionate portrait of his longtime friend, underground cartoonist Robert Crumb. A notorious curmudgeon who would prefer to be alone with his fellow cartoonist wife Aline Kominsky-Crumb and his beloved vintage jazz records, Crumb reveals himself to be a complicated personality who suffered a troubled upbringing and harbors a philosophical opposition to the 1960s hippie underground that first celebrated his work.
Daisies/ A Report on the Party and Guests(Double Feature) (1966/1966) Directed by Věra Chytilová, - In “Daisies,” Two teenage girls decide that since the world is spoiled, they will be spoiled too. They embark on a series of destructive pranks to rebel against a materialistic society. In “A Report on the Party and Guests,” While picnicking in the woods, a group of friends are interrupted by strangers who begin to forcibly interrogate them. Soon afterwards, the strangers take the group to a party.
Danton(1982) Directed by Andrzej Wajda - This French film from a Polish director explores a famous friendship soured by politics and corruption. Georges Danton (Gérard Depardieu) and Maximilien Robespierre (Wojciech Pszoniak) fought side by side during the French Revolution. But when Danton takes control of France and starts executing citizens in droves, Robespierre feels it his duty to challenge his one-time comrade. Robespierre goes to Paris to remove his old friend from power, but Danton will not go down without a fight.
David Lynch: The Art Life(2016) Directed by Jon Nguyen - The life and career of iconic director David Lynch are explored in more than 20 conversations recorded with him at his home.
Days of Heaven (1978) Directed by Terrence Malick - A screen poem about life in America at the turn of the century. A story of love and murder told through the voice of a child and expressive images of nature in 1916. A steelworker flees Chicago after a fight with his boss; he takes his little sister and girlfriend with him.
Deep Cover(1992) Directed by Bill Duke -David Jason (Jeff Goldblum) is the biggest drug dealer in Los Angeles, and Russell Stevens (Larry Fishburne) is an undercover cop who wants to bring him down. Posing as a dealer, Stevens begins to earn the trust of the L.A. drug underworld, eventually making his way to Jason himself. But along the way he has to take his cover to depths he never thought he would have to see, including selling drugs and going to great lengths to eliminate potential competitors for Jason's drug cartel.
Diabolique (1955) Directed by Henri-Georges Clouzot - In this classic of French suspense, the cruel and abusive headmaster of a boarding school, Michel Delassalle (Paul Meurisse), becomes the target of a murder plot hatched by an unlikely duo -- his meek wife (Vera Clouzot) and the mistress he brazenly flaunts (Simone Signoret). The women, brought together by their mutual hatred for the man, pull off the crime but become increasingly unhinged by a series of odd occurrences after Delassalle's corpse mysteriously disappears.
Diary of a Chambermaid (1965) Directed by Luis Bunuel - Celestine (Jeanne Moreau) has a new job as a chambermaid for the quirky M. Monteil (Michel Piccoli), his wife and her father. When the father dies, Celestine decides to quit her job and leave, but when a young girl is raped and murdered, Celestine believes that the Monteils' groundskeeper, Joseph (Georges Geret), is guilty, and stays on in order to prove it. She uses her sexuality and the promise of marriage to get Joseph to confess -- but things do not go as planned.
Dick Johnson is Dead(2020) Directed by Kirsten Johnson - As her father nears the end of his life, filmmaker Kirsten Johnson stages his death in inventive and comical ways to help them both face the inevitable.
Dillinger is Dead (1969) Directed by Marco Ferrerri - Glauco (Michel Piccoli), a middle aged designer, arrives home to find his wife (Anita Pallenberg) already asleep. He seeks diversion in the minutiae of their home, discovering a revolver wrapped in newspaper.
Divorce Italian Style(1962) Directed by Pietro Germi - Ferdinando Cefalù (Marcello Mastroianni) is desperate to marry his cousin, Angela (Stefania Sandrelli), but he is married to Rosalia (Daniela Rocca) and divorce is illegal in Italy. To get around the law, he tries to trick his wife into having an affair so he can catch her and murder her, as he knows he would be given a light sentence for killing an adulterous woman. He persuades a painter to lure his wife into an affair, but Rosalia proves to be more faithful than he expected.
Do the Right Thing (1989) Directed by Spike Lee - Salvatore "Sal" Fragione (Danny Aiello) is the Italian owner of a pizzeria in Brooklyn. A neighborhood local, Buggin' Out (Giancarlo Esposito), becomes upset when he sees that the pizzeria's Wall of Fame exhibits only Italian actors. Buggin' Out believes a pizzeria in a black neighborhood should showcase black actors, but Sal disagrees. The wall becomes a symbol of racism and hate to Buggin' Out and to other people in the neighborhood, and tensions rise.
Double Life of Veronique(1991) Directed by Krzysztof Kieslowski - Veronique (Irène Jacob) is a beautiful young French woman who aspires to be a renowned singer; Weronika (also Jacob) lives in Poland, has a similar career goal and looks identical to Veronique, though the two are not related. The film follows both women as they contend with the ups and downs of their individual lives, with Veronique embarking on an unusual romance with Alexandre Fabbri (Philippe Volter), a puppeteer who may be able to help her with her existential issues.
Double Suicide(1969) Directed by Masahiro Shinoda - Successful and married with children, paper-mill owner Jihei (Kirchiemon Nakamura) knows better than to contradict the strict social and moral codes of 18th-century Japan. But when he meets the lovely courtesan Koharu (Shima Iwashita), he becomes obsessed. Koharu returns his love, even foregoing other customers while Jihei schemes to somehow buy her freedom. His efforts yield ruinous consequences for his business and his family life, and Koharu is meanwhile purchased by another client.
Down by Law(1986) Directed by Jim Jarmusch - A disc jockey, a pimp and an Italian immigrant are arrested in New Orleans and find themselves housed in the same jail cell. The Italian comes up with a plan to escape, and must convince his two cellmates to join him.
Drive, He Said(1970) Directed by Jack Nicholson - A basketball star (William Tepper) beds a professor's wife (Karen Black), while his anti-war roommate (Michael Margotta) goes mad.
Drive My Car (2021) Directed by Ryusuke Hamaguchi - An ageing, widowed actor (Hidetoshi Nishijima) takes a directing job in Hiroshima where he's required to get a chauffeur for insurance reasons. He hires a 20-year-old girl (Tōko Miura) and, despite their initial misgivings, a very special relationship develops between the two.
Early Spring(1956) Directed by Yasujiro Ozu - A young married man and his wife deal with a passionless relationship while he has an extramarital affair.
The Earrings of Madame De…(1953) Directed by Max Ophüls - This film follows a pair of earrings as they change hands during a series of betrayals and romances. A French general (Charles Boyer) presents his wife with the pricey jewelry, but she is forced to sell the earrings after she runs into financial trouble. When the general sees them in a shop, he secretly purchases them back for a woman he is having an affair with. Then, after a gambling loss, she pawns them, and an Italian aristocrat (Vittorio De Sica) buys them for a special Frenchwoman.
Easy Rider(1969) Directed by Dennis Hopper - Wyatt (Peter Fonda) and Billy (Dennis Hopper), two Harley-riding hippies, complete a drug deal in Southern California and decide to travel cross-country in search of spiritual truth. On their journey, they experience bigotry and hatred from the inhabitants of small-town America and also meet with other travelers seeking alternative lifestyles. After a terrifying drug experience in New Orleans, the two travelers wonder if they will ever find a way to live peacefully in America.
Eating Raoul(1982) Directed by Paul Bartel - A sleeper hit of the early 1980s, Eating Raoul is a bawdy, gleefully amoral tale of conspicuous consumption. Warhol superstar Mary Woronov and cult legend Paul Bartel (who also directed) portray a prudish married couple who feel put upon by the swingers living in their apartment building. One night, by accident, they discover a way to simultaneously rid themselves of the “perverts” down the hall and realize their dream of opening a restaurant. A mix of hilarious, anything-goes slapstick and biting satire of me-generation self-indulgence, Eating Raoul marked the end of the sexual revolution with a thwack.
El Amor Brujo(1986) Directed by Carlos Saura - Since they were children, Carmelo (Antonio Gades) has loved Candela (Cristina Hoyos). Unfortunately, Candela marries José (Juan Antonio Jiménez) instead, as arranged by their parents. José, however, loves another woman (Laura del Sol). After José is stabbed to death while defending his lover, Carmelo pursues Candela and finally marries her. Still, she remains haunted by the death of her former husband. The victim of a curse, can she avoid dancing with José's ghost every night?
El Norte (1983) Directed by Gregory Nava - When a group of Mayan Indians decides to organize a labor union to improve conditions in their village, their community is violently destroyed by the Guatemalan army. Teenage siblings, Rosa (Zaide Silvia Gutiérrez) and Enrique (David Villalpando) manage to escape the massacre and decide to start a new life in El Norte -- the USA. The two trek through Mexico, meeting a variety of characters and facing trials and tribulations on their journey toward lives as illegal immigrants in Los Angeles.
El Sur(1983) Directed by Victor Erice - Estrella Arenas (Icíar Bollaín), a rural Spanish teenager with a rich imagination, dreams of her mysterious father Agustín (Omero Antonutti), a man who in recent years has drifted away from her. Estrella struggles to piece together Agustín's secret history and recalls her family's sudden unexplained move from Seville, Spain, to the northern countryside in her youth. Estrella decides to return alone to the South, a place warped by years of her father's hazy and nostalgic recollections.
The Element of Crime(1984) Directed by Lars Von Trier - Fisher (Michael Elphick), an ex-detective, decides to take one final case when a mysterious serial killer claims the lives of several young girls. Fisher, unable to find the culprit, turns to Osbourne (Esmond Knight), a writer who was once respected for his contributions to the field of criminology. Fisher begins to use Osbourne's technique, which involves empathizing with serial killers; however, as the detective becomes increasingly engrossed in this method, things take a disturbing turn.
Elevator to the Gallows(1958) Directed by Louis Malle - Restless femme fatale Florence Carala (Jeanne Moreau) recruits her lover, Julien Tavernier (Maurice Ronet), to murder her wealthy husband, Simon (Jean Wall), in his office and make it appear like a suicide. Tavernier does the dirty deed eagerly, but becomes trapped in an elevator when he returns to remove a key piece of evidence he had accidentally left behind. Tavernier's unfortunate oversight sets into motion a dark ripple of events that bloodies the cold Paris night.
The End of Summer(1961) Directed by Yasujiro Ozu - A widower who runs a sake brewery, Manbei Kohayagawa (Ganjirô Nakamura) has three daughters. Manbei's middle daughter, Fumiko (Michiyo Aratama), lives with him, and her husband is employed at the brewery. Manbei's eldest daughter, Akiko (Setsuko Hara), resides with her youngest sister, Noriko (Yoko Tsukasa), away from their childhood home. While the girls come to their father for advice, he gets into trouble when they discover that he has rekindled a romance with an old mistress (Chieko Naniwa).
Equinox(1970) Directed by Jack Woods - After student David (Edward Connell) receives a letter from Professor Waterman (Fritz Leiber) begging him to come as quickly as possible, he goes to visit the park where his teacher is staying. Also with him are his date, Susan (Barbara Hewitt), friend Jim (Frank Boers Jr.), and Jim's girlfriend, Vicki (Robin Christopher). After they are handed a mysterious religious text by an old man, the students find themselves menaced by park ranger Asmodeus (Jack Woods), who reveals himself as the devil.
Equinox Flower(1958) Directed by Yasujiro Ozu - Loving father Wataru (Shin Saburi) is devastated when his daughter Setsuko (Ineko Arima) upends both familial and social conventions by foregoing arranged marriage and choosing her own spouse. Wataru, who had been scoping out the perfect husband for his daughter, refuses to attend Setsuko's upcoming wedding. It becomes apparent, however, that the ceremony will happen with or without Wataru's approval. So his wife, Kiyoko (Kinuyo Tanaka), tries to ease her husband into accepting the marriage.
Eraserhead(1977) Directed by David Lynch - Henry (Jack Nance) resides alone in a bleak apartment surrounded by industrial gloom. When he discovers that an earlier fling with Mary X (Charlotte Stewart) left her pregnant, he marries the expectant mother and has her move in with him. Things take a decidedly strange turn when the couple's baby turns out to be a bizarre lizard-like creature that won't stop wailing. Other characters, including a disfigured lady who lives inside a radiator, inhabit the building and add to Henry's troubles.
Europa(1991) Directed by Lars Von Trier - (Also known as Zentropa in North America) Just after WWII, an American of German descent takes a job on the Zentropa train line in Germany to help the country rebuild, but finds his position politically sensitive with various people trying to use him.
Everlasting Moments(2008) Directed by Jan Troell - In Sweden in the early 1900s, "Everlasting Moments" chronicles the life of Maria Lawson (Maria Heiskanen), an immigrant from Finland who uses a camera she wins in a lottery to document her life. Maria works with her camera to support her children while tolerating frequent abuse from Sigfrid (Mikael Persbrandt), her womanizing and alcoholic husband. Maria's daughter Maja, who vividly presents her mother's strength and dignity in the face of considerable hardship, narrates the film.
Every Man For Himself(1980) Directed by Jean-Luc Godard - The lives of a man (Jacques Dutronc), a woman (Nathalie Baye) and a prostitute (Isabelle Huppert) intersect.
The Exterminating Angel(1962) Directed by Luis Buñuel - Edmundo Nobile (Enrique Rambal) invites friends over for an opulent dinner party. While the guests enjoy their food, the servants disappear one by one. Afterward, the visitors retire to the salon for an evening of music and conversation -- but in the morning, they are mysteriously incapable of leaving the room. As days go by and they run out of food and water, panic and madness set in. The army and the police arrive, but fail in their attempts to enter the house as conditions inside deteriorate.
Eyes Without a Face(1960) Directed by Georges Franju -Dr. Génessier (Pierre Brasseur) is riddled with guilt after an accident that he caused disfigures the face of his daughter, the once beautiful Christiane (Édith Scob), who outsiders believe is dead. Dr. Génessier, along with accomplice and laboratory assistant Louise (Alida Valli), kidnaps young women and brings them to the Génessier mansion. After rendering his victims unconscious, Dr. Génessier removes their faces and attempts to graft them onto Christiane's.
F For Fake(1975) Directed by Orson Welles - Orson Welles' final film documents the lives of infamous fakers Elmyr de Hory and Clifford Irving. De Hory, who later committed suicide to avoid more prison time, made his name by selling forged works of art by painters like Picasso and Matisse. Irving was infamous for writing a fake autobiography of Howard Hughes. Welles moves between documentary and fiction as he examines the fundamental elements of fraud and the people who commit fraud at the expense of others.
Faces(1968) Directed by John Cassavetes - Middle-aged suburban husband Richard (John Marley) abruptly tells his wife, Maria (Lynn Carlin), that he wants a divorce. As Richard takes up with a younger woman (Gena Rowlands), Maria enjoys a night on the town with her friends and meets a younger man (Seymour Cassel). As the couple and those around them confront a seemingly futile search for what they've lost -- love, excitement, passion -- this classic American independent film explores themes of aging and alienation.
Fail Safe(1964) Directed by Sidney Lumet - During the Cold War, U.S. bomber jets are equipped with fail-safe boxes that instruct pilots when and if to attack. When an attack order is inadvertently administered due to a system malfunction, the President of the United States (Henry Fonda) must scramble to fix the mistake before the bombs are dropped on Moscow. He manages to stop almost all the bombers headed for Moscow, except for one determined pilot who manages to complete his mission, with deadly consequences.
The Fallen Idol(1948) Directed by Carol Reed - The young son of a diplomat, Phillipe (Bobby Henrey), often finds himself alone. To entertain the boy, the household butler, Baines (Ralph Richardson), creates adventurous stories of his past. As a result, Phillipe idolizes the servant, seeing him as a hero. But when Baines' wife (Sonia Dresdel) falls to her death, the police believe Baines was behind it. Phillipe, who witnessed the event, will do anything to protect the butler -- but he only makes things worse by doing so.
Fat Girl(2001) Directed by Catherine Breillat - The film's plot follows two young sisters as they deal with coming-of-age, sibling rivalry, and desire while on vacation with their family.
Faya Dayi(2021) Directed by Jessica Beshir - A spiritual journey into the highlands of Harar, immersed in the rituals of khat, a leaf Sufi Muslims chewed for centuries for religious meditations, and Ethiopia's most lucrative cash crop.
Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas(1998) Directed by Terry Gilliam - Raoul Duke (Johnny Depp) and his attorney Dr. Gonzo (Benicio del Toro) drive a red convertible across the Mojave desert to Las Vegas with a suitcase full of drugs to cover a motorcycle race. As their consumption of drugs increases at an alarming rate, the stoned duo trash their hotel room and fear legal repercussions. Duke begins to drive back to L.A., but after an odd run-in with a cop (Gary Busey), he returns to Sin City and continues his wild drug binge.
Female Trouble(1974) Directed by John Waters - A spoiled schoolgirl runs away from home, gets pregnant while hitch-hiking, and ends up as a fashion model for a pair of beauticians who like to photograph women committing crimes.
The Firemen’s Ball(1967) Directed by Milos Forman - In Milos Forman's satire on Communism set in a small Czechoslovakian town in the 1960s, the local firemen decide to organize a ball, however the proceedings are dogged by difficulty at every step. They plan to organize a beauty pageant at the ball, yet struggle tremendously to find enough pretty contestants. A lottery is planned for later in the evening, but the guests begin stealing the prizes. Then, inevitably, there is a fire in the town... It seems that whatever can go wrong, does go wrong.
Fish Tank(2009) Directed by Andrea Arnold - Mia (Katie Jarvis) is a rebellious teenager on the verge of being kicked out of school. Her hard-partying mother, Joanne (Kierston Wareing), neglects Mia's welfare in favor of her own, and her younger sister (Rebecca Griffiths) hangs out with a much older crowd. Sparks fly between Mia and Connor (Michael Fassbender), Joanne's new boyfriend, and he encourages Mia to pursue her interest in dance. As the boundaries of the relationships become blurred, Mia and Joanne compete for Connor's affection.
Fishing With John(1992) Directed by John Lurie - John Lurie knows absolutely nothing about fishing, but that doesn’t stop him from undertaking the adventure of a lifetime in Fishing with John. Traveling with his special guests to the most exotic and dangerous places on earth, John Lurie battles sharks with Jim Jarmusch off the tip of Long Island, goes ice fishing with Willem Dafoe at Maine’s northernmost point, braves the Costa Rican jungle with Matt Dillon, takes Tom Waits to Jamaica, and searches for the elusive giant squid with Dennis Hopper in Thailand.
Five Easy Pieces(1970) Directed by Bob Rafelson - Rejecting his cultured upper-class background as a classical pianist, Robert Dupea (Jack Nicholson) opts for a blue-collar existence, working in a California oil field and spending time with his waitress girlfriend, Rayette (Karen Black). But when Robert discovers that his father is gravely ill, he wants to reunite with his estranged family in the state of Washington. He and Rayette take a road trip that brings the two paths of his life to an uncomfortable intersection.
Following(1998) Directed by Christopher Nolan - A young writer living in London follows people in the hope of using their lives in his novels, but the hobby becomes an obsession and he soon finds himself going further than intended.
For All Mankind(1989) Directed by Al Reinart - Directed by Al Reinert and with music scored by Brian Eno, "For All Mankind" provides a testament to NASA's Apollo program of the 1960s and '70s. Composed of actual NASA footage of the missions and astronaut interviews, the documentary offers the viewpoint of the individuals who braved the remarkable journey to the moon and back. While compiling the material for the film, Reinert went through more than six million feet of film of these historic moments.
Foreign Correspondent(1940) Directed by Alfred Hitchcock - Crime reporter John Jones (Joel McCrea) is turning in nothing but dull copy. His editor, unhappy with his work, hopes a change of scenery will be the thing Jones needs to get back on track. Re-assigned to Europe as a foreign correspondent, Jones is very much out of his element. When he stumbles on a spy ring, he feels ill-equipped to unravel the truth alone and he seeks help from a beautiful politician's daughter (Laraine Day) and an urbane English journalist (George Sanders).
The Forgiveness of Blood(2011) Directed by Joshua Marston - After his father and uncle kill a neighbor, an Albanian teen (Tristan Halilaj) finds that his own life may be forfeited in a legal blood feud.
Frances Ha(2013) Directed by Noah Baumbach - A story that follows a New York woman, who doesn't really have an apartment. She apprentices for a dance company although she's not really a dancer, and throws herself headlong into her dreams.
Friends of Eddie Coyle(1973) Directed by Peter Yates - Aging Boston gunrunner Eddie Coyle (Robert Mitchum) is looking at several years of jail time for a hold-up if he doesn't funnel information to Dave Foley (Richard Jordan), an ATF agent. Eddie buys some guns from another gunrunner, Jackie Brown (Steven Keats), then gives him up to Foley, but the agent isn't satisfied. Conflicted, Eddie decides to also give up the gang of bank robbers he's been supplying, only to find that Foley already knows about them, and the mob believes Eddie snitched.
Funny Games(1997) Directed by Michael Haneke - An idyllic lakeside vacation home is terrorized by Paul (Arno Frisch) and Peter (Frank Giering), a pair of deeply disturbed young men. When the fearful Anna (Susanne Lothar) is home alone, the two men drop by for a visit that quickly turns violent and terrifying. Husband Georg (Ulrich Mühe) comes to her rescue, but Paul and Peter take the family hostage and subject them to nightmarish abuse and humiliation.
The Fugitive Kind(1960) Directed by Sidney Lumet - When drifter Valentine Xavier (Marlon Brando) arrives in a southern town, he catches the eye of the married Lady Torrance (Anna Magnani) and the oversexed alcoholic, Carol Cutrere (Joanne Woodward). Both vie for his attention, with Lady Torrance emerging victorious, offering Xavier employment in her general store, while her cancer-stricken husband is bedridden upstairs. After impregnating Lady Torrance and butting heads with friends of her husband, Xavier must make a crucial decision.
The Game(1997) Directed by David Fincher - Nicholas Van Orton (Michael Douglas) is a successful banker who keeps mostly to himself. When his estranged brother Conrad (Sean Penn) returns on his birthday with an odd gift -- participation in a personalized, real-life game -- Nicholas reluctantly accepts. Initially harmless, the game grows increasingly personal, and Orton begins to fear for his life as he eludes agents from the mysterious game's organizers. With no one left to trust and his money gone, Orton must find answers for himself.
Gate of Flesh(1964) Directed by Seijun Suzuki - In post-war Tokyo, the solidarity of a group of prostitutes, who use a deserted building to ply their trade, is threatened when an ex-soldier hides out with them after attacking an American soldier.
A Generation(1955) Directed by Andrzej Wajda - The first in Polish director Andrzej Wajda's underground trilogy documented the experiences of the Polish people under Nazi occupation Stach Mazur is a young Pole who becomes involved with the resistance through his love for Dorota. As the Nazis tighten their grip on the country, their retribution for acts against them becomes harsher, while the resistance movement itself is torn between the various political factions.
George Washington(2000) Directed by David Gordon Green - Set in the landscape of a rural southern town, "George Washington" is a stunning portrait of how a group of young kids come to grips with a hard world of choices and consequences. During an innocent game in an abandoned amusement park, a member of the group dies. Narrated by one of the children, the film follows the kids as they struggle to balance their own ambitions and relationships against a tragic lie.
Germany Year Zero(1948) Directed by Roberto Rossellini - In the devastated remains of post-war Germany, 12-year-old Edmund (Edmund Moeschke) lives with his family and five other families in a battered apartment. His brother, a former Nazi, evades the police hiding there, while his sister walks the streets. As his father (Ernst Pittschau) remains too ill to help them, it falls to Edmund to provide for the family by dealing with the black market. Growing desperate, Edmund allows a former schoolteacher to offer his help and some unusual advice.
Gimme Shelter(1970) Directed by Albert Maysles, Charlotte Zwerin and David Maysles - Documentary by Albert and David Maysles recalling the events surrounding a free concert by the Rolling Stones at the Altamont Speedway outside San Francisco in 1969. Worried about the security, the Stones asked the Hell's Angels to keep order for them, but the day ended tragically as violence broke out and a fan was killed.
Girlfriends(1978) Directed by Claudia Weill - A photographer is stuck with small-change shooting jobs and dreams of success. When her roommate decides to get married and leave, she feels hurt and has to learn how to deal with living alone.
God’s Country(1985) Directed by Louis Malle - Acclaimed director Louis Malle's documentary examines the small Minnesota farming town of Glencoe at two separate times. In 1979, Malle profiles the town's sleepy, sometimes charming way of life and the citizens' less-than-refined values. When Malle and his crew return six years later, they encounter a town seized by economic woe. Farms are shutting down, citizens are angry with President Ronald Reagan, and an American way of life may be gone for good.
Godzilla(1954) Directed by Ishiro Honda - Godzilla (a.k.a. Gojira) is the roaring granddaddy of all monster movies. It’s also a remarkably humane and melancholy drama, made in Japan at a time when the country was reeling from nuclear attack and H-bomb testing in the Pacific. Its rampaging radioactive beast, the poignant embodiment of an entire population’s fears, became a beloved international icon of destruction, spawning almost thirty sequels. A thrilling, tactile spectacle that continues to be a cult phenomenon, the original, 1954 Japanese version is presented here, along with Godzilla, King of the Monsters, the 1956 "Americanized" version.
Golden Age of Television(1953-1958) - The hugely popular live American television plays of the 1950s have become the stuff of legend. Combining elements of theater, radio, and filmmaking, they were produced at a moment when TV technology was growing more mobile and art was being made accessible to a newly suburban postwar demographic. These astonishingly choreographed, brilliantly acted, and socially progressive “teleplays” constituted an artistic high for the medium, bringing Broadway-quality drama to all of America. The award-winning programs included in this box set—originally curated for PBS in the early 1980s as the series The Golden Age of Television, featuring recollections from key cast and crew members—were conceived by such up-and-comers as Rod Serling and John Frankenheimer and star the likes of Paul Newman, Mickey Rooney, Rod Steiger, Julie Harris, and Piper Laurie.
The Gold Rush(1925) Directed by Charlie Chaplin - In this classic silent comedy, the Little Tramp (Charles Chaplin) heads north to join in the Klondike gold rush. Trapped in a small cabin by a blizzard, the Tramp is forced to share close quarters with a successful prospector (Mack Swain) and a fugitive (Tom Murray). Eventually able to leave the cabin, he falls for a lovely barmaid (Georgia Hale), trying valiantly to win her affections. When the prospector needs help locating his claim, it appears the Tramp's fortunes may change.
Gomorrah(2008) Directed by Matteo Garrone - In the slums of Campania, the Camorra crime syndicate has created a fortune out of cocaine, corruption and chemical waste. Some try to fight back, like teens Ciro (Ciro Petrone) and Marco (Marco Macor), who decide to steal a Camorra weapons cache in a bid to take control themselves. Others try to hide, like Pasquale (Salvatore Cantalupo), a tailor trying to get around paying protection fees. But the realization sets in: The Camorra is too large, too deeply embedded in Italy to be fought.
Good Morning(1959) Directed by Yasujiro Ozu - Two boys in 1950s Japan vow to remain completely silent until their parents buy them a television set.
The Graduate(1967) Directed by Mike Nichols - Benjamin Braddock (Dustin Hoffman) has just finished college and, back at his parents' house, he's trying to avoid the one question everyone keeps asking: What does he want to do with his life? An unexpected diversion crops up when he is seduced by Mrs. Robinson (Anne Bancroft), a bored housewife and friend of his parents. But what begins as a fun tryst turns complicated when Benjamin falls for the one woman Mrs. Robinson demanded he stay away from, her daughter, Elaine (Katharine Ross).
Grand Illusion(1937) Directed by Jean Renoir - A group of French soldiers, including the patrician Captain de Boeldieu (Pierre Fresnay) and the working-class Lieutenant Maréchal (Jean Gabin), grapple with their own class differences after being captured and held in a World War I German prison camp. When the men are transferred to a high-security fortress, they must concoct a plan to escape beneath the watchful eye of aristocratic German officer von Rauffenstein (Erich von Stroheim), who has formed an unexpected bond with de Boeldieu.
The Great Beauty(2013) Directed by Paolo Sorrentino - An aging writer has spent many years seducing his way through the lavish nightlife of Rome for decades, but after his 65th birthday, he starts to look past the nightclubs and parties to find a landscape of exquisite beauty.
Great Expectations(1946) Directed by David Lean - In this Dickens adaptation, orphan Pip (John Mills) discovers through lawyer Mr. Jaggers (Francis L. Sullivan) that a mysterious benefactor wishes to ensure that he becomes a gentleman. Reunited with his childhood patron, Miss Havisham (Martita Hunt), and his first love, the beautiful but emotionally cold Estella (Valerie Hobson), he discovers that the elderly spinster has gone mad from having been left at the altar as a young woman, and has made her charge into a warped, unfeeling heartbreaker.
Green For Danger(1946) Directed by Sidney Gilliat - During a German bombing raid on rural southeast England during World War II, a hospital undergoes heavy shelling. Postman Joseph Higgins (Moore Marriott) dies on the operating table when a bomb explodes in the operating room. But when Sister Marion Bates (Judy Campbell) dies after revealing that this is not the first patient of anesthetist Barney Barnes (Trevor Howard) to die under suspicious circumstances, Police Inspector Cockrill (Alastair Sim) is brought in to investigate.
Grey Gardens(1976) Directed by Albert and David Maysles - This film explores the daily lives of two aging, eccentric relatives of Jackie Kennedy Onassis. Edie Bouvier Beale and her mother, Edith, are the sole inhabitants of a Long Island estate. During the course of the documentary, they discuss their habits, desires and former loves with filmmakers Albert and David Maysles. The women reveal themselves to be misfits with outsized, engaging personalities. Much of the conversation is centered on their pasts, as mother and daughter now rarely leave home.
A Hard Day’s Night(1964) Directed by Richard Lester - Meet the Beatles! Just one month after they exploded onto the U.S. scene with their Ed Sullivan Show appearance, John, Paul, George, and Ringo began working on a project that would bring their revolutionary talent to the big screen. This film, in which the bandmates play slapstick versions of themselves, captured the astonishing moment when they officially became the singular, irreverent idols of their generation and changed music forever. Directed with raucous, anything-goes verve by Richard Lester (The Knack . . . and How to Get It) and featuring a slew of iconic pop anthems—including the title track, “Can’t Buy Me Love,” “I Should Have Known Better,” and “If I Fell”—A Hard Day’s Night, which reconceived the movie musical and exerted an incalculable influence on the music video, is one of the most deliriously entertaining movies of all time.
Harlan County USA(1976) Directed by Barbara Kopple - In this documentary about labor tension in the coal-mining industry, director Barbara Kopple films a strike in rural Kentucky. After the coal miners at the Brookside Mine join a union, the owners refuse the labor contract. Once the miners start to strike, the owners of the mine respond by hiring scabs to fill the jobs of the regular employees. The strike, which lasts more than a year, frequently becomes violent, with guns produced on both sides, and one miner is even killed in a conflict.
Harakiri(1962) Directed by Masaki Kobayashi - Aging samurai Hanshiro Tsugumo (Tatsuya Nakadai) arrives at the home of Kageyu Saito (Rentarô Mikuni) and asks to commit a ritual suicide on the property, which Saito thinks is a ploy to gain pity and a job. Saito tells Tsugumo of another samurai, Motome Chijiiwa (Yoshio Inaba), who threatened suicide as a stratagem, only to be forced to follow through on the task. When Tsugumo reveals that Chijiiwa was his son-in-law, the disclosure sets off a fierce conflict.
Harold and Maude(1971) Directed by Hal Ashby - Cult classic pairs Cort as a dead-pan disillusioned 20-year-old obsessed with suicide and a loveable Gordon as a fun-loving 80-year-old eccentric. They meet at a funeral, and develop a taboo romantic relationship, in which they explore the tired theme of the meaning of life with a fresh perspective.
Häxan(1922) Directed by Benjamin Christensen - A hybrid of documentary and fiction, this silent film explores the history of witchcraft, demonology and satanism. It shows representations of evil in a variety of ancient and medieval artworks, offers vignettes illustrating a number of superstitious practices and presents a narrative about the persecution of a woman accused of witchcraft. The film ends by suggesting that the modern science of psychology offers important insight into the beliefs and practices of the past.
Head(1968) Directed by Bob Rafelson - Shortly after their TV show closed its final curtain, the Monkees took to the big screen in this mind-bending experiment in pop art. Proudly without plot, this feature follows band members Peter Tork, Davy Jones, Micky Dolenz and Michael Nesmith on a trippy adventure through 1960s Hollywood, Calif., where they cross paths with such people as Dennis Hopper, Frank Zappa and Jack Nicholson. In a variety of vignettes and musical performances, the daffy antics of the band are on full display.
Hearts and Minds(1974) Directed by Peter Davis - Many times during his presidency, Lyndon B. Johnson said that ultimate victory in the Vietnam War depended upon the U.S. military winning the "hearts and minds" of the Vietnamese people. Filmmaker Peter Davis uses Johnson's phrase in an ironic context in this anti-war documentary, filmed and released while the Vietnam War was still under way, juxtaposing interviews with military figures like U.S. Army Chief of Staff William C. Westmoreland with shocking scenes of violence and brutality.
Heaven Can Wait(1943) Directed by Ernst Lubitsch - Spoiled playboy Henry van Cleve (Don Ameche) dies and arrives at the entrance to Hell, a final destination he is sure he deserves after living a life of profligacy. The devil (Laird Cregar), however, isn't so sure Henry meets Hell's standards. Convinced he is where he belongs, Henry recounts his life's deeds, both good and bad, including an act of indiscretion during his 25-year marriage to his wife, Martha (Gene Tierney), with the hope that "His Excellency" will arrive at the proper judgment.
Heaven’s Gate(1980) Directed by Michael Cimino - Harvard graduate James Averill (Kris Kristofferson) is the sheriff of prosperous Jackson County, Wyo., when a battle erupts between the area's poverty-stricken immigrants and its wealthy cattle farmers. The politically connected ranch owners fight the immigrants with the help of Nathan Champion (Christopher Walken), a mercenary competing with Averill for the love of local madam Ella Watson (Isabelle Huppert). As the struggle escalates, Averill and Champion begin to question their decisions.
Hedwig and the Angry Inch(2001) Directed by John Cameron Mitchell - A German emigrant living in a trailer in Kansas is the victim of a botched sex-change operation. Adapted from the critically acclaimed off-Broadway rock theater hit, "Hedwig and the Angry Inch" tells the story of the "internationally ignored" rock singer, Hedwig, and her search for stardom and love.
The Hero(1966) Directed by Satyajit Ray - In this psychologically rich character study, written and directed by Satyajit Ray, Bengali film star Uttam Kumar draws on his real-world celebrity to play Arindam Mukherjee, a matinee idol on the brink of his first flop. When Mukherjee boards an overnight train to Delhi to accept an award, a journalist (Sharmila Tagore) approaches him seeking an exclusive interview, which initiates a conversation that sends the actor reeling down a path of self-examination. Seamlessly integrating rueful flashbacks and surreal dream sequences with the quietly revelatory stories of the train’s other passengers, The Hero is a graceful meditation on art, fame, and regret from one of world cinema’s most keenly perceptive filmmakers.
High and Low(1963) Directed by Akira Kurosawa - Toshiro Mifune is unforgettable as Kingo Gondo, a wealthy industrialist whose family becomes the target of a cold-blooded kidnapper in High and Low (Tengoku to jigoku), the highly influential domestic drama and police procedural from director Akira Kurosawa. Adapting Ed McBain's detective novel King's Ransom, Kurosawa moves effortlessly from compelling race-against-time thriller to exacting social commentary, creating a diabolical treatise on contemporary Japanese society.
Hiroshima Mon Amour(1959) Directed by Alain Resnais - The deep conversation between a Japanese architect (Eiji Okada) and a French actress (Emmanuelle Riva) forms the basis of this celebrated French film, considered one of the vanguard productions of the French New Wave. Set in Hiroshima after the end of World War II, the couple -- lovers turned friends -- recount, over many hours, previous romances and life experiences. The two intertwine their stories about the past with pondering the devastation wrought by the atomic bomb dropped on the city.
His Girl Friday (1940) Directed by Howard Hawks - One of the fastest, funniest, and most quotable films ever made, His Girl Friday stars Rosalind Russell as reporter Hildy Johnson, a standout among cinema’s powerful women. Hildy is matched in force only by her conniving but charismatic editor and ex-husband, Walter Burns (played by the peerless Cary Grant), who dangles the chance for her to scoop her fellow news writers with the story of an impending execution in order to keep her from hopping the train that’s supposed to take her to Albany and a new life as a housewife. When adapting Ben Hecht and Charles MacArthur’s smash hit play The Front Page, director Howard Hawks had the inspired idea of turning star reporter Hildy Johnson into a woman, and the result is an immortal mix of hard-boiled newsroom setting with ebullient remarriage comedy. Also presented here is a brand-new restoration of the 1931 film The Front Page, Lewis Milestone’s famous pre-Code adaptation of the same material.
History is Made at Night(1937) Directed by Frank Borzage - When his wife, Irene (Jean Arthur), plans to divorce him, wealthy and cruel businessman Bruce Vail (Colin Clive) sends his chauffeur to her Paris hotel room so he can catch her in a "compromising" position. Instead, Bruce interrupts a masked thief, who kidnaps Irene. Later, the thief -- head waiter Paul Dumond (Charles Boyer) -- reveals to Irene that he overheard the plot and wanted to help. After a romantic evening, Irene falls in love with Paul, but Bruce will stop at nothing to ruin them.
The Hit(1984) Directed by Stephen Frears - Hit men (John Hurt, Tim Roth) catch a stool pigeon (Terence Stamp) in Spain and take him on a wild ride to Paris.
Hobson’s Choice(1954) Directed by David Lean - Henry Hobson (Charles Laughton), a British widower, is the overbearing owner of a shoe shop. His three daughters -- Alice, Vicky and Maggie (Brenda De Banzie) -- work for him and all are eager to get out from under his thumb. When the headstrong Maggie announces she intends to marry Henry's best employee, Will (John Mills), father and daughter engage in an intense showdown. As Maggie works on launching a competing business, she also helps her sisters free themselves of their domineering father.
Holiday(1938) Directed by George Cukor - Johnny (Cary Grant) seems like a solid match for Julia (Doris Nolan), the socialite daughter of Edward Seton (Henry Kolker). Assured that Johnny is a worthy suitor, Edward approves of the pairing. But, as Johnny's wanderlust surfaces -- he is more interested in traveling than in business -- Edward starts to have doubts. Johnny also begins to wonder if he might not be a better match for Linda (Katharine Hepburn), Julia's outspoken younger sister, with whom he has much more in common.
Homicide(1991) Directed by David Mamet - After being forcibly reassigned from a federal investigation of notorious drug dealer Robert Randolph (Ving Rhames) to a local case involving robbery and the murder of a Jewish shopkeeper, embittered detective Bobby Gold (Joe Mantegna) unexpectedly experiences a religious awakening. But when his newfound interest in his heritage comes into direct conflict with the law, Gold struggles to reconcile his spiritual loyalties with his dedication to the badge.
The Honeymoon Killers(1969) Directed by Leonard Kastle - Martha Beck (Shirley Stoler), an obese nurse who is desperately lonely, joins a "correspondence club" and finds a romantic pen pal in Ray Fernandez (Tony Lo Bianco). Martha falls hard for Ray, and is intent on sticking with him even when she discovers he's a con man who seduces lonely single women, kills them and then takes their money. She poses as Ray's sister and joins Ray on a wild killing spree, fueled by her lingering concern that Ray will leave her for one of his marks.
Hoop Dreams(1994) Directed by Steve James - Every school day, African-American teenagers William Gates and Arthur Agee travel 90 minutes each way from inner-city Chicago to St. Joseph High School in Westchester, Illinois, a predominately white suburban school well-known for the excellence of its basketball program. Gates and Agee dream of NBA stardom, and with the support of their close-knit families, they battle the social and physical obstacles that stand in their way. This acclaimed documentary was shot over the course of five years.
The Horse’s Mouth(1958) Directed by Ronald Neame - Gulley Jimson (Alec Guinness) is a boorish aging artist recently released from prison. A swindler in search of his next art project, he hunkers down in the penthouse of would-be patrons the Beeders (Robert Coote, Veronica Turleigh) while they go on an extended vacation; he paints a mural on their wall, pawns their valuables and, along with the sculptor Abel (Richard Gough), inadvertently smashes a large hole in their floor. Jimson's next project is an even larger wall in an abandoned church.
House(1977) Directed by Nobuhiko Obayashi - In an effort to avoid spending time with her father and his creepy new lover, young Gorgeous (Kimiko Ikegami) resolves to visit her aunt's remote mansion. With six of her closest friends in tow, including the musically inclined Melody (Eriko Tanaka) and the geeky Prof (Ai Matsubara), Gorgeous arrives at the estate, where supernatural events occur almost immediately. A severed head takes flight, household appliances come to life and a portrait of a cat seems to contain an evil spirit.
House of Games(1987) Directed by David Mamet - After one of her patients threatens suicide, psychiatrist Margaret Ford (Lindsay Crouse) confronts the source of his anxieties, a downtown bookie named Mike (Joe Mantegna). Once she decides that Mike is not a serious threat, however, she herself becomes interested in his world of high-stakes gambling, and makes use of her skills at reading "tells," becoming entrenched in his dealings. Things get dangerous, though, when Mike turns out not to be a bookie at all, but a con man.
Howard’s End(1992) Directed by James Ivory - Helen Schlegel falls for Paul Wilcox, but is rebuffed. Her sister Margaret becomes friends with his mother, who promises her the family house, Howards End. Unfortunately, after her death, the will disappears and it appears the inheritance will disappear. Until the widower, Henry Wilcox, becomes attracted to Margaret.
Hunger (2008) Directed by Steve McQueen - With Hunger, British filmmaker and artist Steve McQueen has turned one of history’s most controversial acts of political defiance into a jarring, unforgettable cinematic experience. In Northern Ireland’s Maze prison in 1981, twenty-seven-year-old Irish Republican Army member Bobby Sands went on a hunger strike to protest the British government’s refusal to recognize him and his fellow IRA inmates as political prisoners. McQueen dramatizes prison existence and Sands’s final days in a way that is purely experiential, even abstract, a succession of images full of both beauty and horror. Featuring an intense performance by Michael Fassbender, Hunger is an unflinching, transcendent depiction of what a human being is willing to endure to be heard.
I am Curious -Blue(1967) Directed by Vilgot Sjöman - A parallel film to Vilgot Sjöman's controversial I Am Curious—Yellow, I Am Curious—Blue also follows young Lena on her journey of self-discovery. In Blue, Lena confronts issues of religion, sexuality, and the prison system, while at the same time exploring her own personal relationships. Like Yellow, Blue freely traverses the lines between fact and fiction, employing a mix of dramatic and documentary techniques.
I am Curious -Yellow(1967) Directed by Vilgot Sjöman - Seized by customs upon entry to the United States, subject of a heated court battle, and banned in numerous cities, Vilgot Sjöman's I Am Curious—Yellow is one of the most controversial films of all time. This landmark document of Swedish society during the sexual revolution has been declared both obscene and revolutionary. It tells the story of Lena (Lena Nyman), a searching and rebellious young woman, and her personal quest to understand the social and political conditions in 1960s Sweden, as well as her bold exploration of her own sexual identity. I Am Curious—Yellow is a subversive mix of dramatic and documentary techniques, attacking capitalist injustices and frankly addressing the politics of sexuality.
I Know Where I’m Going!(1945) Directed by Michael Powell - Plucky Englishwoman Joan Webster (Wendy Hiller) travels to the remote islands of the Scottish Hebrides in order to marry a wealthy industrialist. Trapped by inclement weather on the Isle of Mull and unable to continue to her destination, Joan finds herself charmed by the straightforward, no-nonsense islanders around her, and becomes increasingly attracted to naval officer Torquil MacNeil (Roger Livesey), who holds a secret that may change her life forever.
I Live in Fear(1955) Directed by Akira Kurosawa - "I Live in Fear" is an expressive, caustic, portrait of madness. Toshiro Mifune plays an aging industrialist driven to madness over fears of a nuclear attack. The most frightening aspect of Kurosawa's film is not the threat of nuclear annihilation, but the proliferation of man's inhumanity and greed, expressed by the family's zeal to commit their father and keep their inheritances intact.
I Married a Witch(1942) Directed by René Clair - Just as she is about to be burned at the stake for witchcraft, 17th century witch Jennifer (Veronica Lake) casts a curse on the family of her accuser, dooming all the men of future generations to marry the wrong women. Freed from her ethereal prison some 250 years later, Jennifer decides to make the most recent descendant of her accuser (Fredric March) even more miserable by using a love potion on him that makes him fall in love with her, a plan that has unexpected results.
I was Born, But…(1932) Directed by Yasujiro Ozu - Two brothers, Keiji (Tomio Aoki) and Ryoichi (Hideo Sugawara), move to a new neighborhood in the Tokyo suburbs after their father, an office clerk, gets a promotion. The boys join the local gang as lowly new kids and emerge as natural leaders after defeating a bully. While visiting the home of their father's boss, the brothers witness the ridicule their father has endured to please his superior. Angry and embarrassed, the boys find their naive ideas about power being challenged.
I Will Buy You(1956) Directed by Masaki Kobayashi - Masaki Kobayashi’s pitiless take on Japan’s professional baseball industry is unlike any other sports film ever made. A condemnation of the inhumanity bred by a mercenary, bribery-fueled business, it follows the sharklike maneuvers of a scout dead set on signing a promising player to the team the Toyo Flowers.
I, Daniel Blake(2016) Directed by Ken Loach - Daniel Blake (Dave Johns) is a 59-year-old widowed carpenter who must rely on welfare after a recent heart attack leaves him unable to work. Despite his doctor's diagnosis, British authorities deny Blake's benefits and tell him to return to his job. As Daniel navigates his way through an agonizing appeal process, he begins to develop a strong bond with a destitute, single mother (Hayley Squires) who's struggling to take care of her two children.
The Ice Storm(1997) Directed by Ang Lee - In the 1970s, an outwardly wholesome family begins cracking at the seams over the course of a tumultuous Thanksgiving break. Frustrated with his job, the father, Ben (Kevin Kline), seeks fulfillment by cheating on his wife, Elena (Joan Allen), with neighborhood seductress Janey (Sigourney Weaver). Their teenage daughter, Wendy (Christina Ricci), dabbles in sexual affairs too -- with Janey's son Mikey (Elijah Wood). The family's strained relations continue to tauten until an ice storm strikes.
The Idiot(1951) Directed by Akira Kurosawa - In post-World War II Japan, childlike veteran Kinji (Masayuki Mori) suffers from post-traumatic stress-induced seizures, and, after treatment at a mental health institution in Okinawa, he returns to his hometown. There he meets and becomes romantically involved with two women -- Taeko (Setsuko Hara) and Ayako (Yoshiko Kuga). Another man, Denkichi (Toshirô Mifune), is passionately in love with Taeko, too. So when Kinji begins favoring Taeko, a violent conflict erupts between the two men.
If…(1969) Directed by Lindsay Anderson - Teenage rebel Mick Travis (Malcolm McDowell) returns to his upper-crust English public school, caught between the sadistic older boys known as the Whips and the first-year students, known as Scum, who are forced to do their bidding. The petty thefts and anti-social behavior of Travis and his two henchmen, Johnny (David Wood) and Wallace (Richard Warwick), soon attract the attention of both the Whips and the school's out-of-touch administration, and lead to an unexpected showdown.
Il Sorpasso(1962) Directed by Dino Risi - On a summer's day in Rome, Roberto Mariani (Jean-Louis Trintignant), a withdrawn young scholar, encounters Bruno Cortona (Vittorio Gassman), a middle-aged man driving a stylish convertible. The chance meeting leads to drinks and eventually to an extended road trip out of the city. As the unlikely pair spend time together, they find out more about each other and even visit respective family members -- notably Bruno's beautiful daughter, Lilly (Catherine Spaak) -- on their impulsive outing.
The Importance of Being Earnest(1952) Directed by Anthony Asquith - Algernon Moncrieff (Michael Denison) is surprised to discover that his affluent friend -- whom he knows as "Ernest" -- is actually named Jack Worthing (Michael Redgrave). Jack fabricated his alter ego in order to escape his country estate where he takes care of his charge, Cecily Cardew (Dorothy Tutin). Cecily believes that Ernest is Jack's wayward brother and is keen on his raffish lifestyle. Algernon, seeing an opportunity, assumes Ernest's identity and sneaks off to woo Cecily.
In the Mood for Love(2000) Directed by Wong Kar-Wai - In 1962, journalist Chow Mo-wan (Tony Leung Chiu Wai) and his wife move into a Hong Kong apartment, but Chow's spouse is often away on business. Before long, the lonely Chow makes the acquaintance of the alluring Su Li-zhen (Maggie Cheung Man-yuk), whose own significant other also seems preoccupied with work. As the two friends realize their respective partners are cheating on them, they begin to fall for one another; however, neither wants to stoop to the level of the unfaithful spouses.
In Which We Serve(1942) Directed by David Lean and Noel Coward - Co-directors David Lean and Noel Coward (in his sole filmmaking effort) created this patriotic World War II drama under the auspices of Great Britain's Ministry of Information. After the sinking of the HMS Torrin during the Battle of Crete in 1941, the ship's survivors -- including Captain Kinross (Noel Coward), Chief Petty Officer Hardy (Bernard Miles) and Seaman Blake (John Mills) -- recall their tour of duty in flashback while awaiting rescue in lifeboats being strafed by German airplanes.
Ingmar Bergman Makes a Movie(1963) Directed by Vilgot Sjöman - Ingmar Bergman Makes a Movie is a 1963 Swedish documentary film directed by Vilgot Sjöman which depicts the making of Ingmar Bergman's film Winter Light from screenwriting to the film's premiere and critical reaction. The film originally aired in five half-hour episodes on Swedish television.
The Inheritance(1962) Directed by Masaki Kobayashi - A cunning secretary outwits a bevy of lawyers trying to steal her employer's fortune after his death, and secures the future of his three illegitimate children.
Innocence Unprotected (1968) Directed by Dušan Makavejev - This utterly unclassifiable film is one of Makavejev’s most freewheeling farces, assembled from the “lost” footage of the first Serbian talkie, a silly melodrama titled Innocence Unprotected, made during the Nazi occupation; contemporary interviews with the megaman who made it and other crew members; and images of the World War II destruction, and subsequent rebuilding, of Belgrade. And at its center is a (real-life) character you won’t soon forget: Dragoljub Aleksic, an acrobat, locksmith, and Houdini-style escape artist whom Makavejev uses as the absurd and wondrous basis for a look back at his country’s tumultuous recent history.
The Insect Woman(1963) Directed by Shohei Imamura - Economic prospects are grim for young Tome Matsuki (Sachiko Hidari), who was born to impoverished parents in the Japanese countryside. Just out of her teens, Tome -- who's now pregnant and alone -- finds herself working at tough manual labor for a meager wage. Feeling desperate, she gives away her child, Nobuko (Jitsuko Yoshimura), and takes a custodial job at a brothel. There she discovers that through prostitution she can claw her way out of poverty, so she begins to climb up the ranks.
Insomnia (1997) Directed by Erik Skjoldbjærg - Detectives Jonas (Stellan Skarsgard) and Erik (Sverre Anker Ousdal) are called to the midnight sun country of northern Norway to investigate a recent homicide, but their plan to arrest the killer goes awry, and Jonas mistakenly shoots Erik. The suspect escapes, and a frightened Jonas pins Erik's death on the fugitive. Jonas continues to pursue the killer as he seeks to protect himself; however, his mounting guilt and the omnipresent sun plague him with an insomnia that affects his sanity.
Intentions of Murder(1964) Directed by Shohei Imamura - Sadako, cursed by generations before her and neglected by her common-law husband, falls prey to a brutal home intruder. However, she forges a path to her own awakening.
The Irishman(2019) Directed by Martin Scorsese - In the 1950s, truck driver Frank Sheeran gets involved with Russell Bufalino and his Pennsylvania crime family. As Sheeran climbs the ranks to become a top hit man, he also goes to work for Jimmy Hoffa -- a powerful Teamster tied to organized crime.
Irma Vep(1996) Directed by Olivier Assayas - Washed-up French director René Vidal (Jean-Pierre Léaud) hopes to turn his career around with an update of "Les Vampires," a silent-era masterpiece about about a notorious ring of thieves, led by crafty female crook Irma Vep. René brings in Chinese star Maggie Cheung (Maggie Cheung) to play Vep, but unexpected roadblocks arise on the set. Maggie doesn't know French, she's pursued by obsessive lesbian crew member Zoe (Nathalie Richard) and her character's criminal ways begin to rub off on her.
Island of Lost Souls(1932) Directed by Erle C. Kenton - In this adaptation of H.G. Wells' novel "The Island of Doctor Moreau," Edward Parker (Richard Arlen) is shipwrecked on a remote island presided over by the mysterious Dr. Moreau (Charles Laughton). Edward discovers his host is conducting genetic experiments, and presiding over a race of half-human, half-animal hybrids, including the alluring Panther Woman and the sage Sayer of the Law (Bela Lugosi). The island has become its own society, with Moreau as its god.
It Happened One Night(1934) Directed by Frank Capra - In Frank Capra's acclaimed romantic comedy, spoiled heiress Ellie Andrews (Claudette Colbert) impetuously marries the scheming King Westley, leading her tycoon father (Walter Connolly) to spirit her away on his yacht. After jumping ship, Ellie falls in with cynical newspaper reporter Peter Warne (Clark Gable), who offers to help her reunite with her new husband in exchange for an exclusive story. But during their travels, the reporter finds himself falling for the feisty young heiress.
It’s a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World(1963) Directed by Stanley Kramer - The story begins during a massive traffic jam, caused by reckless driver Smiler Grogan (Jimmy Durante), who, before kicking the bucket, cryptically tells the assembled drivers that he's buried a fortune in stolen loot, under the Big W. All of the motorists set out to find the fortune.
Ivan the Terrible(1944/1958) Directed by Sergei Eisenstein - Navigating the deadly waters of Stalinist politics, Eisenstein was able to film two parts of his planned trilogy about the troubled sixteenth-century tsar who united Russia. Visually stunning and powerfully acted, Ivan the Terrible charts the rise to power and descent into terror of this veritable dictator. Though pleased with the first installment, Stalin detested the portrait in the second film—with its summary executions and secret police—and promptly banned it.
Japanese Summer: Double Suicide(1967) Directed by Nagisa Ōshima - A sex-obsessed young woman, a suicidal man she meets on the street, a gun-crazy wannabe gangster—these are just three of the irrational, oddball anarchists trapped in an underground hideaway in Oshima’s devilish, absurdist portrait of what he deemed the death drive in Japanese youth culture.
Jeanne Dielman, 23 Quai du Commerce, 1080 Bruxelles(1975) Directed by Chantal Ackerman - Jeanne Dielman (Delphine Seyrig), the widowed mother of a teenage son, Sylvain (Jan Decorte), ekes out a drab, repetitive existence in her tiny Brussels apartment. Jeanne's days are divided between humdrum domestic chores -- shopping, cooking, housework -- and her job as an occasional prostitute, which keeps her financially afloat. She seems perfectly resigned to her situation until a series of slight interruptions in her routine leads to unexpected and dramatic changes.
Jour de fête(1949) Directed by Jacques Tati - In a small French town, the local postman, scatterbrained and bumbling François (Jacques Tati), spends his working hours casually delivering the mail, while being the subject of the townsfolk's teasing. When a traveling carnival arrives in town, a drunken François is goaded into watching a film depicting the efficiency of the U.S. Postal Service. Inspired by the footage, the hapless François sets out on his bicycle to become just like the mail carriers in the United States.
Jules and Jim(1962) Directed by François Truffaut - In the carefree days before World War I, introverted Austrian author Jules (Oskar Werner) strikes up a friendship with the exuberant Frenchman Jim (Henri Serre). Both men fall for the impulsive and beautiful Catherine (Jeanne Moreau), but it's Jules who wins her hand. After the war, Jim visits Jules, Catherine and their daughter in their Austrian home and discovers not only that his feelings for Catherine are unchanged, but also that they're reciprocated.
Juliet of the Spirits (1965) Directed by Federico Fellini - Middle-aged Giulietta (Giulietta Masina) grows suspicious of her husband, Giorgio (Mario Pisu), when his behavior grows increasingly questionable. One night when Giorgio initiates a seance amongst his friends, Giulietta gets in touch with spirits and learns more about herself and her painful past. Slightly skeptical, but intrigued, she visits a mystic who gives her more information -- and nudges her toward the realization that her husband is indeed a philanderer.
Kagemusha(1980) Directed by Akira Kurosawa - Akira Kurosawa's lauded feudal epic presents the tale of a petty thief (Tatsuya Nakadai) who is recruited to impersonate Shingen (also Nakadai), an aging warlord, in order to avoid attacks by competing clans. When Shingen dies, his generals reluctantly agree to have the impostor take over as the powerful ruler. He soon begins to appreciate life as Shingen, but his commitment to the role is tested when he must lead his troops into battle against the forces of a rival warlord.
Kanal(1957) Directed by Andrzej Wajda - During the last few days of the Warsaw Uprising following World War II, a modest group of Resistance members remains. The band must take refuge in the sewers under the orders of leader Zadra (Wisczyslaw Glinski), but it's only a matter of time before they will have to emerge. However, when they try, they are met only with intense hostility from the Nazis. Despite their attempts to stay resolute through immense mental strain, it becomes increasingly apparent that they may be doomed.
The Kennedy Films of Robert Drew & Associates(1960-64) Directed by Robert Drew - Seeking to invigorate the American documentary format, which he felt was rote and uninspired, Robert Drew brought the style and vibrancy he had fostered as a Life magazine correspondent to filmmaking in the late fifties. He did this by assembling an amazing team—including such eventual nonfiction luminaries as Richard Leacock, D. A. Pennebaker, and Albert Maysles—that would transform documentary cinema. In 1960, the group was granted direct access to John F. Kennedy, filming him on the campaign trail and eventually in the Oval Office. This resulted in three films of remarkable, behind-closed-doors intimacy—Primary, Adventures on the New Frontier, and Crisis—and, following the president’s assassination, the poetic short Faces of November. Collected here are all four of these titles, early exemplars of the movement known as Direct Cinema and featuring the greatest close-up footage we have of this American icon.
Kes(1970) Directed by Ken Loach - Ken Loach's acclaimed British drama focuses on Billy Casper (David Bradley), a tormented working-class boy who is subjected to abuse both at school and at home. The son of a single mother (Lynne Perrie), Billy's existence is mostly bleak until he takes up an interest in falconry and begins training a kestrel that he finds on a nearby farm. While Billy forms a close bond with the falcon, his hardscrabble life and harsh environment prove to be a challenge to the boy and his bird.
Kicking and Screaming(1995) Directed by Noah Baumbach - Paralyzed by postgraduation ennui, a group of college friends remain on campus, patching together a community for themselves in order to deny the real-world futures awaiting them. Academy Award–nominated screenwriter Noah Baumbach’s hilarious and touching directorial debut was one of the highlights of the American independent film scene of the nineties, speaking directly to a generation of adults-to-be unable to reconcile their hermetic educational experience with workaday responsibility, and posing the eternal question, where do we go from here? Stingingly funny and incisive, Baumbach’s breakthrough features endlessly quotable dialogue, delivered by a stellar ensemble cast.
The Kid with a Bike(2011) Directed by Jean-Pierre and Luc Dardenne - Belgian drama in which 12-year-old Cyril is abandoned by his father and left in state care. He finds a new friend in a local hairdresser, who takes pity on him and agrees to foster him on weekends.
The Killers(1946) Directed by Robert Siodmak - Two hit men walk into a diner asking for a man called "the Swede" (Burt Lancaster). When the killers find the Swede, he's expecting them and doesn't put up a fight. Since the Swede had a life insurance policy, an investigator (Edmond O'Brien), on a hunch, decides to look into the murder. As the Swede's past is laid bare, it comes to light that he was in love with a beautiful woman (Ava Gardner) who may have lured him into pulling off a bank robbery overseen by another man (Albert Dekker).
The Killing (1956) Directed by Stanley Kubrick - Career criminal Johnny Clay (Sterling Hayden) recruits a sharpshooter (Timothy Carey), a crooked police officer (Ted de Corsia), a bartender (Joe Sawyer) and a betting teller named George (Elisha Cook Jr.), among others, for one last job before he goes straight and marries his fiancee, Fay (Coleen Gray). But when George tells his restless wife, Sherry (Marie Windsor), about the scheme to steal millions from the racetrack where he works, she hatches a plot of her own.
The Killing of a Chinese Bookie(1976) Directed by John Cassavetes - Cosmo Vittelli (Ben Gazzara), the proprietor of a sleazy, low-rent Hollywood cabaret, has a real affection for the women who strip in his peepshows and the staff who keep up his dingy establishment. He also has a major gambling problem that has gotten him in trouble before. When Cosmo loses big-time at an underground casino run by mobster Mort (Seymour Cassel), he isn't able to pay up. Mort then offers Cosmo the chance to pay back his debt by knocking off a pesky, Mafia-protected bookie.
The King of Marvin Gardens(1972) Directed by Bob Rafelson - David Staebler (Jack Nicholson) is a sullen radio personality who reconnects with his scheming brother, Jason (Bruce Dern), in Atlantic City, N.J. A fast-talking con man, Jason is traveling with the beautiful Sally (Ellen Burstyn) and her stepdaughter, Jessica (Julia Anne Robinson), and attempts to rope David into a deal involving a tropical island resort. While David initially humors his ne'er-do-well sibling, Jason isn't happy when his brother tries to rain on his parade.
Kiss Me Deadly(1955) Directed by Robert Aldrich - One evening, private detective Mike Hammer (Ralph Meeker) picks up a strange woman, Christina (Cloris Leachman), who's standing on the highway wearing only a trench coat. They're stopped farther on by strangers who knockout Mike and murder Christina. Although warned not to investigate by the police, Mike and his girlfriend and assistant, Velda (Maxine Cooper), become ensnared in a dark plot involving scientist Dr. Soberin (Albert Dekker) and Christina's terrified roommate, Lily (Gaby Rodgers).
Knife in the Water(1962) Directed by Roman Polanski - On their way to an afternoon on the lake, husband and wife Andrzej (Leon Niemczyk) and Krystyna (Jolanta Umecka) nearly run over a young hitchhiker (Zygmunt Malanowicz). Inviting the young man onto the boat with them, Andrzej begins to subtly torment him; the hitchhiker responds by making overtures toward Krystyna. When the hitchhiker is accidentally knocked overboard, the husband's panic results in unexpected consequences. This was the first feature directed by Roman Polanski.
The Koker Trilogy(1987-94) Directed by Abbas Kiarostami - Abbas Kiarostami first came to international attention for this wondrous, slyly self-referential series of films set in the rural northern-Iranian town of Koker. Poised delicately between fiction and documentary, comedy and tragedy, the lyrical fables in The Koker Trilogy exemplify both the gentle humanism and the playful sleight of hand that define the director’s sensibility. With each successive film, Kiarostami takes us deeper into the behind-the-scenes “reality” of the film that preceded it, heightening our understanding of the complex network of human relationships that sustain both a movie set and a village. The result is a gradual outward zoom that reveals the cosmic majesty and mystery of ordinary life.
Kwaidan(1965) Directed by Masaki Kobayashi - Taking its title from an archaic Japanese word meaning "ghost story," this anthology adapts four folk tales. A penniless samurai (Rentarô Mikuni) marries for money with tragic results. A man stranded in a blizzard is saved by Yuki the Snow Maiden (Keiko Kishi), but his rescue comes at a cost. Blind musician Hoichi (Katsuo Nakamura) is forced to perform for an audience of ghosts. An author (Osamu Takizawa) relates the story of a samurai who sees another warrior's reflection in his teacup.
L’Avventura(1960) Directed by Michelangelo Antonioni - In Michelangelo Antonioni's classic of Italian cinema, two lovely young women, Claudia (Monica Vitti) and Anna (Léa Massari), join the latter's lover, Sandro (Gabriele Ferzetti), on a boat trip to a remote volcanic island. When Anna goes missing, an extensive search is launched. In the meantime, Sandro and Claudia become involved in a romance despite Anna's disappearance, though the relationship suffers from the guilt and tension brought about by the looming mystery.
L’Eclisse(1962) Directed by Michelangelo Antonioni - This romantic drama by Michelangelo Antonioni follows the love life of Vittoria (Monica Vitti), a beautiful literary translator living in Rome. After splitting from her writer boyfriend, Riccardo (Francisco Rabal), Vittoria meets Piero (Alain Delon), a lively stockbroker, on the hectic floor of the Roman stock exchange. Though Vittoria and Piero begin a relationship, it is not one without difficulties, and their commitment to one another is tested during an eclipse.
La Collectionneuse(1967) Directed by Eric Rohmer - A young man (Patrick Bauchau) tells himself high ideals are what kept him from sleeping with a temptress (Haydée Politoff) staying at the same St. Tropez boarding house.
La Dolce Vita(1960) Directed by Federico Fellini - In Federico Fellini's lauded Italian film, restless reporter Marcello Rubini (Marcello Mastroianni) drifts through life in Rome. While Marcello contends with the overdose taken by his girlfriend, Emma (Yvonne Furneaux), he also pursues heiress Maddalena (Anouk Aimée) and movie star Sylvia (Anita Ekberg), embracing a carefree approach to living. Despite his hedonistic attitude, Marcello does have moments of quiet reflection, resulting in an intriguing cinematic character study.
La Haine(1995) Directed by Mathieu Kassovitz - When a young Arab is arrested and beaten unconscious by police, a riot erupts in the notoriously violent suburbs outside of Paris. Three of the victim's peers, Vinz (Vincent Cassel), Said (Said Taghmaoui) and Hubert (Hubert Koundé), wander aimlessly about their home turf in the aftermath of the violence as they try to come to grips with their outrage over the brutal incident. After one of the men finds a police officer's discarded weapon, their night seems poised to take a bleak turn.
La Jetée + Sans Soleil(1963/1983) Directed by Chris Marker - One of the most influential, radical science-fiction films ever made and a mind-bending free-form travelogue: La Jetée and Sans Soleil couldn’t seem more different—but they’re the twin pillars of an unparalleled and uncompromising career in cinema. A filmmaker, poet, novelist, photographer, editor, and now videographer and digital multimedia artist, Chris Marker has been challenging moviegoers, philosophers, and himself for years with his investigations of time, memory, and the rapid advancement of life on this planet. These two films—a tale of time travel told in still images and a journey to Africa and Japan—remain his best-loved and most widely seen.
La Ronde(1950) Directed by Max Ophüls - This Academy Award-nominated French film presents a series of interconnected romantic entanglements. Narrated by an omniscient guide (Anton Walbrook), the movie has a large cast of characters that includes a prostitute (Simone Signoret), who meets up with a soldier (Serge Reggiani), who later becomes involved with a maid (Simone Simon). This merry-go-round continues until it circles back to the beginning, making for an intriguing tale of love and infidelity.
La vie de bohème(1992) Directed by Aki Kaurismäki - Rodolfo (Matti Pellonpää), an Albanian refugee and painter; Marcel (André Wilms), a playwright; and Schaunard (Kari Väänänen), an avant-garde composer, become friends and allies in contemporary Paris. They maintain a genteel manner of relating to one another while constantly scrambling for money and risking starvation. After falling in love with a barmaid (Evelyne Didi), Rodolfo is deported. When he succeeds in re-entering the country, he and his friends try to revive their friendship.
Lacombe, Lucien(1974) Directed by Louis Malle - In Louis Malle's lauded drama, Lucien Lacombe (Pierre Blaise) is a young man living in rural France during World War II who seeks to join the French Resistance. When he is rejected due to his youth, the resentful Lucien allies himself with the Nazis and joins the Gallic arm of their Gestapo. Lucien grows to enjoy the power that comes with his position, but his life is complicated when he falls for France Horn (Aurore Clément), a beautiful young Jewish woman.
The Lady Vanishes(1938) Directed by Alfred Hitchcock - On a train headed for England a group of travelers is delayed by an avalanche. Holed up in a hotel in a fictional European country, young Iris (Margaret Lockwood) befriends elderly Miss Froy (Dame May Whitty). When the train resumes, Iris suffers a bout of unconsciousness and wakes to find the old woman has disappeared. The other passengers ominously deny Miss Froy ever existed, so Iris begins to investigate with another traveler (Michael Redgrave) and, as the pair sleuth, romantic sparks fly.
The Last Days of Disco (1998) Directed by Whit Stillman - Two young women (Chloë Sevigny, Kate Beckinsale) and their friends spend spare time at an exclusive nightclub in 1980s New York.
Last Holiday(1950) Directed by Henry Cass - When ordinary middle-class salesman George Bird (Alec Guinness) is diagnosed with a rare and fatal illness, he decides to spend his few remaining days in luxury. Cashing in his savings, he buys a fancy new wardrobe and poses as a wealthy businessman at a posh seaside resort. Unexpectedly, the dying man's luck begins to change during his holiday, from winning at gambling to establishing friendships with his fellow guests, most notably Sheila Rockingham (Beatrice Campbell).
The Last Metro(1980) Directed by François Truffaut - When the Nazis occupy Paris, Jewish theater owner Lucas Steiner (Heinz Bennent) goes into hiding in the cellar, ceding control of the theater to his gentile wife, Marion (Catherine Deneuve). She mounts a new play, and gives a break to upstart actor Bernard Granger (Gérard Depardieu) by casting him in the lead. The two soon develop feelings for one another, and she is torn between the two men. Things grow ever more complicated when Marion discovers that Bernard is harboring a secret of his own.
The Last Picture Show(1971)Directed by Peter Bogdanovich - High school seniors and best friends, Sonny (Timothy Bottoms) and Duane (Jeff Bridges), live in a dying Texas town. The handsome Duane is dating local beauty, Jacy (Cybill Shepherd), while Sonny is having an affair with the coach's wife, Ruth (Cloris Leachman). As graduation nears, both boys contemplate their futures. While Duane eyes the army and Sonny takes over a local business, each boy struggles to figure out if he can escape this dead-end town and build a better life somewhere else.
The Last Temptation of Christ (1988) Directed by Martin Scorsese - Jesus (Willem Dafoe), a humble Judean carpenter beginning to see that he is the son of God, is drawn into revolutionary action against the Roman occupiers by Judas (Harvey Keitel) -- despite his protestations that love, not violence, is the path to salvation. The burden of being the savior of mankind torments Jesus throughout his life, leading him to doubt. As he is put to death on the cross, Jesus is tempted by visions of an ordinary life married to Mary Magdalene (Barbara Hershey).
Last Year at Marienbad(1961) Directed by Alain Resnais - In this unconventional French drama, a group of unnamed aristocrats interact at a palatial château, resulting in an enigmatic tale told partially in flashback. X (Giorgio Albertazzi) is convinced that he has met the beautiful A (Delphine Seyrig) before in the Czech resort town of Marienbad, and implies they had a romantic relationship. M (Sacha Pitoeff), who may be A's husband or boyfriend, confronts her mysterious suitor, leading to conflict and questions about the truth behind his story.
Late Autumn(1960) Directed by Yasujiro Ozu - A mother gently tries to persuade her daughter to get married, but it turns out that some of the potential suitors are more interested in mother than daughter.
Late Spring(1949) Directed by Yasujiro Ozu - Noriko (Setsuko Hara) is perfectly happy living at home with her widowed father, Shukichi (Chishû Ryû), and has no plans to marry -- that is, until her aunt Masa (Haruko Sugimura) convinces Shukichi that unless he marries off his 27-year-old daughter soon, she will likely remain alone for the rest of her life. When Noriko resists Masa's matchmaking, Shukichi is forced to deceive his daughter and sacrifice his own happiness to do what he believes is right.
Le Beau Serge(1958) Directed by Claude Chabrol - The directorial debut of Claude Chabrol, this drama centers on Francois Baillou (Jean-Claude Brialy), who has returned to his small hometown after years away. When Francois reconnects with Serge (Gérard Blain), a close friend from his youth, he discovers that his old buddy is married to the lovely Yvonne (Michèle Méritz), but is depressed and frequently drunk. Concerned about Serge, Francois tries to discover what's at the root of his worrisome behavior.
Le Cercle Rouge(1970) Directed by Jean-Pierre Melville - When French criminal Corey (Alain Delon) gets released from prison, he resolves to never return. He is quickly pulled back into the underworld, however, after a chance encounter with escaped murderer Vogel (Gian Maria Volonte). Along with former policeman and current alcoholic Jansen (Yves Montand), they plot an intricate jewel heist. All the while, quirky Police Commissioner Mattei (Bourvil), who was the one to lose custody of Vogel, is determined to find him.
Le ciel est à vous(1944) Directed by Jean Grémillon - Seeking an outlet for her adventurous spirit, the wife (Madeleine Renaud) of an aviator decides to become a pilot (Charles Vanel).
Le Havre(2011) Directed by Aki Kaurismäki - Marcel Marx scrapes together a living by shining shoes, living frugally with his wife Arletty in their small flat and socializing in a low-key manner with his neighbors. He takes pity on a young African refugee and welcomes him into his home.
Le Samouraï(1967) Directed by Jean-Pierre Melville - Hit man Jef Costello (Alain Delon) goes through an elaborate set of rituals before carrying out a hit on a nightclub owner. Always thorough and cool in his job, Costello is disconcerted to discover a witness to the killing, the club's female piano player. But before he can act, the police arrest him in a sweep of suspects. Released when the main witness does not come forward, Costello goes from being the hunter to the hunted, trailed by the determined police as well as his crime bosses.
Le Silence De La Mer(1949) Directed by Jean-Pierre Melville - An elderly Frenchman (Jean-Marie Robain) and his niece (Nicole Stéphane) are forced to give shelter to a Nazi soldier (Howard Vernon) who seemingly loves their country and culture.
The League of Gentlemen(1960) Directed by Basil Dearden - In this British crime caper, Hyde (Jack Hawkins), a bitter former military officer, decides to rob a bank and recruits a number of ex-army men to join in on the scheme. Along with Lexy (Richard Attenborough), Race (Nigel Patrick) and others, Hyde meticulously plans the heist, with preliminary missions resulting in tense and ridiculous situations, including a quest for much-needed explosives. Can Hyde and his cohorts pull off the big robbery and get away with it?
Leave Her to Heaven(1945) Directed by John M. Stahl - While on a train, writer Richard Harland (Cornel Wilde) strikes up a relationship with the gorgeous Ellen Berent (Gene Tierney). Ellen quickly becomes obsessed with Richard and abandons her fiancé, Russell Quinton (Vincent Price), to be with him. The couple rushes into marriage, with both of them caught up in romance and Richard intrigued by Ellen's intensity. Only after settling into marriage, however, does Richard realize that she is psychotically jealous and highly unstable.
Leningrad Cowboys Go America(1989) Directed by Aki Kaurismäki - An enthusiastic Siberian rock 'n' roll band, The Leningrad Cowboys, journeys to New York with their manager (Matti Pellonpää) and a dead member who froze to death before his dreams of success could be realized. They land a gig in Mexico, and the band, including the dead member strapped to the top of their Cadillac, drives there through the country that birthed rock music, meeting various characters along the road to success. Meanwhile, a crazed fan (Kari Väänänen) from home chases them down.
Leningrad Cowboys Meet Moses(1994) Directed by Aki Kaurismäki -After years of fame and misfortune in Mexico, the members of the Leningrad Cowboys decide to return to their native village. Their former manager Vladimir, who now calls himself Moses, led them on their way home.
Leon Morin, Priest(1961) Directed by Jean-Pierre Melville - As the Germans take over France during World War II, widowed mother Barny (Emmanuelle Riva) becomes increasingly anxious about her half-Jewish daughter. She decides to hide the girl on a nearby farm and have her baptized as a cover. The ceremony reminds Barny of the absurdity of religion, and inspires her to pick a fight with parish priest Leon (Jean-Paul Belmondo). She's surprised to learn that he shares a great many of her views, and the two begin a chaste yet deep relationship.
The Leopard(1963) Directed by Luchino Visconti - As Garibaldi's troops begin the unification of Italy in the 1860s, an aristocratic Sicilian family grudgingly adapts to the sweeping social changes undermining their way of life. Proud but pragmatic Prince Don Fabrizio Salina (Burt Lancaster) allows his war hero nephew, Tancredi (Alain Delon), to marry Angelica (Claudia Cardinale), the beautiful daughter of gauche, bourgeois Don Calogero, in order to maintain the family's accustomed level of comfort and political clout.
Les Cousins(1959) Directed by Claude Chabrol - Reserved, bourgeois college student Charles (Gérard Blain) comes to stay with his devil-may-care cousin, Paul (Jean-Claude Brialy), who lives the fast life in Paris. Sensitive Charles, thrown into the whirlwind of his cousin's social circle, meets pretty Florence (Juliette Mayniel) at a party and believes he has found true love. When Florence breaks his heart, Charles concentrates on his studies with renewed fervor, but soon tensions between the two cousins take a dark turn.
Les Enfants Terribles(1950) Directed by Jean-Pierre Melville - Elisabeth (Nicole Stéphane) and her brother Paul (Edouard Dermithe) live isolated from much of the world after Paul is injured in a snowball fight. As a coping mechanism, the two conjure up a hermetic dream of their own making. Their relationship, however, isn't exactly wholesome. Jealousy and a malevolent undercurrent intrude on their fantasy when Elisabeth invites the strange Agathe (Renée Cosima) to stay with them -- and Paul is immediately attracted to her.
The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp(1943) Directed by Michael Powell - General Candy (Roger Livesey), who's overseeing an English squad in 1943, is a veteran leader who doesn't have the respect of the men he's training and is considered out-of-touch with what's needed to win the war. But it wasn't always this way. Flashing back to his early career in the Boer War and World War I, we see a dashing young officer whose life has been shaped by three different women (all played by Deborah Kerr), and by a lasting friendship with a German soldier.
The Life Aquatic(2004) Directed by Wes Anderson - Renowned oceanographer Steve Zissou (Bill Murray) has sworn vengeance upon the rare shark that devoured a member of his crew. In addition to his regular team, he is joined on his boat by Ned (Owen Wilson), a man who believes Zissou to be his father, and Jane (Cate Blanchett), a journalist pregnant by a married man. They travel the sea, all too often running into pirates and, perhaps more traumatically, various figures from Zissou's past, including his estranged wife, Eleanor (Anjelica Huston).
Life During Wartime(2010) Directed by Todd Solondz - Nothing comes easily for Joy (Shirley Henderson) and her sisters, Trish (Allison Janney) and Helen (Ally Sheedy). Joy, unhappy with her job and her sleazy husband (Michael Kenneth Williams), is haunted by her dead boyfriend's ghost (Paul Reubens). Trish's pedophile husband (Ciarán Hinds) is behind bars, and she's ready to move on with her life. As an increasingly bitter Helen approaches middle age with a failing screenwriting career, it becomes clear her mother offers little comfort.
Life Is Sweet(1990) Directed by Mike Leigh - The working-class malaise of suburban London is captured in this comedic drama, which focuses on twin sisters Natalie (Claire Skinner) and Nicola (Jane Horrocks) and their parents: easygoing Andy (Jim Broadbent) and his optimistic wife, Wendy (Alison Steadman). While Natalie has a plumbing job, and tends to take after her mom with her bright outlook, Nicola is on the dole and perpetually dwells on the negative. Will the cloud over Nicola's head ever lift?
The Life of Oharu(1952) Directed by Kenji Mizoguchi - In feudal Japan, Oharu (Kinuyo Tanaka), the daughter of royal samurai Shinzaemon (Ichiro Sugai), secretly has a passionate romance with Katsunosuke (Toshirô Mifune), a man with a meager social standing. When the couple is found out, the law comes down hard on this breach of class: Katsunosuke is put to death and Oharu and her family are banished from the kingdom. Destitute and disgraced, Shinzaemon sells Oharu into prostitution, and she spends years searching for love.
The Long Day Closes (1992) Directed by Terence Davies - Bud is a lonely and quiet child whose moments of solace occur when he sits in rapture at the local cinema, watching towering and iconic figures on the movie screen. The movies give Bud the strength to get through another day as he deals with his oppressive school environment and his burgeoning homosexuality.
Lord of the Flies(1963) Directed by Peter Brook - Amidst a nuclear war, a plane carrying a group of schoolboys crash lands on a deserted island. With no adult survivors, the boys are forced to fend for themselves. At first they cooperate, but when they split into two separate camps -- one led by the pragmatic Ralph (James Aubrey) and the other by militaristic Jack (Tom Chapin) -- their society falls into disarray, leading to a disturbing examination of human nature and a chilling conclusion.
Louie Bluie(1985) directed by Terry Zwigoff - This documentary focuses on William Howard Taft Armstrong, (better known as Louie Bluie), a Tennessee blues musician and folk artist known for his ability to play just about every stringed instrument known to man. He recounts the old days of the '30s and '40s, engaging in lively reminiscences with his friends and fellow musicians. When words are not enough, Louie pulls out his sketchpad and illustrates his thoughts with quickly executed drawings.
Love Affair(1939) Directed by Leo McCarey - Engaged ladies' man Michel Marnet (Charles Boyer) encounters spoken-for singer Terry McKay (Irene Dunne) aboard a transatlantic cruise, where sparks fly and a romance ensues. Once they reach New York, Michel and Terry agree to go back to their significant others, then meet atop the Empire State Building in six months, when both are free to pursue their affair. Though a tragic accident forestalls their reunion, Terry and Michel still hold out hope for a chance to rekindle their true love.
Love in the Afternoon(1972) Directed by Eric Rohmer - Eric Rohmer's acclaimed meditation on marital fidelity follows Frederic (Bernard Verley), a successful Parisian lawyer who is happily married to Helene (Francoise Verley), a schoolteacher. Though Frederic daydreams about affairs with other women, he doesn't come close to acting on such thoughts until he runs into Chloe (Zouzou), a beautiful old acquaintance. Tempted by the vibrant Chloe, Frederic is torn between impulsive lust and his love for his wife.
Love Jones(1997) Directed by Theodore Witcher - Two urban African-Americans, Darius (Larenz Tate), an aspiring writer, and Nina (Nia Long), an aspiring photographer, share an instant connection after a chance meeting at a Chicago club. The two bond over music, photography and poetry, and eventually begin a torrid romance. However, when Nina decides to move to New York and mend her relationship with her ex-fiancé, Marvin (Khalil Kain), it leaves Darius heartbroken, and the couple's future in jeopardy.
Love on the Run(1979) Directed by François Truffaut - Beginning with "The 400 Blows," director Francois Truffaut made a series of films about the impetuous Antoine Doinel (Jean-Pierre Léaud), in which this is the last. Antoine is now 30, working as a proofreader and getting divorced from his wife (Claude Jade). It being the first "no-fault" divorce in France, a media circus erupts, dredging up Antoine's past. Indecisive about his new love with a store clerk (Dorothée), he impulsively takes off with an old flame (Marie-France Pisier).
The Lovers(1958) Directed by Louis Malle - A shallow, provincial wife finds her relationship with her preoccupied husband strained by romantic notions of love, leading her further towards Paris and the country wilderness.
Loves of a Blonde(1965) Directed by Milos Forman - Andula (Hana Brejchova), an innocent Czech girl from a factory town, is desperately in search of love. She believes she's found it when she beds Milda (Vladimir Pucholt), a charming young musician visiting from Prague. Milda, however, is only looking for a casual encounter, and leaves town assuming he'll never see Andula again. But when Andula doesn't hear from him, she packs up and heads to Prague, to the surprise of Milda and his parents (Milada Jezkova, Josef Sebanek).
Lumiere D’ete(1943) Directed by Jean Grémillon - A shimmering glass hotel at the top of a remote Provençal mountain provides the setting for a tragicomic tapestry about an obsessive love pentangle, whose principals range from an artist to a hotel manager to a dam worker. Scripted by Jacques Prévert and Pierre Laroche, the film was banned from theaters for the duration of the occupation for its dark portrayal of the hedonistic excesses of the ruling class. Today, it is often singled out as Jean Grémillon’s greatest achievement.
The Lure(2015) Directed by Agnieszka Smoczyńska - This genre-defying horror-musical mash-up—the bold debut of Polish director Agnieszka Smoczyńska—follows a pair of carnivorous mermaid sisters drawn ashore to explore life on land in an alternate 1980s Poland. Their tantalizing siren songs and otherworldly auras make them overnight sensations as nightclub singers in the half-glam, half-decrepit world of Smoczyńska’s imagining. The director gives fierce teeth to her viscerally sensual, darkly feminist twist on Hans Christian Andersen’s “The Little Mermaid,” in which the girls’ bond is tested and their survival threatened after one sister falls for a human. A coming-of-age fairy tale with a catchy synth-fueled soundtrack, outrageous song-and-dance numbers, and lavishly grimy sets, The Lure explores its themes of emerging female sexuality, exploitation, and the compromises of adulthood with savage energy and originality.
M(1931) Directed by Fritz Lang - In this classic German thriller, Hans Beckert (Peter Lorre), a serial killer who preys on children, becomes the focus of a massive Berlin police manhunt. Beckert's heinous crimes are so repellant and disruptive to city life that he is even targeted by others in the seedy underworld network. With both cops and criminals in pursuit, the murderer soon realizes that people are on his trail, sending him into a tense, panicked attempt to escape justice.
Made in USA(1966) Directed by Jean-Luc Godard - The body count rises as a journalist (Anna Karina) -- under surveillance herself -- searches for her lover's killer in Atlantic City.
Madonna of the Seven Moons(1945) Directed by Arthur Crabtree - After being raped by a gypsy, Maddalena (Phyllis Calvert) develops a split personality. Years pass and she marries and starts a family in Rome. But, unbeknownst to her loving daughter Angela (Patricia Roc) and wealthy husband, Maddalena leads a double life. For days at a time she disappears to Florence, where she becomes a sultry gypsy girl and moll to crafty thief Nino (Stewart Granger). But Maddalena's secret is exposed when her daughter decides to follow her one day.
The Magician(1958) Directed by Ingmar Bergman - Dr. Vogler (Max von Sydow) is a hypnotist, a magician and the leader of "Vogler's Magnetic Health Theater," a traveling performance troupe known for their apparently supernatural abilities. When Vogler's show arrives in Stockholm, the skeptical townspeople form a committee determined to disprove the supposedly magical abilities of the troupe. The locals, headed by a cruel medical official (Gunnar Björnstrand), fail to rationally explain Vogler's feats -- and events take a disturbing turn.
Make Way for Tomorrow(1937) Directed by Leo McCarey - Retired married couple Barkley (Victor Moore) and Lucy (Beulah Bondi) struggle through the Great Depression, losing their home to foreclosure. Their five grown children have their own financial problems, and although son George (Thomas Mitchell) and daughter Nellie (Minna Gombell) can each board one of their parents, none of the children can afford to house them both. Before they are forced to split up, the couple take one last outing together as they ponder their futures.
The Makioka Sisters(1983) Directed by Kon Ichikawa - The once-prominent Makioka family undergoes a decline over the years, partially as a result of the Allied Occupation during the '40s. But no matter what fortune has in store, the four sisters always gather in Kyoto, Japan, to view the cherry blossoms, the ritual marking the changes in their lives from year to year. Right now the major crisis for them is finding a husband for Yukiko (Sayuri Yoshinaga), the third eldest, so that the youngest sibling, Taeko (Yûko Kotegawa), can get married herself.
Mala Noche(1985) Directed by Gus Van Sant - Walt (Tim Streeter) is a lonely convenience store clerk who has fallen in love with a Mexican migrant worker named Johnny (Doug Cooeyate). Though Walt has little in common with the ambivalent object of his affections -- including a shared language -- his desire to possess Johnny prompts a sexual awakening that results in taboo trysts and a tangled love triangle. This twisted tale of love gone wild is based on Walt Curtis' provocative autobiographical novel.
Man Bites Dog(1992) Directed by Rémy Belvaux, André Bonzel and Benoit Poelvoorde - The activities of rampaging, indiscriminate serial killer Ben (Benoît Poelvoorde) are recorded by a willingly complicit documentary team, who eventually become his accomplices and active participants. Ben provides casual commentary on the nature of his work and arbitrary musings on topics of interest to him, such as music or the conditions of low-income housing, and even goes so far as to introduce the documentary crew to his family. But their reckless indulgences soon get the better of them.
A Man Escaped(1956) Directed by Robert Bresson - In a film based on the writings of French Resistance fighter and POW André Devigny, Fontaine (François Leterrier) is being held by the Nazis at Fort Montluc. When he gets word that he's scheduled for execution, Fontaine channels his energy into hatching a plan to break out. His plan is interrupted when he is assigned a new roommate. Fontaine grudgingly brings the newcomer in on the escape effort, which involves homespun weapons and an intricate knowledge of the layout of the prison itself.
The Man in Grey(1943) Directed by Leslie Arliss - Desirous of an heir, the remote and cruel Lord Rohan (James Mason) marries pretty young Clarissa Marr (Phyllis Calvert). Soon after, Clarissa discovers old school friend Hesther Shaw (Margaret Lockwood), now impoverished in an acting troupe, and brings her home, unaware that Hesther has long nursed resentment of her good fortune. While the ambitious Hesther sets her sights on Rohan, she also secretly encourages Clarissa into a relationship with affable gypsy Peter Rokeby (Stewart Granger).
Man is Not a Bird(1965) Directed by Dusan Makavejev - Serbian engineer (Janez Vrhovec) falls for a younger woman (Milena Dravic), but he is inept at courtship.
Man Push Cart(2005) Directed by Ramin Bahrani - Ahmad (Ahmad Razvi) is a Pakistani-born cart vendor who sells bagels and coffee in Manhattan, a humble and bleak means of a living that affords him little comfort. In his former life in Pakistan, he was a rock star. He was also married and had a child. Now his wife is dead, his in-laws refuse him visits with his son, and his job is all he seems to have, but he seems content with his fate. However, a chance encounter with a businessman may change Ahmad's fortune -- for better, or worse.
The Man Who Fell to Earth(1976) Directed by Nicolas Roeg - Thomas Jerome Newton (David Bowie) is an alien who has come to Earth in search of water to save his home planet. Aided by lawyer Oliver Farnsworth (Buck Henry), Thomas uses his knowledge of advanced technology to create profitable inventions. While developing a method to transport water, Thomas meets Mary-Lou (Candy Clark), a quiet hotel clerk, and begins to fall in love with her. Just as he is ready to leave Earth, Thomas is intercepted by the U.S. government, and his entire plan is threatened.
The Man Who Knew Too Much(1934) Directed by Alfred Hitchcock - On a family vacation in Switzerland, Bob (Leslie Banks) and his wife, Jill (Edna Best), become friendly with a man staying in their hotel. When the stranger is assassinated in their presence, the vacation turns dangerous. Before dying, the stranger passes along a secret to Jill. Then, to keep the couple silent, a band of foreign assassins kidnaps their daughter. Offered no help by the police, Bob and Jill hunt for their daughter as they try to understand the information that they have.
Manila in the Claws of Light(1975) Directed by Lino Brocka - Julio, a fisherman from a poor area, descends into social alienation, as he arrives in Manila to search for his loved one.
Marketa Lazarova(1967) Directed by František Vláčil - This acclaimed Czech epic, set during the transition from paganism to Christianity during the 13th century, focuses on the Kozlik family, a clan of brutal and superstitious pillagers who ravage the bleak medieval countryside on horseback. One-armed Adam (Ivan Palúch) and his brother Mikolás (Frantisek Velecký) violently abduct the virginal Marketa Lazarová (Magda Vasaryova), the daughter of a Kozlik rival, and hold her hostage, leading to a monumental battle and an unlikely romance.
Marriage Story(2019) Directed by Noah Baumbach - A stage director and his actor wife struggle through a grueling, coast-to-coast divorce that pushes them to their personal and creative extremes.
Masculin Feminin(1966) Directed by Jean-Luc Godard - Paul (Jean-Pierre Léaud), a young idealist trying to figure out what he wants to do with his life, takes a job interviewing people for a marketing research firm. He moves in with aspiring pop singer Madeleine (Chantal Goya), and their affair often involves her two sexy roommates. Paul, however, is disillusioned by the growing commercialism in society, while Madeleine just wants to be successful. The story is told in a series of 15 unrelated vignettes.
The Match Factory Girl(1990) Directed by Aki Kaurismäki - Iris (Kati Outinen) has a soul-deadening job as a quality-control worker watching boxes of matches go by on an assembly line all day. At night, she eats silently with her dour mother (Elina Salo) and stepfather (Esko Nikkari). One weekend, wearing her new red dress at a local dance, she ends up going home with Aarne (Vesa Vierikko), whom she mistakenly believes is her new boyfriend. When she discovers that she's pregnant, years of pent-up rage explode in a shocking outburst.
Matewan(1987) Directed by John Sayles - Filmed in the coal country of West Virginia, "Matewan" celebrates labor organizing in the context of a 1920s work stoppage. Union organizer, Joe Kenehan (Chris Cooper), a scab named "Few Clothes" Johnson (James Earl Jones) and a sympathetic mayor and police chief heroically fight the power represented by a coal company and Matewan's vested interests so that justice and workers' rights need not take a back seat to squalid working conditions, exploitation and the bottom line.
Medium Cool(1969) Directed by Haskell Wexler - John Cassellis (Robert Forster) is a hardened TV news cameraman who manages to keep his distance while he captures daring footage of a nation in the throes of violent change. He maintains this professional detachment when he covers the social unrest in Chicago surrounding the 1968 Democratic National Convention. But, when he discovers that the TV network has been quietly cooperating with the FBI, the enraged Cassellis realizes that he too must join the fight against the establishment.
Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence(1983) Directed by Nagisa Oshima - During World War II, British soldier Jack Celliers (David Bowie) is captured by Japanese forces and held in a prison camp by the honor-bound Capt. Yanoi (Ryuichi Sakamoto). Yanoi and gruff Sgt. Hara (Takeshi) becomes intrigued with Celliers' open defiance in the face of their staunchly old-world ideas about cowardice and shame. Meanwhile, a translator, Lt. Col. John Lawrence (Tom Conti), attempts to find common ground between British and Japanese beliefs.
Metropolitan(1990) Directed by Whit Stillman - A radical student is adopted by a group of young New Yorkers, serving as a catalyst to alter his and their lives. Gathering in a Manhattan apartment, the group of friends meet to discuss social mobility, Fourier's socialism and play bridge in their cocoon of upper-class society - until they are joined by a man with a critical view of their way of life.
Mildred Pierce(1945) Directed by Michael Curtiz - When Mildred Pierce's (Joan Crawford) wealthy husband leaves her for another woman, Mildred decides to raise her two daughters on her own. Despite Mildred's financial successes in the restaurant business, her oldest daughter, Veda (Ann Blyth), resents her mother for degrading their social status. In the midst of a police investigation after the death of her second husband (Zachary Scott), Mildred must evaluate her own freedom and her complicated relationship with her daughter.
Minding the Gap(2018) Directed by Bing Liu - Three young men bond through skateboarding to escape their volatile family life in their Rust Belt home town. As they face their adult responsibilities, some unexpected revelations threaten their decade-long friendship.
Ministry of Fear(1944) Directed by Fritz Lang - Fresh from a two-year stint in a mental institution for the alleged "mercy killing" of his ailing wife, Stephen Neale (Ray Milland) visits a carnival where he wins a cake by guessing its weight. The cake, however, contains a microfilm sought after by Nazi spies, and Stephen soon finds himself a target. On the run and unsure of whom to trust, he enlists the help of a private detective (Erskine Sanford), a beautiful woman (Marjorie Reynolds) and an inspector from Scotland Yard (Percy Waram).
Mishima: A Life in Four Chapters(1985) Directed by Paul Schrader - Paul Schrader’s visually stunning, collagelike portrait of the acclaimed Japanese author and playwright Yukio Mishima (played by Ken Ogata) investigates the inner turmoil and contradictions of a man who attempted the impossible task of finding harmony among self, art, and society. Taking place on the last day of Mishima’s life, when he famously committed public seppuku, the film is punctuated by extended flashbacks to the writer’s past as well as gloriously stylized evocations of his fictional works. With its rich cinematography by John Bailey, exquisite sets and costumes by Eiko Ishioka, and unforgettable, highly influential score by Philip Glass, Mishima: A Life in Four Chapters is a tribute to its subject and a bold, investigative work of art in its own right.
Miss Julie(1951) Directed by Alf Sjöberg - In late 19th-century Sweden, bold and beautiful young aristocrat Julie (Anita Björk) throws over her fiancé after humiliating him, and impetuously decides to take up with servant Jean (Ulf Palme) -- despite his being engaged to Kristin (Märta Dorff), the cook. To Julie's surprise, she genuinely falls in love with Jean, but she realizes that prevailing class attitudes prevent them from being together. Determined, Julie decides that the couple should elope to Switzerland.
Missing(1982) Directed by Costa-Gavras - In 1973, U.S. businessman Ed Horman (Jack Lemmon) arrives in Chile to look for his son, Charles (John Shea), a politically left-leaning journalist who disappeared during a military coup. Charles' wife, Beth (Sissy Spacek), has been looking for some time, but her requests for help from the U.S. consulate have thus far produced few results. As Ed and Beth try to figure out what really happened to Charles, Ed realizes that the American officials may know more than they're telling.
Modern Times(1936) Directed by Charlie Chaplin -This comedic masterpiece finds the iconic Little Tramp (Charlie Chaplin) employed at a state-of-the-art factory where the inescapable machinery completely overwhelms him, and where various mishaps keep getting him sent to prison. In between his various jail stints, he meets and befriends an orphan girl (Paulette Goddard). Both together and apart, they try to contend with the difficulties of modern life, with the Tramp working as a waiter and eventually a performer.
Mona Lisa(1986) Directed by Neil Jordan - George is a small-time crook just out of prison who discovers his tough-guy image is out of date. Reduced to working as a minder/driver for high class call girl Simone, he has to agree when she asks him to find a young colleague from her King's Cross days. That's when George's troubles start.
Monsieur Hulot’s Holiday(1953) Directed by Jacques Tati - When the ever-hapless Monsieur Hulot (Jacques Tati) decides to vacation at a beautiful seaside resort, rest and relaxation don't last long, given the gangly gent's penchant for ridiculous antics. While simply out to enjoy himself, the well-meaning Hulot inevitably stumbles into numerous misadventures, including an utterly disastrous attempt at playing tennis, as he encounters fellow French vacationers from various social classes, as well as foreign tourists.
Monsoon Wedding(2001) Directed by Mira Nair - A BAFTA-winning film about a father, Lalit Verma, trying to marry off his daughter, Aditi, in the traditional manner. Aditi is having second thoughts, while her cousin Ayesha Verma, 17, is just beginning to realize she's attractive to boys, and her other cousin, Ria, has a shocking revelation ready. Her brother, however, just wants to dance.
Monte Carlo (1930) Directed by Ernst Lubitsch - A countess flees to Monte Carlo on the day of her wedding, where she is courted by a count posing as a hairdresser.
Monterey Pop(1968) Directed by D.A. Pennebaker - Featuring performances by popular artists of the 1960s, this concert film highlights the music of the 1967 California festival. Although not all musicians who performed at the Monterey Pop Festival are on film, some of the notable acts include the Mamas and the Papas, Simon & Garfunkel, Jefferson Airplane, the Who, Otis Redding, and the Jimi Hendrix Experience. Hendrix's post-performance antics -- lighting a guitar on fire, breaking it and tossing a part into the audience -- are captured.
Monty Python’s Life of Brian(1979) Directed by Terry Jones - A young man, Brian, who was born one stable down and on the same night as Jesus, becomes intrigued by a young rebel, Judith. To try and impress her, Brian joins the independence movement against the Romans, the People's Front of Judea. However, in an attempt to hide from the Romans, he relays some of the teachings he heard from Jesus, which ends up spurring a crowd to believe he is the Messiah. While trying to get rid of his followers and reunite with Judith, he embarks on several misadventures.
Moonrise Kingdom(2012) Directed by Wes Anderson - The year is 1965, and the residents of New Penzance, an island off the coast of New England, inhabit a community that seems untouched by some of the bad things going on in the rest of the world. Twelve-year-olds Sam (Jared Gilman) and Suzy (Kara Hayward) have fallen in love and decide to run away. But a violent storm is approaching the island, forcing a group of quirky adults (Bruce Willis, Edward Norton, Bill Murray) to mobilize a search party and find the youths before calamity strikes.
Mouchette(1967) Directed by Robert Bresson - Young teen Mouchette (Nadine Nortier) faces hardships everywhere in her difficult life. Her father (Paul Hébert) is a cruel drunk who neglects her. Meanwhile, her mother (Marie Cardinal) lies ill, slowly dying. One day, fleeing a rainstorm, Mouchette comes across Arsène (Jean-Claude Guilbert), a poacher with a violent streak. He lets her take shelter in his cabin but then assaults her. Arsène even blackmails Mouchette to involve her in a cover-up for a crime he's committed.
Murmur of the Heart(1971) Directed by Louis Malle - This loosely plotted coming-of-age tale follows the life of 15-year-old Laurent Chevalier (Benoît Ferreux) as he stumbles his way over the burgeoning swell of adolescence in 1950s France. After having his first sexual experience with a prostitute and dodging the lips of a priest (Michel Lonsdale), Chevalier contracts a case of scarlet fever. When the fever leaves him with a heart murmur, Chevalier is placed in a sanatorium, along with his over-attentive and adulterous mother (Léa Massari).
My Beautiful Laundrette(1985) Directed by Stephen Frears - In a seedy corner of London, Omar (Gordon Warnecke), a young Pakistani, is given a run-down laundromat by his uncle (Saeed Jaffrey), who hopes to turn it into a successful business. Soon after, Omar is attacked by a group of racist punks, but defuses the situation when he realizes their leader is his former lover, Johnny (Daniel Day-Lewis). The men resume their relationship and rehabilitate the laundromat together, but various social forces threaten to compromise their success.
My Dinner with Andre(1981) Directed by Louis Malle - Old friends Wallace (Wallace Shawn) and Andre (Andre Gregory) haven't seen each other in five years and agree to meet for dinner. Andre, a once well-known theater director, dropped out of the New York scene to travel the world, while Wallace stuck around, finding only mixed success as a playwright. As they sit down to eat, Andre launches into a series of fantastic stories from his time away, and Wallace can't help but notice how different their worldviews have become.
My Life as a Dog(1985) Directed by Lasse Hallström - A boy (Anton Glanzelius), obsessed with comparing himself with those less fortunate, experiences a different life at the home of his aunt and uncle (Tomas von Brömssen) in 1959 Sweden.
My Man Godfrey(1936) Directed by Gregory La Cava - Carole Lombard and William Powell dazzle in this definitive screwball comedy by Gregory La Cava—a potent cocktail of romantic repartee and social critique. Irene (Lombard), an eccentric, wealthy Manhattanite, wins a society-ball scavenger hunt after finding a “forgotten man” (Powell)—an apparent down-and-out drifter—at a dump. She gives him work as the family butler and soon falls head over heels for him. Her attempts to both woo Godfrey and indoctrinate him in the household’s dysfunction make for a string of madcap high jinks that has never been bested. La Cava’s deft film was the first to garner Oscar nominations in all four acting categories, and it is one of Hollywood’s greatest commentaries on class and the social unrest of the Depression era.
My Night at Maud’s(1969) Directed by Eric Rohmer - Jean-Louis (Jean-Louis Trintignant) is a devout Roman Catholic who subscribes to an austere moral code influenced by the philosophy of Blaise Pascal. When he spots a pretty girl (Marie-Christine Barrault) at church, he promises to one day marry her. But then an old friend (Antoine Vitez) introduces him to alluring divorcee Maud (Françoise Fabian). After a conversation about love and philosophy, the chaste Jean-Louis spends the night at Maud's place, conflicted about what he desires.
My Own Private Idaho(1991) Directed by Gus Van Sant - In this loose adaptation of Shakespeare's "Henry IV," Mike Waters (River Phoenix) is a gay hustler afflicted with narcolepsy. Scott Favor (Keanu Reeves) is the rebellious son of a mayor. Together, the two travel from Portland, Oregon to Idaho and finally to the coast of Italy in a quest to find Mike's estranged mother. Along the way they turn tricks for money and drugs, eventually attracting the attention of a wealthy benefactor and sexual deviant.
Mystery Train(1989) Directed by Jim Jarmusch - A seedy hotel in Memphis, Tennessee, provides the backdrop for three separate tales, featuring everything from a kitsch-obsessed Japanese couple (Masatoshi Nagase, Yûki Kudô) to a trio of amateur robbers (Joe Strummer, Rick Aviles, Steve Buscemi) who discover the true nature of their relationship during a botched heist. Linking the stories together is the hotel's eccentric and creepy night clerk (Screamin' Jay Hawkins) as well as the spirit of Elvis Presley.
Naked(1993) Directed by Mike Leigh - The brilliant and controversial Naked, from director Mike Leigh, stars David Thewlis as Johnny, a charming and eloquent but relentlessly vicious drifter. Rejecting anyone who might care for him, the volcanic Johnny hurls himself around London on a nocturnal odyssey, colliding with a succession of other desperate and dispossessed people and scorching everyone in his path. With a virtuoso script and raw performances from Thewlis and co stars Katrin Cartlidge and Lesley Sharp, Leigh’s depiction of England’s underbelly is an amalgam of black comedy and doomsday prophecy that took the best director and best actor prizes at the 1993 Cannes Film Festival.
The Naked City(1948) Directed by Jules Dassin - After a former model is drowned in her bathtub, Detective James Halloran (Don Taylor) and Lieutenant Dan Muldoon (Barry Fitzgerald) attempt to piece together her murder. A friend of the victim mentions "Mr. Henderson," and the police also find the actions of Frank Niles (Howard Duff) peculiar. As Muldoon and Halloran start to fill in the details of the victim's past, they find that she had a lively social life, filled with many suitors, and the mystery becomes even more complex.
The Naked Kiss(1964) Directed by Samuel Fuller - A former prostitute attempts to assimilate in suburbia after fleeing her pimp; shortly before her wedding, she finds out that her philanthropic fiancée has shocking sexual interests.
Naked Lunch(1991) Directed by David Cronenberg - Blank-faced bug killer Bill Lee (Peter Weller) and his dead-eyed wife, Joan (Judy Davis), like to get high on Bill's pest poisons while lounging with Beat poet pals. After meeting the devilish Dr. Benway (Roy Scheider), Bill gets a drug made from a centipede. Upon indulging, he accidentally kills Joan, takes orders from his typewriter-turned-cockroach, ends up in a constantly mutating Mediterranean city and learns that his hip friends have published his work -- which he doesn't remember writing.
The Naked Prey(1965) Directed by Cornel Wilde - A safari guide (Cornel Wilde) cautions the hunting party he is leading to respect the African natives they encounter. Instead of heeding this advice, one of the party actively insults the tribe, which captures and kills the entire group. Only the guide is spared. But he is stripped of his clothing, and given a head start before the warriors give chase. Using his knowledge of the land and resourcefulness, the guide must make his way back to the closest British fort.
Nanook of the North(1922) Directed by Robert Flaherty - This pioneering documentary film depicts the lives of the indigenous Inuit people of Canada's northern Quebec region. Although the production contains some fictional elements, it vividly shows how its resourceful subjects survive in such a harsh climate, revealing how they construct their igloo homes and find food by hunting and fishing. The film also captures the beautiful, if unforgiving, frozen landscape of the Great White North, far removed from conventional civilization.
Naqoyqatsi(2002) Directed by Godfrey Reggio - The long-awaited sequel to the groundbreaking films "Koyaanisqatsi" and "Powaqqatsi." Filmmaker Godfrey Reggio once again takes us on an emotional journey that highlights the profundities embedded in our everyday lives. In this final installment of the Qatsi trilogy, Reggio chronicles with breathtaking imagery the most significant event of the last five thousand years: the shift from a world organized by the principles of nature to one dominated by technology, the synthetic and virtual.
Night and Fog(1955) Directed by Alain Resnais - Ten years after the liberation of the Nazi concentration camps, filmmaker Alain Resnais documented the abandoned grounds of Auschwitz and Majdanek in Night and Fog (Nuit et brouillard), one of the first cinematic reflections on the Holocaust. Juxtaposing the stillness of the abandoned camps’ empty buildings with haunting wartime footage, Resnais investigates humanity’s capacity for violence, and presents the devastating suggestion that such horrors could occur again.
Night and the City(1950) Directed by Jules Dassin - Londoner Harry Fabian (Richard Widmark) is a second-rate con man looking for an angle. After years of putting up with Harry's schemes, his girlfriend, Mary (Gene Tierney), becomes fed up when he taps her for yet another loan. His latest ploy, promoting an aging Greek wrestler, goes awry when the wrestler dies and everyone points the finger at Harry. Hiding out in a riverfront barge, Harry sees his grand ambitions spiral into a nightmare of fear and desperation as the underworld closes in.
Night on Earth(1991) Directed by Jim Jarmusch - This film presents five stories, each involving a cab ride and set in a different city around the world. In Los Angeles, no-nonsense taxi driver Corky (Winona Ryder) gets an engaging customer in the form of a Hollywood casting agent (Gena Rowlands), while a Parisian cabbie (Isaach de Bankolé) must contend with some rowdy African diplomats. Among the other tales, a standout is the Italian taxi ride that finds quirky driver Gino (Roberto Benigni) making a lively confession to an ailing priest.
The Night Porter(1974) Directed by Liliana Cavani - In this unsettling drama from Italian filmmaker Liliana Cavani, a concentration camp survivor (Charlotte Rampling) discovers her former torturer and lover (Dirk Bogarde) working as a porter at a hotel in postwar Vienna. When the couple attempt to re-create their sadomasochistic relationship, his former SS comrades begin to stalk them. Operatic and disturbing, The Night Porter deftly examines the lasting social and psychological effects of the Nazi regime.
Night Train to Munich(1940) Directed by Carol Reed - When the Nazis take Prague, Dr. Bomasch (James Harcourt) escapes, but his daughter, Anna (Margaret Lockwood), is taken to a concentration camp. There she meets Karl (Paul Henreid), a Czech man who helps her escape. She flees with Karl to England where her father is already working for the Royal Navy, guarded by undercover agent Dickie Randall (Rex Harrison). No sooner are they reunited when Karl, actually an SS agent, steals father and daughter back to Germany. It is up to Randall to save them.
Nightmare Alley(1947) Directed by Edmund Goulding - Roustabout Stanton Carlisle (Tyrone Power) joins a traveling carny and unsuccessfully schemes to figure out the mind-reading act of Mademoiselle Zeena (Joan Blondell) and her alcoholic husband, Pete (Ian Keith). But when Pete dies, Zeena is forced to take on Stanton as a partner, and he quickly proves more gifted than his predecessor. Ambitious to a fault, Carlisle abandons Zeena and the carny to reinvent himself as "The Great Stanton," wowing high-class audiences in a Chicago hotel.
No Regrets For Our Youth(1946) Directed by Akira Kurosawa - Yukie (Setsuko Hara) is a young woman living in 1930s Japan, blissfully unaware of the tumultuous political changes occurring around her. She is shocked into reality, though, when her father, a college professor, is forced to resign after preaching anti-fascist views. As she becomes more aware of the world around her, Yukie falls in love with one of her father's students who shares his radical views, even as the government seeks to crush anyone who openly opposes it.
Odd Man Out(1947) Directed by Carol Reed - A wounded fugitive's dark odyssey through the streets of Belfast. Following a `fundraising' robbery which goes horribly wrong, the badly injured, abandoned, and increasingly delirious IRA leader wanders the city in search of an escape route from the British authorities.
Okja (2017) Directed by Bong Joon-Ho - For 10 idyllic years, young Mija has been caretaker and constant companion to Okja - a massive animal and an even bigger friend - at her home in the mountains of South Korea. But that changes when family-owned, multinational conglomerate Mirando Corporation takes Okja for themselves and transports her to New York, where an image-obsessed and self-promoting CEO has big plans for Mija's dearest friend. With no particular plan but single-minded in intent, Mija sets out on a rescue mission.
On the Waterfront(1954) Directed by Elia Kazan - Dockworker Terry Malloy (Marlon Brando) had been an up-and-coming boxer until powerful local mob boss Johnny Friendly (Lee J. Cobb) persuaded him to throw a fight. When a longshoreman is murdered before he can testify about Friendly's control of the Hoboken waterfront, Terry teams up with the dead man's sister Edie (Eva Marie Saint) and the streetwise priest Father Barry (Karl Malden) to testify himself, against the advice of Friendly's lawyer, Terry's older brother Charley (Rod Steiger).
One Hour With You (1932) Directed by Ernst Lubitsch - Andre (Maurice Chevalier) and Colette (Jeanette MacDonald) have been married for three years when temptation pays a visit. Colette's schoolmate, Mitzi (Genevieve Tobin), stops by and takes a liking to Andre. While Mitzi's advances toward Andre intensify, Colette is being romantically pursued by Andre's good friend Adolph (Charles Ruggles). Colette, oblivious to Mitzi's intentions, assumes her husband's infidelities are focused elsewhere. Similarly, Andre doesn't suspect his pal's advances.
One Night in Miami…(2020) Directed by Regina King - On the night of Feb. 25, 1964, in Miami, Cassius Clay joins Jim Brown, Sam Cooke and Malcom X, and they discuss the responsibility of being successful black men during the civil rights movement.
One Wonderful Sunday(1947) Directed by Akira Kurosawa - On a beautiful Sunday afternoon, a laborer, Yuzo (Isao Numasaki), and his fiancée, Masako (Chieko Nakakita), have only 35 yen at their disposal -- hardly anything at all for a day in Tokyo. Determined to enjoy themselves on their day off despite their financial limitations, the two set out looking for adventure. From visiting model homes to playing baseball in the park, the couple continues to keep the activities rolling, thanks to Masako's can-do attitude pushing Yuzo to keep up with her.
Opening Night(1977) Directed by John Cassavetes - Actress Myrtle Gordon (Gena Rowlands) is a functioning alcoholic actress who is a few days from the opening night of her latest play, concerning a woman distraught about aging. One night a car kills one of Myrtle's fans who is chasing her limousine in an attempt to get the star's attention. Myrtle internalizes the accident and goes on a spiritual quest, but fails to find the answers she is after. As opening night inches closer and closer, fragile Myrtle must find a way to make the show go on.
The Organizer(1963) Directed by Mario Monicelli - Professor Sinigaglia (Marcello Mastroianni) is the title character in this darkly comedic Italian drama about mistreated factory workers in the city of Turin. Toiling away in appalling conditions in a textile mill, these employees have no one to stand up for them until Sinigaglia puts his academic career on the line by helping them to start a strike. Although the teacher comes under scrutiny by unsympathetic authorities, he maintains his dedication to the workers' cause.
Orpheus(1950) Directed by Jean Cocteau - At the Café des Poètes in Paris, a fight breaks out between the poet Orphée (Jean Marais) and a group of resentful upstarts. A rival poet, Cègeste (Edouard Dermithe), is killed, and a mysterious princess (María Casares) insists on taking Orpheus and the body away in her Rolls-Royce. Orphée soon finds himself in the underworld, where the Princess announces that she is, in fact, Death. Orpheus escapes in the car back to the land of the living, only to become obsessed with the car radio.
Osaka Elegy(1936) Directed by Kenji Mizoguchi - A telephone operator turns to prostitution after being fired from the Japanese pharmaceutical firm where she was also her boss's mistress.
Overlord(1975) Directed by Stuart Cooper - Private Tom Beddoes (Brian Stirner) is a delicate, unprepossessing young man who gets called to join the British army during World War II. With the Blitz on, he leaves home for training camp and, while not an exceptional soldier, is nevertheless toughened up a bit. Once out, he quietly endures the tedious shuffle of military life and even manages to meet a nice girl (Julie Neesam) while on leave. His happiness is alloyed, however, when he learns he's been chosen for the D-Day invasion.
Paisan(1946) Directed by Roberto Rossellini - Roberto Rossellini's film, made in the aftermath of WWII, consists of six distinct chapters, showing various relationships between the American occupiers and the newly liberated Italians. Two of the outstanding episodes see black military policeman Dotts Johnson robbed of his shoes by a cheeky street urchin while the film ends with a reminder that the war was still not won, as German troops prefer to fight a battle to the death.
Pandora’s Box(1929) Directed by G.W. Pabst - In this acclaimed German silent film, Lulu (Louise Brooks) is a young woman so beautiful and alluring that few can resist her siren charms. The men drawn into her web include respectable newspaper publisher Dr. Ludwig Schön (Fritz Kortner), his musical producer son Alwa (Franz Lederer), circus performer Rodrigo Quast (Krafft-Raschig) and Lulu's seedy old friend, Schigolch (Carl Goetz). When Lulu's charms inevitably lead to tragedy, the downward spiral encompasses them all.
Parade(1974) Directed by Jacques Tati - Combining music, circus acts and pantomime, much-loved French comedian and director Jacques Tati entertains a live Swedish audience in his last film. The circus acts range from clowns to magicians, but Tati also returns to his roots with a series of miming sessions, which include imitating a goalie, a tennis player and a fisherman. The spectacle also includes behind-the-scenes antics, sketches from backstage and a hefty dose of audience participation.
Parasite(2019) Directed by Bong Joon-ho - Greed and class discrimination threaten the newly formed symbiotic relationship between the wealthy Park family and the destitute Kim clan.
Paris, Texas(1984) Directed by Wim Wenders - A disheveled man who wanders out of the desert, Travis Henderson (Harry Dean Stanton) seems to have no idea who he is. When a stranger manages to contact his brother, Walt (Dean Stockwell), Travis is awkwardly reunited with his sibling. Travis has been missing for years, and his presence unsettles Walt and his family, which also includes Travis's own son, Hunter (Hunter Carson). Soon Travis must confront his wife, Jane (Nastassja Kinski), and try to put his life back together.
Passing Fancy(1933) Directed by Yasujiro Ozu - The first of many films featuring the endearing single-dad Kihachi (played wonderfully by Takeshi Sakamoto), Passing Fancy is a humorous and heartfelt study of a close, if fraught, father-son relationship. With an ever more sophisticated visual style and understanding of fragile human relationships, Ozu seamlessly weaves rib-tickling comedy and weighty family drama for this distinguished precursor to a brilliant career.
The Passion of Joan of Arc(1928) Directed by Carl Theodor Dreyer - A classic of the silent age, this film tells the story of the doomed but ultimately canonized 15th-century teenage warrior. On trial for claiming she'd spoken to God, Jeanne d'Arc (Renee Falconetti) is subjected to inhumane treatment and scare tactics at the hands of church court officials (Eugene Silvain, Jean d'Yd). Initially bullied into changing her story, Jeanne eventually opts for what she sees as the truth. Her punishment, a famously brutal execution, earns her perpetual martyrdom.
Paths of Glory(1957) Directed by Stanley Kubrick - During World War I, commanding officer General Broulard (Adolphe Menjou) orders his subordinate, General Mireau (George Macready), to attack a German trench position, offering a promotion as an incentive. Though the mission is foolhardy to the point of suicide, Mireau commands his own subordinate, Colonel Dax (Kirk Douglas), to plan the attack. When it ends in disaster, General Mireau demands the court-martial of three random soldiers in order to save face.
Patriotism(1966) Directed by Yukio Mishima and Domoto Masaki - Playwright and novelist Yukio Mishima foreshadowed his own violent suicide with this ravishing short feature, his only foray into filmmaking, yet made with the expressiveness and confidence of a true cinema artist. All prints of Patriotism (Yûkoku), which depicts the seppuku of an army officer, were destroyed after Mishima's death in 1970, though the negative was saved, and the film resurfaced thirty-five years later. New viewers will be stunned at the depth and clarity of Mishima's vision, as well as his graphic depictions of sex and death. The film is presented here with a choice of Japanese or English intertitles.
Pearls of the Deep(1966) Directed by Jiří Menzel, Věra Chytilová, Jaromil Jireš, Jan Němec and Evald Schorm - A manifesto of sorts for the Czech New Wave, this five-part anthology shows off the breadth of expression and the versatility of the movement’s directors. Based on stories by the legendary writer Bohumil Hrabal, the shorts range from the surreally chilling to the caustically observant to the casually romantic, but all have a cutting, wily view of the world.
People On Sunday(1930)Directed by Robert Siodmak and Edgar G. Ulmer - Years before they became major players in Hollywood, a group of young German filmmakers—including eventual noir masters Robert Siodmak and Edgar G. Ulmer and future Oscar winners Billy Wilder and Fred Zinnemann—worked together on the once-in-a-lifetime collaboration People on Sunday (Menschen am Sonntag). This effervescent, sunlit silent, about a handful of city dwellers (a charming cast of nonprofessionals) enjoying a weekend outing, offers a rare glimpse of Weimar-era Berlin. A unique hybrid of documentary and fictional storytelling, People on Sunday was both an experiment and a mainstream hit that would influence generations of film artists around the world.
Pépé Le Moko(1937) Directed by Julien Duvivier - Pépé le Moko (Jean Gabin), one of France's most wanted criminals, hides out in the Casbah section of Algiers. He knows police will be waiting for him if he tries to leave the city. When Pépé meets Gaby Gould (Mireille Balin), a gorgeous woman from Paris who is lost in the Casbah, he falls for her. She also reminds him of all the things he loves about Paris. Even as Pépé knows he is being trailed by Inspector Slimane (Lucas Gridoux), he considers a future with Gaby.
Persona(1966) Directed by Ingmar Bergman - Famed stage stress Elisabeth Vogler (Liv Ullmann) suffers a moment of blankness during a performance and the next day lapses into total silence. Advised by her doctor to take time off to recover from what appears to be an emotional breakdown, Elisabeth goes to a beach house on the Baltic Sea with only Anna (Bibi Andersson), a nurse, as company. Over the next several weeks, as Anna struggles to reach her mute patient, the two women find themselves experiencing a strange emotional convergence.
Personal Shopper(2016) Directed by Olivier Assayas - Maureen, personal shopper to a supermodel, is determined to stay in Paris, three months after the death of her twin brother from a genetic heart abnormality. Lewis was a medium and had promised to give her a sign of the afterlife. Herself a medium, Maureen is asked to search for his presence in the house his girlfriend is now trying to sell. Unable to determine his presence, Maureen starts to get text messages from an unknown source.
Petite Maman(2021) Directed by Céline Sciamma - Nelly, an eight-year-old girl, has just lost her beloved grandmother and is helping her parents clean out her mother's childhood home. One day, her mum abruptly leaves, and Nelly meets a girl her age as she's building a tree house in the woods.
The Phantom Carriage(1921) Directed by Victor Sjöström - The last person to die on New Year’s Eve before the clock strikes twelve is doomed to take the reins of Death’s chariot and work tirelessly collecting fresh souls for the next year. So says the legend that drives The Phantom Carriage (Körkarlen), directed by the father of Swedish cinema, Victor Sjöström. The story, based on a novel by Nobel Prize winner Selma Lagerlöf, concerns an alcoholic, abusive ne’er-do-well (Sjöström himself) who is shown the error of his ways, and the pure-of-heart Salvation Army sister who believes in his redemption. This extraordinarily rich and innovative silent classic (which inspired Ingmar Bergman to make movies) is a Dickensian ghost story and a deeply moving morality tale, as well as a showcase for groundbreaking special effects.
Phantom India(1969) Directed by Louis Malle - Louis Malle called his gorgeous and groundbreaking Phantom India the most personal film of his career. And this extraordinary journey to India, originally shown as a miniseries on European television, is infused with his sense of discovery, as well as occasional outrage, intrigue, and joy.
The Phantom of Liberty(1974) Directed by Luis Buñuel - This Surrealist Spanish film, with a title referencing the Communist Manifesto, strings together short incidents based on the life of director Luis Buñuel. Presented as chance encounters, these loosely related, intersecting situations, all without a consistent protagonist, reach from the 19th century to the 1970s. Touching briefly on subjects such as execution, pedophilia, incest, and sex, the film features an array of characters, including a sick father and incompetent police officers.
Phoenix (2014) Directed by Christian Petzold - Berlin, 1945: Singer Nelly Lenz returns to Berlin terribly disfigured having survived the concentration camps. After her recovery from extensive plastic surgery, refusing to believe that her estranged husband Johnny could have betrayed her to the Nazis, she resolves to find him in the hope he will still recognise her even though others no longer can.
The Piano Teacher (2001) Directed by Micheal Haneke - Erika Kohut teaches piano at the Conservatory in Vienna. In her early forties, she lives at home, cooped up with her mother, whose influence Erika escapes only on her regular visits to porn cinemas and peepshows. Her sexuality is an affair of morbid voyeurism and masochistic self-mutilation. Erika and life travel separate paths. Until one day, one of her students gets it into his head to seduce her...
Pickpocket(1959) Directed by Robert Bresson - Michel (Martin La Salle) takes up pickpocketing on a lark and is arrested soon after. His mother dies shortly after his release, and despite the objections of his only friend, Jacques (Pierre Leymarie), and his mother's neighbor Jeanne (Marika Green), Michel teams up with a couple of petty thieves in order to improve his craft. With a police inspector (Jean Pélégri) keeping an eye on him, Michel also tries to get a straight job, but the temptation to steal is hard to resist.
Picnic at Hanging Rock(1975) Directed by Peter Weir - In the early 1900s, Miranda (Anne Lambert) attends a girls boarding school in Australia. One Valentine's Day, the school's typically strict headmistress (Rachel Roberts) treats the girls to a picnic field trip to an unusual but scenic volcanic formation called Hanging Rock. Despite rules against it, Miranda and several other girls venture off. It's not until the end of the day that the faculty realizes the girls and one of the teachers (Vivean Gray) have disappeared mysteriously.
Pierrot Le Fou(1965) Directed by Jean-Luc Godard - Uninterested in his wife (Raymond Devos), Ferdinand Griffon (Jean-Paul Belmondo) wearies of his stagnant life. But when the couple hires an enigmatic baby-sitter, Marianne Renoir (Anna Karina), Ferdinand falls head over heels in love with her and abandons his family. He soon discovers, however, that his mistress is not who she seems. Pursued by foreign thugs, Ferdinand and Marianne steal a car and embark on a crime spree through the French countryside all the way to the Mediterranean.
Pigs and Battleships(1962) Directed by Shohei Imamura - In postwar, occupied Japan, Kinta (Hiroyuki Nagato) is a young hustler working for the local Yakuza crime boss. The gang is entering the pig farming business, and Kinta is put in charge of raising the pigs and promised a big bonus when they're sold. However, the police are cracking down on the Yakuza following a recent hit, and Kinta may be expected to take the fall. To make matters worse, Kinta's girlfriend has been sold off as a bride to an American, leaving even his personal life in flux.
Pina(2011) Directed by Wim Wenders - The boundless imagination and physical marvels of the work of the German modern-dance pioneer Pina Bausch leap off the screen in this exuberant tribute by Wim Wenders. A long-planned film collaboration between the director and the choreographer was in preproduction when Bausch died in 2009. Two years later, Wenders decided to go ahead with the project, reconceiving it as an homage to his late friend. The result, shot in stunning 3D, is a remarkable visual experience and a vivid representation of Bausch’s art, enacted by a group of staggeringly talented dancers from her company, the Tanztheater Wuppertal Pina Bausch. Pina is an adventurous work of cinema that highlights the bold legacy of one of the world’s true creative visionaries.
Playtime(1967) Directed by Jacques Tati - Clumsy Monsieur Hulot (Jacques Tati) finds himself perplexed by the intimidating complexity of a gadget-filled Paris. He attempts to meet with a business contact but soon becomes lost. His roundabout journey parallels that of an American tourist (Barbara Dennek), and as they weave through the inventive urban environment, they intermittently meet, developing an interest in one another. They eventually get together at a chaotic restaurant, along with several other quirky characters.
Pleasures of the Flesh(1965) Directed by Nagisa Oshima - A corrupt businessman blackmails the lovelorn reprobate Atsushi into watching over his suitcase full of embezzled cash while he serves a jail sentence. Rather than wait for the man to retrieve his money, however, Atsushi decides to spend it all in one libidinous rush—fully expecting to be tracked down and killed. Oshima’s dip into the waters of the popular soft-core “pink film” genre is a compelling journey into excess.
A Poem is a Naked Person(1974) Directed by Les Blank - Les Blank considered this free-form feature documentary about beloved singer-songwriter Leon Russell, filmed between 1972 and 1974, to be one of his greatest accomplishments. Yet it has not been released until now. Hired by Russell to film him at his recording studio in northeast Oklahoma, Blank ended up constructing a unique, intimate portrait of a musician and his environment. Made up of mesmerizing scenes of Russell and his band performing, both in concert and in the studio, as well as off-the-cuff moments behind the scenes, this singular film—which also features performances by Willie Nelson and George Jones—has attained legendary status over the years. It’s a work of rough beauty that serves as testament to Blank’s cinematic daring and Russell’s immense musical talents.
The Pornographers(1966) Directed by Shohei Imamura - Subu makes pornographic films. He sees nothing wrong with it. They are an aid to a repressed society, and he uses the money to support his landlady, Haru, and her family. From time to time, Haru shares her bed with Subu, though she believes her dead husband, reincarnated as a carp, disapproves. Director Shohei Imamura has always delighted in the kinky exploits of lowlifes, and in this 1966 classic, he finds subversive humor in the bizarre dynamics of Haru, her Oedipal son, and her daughter, the true object of her pornographer-boyfriend's obsession. Imamura's comic treatment of such taboos as voyeurism and incest sparked controversy when the film was released, but The Pornographers has outlasted its critics, and now seems frankly ahead of its time.
Portrait of a Lady on Fire (2019) Directed by Céline Sciamma - France, 1770. Marianne, a painter, is commissioned to do the wedding portrait of Héloïse, a young woman who has just left the convent. Héloïse is a reluctant bride to be and Marianne must paint her without her knowing. She observes her by day, to paint her secretly.
Powaqqatsi(1988) Directed by Godfrey Reggio - Experimental filmmaker Godfrey Reggio explores the intersection of primitive cultures and the industrial world in this documentary, chronicling the everyday lives of people living and working in impoverished countries, where modern life is fraught with difficulty. The film spans the globe, from a massive gold mine in Brazil, to small villages in Africa, to a Nepalese temple, and is accompanied by a frantic score from minimalist composer Philip Glass.
The Power of the Dog(2021) Directed by Jane Campion - A domineering rancher responds with mocking cruelty when his brother brings home a new wife and her son, until the unexpected comes to pass.
The Princess Bride(1987) Directed by Rob Reiner - A fairy tale adventure about a beautiful young woman and her one true love. He must find her after a long separation and save her. They must battle the evils of the mythical kingdom of Florin to be reunited with each other. Based on the William Goldman novel "The Princess Bride" which earned its own loyal audience.
Purple Noon(1960) Directed by René Clément - Tom Ripley (Alain Delon) travels to Italy to visit his playboy friend Phillippe Greenleaf (Maurice Ronet) and Phillippe's new fiancée, Marge Duval (Marie Laforêt). What Phillippe doesn't know is that his father has paid Tom to convince his son to abandon Europe and return to his family responsibilities in San Francisco. But when Phillippe's family cuts off their funding of Tom's extravagant lifestyle during his covert mission, he discovers another way to maintain his newfound standard of living.
Pygmalion(1938) Directed by Anthony Asquith and Leslie Howard - When linguistics professor Henry Higgins (Leslie Howard) boasts that he can pass off Cockney flower girl Eliza Doolittle (Wendy Hiller) as a princess with only six months' training, Colonel George Pickering (Scott Sunderland) takes him up on the bet. Eliza moves into Higgins's home and begins her rigorous training after the professor comes to a financial agreement with her dustman father, Alfred (Wilfrid Lawson). But the plucky young woman is not the only one undergoing a transformation.
Rashomon(1950) Directed by Akira Kurosawa - Brimming with action while incisively examining the nature of truth, "Rashomon" is perhaps the finest film ever to investigate the philosophy of justice. Through an ingenious use of camera and flashbacks, Kurosawa reveals the complexities of human nature as four people recount different versions of the story of a man's murder and the rape of his wife.
Ratcatcher(1999) Directed by Lynne Ramsay - James Gillespie (William Eadie) is 12 years old. The world he knew is changing. Haunted by a secret, he has become a stranger in his own family. He is drawn to the canal where he creates a world of his own. He finds an awkward tenderness with Margaret Anne (Leanne Mullen), a vulnerable 14 year old expressing a need for love in all the wrong ways, and befriends Kenny (John Miller), who possesses an unusual innocence in spite of the harsh surroundings.
Red(1994) Directed by Krzysztof Kieslowski - Part-time model Valentine (Irène Jacob) meets a retired judge (Jean-Louis Trintignant) who lives in her neighborhood after she runs over his dog. At first the judge gifts Valentine with the dog, but her possessive boyfriend won't allow her to keep it. When she returns with the dog to the judge's house, she discovers him listening in on his neighbors' phone conversations. At first Valentine is outraged, but her debates with the judge over his behavior soon leads them to form a strange bond.
Red Beard(1965) Directed by Akira Kurosawa - Aspiring to an easy job as personal physician to a wealthy family, Noboru Yasumoto (Yûzô Kayama) is disappointed when his first post after medical school takes him to a small country clinic under the gruff doctor Red Beard (Toshirô Mifune). Yasumoto rebels in numerous ways, but Red Beard proves a wise and patient teacher. He gradually introduces his student to the unglamorous side of the profession, ultimately assigning him to care for a prostitute (Terumi Niki) rescued from a local brothel.
Red Desert(1964) Directed by Michelangelo Antonioni - Amid the modern wastelands and toxic factories of Italy, wife and mother Giuliana (Monica Vitti) desperately tries to conceal her tenuous grip on reality from those around her, especially her successful yet neglectful husband, Ugo (Carlo Chionetti). Ugo's old pal, Corrado (Richard Harris), shows up in town on a business trip and is more sensitive to Giuliana's anxieties. They begin an affair, but it does little to quell Giuliana's existential fears, and her mental state rapidly deteriorates.
The Red Shoes(1948) Directed by Michael Powell - In this classic drama, Vicky Page (Moira Shearer) is an aspiring ballerina torn between her dedication to dance and her desire to love. While her imperious instructor, Boris Lermontov (Anton Walbrook), urges her to forget anything but ballet, Vicky begins to fall for the charming young composer Julian Craster (Marius Goring). Eventually Vicky, under great emotional stress, must choose to pursue either her art or her romance, a decision that carries serious consequences.
Remorques(1941) Directed by Jean Grémillon - Outside of Brest, France, André Laurent (Jean Gabin) finds contentment in his work as a tugboat captain while caring for his fragile wife, Yvonne (Madeleine Renaud), on shore. When a freighter sinks during a storm, André and his crew come to the rescue and discover its hardened captain, Marc (Jean Marchat), and his disillusioned wife, Catherine (Michèle Morgan). After Marc abandons her, Catherine forms an intense relationship with the sensitive André, which turns to love and potential tragedy.
Repulsion(1965) Directed by Roman Polanski - In Roman Polanski's first English-language film, beautiful young manicurist Carole (Catherine Deneuve) suffers from androphobia (the pathological fear of interaction with men). When her sister and roommate, Helen (Yvonne Furneaux), leaves their London flat to go on an Italian holiday with her married boyfriend (Ian Hendry), Carole withdraws into her apartment. She begins to experience frightful hallucinations, her fear gradually mutating into madness.
Return of the Prodigal Son(1967) Directed by Evald Schorm - Evald Schorm was one of the most politically outspoken of the Czech New Wave filmmakers. This raw psychological drama about an engineer unable to adjust to the world around him following his suicide attempt is at heart a scathing portrait of social alienation and moral compromise.
Revanche(2008) Directed by Götz Spielmann - In a desperate attempt to improve life for his prostitute girlfriend, Tamara (Irina Potapenko), ex-con Alex (Johannes Krisch) returns to a life of crime and robs a bank. Escaping the scene, Alex takes refuge at a nearby farm belonging to his grandfather (Hannes Thanheiser) and struggles to blend in with the locals. After befriending new neighbor Susanne (Ursula Strauss), Alex is startled to discover that her husband, Robert (Andreas Lust), is a police officer.
Ride the Pink Horse(1947) Directed by Robert Montgomery - Certain that crime boss Frank Hugo (Fred Clark) has offed a pal of his, Lucky Gagin (Robert Montgomery) tails the gangster to a little New Mexico town. Gagin is seeking hush money, and, if he doesn't get it he'll resort to other means of getting even with Hugo. As FBI investigator Bill Retz (Art Smith) trails both men, Hugo moves to rid the world of Gagin. But in the midst of this macho maelstrom, a savvy local girl (Wanda Hendrix) emerges as a potential heroine.
Ride With the Devil(1999) Directed by Ang Lee - On the fringes of the Civil War, Missouri Bushwhackers engage in guerrilla warfare with Union Jayhawkers. Bushwackers Jake Roedel (Tobey Maguire) and Jack Chiles (Skeet Ulrich), out to avenge the murder of Jack's father, are joined by George Clyde (Simon Baker) and his former slave, Daniel (Jeffrey Wright). Hiding out for the winter, Jack has a short romance with a war widow (Jewel) before dying. Jake steps in to take care of her and her newborn before joining Quantrill's famous Kansas raid.
Rififi(1955) Directed by Jules Dassin - Out of prison after a five-year stretch, jewel thief Tony (Jean Servais) turns down a quick job his friend Jo (Carl Mohner) offers him, until he discovers that his old girlfriend Mado (Marie Sabouret) has become the lover of local gangster Pierre Grutter (Marcel Lupovici) during Tony's absence. Expanding a minor smash-and-grab into a full-scale jewel heist, Tony and his crew appear to get away clean, but their actions after the job is completed threaten the lives of everyone involved.
The River(1951) Directed by Jean Renoir - In West Bengal, both Harriet, the daughter of a jute mill owner, and her best friend, Valerie, become captivated by dashing visitor Capt. John, who ignores them for sultry Melanie. However, all find that their lives are shaken up after Harriet's brother is involved in a tragedy.
The Rock(1996) Directed by Michael Bay - FBI chemical warfare expert Stanley Goodspeed (Nicolas Cage) is sent on an urgent mission with a former British spy, John Patrick Mason (Sean Connery), to stop Gen. Francis X. Hummel (Ed Harris) from launching chemical weapons on Alcatraz Island into San Francisco. Gen. Hummel demands $100 million in war reparations to be paid to the families of slain servicemen who died on covert operations. After their SEAL team is wiped out, Stanley and John deal with the soldiers on their own.
Rolling Thunder Revue(2019) Directed by Martin Scorsese - In 1975, in an America defined by both the self-mythologizing pomp of the upcoming bicentennial and ongoing socio political turmoil, Bob Dylan and a band of troubadours—including luminaries such as Joan Baez, Allen Ginsberg, and Joni Mitchell—embarked on a now-legendary tour known as the Rolling Thunder Revue, a freewheeling variety show that was part traveling counterculture carnival, part spiritual pilgrimage. Director Martin Scorsese blends behind-the-scenes archival footage, interviews, and narrative mischief, with a magician’s sleight of hand, into a zeitgeist-defining cultural record that is as much a concert “documentary” as it is a slippery, chimerical investigation into memory, time, truth, and illusion. At the center of it all is the magnetic Dylan, a sphinxlike philosopher-poet singing, with electrifying conviction, to the soul of an anxious nation.
Roma(2018) Directed by Alfonso Cuarón - Cleo is one of two domestic workers who help Antonio and Sofía take care of their four children in 1970s Mexico City. Complications soon arise when Antonio suddenly runs away with his mistress and Cleo finds out that she's pregnant. When Sofía decides to take the kids on vacation, she invites Cleo for a much-needed getaway to clear her mind and bond with the family.
Rome Open City(1945) Directed by Roberto Rossellini - Resistance leader Luigi Ferrari is pursued by Major Fritz Bergmann, a German intelligence officer who wants the name of others in the underground movement. Ferrari enlists the help of sympathetic priest Don Pietro Pellegrini to pass on funds to the fighters in case he is captured, but is accidentally betrayed by a former lover.
Rosemary’s Baby(1968) Directed by Roman Polanski - A young wife comes to believe that her offspring is not of this world. Waifish Rosemary Woodhouse (Mia Farrow) and her struggling actor husband Guy (John Cassavetes) move to a New York City apartment building with an ominous reputation and odd neighbors Roman and Minnie Castavet (Sidney Blackmer, Ruth Gordon). When Rosemary becomes pregnant she becomes increasingly isolated, and the diabolical truth is revealed only after Rosemary gives birth.
Rouge(1987) Directed by Stanley Kwan - Fleur (Anita Mui) is a highly sought-after courtesan working the bordellos of 1930s Hong Kong when she meets Chan (Leslie Cheung), the heir to a successful pharmacy franchise, and they fall in love. Chan risks losing the support and rank of his family by staying with Fleur, however, so they agree to meet in the afterlife after a suicide pact. When Fleur can't find Chan, she decides to return to the living half a century later to search for her missing lover.
The Royal Tenenbaums(2001) Directed by Wes Anderson - Royal Tenenbaum and his wife Etheline had three children and then they separated. All three children are extraordinary --- all geniuses. Virtually all memory of the brilliance of the young Tenenbaums was subsequently erased by two decades of betrayal, failure, and disaster. Most of this was generally considered to be their father's fault. "The Royal Tenenbaums" is the story of the family's sudden, unexpected reunion one recent winter.
The Rules of the Game(1939) Directed by Jean Renoir - André is having an affair with Christine, whose husband Robert is himself hiding a mistress. Christine's married maid is romantically entangled with the local poacher. At a hunting party, the passions of servants and aristocrats dangerously collide.
The Ruling Class(1972) Directed by Peter Medak - When the Earl of Gurney (Harry Andrews) dies in a cross-dressing accident, his schizophrenic son, Jack (Peter O'Toole), inherits the Gurney estate. Jack is not the average nobleman; he sings and dances across the estate and thinks he is Jesus reincarnated. Believing that Jack is mentally unfit to own the estate, the Gurney family plots to steal Jack's inheritance. As their outrageous schemes fail, the family strives to cure Jack of his bizarre behavior, with disastrous results.
Rushmore(1998) Directed by Wes Anderson - When a beautiful first-grade teacher (Olivia Williams) arrives at a prep school, she soon attracts the attention of an ambitious teenager named Max (Jason Schwartzman), who quickly falls in love with her. Max turns to the father (Bill Murray) of two of his schoolmates for advice on how to woo the teacher. However, the situation soon gets complicated when Max's new friend becomes involved with her, setting the two pals against one another in a war for her attention.
Safe(1995) Directed by Todd Haynes - Julianne Moore gives a breakthrough performance as Carol White, a Los Angeles housewife in the late 1980s who comes down with a debilitating illness. After the doctors she sees can give her no clear diagnosis, she comes to believe that she has frighteningly extreme environmental allergies. A profoundly unsettling work from the great American director Todd Haynes, Safe functions on multiple levels: as a prescient commentary on self-help culture, as a metaphor for the AIDS crisis, as a drama about class and social estrangement, and as a horror film about what you cannot see. This revelatory drama was named the best film of the 1990s in a Village Voice poll of more than fifty critics.
Safety Last(1923) Directed by Sam Taylor and Fred Newmeyer - A boy (Harold Lloyd) moves to New York City to make enough money to support his loving girlfriend (Mildred Davis), but soon discovers that making it in the big city is harder than it looks. When he hears that a store manager will pay $1,000 to anyone who can draw people to his store, he convinces his friend, the "human fly," (Bill Strother) to climb the building and split the profit with him. But when his pal gets in trouble with the law, he must complete the crazy stunt on his own.
Salesman(1969) Directed by Albert Maysles, David Maysles and Charlotte Zwerin - This documentary from Albert and David Maysles follows the bitter rivalry of four door-to-door salesmen working for the Mid-American Bible Company: Paul "The Badger" Brennan, Charles "The Gipper" McDevitt, James "The Rabbit" Baker and Raymond "The Bull" Martos. Times are tough for this hard-living quartet, who spend their days traveling through small-town America, trying their best to peddle gold-leaf Bibles to an apathetic crowd of lower-middle-class housewives and elderly couples.
Salo: 120 Days of Sodom(1976) Directed by Pier Paolo Pasolini - The notorious final film from Pier Paolo Pasolini, Salò, or The 120 Days of Sodom has been called nauseating, shocking, depraved, pornographic . . . It’s also a masterpiece. The controversial poet, novelist, and filmmaker’s transposition of the Marquis de Sade’s eighteenth-century opus of torture and degradation to Fascist Italy in 1944 remains one of the most passionately debated films of all time, a thought-provoking inquiry into the political, social, and sexual dynamics that define the world we live in.
The Samurai Trilogy(1954-56) Directed by Hiroshi Inagaki - The Samurai Trilogy, directed by Hiroshi Inagaki and starring the inimitable Toshiro Mifune, was one of Japan’s most successful exports of the 1950s, a rousing, emotionally gripping tale of combat and self-discovery. Based on a novel that’s often called Japan’s Gone with the Wind, this sweeping saga fictionalizes the life of the legendary seventeenth-century swordsman (and writer and artist) Musashi Miyamoto, following him on his path from unruly youth to enlightened warrior. With these three films—1954’s Oscar-winning Musashi Miyamoto, 1955’s Duel at Ichijoji Temple, and 1956’s Duel at Ganryu Island—Inagaki created a passionate epic that’s equal parts tender love story and bloody action.
Sanjuro(1962) Directed by Akira Kurosawa - Toshiro Mifune swaggers and snarls to brilliant comic effect in Kurosawa's tightly paced, beautifully composed "Sanjuro." In this companion piece and sequel to "Yojimbo," jaded samurai Sanjuro helps an idealistic group of young warriors weed out their clan's evil influences, and in the process turns their image of a proper samurai on its ear.
Sansho the Bailiff(1954) Directed by Kenji Mizoguchi - While on a journey to visit their father, a banished governor, Zushio (Yoshiaki Hanayagi) and Anju (Kyoko Kagawa) are attacked, separated from their mother, Tamaki (Kinuyo Tanaka), and sold as slaves to an estate managed by the brutal Sansho (Eitaro Shindo). The children grow up as slaves on the estate, but when Anju hears a newly acquired slave singing a song that mentions their names, they realize their mother may still be alive and make plans to find her.
Sapphire(1959) Directed by Basil Dearden - A pregnant college student named Sapphire Robbins (Yvonne Buckingham) is murdered in London's Hampstead Heath. When police superintendent Robert Hazard (Nigel Patrick) discovers that the victim was a light-skinned black woman passing as white, it upends his initial assumptions. Hazard and his openly racist assistant (Michael Craig) explore the city's racially tense underground jazz scene as they interview suspects, including Sapphire's white fiancé (Paul Massie).
Sawdust and Tinsel(1953) Directed by Ingmar Bergman - In this early Ingmar Bergman film, the Swedish director details the downward-spiraling lives of the members of a failing circus and their daily humiliations and degradations. The hapless clown Frost (Anders Ek) discovers his wife, Alma (Gudrun Brost), proudly skinny-dipping in front of a group of leering soldiers, while put-upon circus owner and ringmaster Albert (Åke Grönberg) undergoes torments from both his wife, Agda (Annika Tretow), and his mistress, Anne (Harriet Andersson).
Scandal(1950) Directed by Akira Kurosawa - Director Akira Kurosawa's statement on the Americanization of the Japanese press, this social commentary tells the tale of Ichiro (Toshirô Mifune), a famous artist who happens to be in the same vacation spot as Miyako (Yoshiko Yamaguchi), a well-known singer. When a fan magazine fabricates a liaison between the two celebrities and prints an article about their affair, Ichiro files slander charges against the tabloid. However, his lawyer, Hiruta (Takashi Shimura), has his own agenda.
Scenes From a Marriage(1973) Directed by Ingmar Bergman - Johan (Erland Josephson) and Marianne (Liv Ullmann) are married and seem to have it all. Their happiness, however, is a façade for a troubled relationship, which becomes even rockier when Johan admits that he's having an affair. Before long, the spouses separate and move towards finalizing their divorce, but they make attempts at reconciling. Even as they pursue other relationships, Johan and Marianne realize that they have a significant bond, but also many issues that hinder that connection.
Science is Fiction: 23 Films by Jean PainlevéDirected by Jean Painlevé - The mesmerizing, utterly unclassifiable science films of Jean Painlevé (1902-89) have to be seen to be believed: delightful, surrealist-influenced dream works that are also serious science. The French filmmaker-scientist-inventor had a decades-spanning career in which he created hundreds of short films on subjects ranging from astronomy to pigeons to, most famously, such marine-life marvels as the seahorse and the sea urchin. This definitive three-disc collection brings together the best of these, and also includes the French television series Jean Painlevé Through His Films, rock band Yo La Tengo's eight-film score The Sounds of Science, and an essay by film scholar Scott MacDonald.
Seconds(1966) Directed by John Frankenheimer - Banker Arthur Hamilton (John Randolph) gets a call one day from a friend he thought was dead. It turns out that the friend is not a ghost, but was simply faking all along, and was placed into a new existence by a company who can give you a completely new face and life. Hamilton decides to undergo the procedure himself and becomes Tony Wilson (Rock Hudson), an artist who lives in Malibu. He is given a manservant to help him adjust but soon finds that adjusting will be the least of his worries.
Secret Sunshine(2007) Directed by Lee Chang-dong - A woman moves to the town where her dead husband was born. As she tries to fit in, another tragic event overturns her life. She wrestles with questions of grief, madness and faith.
Senso(1954) Directed by Luchino Visconti - This lush, Technicolor tragic romance from Luchino Visconti stars Alida Valli as a nineteenth-century Italian countess who, during the Austrian occupation of her country, puts her marriage and political principles on the line by engaging in a torrid affair with a dashing Austrian lieutenant, played by Farley Granger. Gilded with ornate costumes and sets and a rich classical soundtrack, and featuring fearless performances, this operatic melodrama is an extraordinary evocation of reckless emotions and deranged lust, from one of cinema's great sensualists.
Seven Samurai(1954) Directed by Akira Kurosawa - A samurai answers a village's request for protection after he falls on hard times. The town needs protection from bandits, so the samurai gathers six others to help him teach the people how to defend themselves, and the villagers provide the soldiers with food. A giant battle occurs when 40 bandits attack the village.
The Seventh Seal(1957) Directed by Ingmar Bergman - When disillusioned Swedish knight Antonius Block (Max von Sydow) returns home from the Crusades to find his country in the grips of the Black Death, he challenges Death (Bengt Ekerot) to a chess match for his life. Tormented by the belief that God does not exist, Block sets off on a journey, meeting up with traveling players Jof (Nils Poppe) and his wife, Mia (Bibi Andersson), and becoming determined to evade Death long enough to commit one redemptive act while he still lives.
Sex, Lies and Videotape(1989) Directed by Steven Soderbergh - Ann (Andie MacDowell) is trapped in a sexually and emotionally unfulfilled relationship with her husband, John (Peter Gallagher), a successful but unpleasant lawyer who is sleeping with her sister, Cynthia (Laura San Giacomo). The underlying tensions in the couple's marriage rise to the surface when Graham (James Spader), a friend of John's from college who's been drifting for nine years, returns to town and videotapes Cynthia and Ann as they talk about their sexual desires.
Shadows(1959) Directed by John Cassavetes - At a party, Lelia (Lelia Goldoni), a young African-American girl with a light complexion, meets Tony (Anthony Ray), a somewhat callow white musician, and they begin a romance. Lelia thinks she's in love, but Tony is surprised when he meets her older brother, Hugh (Hugh Hurd), and realizes she's black. Hugh is an unsuccessful singer with a hostile attitude, while Lelia's other sibling, Ben (Ben Carruthers), is trying to make it as a trumpet player when he isn't getting into trouble.
Shadows in Paradise(1986) Directed by Aki Kaurismäki - Nikander (Matti Pellonpää) is a garbage collector who lives a lonely existence -- especially after his only real friend dies of a heart attack. But his life changes for the better when he meets Ilona (Kati Outinen), the check-out clerk at his local supermarket. Despite being painfully shy, Nikander gradually makes inroads to romance with her. But their budding relationship is tested when Iloni is fired from her supermarket -- and she steals from the store in an act of retribution.
Shallow Grave(1994) Directed by Danny Boyle - When accountant David (Christopher Eccleston), doctor Juliet (Kerry Fox) and journalist Alex (Ewan McGregor) are searching for a fourth roommate for their trendy flat, they settle on the aloof Hugo (Keith Allen). However, they soon find Hugo dead of a drug overdose, beside a large sum of cash. After some deliberation, the three others decide to keep the money and to dismember and bury Hugo's body. Soon, each roommate starts thinking about keeping all the money by scamming the others.
Shoah(1985) Directed by Claude Lanzman - Director Claude Lanzmann spent 11 years on this sprawling documentary about the Holocaust, conducting his own interviews and refusing to use a single frame of archival footage. Dividing Holocaust witnesses into three categories -- survivors, bystanders and perpetrators -- Lanzmann presents testimonies from survivors of the Chelmno concentration camp, an Auschwitz escapee and witnesses of the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising, as well as a chilling report of gas chambers from an SS officer at Treblinka.
Shock Corridor(1963) Directed by Samuel Fuller - Determined to pull in the Pulitzer Prize, reporter Johnny Barrett (Peter Breck) will go to any length necessary to win the coveted award. When he learns of an unsolved murder committed at a mental institution, Barrett devises a scheme to solve it and earn himself recognition. With the assistance of a psychiatrist and his girlfriend (Constance Towers), Barrett convinces the doctors at the institution to commit him. Once inside, he begins his investigation -- and gradually loses his mind.
Shoot the Piano Player(1960) Directed by François Truffaut - Charlie (Charles Aznavour) is a former classical pianist who has changed his name and now plays jazz in a grimy Paris bar. When Charlie's brothers, Richard (Jean-Jacques Aslanian) and Chico (Albert Remy), surface and ask for Charlie's help while on the run from gangsters they have scammed, he aids their escape. Soon Charlie and Lena (Marie Dubois), a waitress at the same bar, face trouble when the gangsters (Claude Mansard, Daniel Boulanger) arrive, looking for his brothers.
The Shooting/Ride in the WhirlwindDirected by Monte Hellman - In the mid sixties, the maverick American director Monte Hellman conceived of two westerns at the same time. Dreamlike and gritty by turns, these films would prove their maker’s adeptness at brilliantly deconstructing genre. Shot back-to-back for famed producer Roger Corman, they feature overlapping casts and crews, including Jack Nicholson in two of his meatiest early roles. The Shooting, about a motley assortment of loners following a mysterious wanted man through a desolate frontier, and Ride in the Whirlwind, about a group of cowhands pursued by vigilantes for crimes they did not commit, are rigorous, artful, and wholly unconventional journeys to the Old West.
Short Cuts(1993) Directed by Robert Altman - Many loosely connected characters cross paths in this film, based on the stories of Raymond Carver. Waitress Doreen Piggot (Lily Tomlin) accidentally runs into a boy with her car. Soon after walking away, the child lapses into a coma. While at the hospital, the boy's grandfather (Jack Lemmon) tells his son, Howard (Bruce Davison), about his past affairs. Meanwhile, a baker (Lyle Lovett) starts harassing the family when they fail to pick up the boy's birthday cake.
The Silence(1963) Directed by Ingmar Bergman - Traveling through an unnamed European country on the brink of war, sickly, intellectual Ester (Ingrid Thulin), her sister Anna (Gunnel Lindblom) and Anna's young son, Johan (Jorgen Lindstrom), check into a near-empty hotel. A basic inability to communicate among the three seems only to worsen during their stay. Anna provokes her sister by enjoying a dalliance with a local man, while the boy, left to himself, has a series of enigmatic encounters that heighten the growing air of isolation.
Simon of the Desert(1965) Directed by Luis Buñuel - Simon (Claudio Brook) stands on top of a stone column in the middle of the desert and prays for six years, six weeks and six days. In that time, he becomes something of a saint to his people, praised for his unwavering devotion and ability to perform grand miracles in God's name. Despite Simon's counsel and ceaseless penance on their behalf, his followers seem doomed to crumble to temptation. And Simon remains plagued by unrest, uncertainty and the devil herself (Silvia Pinal).
Sing a Song of Sex(1967) Directed by Nagisa Oshima - In Oshima’s enigmatic tale, four sexually hungry high school students preparing for their university entrance exams meet up with an inebriated teacher singing bawdy drinking songs. This encounter sets them on a less than academic path. Oshima’s hypnotic, free-form depiction of generational political apathy features stunning color cinematography.
Sisters(1973) Directed by Brian De Palma - Inquisitive journalist Grace Collier (Jennifer Salt) is horrified when she witnesses her neighbor, fashion model Danielle Breton (Margot Kidder), violently murder a man. Panicking, she calls the police. But when the detective arrives at the scene and finds nothing amiss, Grace is forced to take matters into her own hands. Her first move is to recruit private investigator Joseph Larch (Charles Durning), who helps her to uncover a secret about Danielle's past that has them both seeing double.
Sisters of the Gion(1963) Directed by Kenji Mizoguchi - Sisters of the Gion follows the parallel paths of the independent, unsentimental Omocha (Isuzu Yamada) and her sister, the more tradition-minded Umekichi (Yoko Umemura), both geishas in the working-class district of Gion. Mizoguchi's film is a brilliantly shot, uncompromising look at the forces that keep many women at the bottom rung of the social ladder.
Slacker(1991) Directed by Richard Linklater - Austin, Texas, is an Eden for the young and unambitious, from the enthusiastically eccentric to the dangerously apathetic. Here, the nobly lazy can eschew responsibility in favor of nursing their esoteric obsessions. The locals include a backseat philosopher (Richard Linklater) who passionately expounds on his dream theories to a seemingly comatose cabbie (Rudy Basquez), a young woman who tries to hawk Madonna's Pap test to anyone who will listen and a kindly old anarchist looking for recruits.
The Small Back Room(1949) Directed by Michael Powell - Brilliant but tormented bomb expert Sammy Rice (David Farrar) works for the British government during World War II. Army captain Dick Stuart (Michael Gough) drafts him into a secret project concerning a new small land mine that German planes have been dropping over England's beaches. But despite the ministries of his faithful assistant and girlfriend, Susan (Kathleen Byron), Rice's increasingly problematic alcoholism and a recent injury threaten his ability to work.
Smiles of a Summer Night(1955) Directed by Ingmar Bergman - After fifteen films that received mostly local acclaim, the comedy Smiles of a Summer Night at last ushered in an international audience for Ingmar Bergman. In turn-of-the-century Sweden, four men and four women attempt to navigate the laws of attraction. During a weekend in the country, the women collude to force the men’s hands in matters of the heart, exposing their pretensions and insecurities along the way. Chock-full of flirtatious propositions and sharp witticisms delivered by such Swedish screen legends as Gunnar Björnstrand and Harriet Andersson, Smiles of a Summer Night is one of cinema’s great erotic comedies.
The Smiling Lieutenant(1931) Directed by Ernst Lubitsch - A simple wink, intended by Austrian palace guard Lt. Nikolaus von Preyn (Maurice Chevalier) for girlfriend, Franzi (Claudette Colbert), is accidentally intercepted -- and misread -- by the visiting Princess Anna (Miriam Hopkins). As a result, the soldier has no choice but to marry the royal lady and move with her to the neighboring kingdom of Flausenthurm. His girlfriend follows to continue the romance and, subversively, give Princess Anna tips on how to keep her husband satisfied.
Smithereens(1982) Directed by Susan Seidelman - Wild teen Wren (Susan Berman) trades New Jersey for New York City, where she hopes to join what's left of the punk rock culture. She spends time hanging out with Paul (Brad Rinn), another young city transplant, but he's too safe for Wren's tastes, which run to narcissistic rockers. She finds one of these in Eric (Richard Hell), who's about to cut a record in Los Angeles. Before long, Wren is planning to accompany Eric when he heads west, but it's soon clear she's put trust in the wrong person.
Smooth Talk(1985) Directed by Joyce Chopra - Fifteen-year-old Connie (Laura Dern) spends the summer before her sophomore year fixating on getting male attention. While her mother, Katherine (Mary Kay Place), nags her about painting the house and favors her older sister, Connie spends her days going to the mall with her friends. One day, while the rest of her family is having a barbeque, Connie is confronted at home by a handsome, dangerous stranger, Arnold Friend (Treat Williams), who has been watching her.
The Soft Skin(1964) Directed by François Truffaut - While flying to Lisbon, Portugal, to give a lecture, a writer and magazine editor, Pierre Lachenay (Jean Desailly), encounters an attractive flight attendant, Nicole (Françoise Dorléac), and winds up spending the night with her. What was intended to be a one-night stand becomes a tumultuous extramarital affair once he gets back to Paris and his wife (Nelly Benedetti) and kids. Pierre tries to keep the affair secret, but, when his wife suspects him, she snaps.
Solaris (1972) Directed by Andrei Tarkovsky - A psychologist is sent to a space station orbiting a planet called Solaris to investigate the death of a doctor and the mental problems of cosmonauts on the station. He soon discovers that the water on the planet is a type of brain which brings out repressed memories and obsessions.
Some Like it Hot(1959) Directed by Billy Wilder - After witnessing a Mafia murder, slick saxophone player Joe (Tony Curtis) and his long-suffering buddy, Jerry (Jack Lemmon), improvise a quick plan to escape from Chicago with their lives. Disguising themselves as women, they join an all-female jazz band and hop a train bound for sunny Florida. While Joe pretends to be a millionaire to win the band's sexy singer, Sugar (Marilyn Monroe), Jerry finds himself pursued by a real millionaire (Joe E. Brown) as things heat up and the mobsters close in.
Something Wild(1986) Directed by Jonathan Demme - A straitlaced businessman meets a quirky, free-spirited woman at a downtown New York greasy spoon. Her offer of a ride back to his office results in a lunchtime motel rendezvous—just the beginning of a capricious interstate road trip that brings the two face-to-face with their hidden selves. Featuring a killer soundtrack and electric performances from Jeff Daniels, Melanie Griffith, and Ray Liotta, Something Wild, directed by oddball American auteur Jonathan Demme, is both a kinky comic thriller and a radiantly off-kilter love story.
Spartacus(1960) Directed by Stanley Kubrick - The rebellious Thracian Spartacus, born and raised a slave, is sold to Gladiator trainer Batiatus. After weeks of being trained to kill for the arena, Spartacus turns on his owners and leads the other slaves in rebellion. As the rebels move from town to town, their numbers swell as escaped slaves join their ranks. Under the leadership of Spartacus, they make their way to southern Italy, where they will cross the sea and return to their homes.
The Spirit of the Beehive(1973) Directed by Victor Erice - In an allegory of life after Gen. Franco's victory in the Spanish Civil War, life in a remote village in the 1940s is calm and uneventful. Two little girls see a "Frankenstein" movie, and one of them starts wandering the countryside in search of this kind creature.
The Spy Who Came in From the Cold(1965) Directed by Martin Ritt - At the height of the Cold War, British spy Alec Leamas (Richard Burton) is nearly ready to retire, but first he has to take on one last dangerous assignment. Going deep undercover, he poses as a drunken, disgraced former MI5 agent in East Germany in order to gain information about colleagues who have been captured. When he himself is thrown in jail and interrogated, Leamas finds himself caught in a sinister labyrinth of plots and counterplots unlike anything in his long career.
The Squid and the Whale (2005) Directed by Noah Baumbach - A pair of brothers living in Brooklyn are caught in the middle of, and deeply affected by, the divorce of their erudite parents, Bernard (Jeff Daniels) and Joan Berkman (Laura Linney). Older sibling Walt (Jesse Eisenberg) sides with dad and acts out at school, while younger brother Frank (Owen Kline) quietly backs up mom. The household tension rises further when Joan's writing career takes off and surpasses the failed ambitions of her professor ex-husband.
Stagecoach(1939) Directed by John Ford - John Ford's landmark Western revolves around an assorted group of colorful passengers aboard the Overland stagecoach bound for Lordsburg, New Mexico, in the 1880s. An alcoholic philosophizer (Thomas Mitchell), a lady of ill repute (Claire Trevor) and a timid liquor salesman (Donald Meek) are among the motley crew of travelers who must contend with an escaped outlaw, the Ringo Kid (John Wayne), and the ever-present threat of an Apache attack as they make their way across the Wild West.
Stalker(1979) Directed by Andrei Tarkovsky - Andrei Tarkovsky’s final Soviet feature is a metaphysical journey through an enigmatic post apocalyptic landscape, and a rarefied cinematic experience like no other. A hired guide—the Stalker—leads a writer and a professor into the heart of the Zone, the restricted site of a long-ago disaster, where the three men eventually zero in on the Room, a place rumored to fulfill one’s most deeply held desires. Adapting a science-fiction novel by Arkady and Boris Strugatsky, Tarkovsky created an immersive world with a wealth of material detail and a sense of organic atmosphere. A religious allegory, a reflection of contemporaneous political anxieties, a meditation on film itself—Stalker envelops the viewer by opening up a multitude of possible meanings.
Still Walking(2008) Directed by Hirokazu Kore-eda - Twelve years after their beloved eldest son, Junpei, drowned while saving a stranger's life, Kyohei (Yoshio Harada) and Toshiko (Kirin Kiki) welcome their surviving children home for a family reunion. Younger son Ryota (Hiroshi Abe) still feels that his parents resent that he isn't the one who died; his new wife, Yukari (Yui Natsukawa), is awkwardly meeting the rest of the family for the first time. Daughter Chinami (You) strains to fill the uncomfortable pauses with forced cheer.
Stolen Kisses(1968) Directed by François Truffaut - The third in a series of films featuring François Truffaut's alter-ego, Antoine Doinel (Jean-Pierre Léaud), the story resumes with Antoine being discharged from military service. His sweetheart Christine's (Claude Jade) father lands Antoine a job as a security guard, which he promptly loses. Stumbling into a position assisting a private detective, Antoine falls for his employers' seductive wife, Fabienne (Delphine Seyrig), and finds that he must choose between the older woman and Christine.
Story of a Prostitute(1965) Directed by Seijun Suzuki - Volunteering as a "comfort woman" on the Manchurian front, where she is expected to service hundreds of soldiers, Harumi is commandeered by the brutal Lieutenant Narita but falls for the sensitive Mikami, Narita's direct subordinate. Seijun Suzuki's Story of a Prostitute is a tragic love story as well as a rule-bending take on a popular Taijiro Tamura novel, challenging military and fraternal codes of honor, as seen through Harumi's eyes.
Stranger Than Paradise(1984) Directed by Jim Jarmusch - New York City layabout Willie (John Lurie) and his dopey sidekick, Eddie (Richard Edson), get by on TV dinners and beer financed by haphazard card-sharking. Willie gets an unwelcome visit from his Hungarian teen cousin, Eva (Eszter Balint), but, just as he warms to her, she ditches him for her aunt in Cleveland. Impulsively, Willie and Eddie take a road trip to pick up Eva, after which they head out to find fortune and paradise in Florida -- or at least alleviation from their constant boredom.
Stray Dog(1949) Directed by Akira Kurosawa - Murakami (Toshirô Mifune) is a young and inexperienced detective on the Tokyo police force. While riding a crowded bus on a hot summer day, he discovers that his gun has been stolen out of its holster. Reluctant to lose face by reporting the gun missing, Murakami first dives alone into the depths of postwar Tokyo's poverty-stricken slums and criminal underworld, but when the missing gun is implicated in a crime spree, a more experienced detective (Takashi Shimura) lends his expertise.
Street of Shame(1956) Directed by Kenji Mizoguchi - As the legality of prostitution in Japan draws to a close, five prostitutes struggle with the personal problems that led them to their jobs. Yumeko (Aiko Mimasu) is a widow who pays her son's expenses. Yasumi (Ayako Wakao) is trying to dig herself out of debt, while fielding a marriage offer. Hanae (Michiko Kogure) supports her child and unemployed husband. Despite appearing carefree, Mickey (Machiko Kyō) carries burdens from her past. Each woman offers a window into a complex situation.
Streetwise(1984) Directed by Martin Bell - Photojournalist Mary Ellen Mark and director Mark Bell travel the streets of Seattle, where they take a harrowing look at the lives of young members of the city's homeless population. The teenagers they follow come from broken families and have resorted to drug use, crime and prostitution. The two follow the teens as they attempt to survive on the streets and also deal with their complex, dysfunctional home lives -- and cling to one another to achieve a sense of family.
Sullivan’s Travels(1941) Directed by Preston Sturges - Successful movie director John L. Sullivan (Joel McCrea), convinced he won't be able to film his ambitious masterpiece until he has suffered, dons a hobo disguise and sets off on a journey, aiming to "know trouble" first-hand. When all he finds is a train ride back to Hollywood and a beautiful blonde companion (Veronica Lake), he redoubles his efforts, managing to land himself in more trouble than he bargained for when he loses his memory and ends up a prisoner on a chain gang.
Summer Hours(2008) Directed by Olivier Assayas - When elderly matriarch Hélène Berthier (Édith Scob) discovers that her health is declining, she contacts her three adult children about contending with her valuable art collection after her passing. As the family gathers, local son Frédéric (Charles Berling) is on hand, while his jet-setting siblings, Adrienne (Juliette Binoche) and Jérémie (Jérémie Renier), fly in from abroad. Together, they try to agree on what to do with their mother's collection, as they also grapple with her mortality.
Summer with Monika (1953) Directed by Ingmar Bergman - Disillusioned young city-dweller Harry (Lars Ekborg) is frustrated with his societal responsibilities and his menial job, but when he meets sultry beauty Monika (Harriet Andersson), and she takes an interest in him, life takes on new meaning. Inflamed with passion, the lovers steal Harry's father's boat and give up their banal city life for an erotic summer spent on an island. There, Monika teaches Harry to give up his inhibitions, and all is good -- until Monika's true nature is revealed.
Summer Interlude(1951) Directed by Ingmar Bergman - Ballerina Marie (Maj-Britt Nilsson), spending the summer with her unsettling Uncle Erland (Georg Funkquist) at his quiet island home near Stockholm, meets the kindhearted Henrik (Birger Malmsten) and falls into a carefree summer romance with him that ends suddenly and tragically. Years later, after rediscovering her old diary from that fateful summer, melancholy Marie returns to her uncle's home in an attempt to quiet the demons that have haunted her ever since.
Summertime(1955) Directed by David Lean - Middle-aged Ohio secretary Jane Hudson (Katharine Hepburn) has never found love and has nearly resigned herself to spending the rest of her life alone. But before she does, she uses her savings to finance a summer in romantic Venice, where she finally meets the man of her dreams, the elegant Renato Di Rossi (Rossano Brazzi). But when she learns that her new paramour is leading a double life, she must decide whether her happiness can come at the expense of others.
Suzanne’s Career(1963) Directed by Eric Rohmer - Bertrand bides his time in a casually hostile and envious friendship with Guillaume. But when Guillaume seems to be making a play for the spirited, independent Suzanne, Bertrand watches disapprovingly. With its ragged black-and-white 16 mm photography and strong sense of 1960s Paris, Suzanne’s Career, the second of Eric Rohmer’s Six Moral Tales, is a wonderfully evocative portrait of youthful naivete and the complicated bonds of friendship and romance.
Sweet Movie(1974) Directed by Dušan Makavejev - Pushing his themes of sexual liberation to their boiling point, Yugoslavian art-house provocateur Dušan Makavejev followed his international sensation WR: Mysteries of the Organism with this full-throated shriek in the face of bourgeois complacency and movie watching. Sweet Movie tackles the limits of personal and political freedom with kaleidoscopic feverishness, shuttling viewers from a gynecological beauty pageant to a grotesque food orgy with scatological, taboo-shattering glee. With its lewd abandon and sketch-comedy perversity, Sweet Movie became both a cult staple and exemplar of the envelope pushing of 1970s cinema.
Sweet Smell of Success(1957) Directed by Alexander Mackendrick - New York City newspaper writer J.J. Hunsecker (Burt Lancaster) holds considerable sway over public opinion with his Broadway column, but one thing that he can't control is his younger sister, Susan (Susan Harrison), who is in a relationship with aspiring jazz guitarist Steve Dallas (Marty Milner). Hunsecker strongly disapproves of the romance and recruits publicist Sidney Falco (Tony Curtis) to find a way to split the couple, no matter how ruthless the method.
The Sword of Doom(1966) Directed by Kihachi Okamoto -Merciless swordsman Ryunosuke Tsukue (Tatsuya Nakadai) is a government assassin in feudal Japan who has no remorse and no moral code. When he is scheduled to participate in a friendly fencing contest, he ends up killing his competitor. Next, after a fight with his own mistress, he murders her and deserts their infant son. Later, while spending the night in a haunted geisha house, he sees the specters of all of his victims and spirals into madness, leaving a bloodbath in his wake.
The Taking of Power by Louis XIV(1966) Directed by Roberto Rossellini - Filmmaking legend Roberto Rossellini brings his passion for realism and unerring eye for the everyday to this portrait of the early years of the reign of France's Sun King, and in the process, he reinvents the costume drama. The death of chief minister Cardinal Mazarin, the construction of the palace at Versailles, the extravagant meals of the royal court: all are recounted with the same meticulous quotidian detail that Rossellini brought to his contemporary portraits of postwar Italy.
The Tales of Hoffmann(1951) Directed by Michael Powell - In this film adaptation of the Offenbach opera, a young poet named Hoffman (Robert Rounseville) broods over his failed romances. First, his affair with the beautiful Olympia (Moira Shearer) is shattered when he realizes that she is really a mechanical woman designed by a scientist. Next, he believes that a striking prostitute loves him, only to find out she was hired to fake her affections by the dastardly Dapertutto (Robert Helpmann). Lastly, a magic spell claims the life of his final lover.
Tanner 88(1988) Directed by Robert Altman - "Tanner" satirizes political campaigning in the media age. Jack Tanner is a former congressman and dark-horse candidate in a crowded field for the Democratic nomination. Traveling with his daughter and tough campaign manager, Tanner rubs elbows with the likes of Bob Dole, Chris Matthews and Gary Hart. Each episode features new material with Tanner looking back on his star-crossed run for the White House.
Tati Shorts(1934-1978) A collection of short films created by and throughout the life of Jacques Tati. In this collection are: On Demande Une Brute (1934), Gai Dimanche (1935), Soigne Ton Gaughe (1936), L’École Des Facteurs (1946), Cours du Soir (1967), Dégustation Maison (1977), and Forza Bastia (1978)
Tess(1979) Directed by Roman Polanski - In Roman Polanski's take on "Tess of the D'Urbervilles," impressionable young Tess (Nastassja Kinski) is sent by her alcoholic father to visit her rich relatives and apply for a job. She's taken in and immediately seduced by her cousin, Alec (Leigh Lawson), who leaves her pregnant. She keeps it to herself and, after the child dies, begins a relationship with a respectable farmer, Angel (Peter Firth). They marry, but when Angel learns of her speckled past, he's not sure he can live with it.
Testament of Orpheus(1959) Directed by Jean Cocteau - Realizing he is not long for this world, an aging 18th century poet (Jean Marais) travels through time in search of divine wisdom. In a mysterious, possibly post-apocalyptic wasteland, he has a series of enigmatic and surreal encounters with symbolic phantoms (Roger Blin, Brigitte Bardot, Marie Déa) with whom he muses about the nature of art and his own career. Ultimately, the poet strives to achieve his own rebirth as an immortal celestial being.
That Obscure Object of Desire(1977) Directed by Luis Buñuel - After dumping a bucket of water on a beautiful young woman from the window of a train car, wealthy Frenchman Mathieu (Fernando Rey), regales his fellow passengers with the story of the dysfunctional relationship between himself and the young woman in question, a fiery 19-year-old flamenco dancer named Conchita (played alternately by Carole Bouquet and Angela Molina). What follows is a tale of cruelty, depravity and lies -- the very building blocks of love.
The Thick Walled Room(1956) Directed by Masaki Kobayashi - Even early on in his directing career, Masaki Kobayashi didn’t shy away from controversy. Among the first Japanese films to deal directly with the scars of World War II, this drama about a group of rank-and-file Japanese soldiers jailed for crimes against humanity was adapted from the diaries of real prisoners. Because of its potentially inflammatory content, the film was shelved by the studio for three years before being released.
The Thin Red Line(1998) Directed by Terence Malick - In 1942, Private Witt (Jim Caviezel) is a U.S. Army absconder living peacefully with the locals of a small South Pacific island. Discovered by his commanding officer, Sgt. Welsh (Sean Penn), Witt is forced to resume his active duty training for the Battle of Guadalcanal. As Witt and his unit land on the island, and the American troops mount an assault on entrenched Japanese positions, the story explores their various fates and attitudes towards life-or-death situations.
The Third Man(1949) Directed by Carol Reed - Set in postwar Vienna, Austria, "The Third Man" stars Joseph Cotten as Holly Martins, a writer of pulp Westerns, who arrives penniless as a guest of his childhood chum Harry Lime (Orson Welles), only to find him dead. Martins develops a conspiracy theory after learning of a "third man" present at the time of Harry's death, running into interference from British officer Maj. Calloway (Trevor Howard) and falling head-over-heels for Harry's grief-stricken lover, Anna (Alida Valli).
This Happy Breed(1944) Directed by David Lean - In 1919, Frank Gibbons (Robert Newton) returns home from army duty and moves into a middle-class row house, bringing with him wife Ethel (Celia Johnson), carping mother-in-law Mrs. Flint (Amy Veness), sister-in-law Sylvia (Alison Leggatt) and three children. Years pass, with the daily routine of family infighting and reconciliation occasionally broken by a strike or a festival. By the time the children have grown into adults, another war is looming.
This Sporting Life(1963) Directed by Lindsay Anderson - Yorkshire coal miner Frank Machin (Richard Harris) picks a fight in a club and subsequently finds himself being recruited for a rugby team. He's an unpolished player, but his aggressiveness, brutality and indifference to the rules of fair play impress the team owners. Suddenly a rising star, Frank despairs that his success on the playing field isn't equaled in his personal life. He loves a widowed, emotionally challenged landlady (Rachel Roberts) who's too damaged to return his feelings.
Three Resurrected Drunks(1968) Directed by Nagisa Oshima - A trio of bumbling young men frolic at the beach. While they swim, their clothes are stolen and replaced with new outfits. Donning these, they are mistaken for undocumented Koreans and end up on the run from comically outraged authorities. A cutting commentary on Japan’s treatment of its Korean immigrants, this is Nagisa Oshima at both his most politically engaged and madcap.
Throne of Blood(1957) Directed by Akira Kurosawa - Returning to their lord's castle, samurai warriors Washizu (Toshirô Mifune) and Miki (Minoru Chiaki) are waylaid by a spirit who predicts their futures. When the first part of the spirit's prophecy comes true, Washizu's scheming wife, Asaji (Isuzu Yamada), presses him to speed up the rest of the spirit's prophecy by murdering his lord and usurping his place. Director Akira Kurosawa's resetting of William Shakespeare's "Macbeth" in feudal Japan is one of his most acclaimed films.
Throw Down(2004) Directed by Johnnie To - A young fighter (Aaron Kwok) and an aspiring singer (Cherrie Ying) reawaken a drunken gambler's (Louis Koo) desire to prove his skills in the judo ring.
Time(2020) Directed by Garrett Bradley - Entrepreneur Fox Rich spends the last two decades campaigning for the release of her husband, Rob G. Rich, who is serving a 60-year prison sentence for a robbery they both committed in the early 1990s in a moment of desperation.
The Times of Harvey Milk(1984) Directed by Robert Epstein - Operating from his camera store in San Francisco's Castro district, charismatic Harvey Milk is defeated three times before being elected to the city's Board of Supervisors, making him California's first openly gay public official. On the job he meets fellow supervisor Dan White, a homophobic ex-fireman with whom Milk develops a troubled working relationship. White grows increasingly disgruntled, resigns from his position and subsequently assassinates both Milk and Mayor George Moscone.
Tiny Furniture(2010) Directed by Lena Dunham - After graduating from film school, Aura (Lena Dunham) returns to New York to live with her photographer mother, Siri (Laurie Simmons), and her sister, Nadine (Grace Dunham), who has just finished high school. Aura is directionless and wonders where to go next in her career and her life. She takes a job in a restaurant and tries unsuccessfully to develop relationships with men, including Keith (David Call), a chef where she works, and cult Internet star Jed (Alex Karpovsky).
To Be or Not to be(1942) Directed by Ernst Lubitsch - Acting couple Joseph (Jack Benny) and Maria Tura (Carole Lombard) are managing a theatrical troupe when the Nazis invade Poland. Maria is having an affair with Lieutenant Sobinski (Robert Stack), who suspects Professor Siletsky (Stanley Ridges) is a Nazi spy. With Siletsky in possession of a list of members of the Polish resistance, the Turas' company takes action. Using their skill for impersonation, Joseph and company must confuse the Nazis and stop Siletsky from handing over the list.
To Sleep with Anger(1990) Directed by Charles Burnett - Vagabond Harry (Danny Glover) pays an unexpected visit to his old chum Gideon (Paul Butler), who accepts the aimless man into his home, despite the fact that the household is already overcrowded. Hard-drinking yet charismatic, Harry both entertains and enrages Gideon and his wife, Suzie (Mary Alice). However, after Gideon falls gravely ill, Harry decides to step in and take his friend's place in the household. Unfortunately, his intentions are far from pure, and the consequences are tragic.
Tokyo Chorus(1931) Directed by Yasujiro Ozu - Combining three prevalent genres of the day—the student comedy, the salaryman film, and the domestic drama—Ozu created this warmhearted family comedy, and demonstrated that he was truly coming into his own as a cinema craftsman. The setup is simple: Low wage–earning dad Okajima is depending on his bonus, and so are his wife and children, yet payday doesn't exactly go as planned. Exquisite and economical, Ozu's film alternates between brilliantly mounted comic sequences and heartrending working-class realities.
Tokyo Drifter(1966) Directed by Seijun Suzuki - After yakuza boss Kurata (Ryuji Kita) dissolves his own criminal empire, a rival kingpin offers a position to Kurata's top operative, Tetsuya "Phoenix Tetsu" Hondo (Tetsuya Watari). When the fiercely loyal Tetsu declines, Otsuka taps unstoppable Tatsuzo the "Viper" (Tamio Kawaji), a ruthless gun-for-hire, to assassinate him. As the Viper trails his target through the countryside, the agile Phoenix Tetsu grows concerned that one of his former associates has betrayed him.
Tokyo Story(1953) Directed by Yasujiro Ozu - The elderly Shukishi (Chishu Ryu) and his wife, Tomi (Chieko Higashiyama), take the long journey from their small seaside village to visit their adult children in Tokyo. Their elder son, Koichi (Sô Yamamura), a doctor, and their daughter, Shige (Haruko Sugimura), a hairdresser, don't have much time to spend with their aged parents, and so it falls to Noriko (Setsuko Hara), the widow of their younger son who was killed in the war, to keep her in-laws company.
Tokyo Twilight(1957) Directed by Yasujiro Ozu - One of Ozu's most piercing portraits of family strife, Tokyo Twilight follows the parallel paths of two sisters contending with an absent mother, unwanted pregnancy, and marital discord.
Tootsie(1982) Directed by Sydney Pollack - New York actor Michael Dorsey (Dustin Hoffman) is a talented perfectionist who is so hard on himself and others that his agent (Sydney Pollack) can no longer find work for him. After a soap opera audition goes poorly, Michael reinvents himself as actress Dorothy Michaels and wins the part. What was supposed to be a short-lived role turns into a long-term contract, but when Michael falls for his castmate Julie (Jessica Lange), complications develop that could wreck everything.
Total Balalaika Show(1994) Directed by Aki Kaurismäki - Aki Kaurismäki’s film of the Leningrad Cowboys’ massive concert in Helsinki’s Senate Square with the 150-member Alexandrov Red Army Chorus and Dance Ensemble is a loving tribute to the rock band he made famous. Seventy thousand people turned out for this mega spectacle; featuring musical selections from Sibelius to Bob Dylan, it crossed genre and national divides. Also included on this disc are the Leningrad Cowboys music videos “Rocky VI,” “Thru the Wire,” “L.A. Woman,” “Those Were the Days,” and “These Boots.”
Touchez Pas Au Grisbi(1954) Directed by Jacques Becker - Gentleman gangster Max (Jean Gabin) and his partner, Riton (René Dary), pull off their last, most successful heist and find themselves comfortable enough to retire in the style they enjoy. However, Max confides the details of the theft to his younger mistress, Josey (Jeanne Moreau) -- who has secretly taken up with ambitious young rival gangster Angelo (Lino Ventura). Angelo then has Riton kidnapped and demands the stash of gold as ransom, which threatens Max's dreams of the perfect retirement.
Trafic(1967) Directed by Jacques Tati - In Jacques Tati’s Trafic, the bumbling Monsieur Hulot, kitted out as always with tan raincoat, beaten brown hat, and umbrella, takes to Paris’s highways and byways. In this, his final outing, Hulot is employed as an auto company’s director of design, and accompanies his new product (a “camping car” outfitted with absurd gadgetry) to an auto show in Amsterdam. Naturally, the road there is paved with modern-age mishaps. This late-career delight is a masterful demonstration of the comic genius’s expert timing and sidesplitting knack for visual gags, and a bemused last look at technology run amok.
The Tree of Life(2011) Directed by Terence Malick - In this highly philosophical film by acclaimed director Terrence Malick, young Jack (Hunter McCracken) is one of three brothers growing up as part of the O'Brien family in small-town Texas. Jack has a contentious relationship with his father (Brad Pitt), but gets along well with his beautiful mother (Jessica Chastain). As an adult, Jack (Sean Penn) struggles with his past and tries to make sense of his childhood, while also grappling with bigger existential issues.
Triangle of Sadness(2022) Directed by Ruben Östlund - Carl and Yaya, a couple of influencers, are invited to a luxury cruise ship alongside a group of out of touch wealthy people. The situation takes an unexpected turn when a brutal storm hits the ship.
Trouble in Paradise(1932) Directed by Ernst Lubitsch - Thief Gaston Monescu (Herbert Marshall) and pickpocket Lily (Miriam Hopkins) are partners in crime and love. Working for perfume company executive Mariette Colet (Kay Francis), the two crooks decide to combine their criminal talents to rob their employer. Under the alias of Monsieur Laval, Gaston uses his position as Mariette's personal secretary to become closer to her. However, he takes things too far when he actually falls in love with Mariette, and has to choose between her and Lily.
Two Days, One Night(2014) Directed by Jean-Pierre and Luc Dardenne - Oscar winner Marion Cotillard received another nomination for her searing, deeply felt performance as a working-class woman desperate to hold on to her factory job, in this gripping film from master Belgian directors Jean-Pierre and Luc Dardenne. Cotillard is Sandra, a wife and mother who suffers from depression and discovers that, while she was home on sick leave, a majority of her coworkers voted in favor of her being laid off over giving up their annual bonuses. She then spends a Saturday and Sunday visiting them each in turn, to try to convince them to change their minds. From this simple premise, the Dardennes create a powerfully humane drama about the importance of community in an increasingly impersonal world.
Two Lane Blacktop(1971) Directed by Monte Hellman - In this cult favorite road film, a mechanic (Dennis Wilson) and a driver (James Taylor) live only to race and maintain their 1955 Chevy. Heading east from California with no particular agenda, they give a girl (Laurie Bird) a ride, and en route she incites jealousy between the men by sleeping with them both. Meanwhile, the trio encounters an overbearing GTO driver (Warren Oates) who agrees to race them to New York, each side putting at stake their most prized possession: their car.
Umberto D.(1952) Directed by Vittorio De Sica - This neorealist masterpiece by Vittorio De Sica follows an elderly pensioner as he strives to make ends meet during Italy’s postwar economic recovery. Alone except for his dog, Flike, Umberto struggles to maintain his dignity in a city where human kindness seems to have been swallowed up by the forces of modernization. His simple quest to satisfy his basic needs—food, shelter, companionship—makes for one of the most heartbreaking stories ever filmed, and an essential classic of world cinema.
Under the Volcano(1984) Directed by John Huston - Geoffrey Firmin (Albert Finney) is a heavy-drinking British diplomat living in a Mexican town. As the local Day of the Dead celebration gets underway, Geoffrey drowns himself in the bottle, having cut himself off from his family, friends and job. When Geoffrey goes missing, his wife Yvonne (Jacqueline Bisset) convinces his half-brother Hugh (Anthony Andrews) to conduct a last-ditch search for the drunk, hoping that Hugh might be able to rescue her self-destructing husband.
Unfaithfully Yours(1948) Directed by Preston Sturges - Before he left for a brief European visit, symphony conductor Sir Alfred De Carter (Rex Harrison) casually asked his staid brother-in-law August (Rudy Vallee) to look out for his young wife, Daphne (Linda Darnell), during his absence. August has hired a private detective (Edgar Kennedy) to keep tabs on her. But when the private eye's report suggests Daphne might have been canoodling with his secretary (Kurt Kreuger), Sir Alfred begins to imagine how he might take his revenge.
The Uninvited(1944) Directed by Lewis Allen - While vacationing on the English coast, composer Rick Fitzgerald (Ray Milland) and his sister Pamela (Ruth Hussey) find an abandoned 18th-century house and decide to buy it. The owner, Commander Beech (Donald Crisp), associates it with the tragic death of his daughter and is willing to part with it despite his granddaughter Stella's (Gail Russell) objection. The Fitzgeralds move in and soon find themselves, with the help of Stella, battling it out with two very prickly ghosts.
Until the End of the World(1991) Directed by Wim Wenders - Conceived as the ultimate road movie, this decades-in-the-making science-fiction epic from Wim Wenders follows the restless Claire Tourneur (Solveig Dommartin) across continents as she pursues a mysterious stranger (William Hurt) in possession of a device that can make the blind see and bring dream images to waking life. With an eclectic soundtrack that gathers a host of the director’s favorite musicians, along with gorgeous cinematography by Robby Müller, this breathless adventure in the shadow of Armageddon takes its heroes to the ends of the earth and into the oneiric depths of their own souls. Presented here in its triumphant 287-minute director’s cut, Until the End of the World assumes its rightful place as Wenders’ magnum opus, a cosmic ode to the pleasures and perils of the image and a prescient meditation on cinema’s digital future.
The Vanishing(1988) Directed by George Sluzier - Rex (Gene Bervoets) and Saskia (Johanna Ter Steege) are enjoying a biking holiday in France when, stopping at a gas station, Saskia disappears. Confounded, Rex searches everywhere, but to no avail. Three years later, he's still obsessed with finding her, pleading his case on television, putting up posters and ruining his new relationship in the process. Eventually an unassuming chemistry teacher, Raymond (Bernard-Pierre Donnadieu), approaches Rex, intimating that he knows what happened.
Vanya on 42nd St(1994) Directed by Louis Malle - In this imaginative reworking of Anton Chekhov's "Uncle Vanya," filmmaker Louis Malle both distances the playwright's work and makes it more intimate. Theater director Andre Gregory and his actors, including Wallace Shawn as Vanya and Julianne Moore as Yelena, arrive at the decrepit New Amsterdam Theater in New York's Times Square, making casual conversation amongst themselves. While still wearing their street clothes, the actors then perform the play on a nearly blank makeshift stage.
Valerie and her Week of Wonders(1970) Directed by Jaromil Jireš - Valerie (Jaroslava Schallerová), a Czechoslovakian teenager living with her grandmother, is blossoming into womanhood, but that transformation proves secondary to the effects she experiences when she puts on a pair of magic earrings. Now seeing the world around her in a different light, Valerie must endure her sexual awakening while attempting to discern reality from fantasy as she encounters lecherous priest Gracian (Jan Klusák), a vampire-like stranger and otherworldly carnival folk.
Vengeance is Mine(1979) Directed by Shohei Imamura - While he seems ordinary at first glance, Iwao Enokizu (Ken Ogata) is actually a violent murderer running from police. Leaving behind his wife (Mitsuko Baishô), he hides out with Kazuko Enokizo (Mayumi Ogawa), a brothel owner who desperately loves him but does not know he is a killer. Iwao does not understand his urge to kill, but he knows that his terrible deeds have burdened both his wife and his father (Rentarô Mikuni) and fears his relationship with Kazuko cannot last.
Victim(1961) Directed by Basil Dearden - In early 1960s London, barrister Melville Farr (Dirk Bogarde) is on the path to success. With his practice winning cases and a loving marriage to his wife (Sylvia Syms), Farr's career and personal life are nearly idyllic. However, when blackmailers link Farr to a young gay man (Peter McEnery), everything Farr has worked for is threatened. As it turns out, Farr is a closeted homosexual -- which is problematic, due to Britain's anti-sodomy laws. But instead of giving in, Farr decides to fight.
Videodrome(1983) Directed by David Cronenberg - As the president of a trashy TV channel, Max Renn (James Woods) is desperate for new programming to attract viewers. When he happens upon "Videodrome," a TV show dedicated to gratuitous torture and punishment, Max sees a potential hit and broadcasts the show on his channel. However, after his girlfriend (Deborah Harry) auditions for the show and never returns, Max investigates the truth behind Videodrome and discovers that the graphic violence may not be as fake as he thought.
The Complete Jean Vigo(1930) Directed by Jean Vigo - Even among cinema’s legends, Jean Vigo stands apart. The son of a notorious anarchist, Vigo had a brief but brilliant career making poetic, lightly surrealist films before his life was cut tragically short by tuberculosis at age twenty-nine. Like the daring early works of his contemporaries Jean Cocteau and Luis Buñuel, Vigo’s films refused to play by the rules. This set includes all of Vigo’s titles: À propos de Nice, an absurdist, rhythmic slice of life from the bustling coastal city; Taris, an inventive short portrait of a swimming champion; Zéro de conduite, a radical, delightful tale of boarding-school rebellion that has influenced countless filmmakers; and L’Atalante, widely regarded as one of cinema’s finest achievements, about newlyweds beginning their life together on a canal barge. These are the witty, visually adventurous works of a pivotal film artist.
Violence at Noon(1966) Directed by Nagisa Oshima - In economically barren post-World War II Japan, life is bleak for Shino (Saeda Kawaguchi), who is part of an agricultural commune that becomes a financial disaster. Things get even more troubling when Eisuke (Kei Satô), an embittered member of the commune, rapes Shino. She attempts to move on, only to learn that an increasingly disturbed Eisuke has continued to sexually abuse women. Yet Shino maintains a certain sympathy for Eisuke, and faces a moral dilemma when the cops ask her for help.
The Virgin Spring(1960) Directed by Ingmar Bergman - Devout Christians Töre and Märeta (Max von Sydow, Birgitta Valberg) send their only daughter, the virginal Karin (Birgritta Pettersson), and their foster daughter, the unrepentant Ingeri (Gunnel Lindblom), to deliver candles to a distant church. On their way through the woods, the girls encounter a group of savage goat herders who brutally rape and murder Karin as Ingeri remains hidden. When the killers unwittingly seek refuge in the farmhouse of Töre and Märeta, Töre plots a fitting revenge.
The Virgin Suicides(1999) Directed by Sofia Coppola - In an ordinary suburban house, on a lovely tree-lined street, in the middle of 1970s America, lived the five beautiful, dreamy Lisbon sisters, whose doomed fates indelibly marked the neighborhood boys who to this day continue to obsess over them. A story of love and repression, fantasy and terror, sex and death, memory and longing. It is at its core a mystery story: a heart-rending investigation into the impenetrable, life-altering secrets of American adolescence.
Viridiana(1961) Directed by Luis Buñuel -Banned in Spain and denounced by the Vatican, Luis Buñuel’s irreverent vision of life as a beggar’s banquet is regarded by many as his masterpiece. In it, novice nun Viridiana does her utmost to maintain her Catholic principles, but her lecherous uncle and a motley assemblage of paupers force her to confront the limits of her idealism. Winner of the Palme d’or at the 1961 Cannes Film Festival, Viridiana is as audacious today as ever.
Vittorio D.(2009) Directed by Annarosa Morri and Mario Canale - A portrait of Italian filmmaker Vittorio De Sica emerges through his films, personal letters, and interviews with family, friends and collaborators.
Vive Le Tour(1962) Directed by Louis Malle - In his short documentary Vive le Tour, Louis Malle presents his energetic evocation of the Tour de France. This, Humain, trop humain, and Place de la République, Louis Malle’s three French-set documentaries, reveal, in an eclectic array of ways, the director’s eternal fascination with, and respect for, the everyday lives of everyday people.
Vivre Sa Vie(1962) Directed by Jean-Luc Godard - In director Jean-Luc Godard's landmark drama, Nana (Anna Karina), a young Parisian woman who works in a record shop, finds herself disillusioned by poverty and a crumbling marriage. Hoping to become an actress and break into films, Nana is once again disappointed when nothing comes of her dreams, and soon she turns to a bleak life of prostitution. When she meets a man (Peter Kassovitz) who truly cares for her, Nana's hope returns -- but Raoul (Sady Rebbot), her pimp, may have the final word.
The Wages of Fear(1953) Directed by Henri-Georges Clouzot - In the South American jungle, supplies of nitroglycerine are needed at a remote oil field. The oil company pays four men to deliver the supplies in two trucks. A tense rivalry develops between the two sets of drivers on the rough remote roads where the slightest jolt can result in death.
Walkabout(1971) Directed by Nicolas Roeg - Under the pretense of having a picnic, a geologist (John Meillon) takes his teenage daughter (Jenny Agutter) and 6-year-old son (Lucien John) into the Australian outback and attempts to shoot them. When he fails, he turns the gun on himself, and the two city-bred children must contend with harsh wilderness alone. They are saved by a chance encounter with an Aborigine boy (David Gulpilil) who shows them how to survive, and in the process underscores the disharmony between nature and modern life.
Walker(1987) Directed by Alex Cox - A hallucinatory biopic that breaks all cinematic conventions, Walker, from British director Alex Cox, tells the story of nineteenth-century American adventurer William Walker (Ed Harris), who abandoned a series of careers in law, politics, journalism, and medicine to become a soldier of fortune and, for many months, the dictator of Nicaragua. Made with mad abandon and political acuity—and the support of the Sandinista army and government during the contra war—the film uses this true tale as a satirical attack on American ultra patriotism and a freewheeling condemnation of “manifest destiny.” Featuring a powerful score by Joe Strummer and a performance of intense, repressed rage by Harris, Walker remains one of Cox’s most daring works.
Wanda(1970) Directed by Barbara Loden - Wanda (Barbara Loden) is a wanderer in a dreary Rust Belt town, drifting from bars to motels, jobs to jobs and men to men. She's directionless and futureless, an aging beauty seen by men as usable and disposable. She hands over custody of her children because she knows they're better with their father. She eventually tags along with Norman Dennis (Michael Higgins), a petty criminal on the run. He's desperate, disreputable and abusive, but Wanda, meekly accepting her fate, still sleeps with him.
The War Room(1993) Directed by Chris Hegedus and D.A. Pennebaker - The 1992 presidential election was a triumph not only for Bill Clinton but also for the new breed of strategists who guided him to the White House—and changed the face of politics in the process. For this thrilling, behind-closed-doors account of that campaign, renowned cinema verité filmmakers Chris Hegedus and D. A. Pennebaker captured the brainstorming and bull sessions of Clinton’s crack team of consultants—especially James Carville and George Stephanopoulos, who became media stars in their own right as they injected a savvy, youthful spirit and spontaneity into the process of campaigning. Fleet-footed and entertaining, The War Room is a vivid document of a political moment whose truths (“It’s the economy, stupid!”) still ring in our ears.
Weekend(2011) Directed by Andrew Haigh - This sensual, remarkably observed, beautifully acted wonder is the breakout feature from British writer-director-editor Andrew Haigh. Rarely has a film been as honest about sexuality—in both depiction and discussion—as this tale of a one-night stand that develops into a weekend-long idyll for two very different young men (exciting screen newcomers Tom Cullen and Chris New) in the English Midlands. It’s an emotionally naked film that’s at once an invaluable snapshot of the complexities of contemporary gay living and a universally resonant portrait of a love affair.
White(1994) Directed by Krzysztof Kieslowski - Polish immigrant Karol Karol (Zbigniew Zamachowski) finds himself out of a marriage, a job and a country when his French wife, Dominique (Julie Delpy), divorces him after six months due to his impotence. Forced to leave France after losing the business they jointly owned, Karol enlists fellow Polish expatriate Mikolah (Janusz Gajos) to smuggle him back to their homeland. After successfully returning, Karol begins to build his new life, while never forgetting his old one.
White Dog(1982) Directed by Samuel Fuller - Samuel Fuller’s throat-grabbing exposé on American racism was misunderstood and withheld from release when it was made in the early eighties; today, the notorious film is lauded for its daring metaphor and gripping pulp filmmaking. Kristy McNichol stars as a young actress who adopts a lost German shepherd, only to discover through a series of horrifying incidents that the dog has been trained to attack black people, and Paul Winfield plays the animal trainer who tries to cure him. A snarling, uncompromising vision, White Dog is a tragic portrait of the evil done by that most corruptible of animals: the human being.
The Wicked Lady(1945) Directed by Leslie Arliss - In 17th-century England, Barbara Worth (Margaret Lockwood) lives a privileged yet humdrum life as the wife of well-heeled landowner Sir Ralph Skelton (Griffith Jones). To stave off boredom, Barbara begins impersonating famed highway robber Capt. Jerry Jackson, stealing precious jewels and valuables from coach passengers. A chance encounter with the actual Jackson (James Mason) propels Barbara into a dangerous double life with potentially lethal consequences.
Wild Strawberries(1957) Directed by Ingmar Bergman - Crotchety retired doctor Isak Borg (Victor Sjöström) travels from Stockholm to Lund, Sweden, with his pregnant and unhappy daughter-in-law, Marianne (Ingrid Thulin), in order to receive an honorary degree from his alma mater. Along the way, they encounter a series of hitchhikers, each of whom causes the elderly doctor to muse upon the pleasures and failures of his own life. These include the vivacious young Sara (Bibi Andersson), a dead ringer for the doctor's own first love.
Wildlife(2018) Directed by Paul Dano - Fourteen-year-old Joe is the only child of Jeanette and Jerry -- a housewife and a golf pro -- in a small town in 1960s Montana. Nearby, an uncontrolled forest fire rages close to the Canadian border, and when Jerry loses his job -- and his sense of purpose -- he decides to join the cause of fighting the fire, leaving his wife and son to fend for themselves. Suddenly forced into the role of an adult, Joe witnesses his mother's struggle as she tries to keep her head above water.
Wings of Desire(1987) Directed by Wim Wenders - Wings of Desire is one of cinema’s loveliest city symphonies. Bruno Ganz is Damiel, an angel perched atop buildings high over Berlin who can hear the thoughts—fears, hopes, dreams—of all the people living below. But when he falls in love with a beautiful trapeze artist, he is willing to give up his immortality and come back to earth to be with her. Made not long before the fall of the Berlin Wall, this stunning tapestry of sounds and images, shot in black and white and color by the legendary Henri Alekan, forever made the name of director Wim Wenders synonymous with film art.
Winter Light(1963) Directed by Ingmar Bergman - Small-town pastor Tomas Ericsson (Gunnar Björnstrand) performs his duties mechanically before a dwindling congregation, including his stubbornly devoted lover, Märta (Ingrid Thulin). When he is asked to assuage a troubled parishioner’s (Max von Sydow) debilitating fear of nuclear annihilation, Tomas is terrified to find that he can provide nothing but his own doubt. The beautifully photographed Winter Light is an unsettling look at the human craving for personal validation in a world seemingly abandoned by God.
Wise Blood(1979) Directed by John Huston - After returning home from World War II, uneducated and irreligious U.S. Army veteran Hazel Motes (Brad Dourif) decides to make his way in the world by impersonating a priest and starting his own religion. Motes soon attracts a follower -- a manic potato peeler named Enoch Emery (Dan Shor) -- but things get complicated when he encounters fellow sidewalk charlatans Asa Hawks (Harry Dean Stanton) and his waif-like young daughter, Sabbath Lilly Hawks (Amy Wright).
A Woman Under the Influence(1974) Directed by John Cassavetes - Mabel Longhetti (Gena Rowlands), desperate and lonely, is married to a Los Angeles municipal construction worker, Nick (Peter Falk). Increasingly unstable, especially in the company of others, she craves happiness, but her extremely volatile behavior convinces Nick that she poses a danger to their family and decides to commit her to an institution for six months. Alone with a trio of kids to raise on his own, he awaits her return, which holds more than a few surprises.
Women of the Night(1948) Directed by Kenji Mizoguchi - After World War II, Mizoguchi was inspired by Italian neorealism to make one of the most emotionally and visually raw films of his career. Filmed on location in Osaka, Women of the Night concerns two sisters—Fusako, a war widow, and Natsuko, having an affair with a narcotics smuggler—who along with their younger friend Kumiko descend into prostitution and moral chaos amid the postwar devastation surrounding them.
World on a Wire (1973) Directed by Rainer Werner Fassbinder - World on a Wire is a gloriously paranoid, boundlessly inventive take on the future from German wunderkind Rainer Werner Fassbinder. With dashes of Stanley Kubrick, Kurt Vonnegut, and Philip K. Dick, Fassbinder tells the noir-spiked tale of reluctant hero Fred Stiller (Klaus Löwitsch), a cybernetics engineer who uncovers a massive corporate conspiracy.
The Worst Person in the World(2021) Directed by Joachim Trier - A young woman battles indecisiveness as she traverses the troubled waters of her love life and struggles to find her career path.
WR: Mysteries of the Organism(1971) Directed by Dušan Makavejev - What does the energy harnessed through orgasm have to do with the state of communist Yugoslavia circa 1971? Only counterculture filmmaker extraordinaire Dušan Makavejev has the answers (or the questions). His surreal documentary-fiction collision WR: Mysteries of the Organism begins as an investigation into the life and work of controversial psychologist and philosopher Wilhelm Reich and then explodes into a free-form narrative of a beautiful young Slavic girl’s sexual liberation. Banned upon its release in the director’s homeland, the art-house smash WR is both whimsical and bold in its blending of politics and sexuality.
Y Tu Mamá También (2001) Directed by Alfonso Cuaron - The lives of Julio and Tenoch, like those of 17-year old boys everywhere, are ruled by raging hormones, intense friendships, and a headlong rush into adulthood. Over the course of a summer, the two best friends, while living out a carefree cross-country escapade with a gorgeous older woman, also find connection with each other, themselves and the world around them.
Yi Yi (2000) Directed by Edward Yang - Set in Taiwan, the film follows the lives of the Jian family from the alternating perspectives of the three main family members: father N.J. (Nien-Jen Wu), teenage daughter Ting-Ting (Elaine Jin) and young son Yang-Yang (Issei Ogata). N.J., disgruntled with his current job, attempts to court the favor of a prominent video game company while Ting-Ting and Yang-Yang contend with the various trials of youth, all while caring for N.J.'s mother-in-law, who lies in a coma.
Yojimbo(1961) Directed by Akira Kurosawa - A nameless ronin (Toshirô Mifune), enters a small village in feudal Japan where two rival businessmen are struggling for control of the local gambling trade. Taking the name Sanjuro Kuwabatake, the ronin convinces both silk merchant Tazaemon (Kamatari Fujiwara) and sake merchant Tokuemon (Takashi Shimura) to hire him as a personal bodyguard, then artfully sets in motion a full-scale gang war between the two ambitious and unscrupulous men.
Young Törless - (1966) Directed by Volker Schlöndorff - At a boarding school in 1900s Austria, cruel bullies Beineberg (Bernd Tischer) and Reiting (Fred Dietz) go to great lengths to embarrass, abuse and dehumanize their pathetic classmate, Basini (Marian Seidowsky). The lowly Basini shows no opposition to his position as the object of constant brutality, and neither does Töerless (Mathieu Carrière), a perceptive yet detached friend of the bullies. But as Töerless watches idly, the tormentors begin to turn the whole school violently against Basini.
Youth of the Beast(1963) Directed by Seijun Suzuki - When a mysterious stranger muscles into two rival yakuza gangs, Tokyo's underworld explodes with violence. Youth of the Beast (Yaju no Seishun) was a breakthrough for director Seijun Suzuki, introducing the flamboyant colors, hallucinatory images, and striking compositions that would become his trademark.
Zazie dans le Métro(1960) Directed by Louis Malle - The most freewheeling of New Wave films takes Raymond Queneau's unfilmable novel about a foulmouthed 11-year- old girl visiting her drag-queen uncle in Paris, and finds the cinematic equivalent of the author's punning style in an orgy of outrageous sight gags, in-jokes, film parodies and visual games.