archive2002

Film Archive 2000

010402

Amélie Poulain (Audrey Tautou) is a young woman who glides through the streets of Paris as quietly as a mouse. With wide eyes and a tiny grin, she sees the world in a magical light, discovering minor miracles every day. A shy and reserved person whose favorite moments are spent alone skimming stones into the water, Amélie was raised by a pair of eccentrics who falsely diagnosed her with a heart problem at the age of six and so limited her exposure to the outside world. Now a free and independent woman, Amélie wears a bob that curls in every direction and dresses in red. With a job in a café and an aptitude for spying on her neighbors, Amélie entertains herself by enacting a series of homemade, kindhearted practical jokes. She returns a long-forgotten box of childhood knickknacks to its proper owner, she sends her father's garden troll on a trip around the world, and she creates a love connection at the café between the hypochondriac druggist and a beer-drinking old grouch. But when the day is done, Amélie finds one stone unturned, and decides to work her magic on the quirky object of her affections, Nino Quincampoix (Matthieu Kassovitz), whom she has never met.

BREAD AND TULIPS

010402

Winner of nine David di Donatello Awards among numerous other international prizes, BREAD AND TULIPS is a charming romantic comedy from director Silvio Soldini. Licia Maglietta is simply magnificent as Rosalba, a fortyish married woman who is abandoned at a rest stop during a family bus trip. Suddenly feeling that something is missing from her life, she hitches her way toward Venice, calling her husband--bathroom fixture salesman, Mimmo--only occasionally to tell him that she is taking her own short vacation and that he will have to take care of the house and their two teenage sons. But a day or so stretches into a longer period of time as Rosalba finds herself making a new group of friends, getting a job, and beginning to care for an oddly appealing--and suicidal--waiter. The great Bruno Ganz is terrific as the fatalistic Icelandic waiter who speaks softly and carefully, stringing together multisyllabic, unusual words that often leave other characters scratching their heads while the audience laughs. The film features an outstanding supporting cast, including Felice Andreasi as an aging anarchist florist who likes to yell at customers, Giuseppe Battiston as a detective-story-reading plumber, Marina Massironi as a flippy holistic beautician masseuse, and Daniela Piperno as a wacky free spirit who changes Rosalba's life.

FOCUS

010402

Set during World War II, FOCUS is based on Arthur Miller's first published novel. It is the story of Lawrence Newman (William H. Macy), a man who has settled into a relatively anonymous life. He lives with his mother, has held the same job for twenty years, and rarely strays from his daily routine. He even witnesses a woman being attacked outside his window and remains silent, despite a criminal investigation. His life changes significantly, though, when he gets a new pair of glasses that make him look Jewish. He suddenly loses his job and realizes he is under heavy scrutiny from his Brooklyn neighbors. His search for new employment leads him to Gertrude (Laura Dern), a woman whose Jewish features kept him from hiring her at his previous firm. They fall madly in love, despite the contrast in their personalities: Gertrude is outspoken while Lawrence is more shadowy. Her physical features cause even more conflict with his neighbors and soon Lawrence must choose between standing up to them or finding a way to fit in, while grappling with his own bigotry and fears.

GOSFORD PARK

011102

In GOSFORD PARK, Robert Altman explores the English class system and master-servant relations via his preferred modus operandi of multiple characters and intertwining storylines, which he achieved so brilliantly in NASHVILLE. Featuring an all-star British ensemble cast, the film recalls both THE RULES OF THE GAME and THE REMAINS OF THE DAY, with a midpoint shift to an Agatha Christie whodunit. In November 1932, a phalanx of moneyed guests arrives for a weekend shooting party at the estate of Sir William McCordle (Michael Gambon) and Lady Sylvia (Kristin Scott Thomas). Mary (Kelly Macdonald), a fresh-faced, naïve new maid accompanies the sniping Countess of Trentham (Maggie Smith), and is shown the ropes by the house's worldly head housemaid, Elsie (Emily Watson). While the masters engage in various financial and sexual intrigues upstairs, the world downstairs has its own curiosities--namely, the predatory valet to a Hollywood producer, Henry Denton (Ryan Phillippe), and the mysterious, cagey servant, Robert Parks (Clive Owen). Mary soon discovers that the image of servants living vicariously through their masters is a false one, and that the upstairs-downstairs worlds are often shockingly interwoven. With GOSFORD PARK, Altman delivers a fascinating, blackly comic look at the treacherous yet poignant gamesmanship between the classes.

WAKING LIFE

021502

Director Richard Linklater presents this computer-animated, dreamlike, meandering film about a college-age man (Wiley Wiggins) who floats in and out of a series of philosophical discussions and ethereal experiences, meeting an interesting cast of characters along the way. Each character that Wiley meets engages him in an existential discussion. Wiley listens, observes, and occasionally responds. Then he glumly shuffles off to his next encounter. At times, he wakes up in his bed and rubs his eyes, appearing to start a new day. But eventually viewers learn that Wiley is dreaming throughout the film, and is trying to learn to control his dreams--and accomplish lucid dreaming, or simply wake up.

VA SAVOIR

030102

Camille, a young French actress, has precipitously left Paris for Italy three years ago. The reasons for her departure, or rather her flight, remain mysterious. She has found love and success in Torino. Ugo, a famous director who heads a theatre company, has given her her chance. She has become the leading lady in the company and his lover. This is the first time she returns to Paris to act in a series of performances "As You Desire Me" by Luigi Pirandello. Camille will be confronted with the past she has fled. She secretly dreads meeting Pierre, the man she left. But she will meet him again. Ugo also has a secret. Being in Paris is for him an opportunity to search for a lost, unpublished, manuscript of Goldoni. This quest will lead him to the troubling Dominique. Passions will rise. Each will be confronted with the truth. The theatre, once again, will serve as a backdrop and a revelation to the truth.

SPIKE AND MIKE'S SICK AND TWISTED

030102

info coming

DARK BLUE WORLD

030802

In 1939, as Hitler and Germany ran roughshod over Eastern Europe, many people escaped, including Czech pilots who joined up with the British Royal Air Force to fight the Nazis. Jan Sverák's moving war drama, DARK BLUE WORLD, details the story of one such group of Czech pilots who are at first laughed at by their British superiors until they prove themselves in the air. Ondrej Vetchy stars as Franta Sláma, the father figure to this motley group of men who desperately want to win back their country. Krystof Hádek plays Karel Vojtísek, Franta's young daredevil protegee who falls in love with an older British woman, Susan (Tara Fitzgerald), whose soldier husband is missing in action. When Franta and Susan grow close, everything threatens to erupt.

THE DEVIL'S BACKBONE

031502

During the Spanish Civil War, newly orphaned Carlos is taken to a school for the children of those who died fighting against fascism. He is given the bed that formerly belonged to Santi, a boy who recently died during an attack in which a bomb dropped, landing in the school's courtyard undetonated, a reminder of impending danger. As the amputee headmistress (Marisa Paredes, ALL ABOUT MY MOTHER) and the embittered caretaker Jacinto (Eduardo Noriega) engage in a love affair, the headmistress' cuckolded husband, the impotent but benevolent school doctor (Frederico Luppi) sits by passively. Meanwhile, after Santi's ghost repeatedly reveals itself to Carlos, another student spooks Carlos with a dark secret about the boy's death. War surrounds the school, violence infests it from within, and Carlos sets out to avenge the death of Santi.

LANTANA

032902

Ray Lawrence's LANTANA is an intelligent, well-written, well-acted film that is much more than just another cop thriller--it's more like YOU CAN COUNT ON ME with its realistic, complex relationships and believable characters. The film opens with a slow pan over a dead body, eerily reminiscent of BLUE VELVET. Anthony LaPaglia stars as Leon, a Sydney police detective who is cheating on his wife, Sonja (Kerry Armstrong), with a married woman from their dance class (Rachael Blake), even though he still loves his wife. There's something missing from his life, but he's not sure what. His relationship with his son is strained, and even his partner, Claudia (Leah Purcell), knows something is wrong. But as his affair heats up and a murder mystery that seems to involve all of the people in his life begins to consume his attentions, he is forced to reexamine his future both as a family man and a cop.

LAST ORDERS

032902

Fred Schepisi's adaptation of Graham Swift's prize-winning novel is a quietly graceful portrait of four working-class Brits, bound by years of friendship, that unites some of England's finest actors in a powerful and deeply moving ensemble production. Michael Caine stars as Jack Dodd, the charismatic leader of the group, whose death and last wishes sends his friends on a nostalgic journey from London to Margate to scatter Jack's ashes in the sea. After forty years of warming the seats at their favorite pub, longtime friends and WWII veterans Ray (Bob Hoskins), Lenny (David Hemmings), and Vic (Tom Courtenay) are forced to face the loss of one of their own as they make the "epic" journey accompanied by Jack's flashy, prodigal son Vince (Ray Winstone). Noticeably absent from the group is Jack's long-suffering widow Amy (Helen Mirren), who travels to visit her autistic daughter instead of accompanying her husband's ashes, in a painful journey of her own which sheds light on her complex relationship with Jack. As the four men make their way to Margate, going from pub to pub, they reflect on a lifetime of memories of Jack, which are recreated in a series of multi-layered flashbacks that explore the delicate interweaving of their friendships; full of secrets, resentments, and deeply rooted loyalty. Schepisi masterfully handles the multidimensional plot lines while deftly allowing his talented cast to portray their flawed and profoundly ordinary characters.

MONSOON WEDDING

040502

A story set in the modern upper-middle class of India, where telecommunications and a western lifestyle mix with old traditions, like the arranged wedding young Aditi accepts when she ends the affair with a married TV producer. The groom is an Indian living in Texas, and all relatives from both families, some from distant places like Australia, come to New Delhi during the monsoon season to attend the wedding. The four-day arrangements and celebrations will see clumsy organization, family parties and drama, dangers to the happy end of the wedding, lots of music and even a new romance for the wedding planner Dubey with the housemaid Alice...

FESTIVAL IN CANNES

041202

Director Henry Jaglom presents an insider's look at the Cannes Film Festival with his 13th feature, a fictional piece with a documentary style and feeling. Set at the 1999 festival in the sunny, glamorous gleam of the French Riviera and the hub of celebrity and fame at the Hotel de Cannes, the film's atmosphere is an essential element of understanding its characters. Drunk with excitement, hope, and deal-making glitz, a small group of filmmakers and stars wade through the day-to-day chaos of the event. Former actress Alice Palmer (Greta Scacchi) has written a beautiful screenplay for an independent film about an older woman. Seeking funding and a leading actress, Alice meets Kaz (Zach Norman), a sleazy and overbearing financier who makes her skin crawl, but promises her $3 million. She also meets the reserved, graceful, and brilliantly coy actress Millie Marquand (Anouk Aimee), who falls in love with the screenplay. But Millie is being heavily recruited by flashy producer Rick Yorkan (Ron Silver), who promises her a fantastic financial reward to play a small cameo in a Hollywood Tom Hanks film. Meanwhile, Millie's estranged husband, Viktor (Maximilian Schell), a womanizing director, is gallivanting around the festival trying to advocate the value of art films as compared to Hollywood studio films, while also searching for the perfect deal regardless of artistry. A dizzying portrait of a world where everyone has a hidden agenda and a dozen handy lies tucked up their sleeves, FESTIVAL IN CANNES paints a cynical, but perhaps honest, portrait of the film industry.

KANDAHAR

041902

Iranian director Mohsen Makhmalbaf presents this partially fictionalized documentary that illustrates the suffering of Afghan women under the Taliban regime in Afghanistan in the year 2000. The quiet, stark, powerful film follows an Afghan native, Nafas (the stunningly beautiful Noulifar Pazira), who left Afghanistan years back and got a journalism degree in Canada, upon which she built a career reporting the plight of women in oppressive nations. When she receives a letter from her sister, who is still in Afghanistan and who has decided that she will kill herself on the night of the next eclipse, Nafas decides to sneak back inside the border to rescue her. Traveling in a Red Cross helicopter to Pakistan, where she is lead on a treacherous all-night trek across an icy river and over deadly mountains, Nafas finally crosses over the border. But from there she must get to Kandahar, with only three days left before the eclipse. As a woman in Afghanistan she cannot speak out loud, travel without a husband, or show her face, elements which make her journey nearly impossible. Disguised in a heavy head-to-toe burka (the mandatory dress for women), she begins a Kafkaesque journey across the barren land, encountering obstacles both threatening and mesmerizing along the way.

KISSING JESSICA STEIN

041902

Jessica Stein (Jennifer Westfeldt) is a lovely, young, conservative Jewish girl with the perfect loft situated on New York City's Upper West Side, a fun job working for a hip newspaper, and beautiful clothes. The only thing she doesn't have is the ideal boyfriend. Not that she doesn't have tons of dates--from geeky nerds to suave sexy types, Jessica is sought after by throngs of men. She just doesn't like any of the guys that like her. When her coworker, Joan (Jackie Hoffman), reads her an ad from the personals of the Village Voice, Jessica knows she's interested. Even when she realizes that the ad is in the "women seeking women" section, she figures it's worth a try. A funny, girly, prissy, very lipstick lesbian relationship ensues with Chelsea gallery owner Helen (Heather Juergensen). When the girls aren't making out, they share makeup secrets and raid each other's closets. However, Helen's daring nymphomaniac side clashes with Jessica's conservative straight side, and the couple is forced to face some real challenges, one of which is Jessica's hilarious Scarsdale-based matchmaker mother (Tovah Feldshuh). A light, laugh-a-minute romantic comedy, KISSING JESSICA STEIN is a good fit for fans of sitcoms like ALLY MCBEAL, SEX IN THE CITY, and WILL AND GRACE.

CRUSH

042602

Three forty-something women, Kate (Andie MacDowell), Molly (Anna Chancellor), and Janine (Imelda Staunton), gather weekly to swap stories, guzzle gin, and laugh about whose life is more pathetic, the prize for which is a box of chocolates. A constant problem for these ladies, who live in the sleepy hills of the English Cotswolds, is men--or the lack thereof. Kate, headmistress at a private school, finds a brief remedy in Jed (Kenny Doughty), a young organ player and a former student of hers. After a funeral, the two promptly shag on a tombstone, and the romp surprisingly becomes true love. Her friends aren't supportive of her youthful love affair, causing a rift in their friendship. The strength of the group's bond is tested further by a tragic event that may pull the three of them apart forever.

METROPOLIS

050302

This animated Japanese film from Rin Taro (X) and Otomo Katsuhiro (AKIRA), based on the 1949 Magna comic book by Tezuka Osamu, takes place in the futuristic city of Metropolis. A struggle between the robots and the human population of the city, who once coexisted peacefully, has now exploded into a violent revolution. An investigation conducted by private detective Shunsaku Ban and his nephew Kenichi leads to an outlaw scientist named Dr. Laughton. The scientist was hired by the ruler of Metropolis, Duke Red, to create a superhuman robot-girl, Tima, to succeed him as the next ruler of Metropolis. However, Duke Red's jealous bastard son, the Rock of Marduk, cannot stand the idea of a robot taking the throne and he sets out to destroy Tima. What ensues is a frantic race as Kenichi and Tima flee the Rock through the underground tunnels, dilapidated alleys, and skyscraping towers (called the Ziggurat) of Metropolis, aided by a nurturing trash-collecting robot, Fifi.

IRIS

050302

Based on the book ELEGY FOR IRIS, by John Bayley, this biopic tells the inspiring and heartbreaking story of the writer's 40-year romance with English novelist Dame Iris Murdoch. The film cuts back and forth between the young Iris and John (played by Kate Winslet and Hugh Bonneville), at the height of their romantic adventures as students at Oxford in the 1950s, and the elderly couple (played by Judi Dench and Jim Broadbent), struggling with Iris' decline, as her brilliant mind is ravaged by the effects of Alzheimer's.

SCRATCH

050302

Director Doug Pray (HYPE!) pays tribute to the innovative art of deejaying in the electrifying documentary SCRATCH. Featuring the most legendary figures in the deejay scene, Pray's film is at once a deeply insightful historical document and a highly entertaining glimpse into the world of underground hip-hop. Modern luminaries such as DJ Shadow, MixMasterMike (of the Beastie Boys), DJ Qbert, Rob Swift, and DJ Swamp are interviewed alongside living legends like Afrika Bambaataa, Jazzy Jay, and Grand Mixer DXT, in order to paint a broad, comprehensive picture of how deejaying has evolved over the years. The title, SCRATCH, refers to a technique that was initially used to keep one particular section of a song running endlessly as other songs are played simultaneously. Deejaying (and scratching) has now become a worldwide phenomenon and lucrative profession which can be attributed to DJ Qbert, whose masterful stylings enabled deejays to step out from behind the shadow of rappers and into a spotlight of their very own. Seamlessly cutting between interviews and actual footage filmed at several high-profile deejaying contests including Skratchcon 2000 and the DMC U.S. Finals, Pray's film is a must-see for both seasoned fans and the uninitiated, a celebration of one of the late-20th Century's most thrilling, original musical movements.

PUALINE AND PAULETTE

051002

Pauline and Paulette is a delightfully bittersweet story of four elderly sisters and their relationship with each other. For Pauline (Belgium's national treasure, Dora van der Groen), life is simple. She lives with Martha (Julienne De Bruyn), the eldest of her four sisters, in a small town between Brussels and the seacoast. Martha loves Pauline, and cares for her day in and day out.

ITALIAN FOR BEGINNERS

051702

In this beautiful, understated film, every character possesses a naive, heartbreaking honesty and every line communicates the sweet simplicity of basic human longing. From Danish director Lone Scherfig (ON OUR OWN), ITALIAN FOR BEGINNERS uses natural lighting, muted cinematography, and a partially improvised script--falling into the Dogme 95 genre. The film is not about learning Italian, though the film's six thirtysomething characters all meet each other through an Italian class at the community center in their quiet, rainy town. The film is about real life and hardship and hope. A nurturing hair stylist, a clumsy bakery clerk, a committed pastor, a foulmouthed waiter, a friendly hotel manager, and a lonely waitress all struggle with the banality of daily life, while dealing with their own unique challenges. But as they begin to reveal themselves and their problems to each other, they form a bond and a network that is both a safety net and a new reason to live.

TRIUMPH OF LOVE

051702

Mira Sorvino plays a cross-dressing princess who falls madly in love with a young, inexperienced scholar in this adaptation of the 18th Century Marivaux play. His rationalist philosopher guardian Hemocrates (Ben Kingsley) has raised handsome Agis (Jay Rodan) to hate women, so the princess disguises herself as a man and crashes their secluded villa. What follows is an all out assault of seduction, as she finds herself wooing both Hemocrates and his spinster sister Leontine (Fiona Shaw) in effort to pursue her true quarry Agis, who is also the true heir to her throne.

Y TU MAMA TAMBIEN

052402

The lives of Julio and Tenoch, like those of seventeen-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. Just days after the boys trade heartfelt good-byes with their sexy, young girlfriends who are headed to Italy for summer vacation, their attention is diverted by Luisa, a stunning twenty-eight year old Spaniard. At a family wedding in Mexico City, the boys awkwardly flirt with Luisa, who is married to a distant cousin of Tenoch’s. Fueled by alcohol and her beauty, the boys invite Luisa to accompany them on a road trip to a remote beach with the romantic name of Boca del Cielo -- Heaven’s Mouth -- neglecting to mention that they wouldn’t know where to find it, even if it actually did exist. Luisa humors the boys, but not without first fueling their vivid imaginations. A few days later, Luisa, receives some heartbreaking news and, needing a change of scenery, tracks down the boys and accepts their offer. The unlikely trio hits the road, their destination not so much Boca del Cielo as that seductive and mysterious place where innocence, sexuality, and friendships collide.

DOGTOWN AND Z-BOYS

053102

In the late 1960s, a group of burnt out teenagers from broken homes ambled together and began to surf along Venice, California's Pacific Ocean Park pier, a ghostly shell of a former amusement park nicknamed "Dogtown." United by their attention to style and willingness to take risks, this group of unruly boys were handpicked and nurtured by maverick surfboard designer Jeff Ho, who christened them the Zephyr surf team (or Z-boys). Originally taking up skateboarding as a distraction for the non-surfing hours, the team ended up revolutionizing what was to become an internationally popular sport, using emptied out pools to create a surf-inspired style that was fluid and vertical and ultimately made them legends.

NINE QUEENS

060702

Early one morning, Marcos observes Juan successfully pulling off a bill-changing scam on a cashier, and then getting caught as he attempts to pull the same trick on the next shift. Marcos steps in, claiming to be a policeman, and drags Juan out of the store. Once they are back on the street, Marcos reveals himself to be a fellow swindler with a game of much higher stakes in mind, and he invites Juan to be his partner in crime. A once-in-a-lifetime scheme seemingly falls into their laps - an old-time con man enlists them to sell a forged set of extremely valuable rare stamps, The Nine Queens. The tricky negotiations that ensue bring into the picture a cast of suspicious characters, including Marcos' sister Valeria, their younger brother Federico and a slew of thieves, conmen and pickpockets. As the deceptions mount, it becomes more and more difficult to figure out who is conning whom.

CAT'S MEOW

061402

In November of 1924, a mysterious Hollywood death occurred aboard media mogul William Randolph Hearst's yacht. Included among the famous guests that weekend were, Charlie Chaplin, Hearst's mistress, starlet Marion Davies, the studio system creator, producer Thomas Ince, and feared gossip columnist, Louella Parsons.

SON OF THE BRIDE

061402

At age 42, Rafael Belvedere is having a crisis. He lives in the shadow of his father, he feels guilty about rarely visiting his aging mother, his ex-wife says he doesn't spend enough time with their daughter and he has yet to make a commitment to his girlfriend. At his lowest point, a minor heart attack reunites him with Juan Carlos, a childhood friend, who helps Rafael to reconstruct his past and look at the present in new ways.

MY BIG FAT GREEK WEDDING

062102

Toula Portokalos is 30, Greek, and works in her family's restaurant, Dancing Zorba's, in Chicago. All her father Gus wants is for her to get married to a nice Greek boy. But Toula is looking for more in life. Her mother convinces Gus to let her take some computer classes at college (making him think it's his idea). With those classes under her belt, she then takes over her aunt's travel agency (again making her father think it's his idea). She meets Ian Miller, a high school English teacher, WASP, and dreamboat she had made a fool of herself over at the restaurant; they date secretly for a while before her family finds out. Her father is livid over her dating a non-Greek. He has to learn to accept Ian; Ian has to learn to accept Toula's huge family, and Toula has to learn to accept herself.

ENIGMA

062802

During the heart of World War II, in March of 1943, cryptoanalysts at Britain's code-breaking center have discovered to their horror that Nazi U-boats have changed their Enigma Code. Authorities enlist the help of a brilliant young man named Tom Jericho (played by Dougray Scott) to help them break the code again. The possibility of a spy within the British code-breakers' ranks looms and Tom's love, Claire (Saffron Burrows), has disappeared. To solve the mysteries, Tom recruits Claire's best friend, Hester Wallace (Kate Winslet). In investigating Claire's personal life, the pair discovers personal and international betrayals.

THE IMPORTANCE OF BEING EARNEST

071202

In his second adaptation of an Oscar Wilde play, writer-director Oliver Parker (AN IDEAL HUSBAND) assembles a peerless cast to engage in this witty comedy of manners and mistaken identity. In 1890s London, rakish Algernon Montcrieff (Rupert Everett, who also starred in HUSBAND) runs into his friend, Jack Worthing (Colin Firth), who is in town to propose marriage to Algy's wildly romantic cousin, Gwendolen (Frances O'Connor). When returning a cigarette case to Jack, Algy reads the inscription, and discovers his friend has two secrets. Jack has created a devilish younger brother/alter ego called "Ernest" to hide his own misdeeds, and has a beautiful young ward named Cecily (Reese Witherspoon), whom he wants to keep clear of the roguish Algy. While Jack deals with the large obstacle standing between him and Gwendolen--namely, her mother, the imposing Lady Bracknell (a wonderfully imperious Judi Dench)--Algy devises a way to meet Cecily. The confusion and hilarity come to a peak when Algy arrives at Jack's country manor posing as Ernest in order to woo Cecily, and Gwendolen runs away to the country to be with Jack--whom she knows as Ernest. The stellar cast and Wilde's clever words make for genuine entertainment.

THE EMPEROR'S NEW CLOTHES

080302

THE EMPEROR'S NEW CLOTHES recasts history in 19th Century France. Based on the novel by Simon Leys, THE DEATH OF NAPOLEON, the film supposes that Napoleon Bonaparte escaped from exile in St. Helena and returned to Paris in 1821, whereas the history books say he died that year. With imaginative photography, beautiful costumes, an upbeat orchestral score, and solid acting, the film is a fanciful, witty, comedic delight. Starting out in St. Helena, Napoleon (Ian Holm) enjoys a pampered existence, even as a prisoner, and is treated with great respect by those who serve him. Therefore, when he devises a scheme to trade places with a servant on a ship so that he may escape, the deckhand he chooses (also Holm) thinks he's the luckiest man alive, waited on hand and foot in St. Helena. Napoleon returns to Paris under the guise of this ship servant. When he arrives, he expects to be recognized, received with joy by his people, and made emperor once again. Instead, he is ignored. Days later, the deckhand in St. Helena dies, literally erasing Napoleon's existence. From there, Napoleon must adjust to daily life in the free world as nothing more than a simple Everyman. Fortunately, he finds a loving wife, Pumpkin (Iben Hjejle), to help him with the transition.

13 CONVERSATIONS ABOUT ONE THING

080902

A man approaching middle age decides to change his life. A rising young attorney's plans are thrown into disarray as the result of a single act. A woman faces her husband's infidelity. An envious businessman seeks revenge on a cheerful coworker. And an optimistic young cleaning woman awaits a miracle. These ordinary people all find themselves asking the fundamental question philosophers have pondered throughout history: What is happiness, and how does one achieve it?

THE GOOD GIRL

082902

THE GOOD GIRL, directed by Miguel Arteta and written by Mike White, stars Jennifer Aniston as Justine, a sullen 30-year-old woman stuck in a dead-end job at the Retail Rodeo department store. In addition to her mind-numbing occupation, Justine also has to contend with her dim-witted husband, Phil (John C. Reilly), and his partner, Bubba (Tim Blake Nelson), who work as house painters when they aren't smoking pot and staring blankly at the television. Justine sees an opportunity for change, however, when she meets Holden (Jake Gyllenhaal), a fellow Retail Rodeo employee who is even more depressed than herself. The young Holden (who patterns himself after Holden Caulfield of J.D. Salinger's THE CATCHER IN THE RYE) and Justine soon begin a passionate secret affair, unaware that it may not be so secret after all.

LOVELY AND AMAZING

090602

The Marks family is a tightly-knit quartet of women. Jane is the affluent matriarch whose 3 daughters seem to have nothing in common except for a peculiar sort of idealism. Setting the tone of vanity and insecurity, Jane is undergoing cosmetic surgery to alter her figure, but serious complications put her health in real danger. Former homecoming queen Michelle, the eldest daughter, has one daughter of her own and an alienated, unsupportive husband. Elizabeth, the middle sister, has an acting career that is beginning to take off, but is timid and insecure, and habitually relieves her trepidation by taking in stray dogs. Only the youngest sister, Annie, an adopted African American 8-year-old, stands a chance of avoiding the family legacy of anxious self-absorption. If only her intelligence and curiosity will see her through what promises to be a confusing adolescence. Each of the women seeks redemption in her own haphazard way.

ONE HOUR PHOTO

091302

Viewed through our photographs, it would seem we have lived a joyous, leisurely existence. Sy Parrish (Robin Williams), who makes this observation, adversely leads a lonely life, operating a photo lab in a SavMart department store. He escapes his dreary reality through the family photos of Nancy Yorkin (Connie Nielsen) and her family. His admiration of the Yorkins becomes an obsession, as he fashions himself as Uncle Sy to little Jake (Dylan Smith). Sy's judgment becomes impaired by his unhealthy interest, causing him to lose his job of 11 years. As his final day approaches, Sy develops photographs revealing an indiscretion on the part of Mr. Yorkin (Michael Vartan). The unstable Sy now develops a disturbing, calculated plan to instill family values to the Yorkin clan.

SUNSHINE STATE

092002

Change is coming to Delrona Beach, Florida, assaults on every front. Here's Marly (Edie Falco) running her father's motel and hating every minute of it. Lester and Greg (Miguel Ferrer and Perry Lang) will stop at nothing to buy the motel, and Dad (Ralph Waite) will never sell. Mom (Jane Alexander) is living in her own dream world down at the community theater and off at the Audubon meetings, saving what's left of the natural habitat.

MY WIFE IS AN ACTRESS

092702

MY WIFE IS AN ACTRESS is a clever French comedy from Yvan Attal, who directs, produces, and stars in the film. Jealous and paranoid, Yvan (Attal) is the husband of Charlotte (Charlotte Gainsbourg), a popular young actress who is constantly being cast in starring roles opposite attractive and seductive male actors. This drives Yvan crazy. But because he loves her, he must let her pursue her career dreams. A sports writer who operates in a world that is equally exciting, if not quite as glamorous, Yvan's own career is always secondary to Charlotte's. When she travels to London to work on her latest film, sharing the screen with the studly older actor, John (Terence Stamp), Yvan makes furious and impulsive trips via Eurostar back and forth between Paris and London. He worries that his marriage with Charlotte will not withstand the weight of his heartache. Meanwhile, his sister (Noemie Lvovsky) and her husband (Laurent Bateau) face marital dilemmas of their own as they debate whether to circumcise the baby boy they're expecting. These story lines converge, resulting in some very funny moments and some heartfelt commentary on the difficulties of relationships. A strong soundtrack combines jazz and modern pop songs.

READ MY LIPS

092702

In its opening shot, READ MY LIPS shows Carla (Emmanuelle Devos) inserting her hearing aids and getting ready for work. But it's evident that her hearing problem does not hold her back as she throws herself into answering the constantly ringing phones at her job as an unappreciated secretary for an architecture firm. Swamped with work, Carla asks her boss to hire an assistant for her, Paul (Vincent Cassel), an ex-con who is trying to get his life back on track. To everyone else--her sexist coworkers and her sexy friend Annie--Carla is a dog with a disability. But to Paul, who is Carla's subordinate, she's a femme fatale. In Paul's life--to his parole officer and the two-bit thugs to whom he still owes money--he is an untrustworthy outcast and a bum. But to Carla, he is a secret weapon with skills (lock-picking, physical intimidation) that she needs. Likewise, Carla becomes Paul's secret weapon as her ability to read lips opens up a new world of possibilities to his plotting, criminal ways.

MOSTLY MARTHA

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German director Sandra Nettelbeck whips up a tasty entry in the burgeoning "love and food" romance genre with MOSTLY MARTHA, the tragicomic tale of an uptight professional chef who finds her world turned upside down when she becomes the caretaker for her newly orphaned niece Lina (Maxime Foerste). Martina Gedeck stars as Martha, whose obsession with precision gourmet cooking extends to discussing recipes with her bewildered therapist (August Zirner) and verbally attacking anyone at the restaurant who attempts to send her food back. When she's forced to expand her life to include Lina, her hermetic world begins to crumble. Sullen, despondent, and--worst of all--refusing to eat, Lina proves herself more than a match for Martha's iron will. Enter a boisterous, life-embracing Italian chef (Sergio Castellitto) who's been hired at the restaurant without Martha's consent, and the table is set. Sparks fly, personalities clash, and simmering, repressed emotions come bubbling to the frothy surface. Though perhaps not the most original recipe, the acting here is as impeccable as the cooking, and the cinematography, by longtime Nettlebeck-collaborator Michael Bertl, infuses the food and locales with glistening, sumptuous warmth.

THE DANGEROUS LIVES OF ALTAR BOYS

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Set in the rural South in the 1970s in a Catholic school, four pre-teen boys (Kieran Culkin, Emile Hirsch, Jake Richardson, and Tyler Long) create a comic book called "The Atomic Trinity" to channel their creativity, imagination, and rebellious adolescent angst. They each develop their own superhero and, in doing so, live out fantasy lives through their empowered, unchained alter egos. Their evil adversaries are exaggerated characters designed after their teachers: Sister Assumpta (Jodie Foster) the stark, peg-legged nun; and Father Casey (Vincent D'Onofrio), the shady, chain-smoking priest. The spotlight of the film shines clearly on the handsome Francis (Hirsch) whose crush on his neighbor and schoolmate, Margie Flynn (Jenna Malone), leaves him tongue-tied. Tim (Culkin) is bolder, and so he rewrites a William Blake poem and uses it to bring together secretly dark Margie with wide-eyed Francis. Their relationship flowers into one of the heavier and more mysterious subplots in the film. Margie is instantly written into the comic as a wounded warrior-heroine who enlists the superheroes to help her in her battles against evil. Meanwhile, the boys are busy planning--and occasionally executing--devilish pranks at school, eventually taking things a step too far, to tragic result.

THE FAST RUNNER

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Long ago in the Arctic territory of the Inuit nation, an evil spirit is summoned by a miscreant shaman to spread violence and discord leading to the death of the local chief, Kumaglak, at the hands of the usurper, Sauri who also proceeds to break the spirit of his other rival, Tulimaq. Years later, that conflict continues even when Tulimaq's sons, Amaqjuaq, the Strong One and Atanarjuat, the Fast Runner, have become the best hunters of the tribe. Sauri's short fused son, Oki, becomes profoundly jealous of the brothers and it deepens when Atanarjuat fairly wins away his betrothed. The conflict reaches its climax when an indiscretion on Amaqjuaq's part sparks an act of murderous revenge that leaves Amaqjuaq dead and Atanarjuat fleeing naked into the wilderness to face certain death by exposure. Yet for all these events the curse has caused, Atanarjuat soon learn that there are forces of light that are coming to help him, but he must make fateful decisions that will determine not only to his own fate, but that of his tribe as well.

PUMPKIN

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Christina Ricci stars as Carolyn McDuffy, a picture-perfect blonde sorority princess (reminiscent of Reese Witherspoon's perky LEGALLY BLONDE co-ed, Elle Woods) enjoying her senior year at Southern California State University. Carolyn has been voted "Most Enthusiastic" by her Alpha Omega Pi sisters and the perky socialite is willing to do anything to help her sorority win the coveted Sorority of the Year award. In order to beat their longtime rivals and sorority champions, the Tri-Omegas, the Alpha Pi's pick a perfectly P.C. charity: the Challenged Games, an competition that is similar to the Special Olympics. Carolyn is assigned Pumpkin Romanoff, a sweet-natured, wheelchair-bound shot-putter who immediately falls for his beautiful coach. Pumpkin is determined to win his love's affection and will do anything (including a rigorous workout regime that frees him from his wheelchair) to win Carolyn's heart. Surprisingly, his efforts begin to pay off and slowly the perfectly coiffed sorority sister begins to fall for Pumpkin's "beautiful soul," causing a campus sensation that severely threatens her popularity and upsets her tennis champion boyfriend (Sam Ball), her WASPY mother (Lisa Banes), and Pumpkin's overprotective mother (Brenda Blethyn). This darkly comedic satire lampoons the social hierarchy of sororities with a fresh and daring edge, created by debut filmmakers Adam Larson Broder and Tony R. Abrams.

SEX AND LUCIA

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A Madrid waitress, Lucia (Paz Vega), is mourning the loss of her boyfriend Lorenzo (Tristan Ulloa), a young novelist who died suddenly under mysterious circumstances. Unable to come to terms with his death, she takes a trip to a Mediterranean island that he told her about long ago, thinking about the novels Lorenzo wrote and the way that his work moved her. In flashbacks Lucia remembers her passionate relationship with him, and tries to reconcile unresolved feelings while sorting through the events of the confusing weeks leading up to his death. Shifting time frames and memories combine with Lorenzo's stories and blur the activity of the present. Meanwhile, characters who may or may not be linked to her life with Lorenzo--Carlos (Daniel Freyre), Elena (Najwa Nimri), and Belen (Elena Anaya)--turn Lucia's stay on the island into an intriguing tangle of interconnected stories. SEX AND LUCIA, with its sultry eroticism, testing and questioning of fate and the unpredictability of life, and its brightly bleached beach scenes, is a winding, nostalgic journey. Directed by Julio Medem (LOVERS OF THE ARCTIC CIRCLE), SEX AND LUCIA was received with acclaim at the 2002 Sundance Film Festival.

NOTORIOUS C.H.O.

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Trash-talkin' comedian Margaret Cho, famous for her one-woman shows, her tough but also feminine image, and her awareness of social issues, returns to the screen in NOTORIOUS C.H.O. THE MOVIE, directed by Lorene Machado. This follow-up to Cho's successful 2000 show I'M THE ONE THAT I WANT continues to test the boundaries of irreverent humor while raunchily celebrating the explicit personal anecdotes of its star. Cho fearlessly tackles a wide variety of issues with equal parts sarcasm, heart, and pride. Nothing is sacred. She takes the audience on a wild ride that includes colonics, fisting, and sexual fetishes and revisits some of her favorite topics including gay rights, body image, and self-esteem issues. Cho revels in facial expressions, and fans of Cho will remember her riotous impression of her traditional Korean mother (whom viewers finally get to meet!) In NOTORIOUS, she continues to use her cartoonish expressions to remark on and highlight her candid humor with hysterical results. Cho has an uncanny ability to celebrate diversity, she is a self-proclaimed "fag-hag, Korean-American, bisexual", with biting humor and very little sentimentality. NOTORIOUS C.H.O., which takes its title and inspiration from the fearless ladies of hip hop, think Lil' Kim, once again proves that Cho is a first-rate comedian who ranks up there with Sandra Bernhard, Richard Pryor, or George Carlin.

IGBY GOES DOWN

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Igby Slocumb, a rebellious and sarcastic seventeen year-old boy, is at war with the oppressive world of his East Coast "old money" family. With a schizophrenic father, a self-absorbed, distant mother, and a shark-like young Republican big brother, Igby figures there must be a better life out there, and he sets out to find it. After happily flunking out of several Prep Schools, Igby escapes into the bohemian underworld of Manhattan. His darkly comic trip--shared by a deviant cast of characters, including his terminally bored, part-time lover Sookie, his Godfater's trophy mistress Rachel, and smack-dealing performance artists Russel--veers from bizarre to tragic in Igby's ultimately noble attempt to keep himself from "going down."

THE PIANO TEACHER

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Erika (Isabelle Huppert) teaches classical piano in a cold and often abrasive style. Approaching middle age, Erika lives with her doting mother (Annie Girardot) and still sleeps in the same bed with her. Erika's social life consists of occasionally sneaking away to a peep show where she secretly comes into contact with perverse passion, often using the discarded trash of previous customers. Her beautiful piano playing seduces youthful Walter (Benoit Magimel), who then takes the instructor's advanced class. Walter reveals his desire during a class session. Erika reacts curiously, presenting a long list of cruel, humiliating sexual acts she would like him to perform on her. Meanwhile, the teacher also torments a talented student (Anna Sigalevitch) who is already plagued by her own fears.

AUTOFOCUS

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AUTO FOCUS is the story of Bob Crane (Greg Kinnear), who was the star of the television series Hogan's Heroes in the 1960s. Before he achieved that particular fame, Crane was a popular radio talk show host in Hollywood. His television work brought him a level of visibility and notoriety that he turned directly into sexual opportunity. Gallivanting with sleazy audiovisual salesman John Carpenter (Willem Dafoe), Crane built a life as a desperately addicted sex maniac. As the first home video cameras were invented, Carpenter and Crane began a prolific hobby of coercing girls to appear on tape while engaging in lewd sexual acts. The more intensely obsessed Crane became with his habit, the less his acting career mattered. He divorced his wife, allowing her custody of their two children, and remarried, having another son, only to divorce again. Meanwhile, his relentless sexual exploits became increasingly impersonal and mean-spirited. His public image suffered as he shamelessly made tasteless, sexualized remarks and got a reputation for openly displaying photographs of himself receiving oral sex. Paul Schrader's powerful, deeply effective, and darkly disturbing film makes a 180-degree transition as its story rolls out. What begins as a happy, colorful, naive portrayal of the entertainment industry becomes the nightmare of one man's disintegration in the face of temptation, money, and power.

THE PRODUCERS

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What do a down-and-out Broadway producer, his anxiety-attack-prone accountant, a go-go dancing Swedish secretary, and a Nazi playwright have in common? They're all part of Mel Brooks's wild and wacky first film, THE PRODUCERS. In this hysterical farce, rapacious but lovable producer Max Bialystock (Zero Mostel) hasn't had a hit in years and resorts to fulfilling sexually crazed little old ladies' fantasies for extra cash. But when he meets his new meek, neurotic accountant, Leo Bloom (Gene Wilder), the two accidentally come up with a plot to oversell shares in a surefire flop musical and make off with the profits. The plan sends the new partners-in-crime on a search for the worst play ever: SPRINGTIME FOR HITLER, written by an ex-Nazi (Kenneth Mars) whose only friends are the filthy city pigeons he keeps on his roof.

LAST KISS

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This intricately woven story centers on four buddies who are all about 30 years old and who are starting to think about settling into a more serious phase of their lives. With rapid cuts from scene to scene, character to character, situation to situation, THE LAST KISS communicates the breathless anxiety of striving to hold on to the fleeting feeling of carefree youth. Carlo (Stefano Accorsi) is young, handsome, smart, and in love with Giulia (Giovanna Mezzogiorno), his girlfriend of 5 years who is 3 months pregnant. Carlo and Giulia are happy together, though they are still unmarried. But when Carlo meets blond, naive, 18-year-old Francesca (Martina Stella), he sees one last chance to sew his wild oats. Giulia has her own troubles to deal with, as her mother, Anna (Stefania Sandrelli), admits she is unhappily married to Giulia's father and is contemplating a divorce. Meanwhile, Carlo's friends encounter their own unique obstacles. Adriano (Giorgio Pasotti) constantly fights with his wife (Sabrina Impacciatore), ever since the birth of their infant son; Paolo (Claudio Santamaria), a dreadlocked Don Juan, sleeps with a different girl every night; and Alberto (Marco Cocci) rejects his responsibility in the family business, accepts the death of his father, and regroups after losing the love of his life. Particularly poignant are the repeated scenes of the four friends standing side by side in a waterfall where they gather for nighttime meetings. They pop open champagne bottles, spraying the bubbly liquid, and scream their wildest dreams into the black night sky above. In reality, these five men want nothing more than to settle down and live peacefully. They have all begun to lay down the roots of their future lives, but they hesitate to nourish them. Through various conflicts and solutions, testing limits and making choices, they each find a new maturity and a new direction. In a way, Gabriele Muccino's THE LAST KISS is a comedy about infidelity and fear of commitment, which is really more painful than it is funny. That idea is explored thoroughly, and in the end it is resolved with difficult but realistic honesty.

HAPPY TIMES

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Happy Times, the second of Zhang Yimou's films set in a modern city, is a bittersweet comedy. Zhao (Zhao Benshan) is a poor, aging bachelor who hasn't had luck in love. Thunking he has finally met the woman of his dreams, he leads her to believe he is wealthy and agrees to a wedding far beyond his means. Desperate for funds, he turns to his friends, who are weary of his fanciful schemes. Zhao's best friend (Li Xuejian) hatches the idea to raise the money by refurbishing an abandoned bus they will rent out by the hour -- the Happy Times Hotel -- to young couples starved for privacy. But this plan goes awry when Zhao is too old-fashioned to allow the couples to have the privacy they are looking for. No one will pay for the Happy Times Hotel if they can't shut the door.

24 HOUR PARTY PEOPLE

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Staggeringly versatile director Michael Winterbottom follows up his epic Western THE CLAIM with a period piece of a completely different variety. A sprawling, visceral tribute to the legendary Manchester music scene that flourished between the years of 1976 and 1992, 24 HOUR PARTY PEOPLE recreates that influential era with reckless exuberance. In order to bring structure to the tale, Winterbottom and screenwriter Frank Cottrell Boyce focus their attentions on Tony Wilson (Steve Coogan), the man who was responsible for making it all happen. A television reporter by day, Wilson also led a notorious double life as band manager (Joy Division, the Happy Mondays, James), label president (Factory Records), and club owner (The Hacienda). Fiercely determined and dangerously stubborn, Wilson's energy gave an entire subculture of Manchester youths their place in the spotlight, forever changing the face of popular music in the process. Shot by acclaimed cinematographer Robby Muller in faded digital video, Winterbottom's pulsating film tears through its subject matter like an ecstasy induced history lesson. The performances are flawless from top to bottom, most notably Wilson, Sean Harris, Paddy Considine, John Simm, and Danny Cunningham. A must-see for music aficionados, Winterbottom's film is also worth viewing for its sheer sense of hyperkinetic entertainment.

SECRETARY

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With sheer originality and bold,unflinching humor, Secretary embraces a most unconventional relationship and lays open the notion that love doesn't always occur in the traditional fashion. Lee Holloway (Maggie Gyllenhaal) has a few strikes against her when she applies for a secretarial position at the law office of E. Edward Grey (James Spader). For starters, she was released only recently from a mental institution. However, she gets the job anyway and soon learns that Mr. Grey is not your average boss. Eventually, they begin a relationship, crossing lines of conduct that would give most human resource directors the shivers. Director Steven Shainberg performs a remarkable feat by taking what could be construed as weighty material and infusing it with sensuality and, even more surprisingly, humor. Based on a critically acclaimed short story "Secretary," by Mary Gaitskill, the exquisitely honed character development of Secretary lures us to the darker side of human sexuality, all the while warming us up to the idea that people are getting--and giving--what they want. While it toys with society's expectations of love, Secretary also explores the delicate balance between pain and healing, control and surrender. It could never be labeled old-fashioned but, when all is said and done, Secretary is, at its core and undeniably, a love story.

BLOODY SUNDAY

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In documentary style, Paul Greengrass' BLOODY SUNDAY, which chronicles the events of January 30, 1972 in Derry, Ireland, is filmed with gritty gray realness. Surrounding a peaceful protest march staged in contest to British laws that permitted internment without trial, the film charts the progress of the march from the night before it to the night following it. As the final organizing of the march takes place that morning, MP Ivan Cooper (James Nesbitt) rushes from the street where police barriers are being erected to his office where he fields a string of urgent phone calls. Meanwhile Major General Ford (Tim Pigott-Smith) arranges for a heavily armed troop of commandos in fatigues and face paint to be ready to intercept the march if it turns violent. A third persona, Kevin McCorry (Allan Gildea), is a young lad with a prison record who believes in the cause of the march but wants to avoid conflict and any real trouble. As the march proceeds, and chaos ensues, the British militia opens fire onto the unarmed crowds, shooting 27 and killing 13 in one of the most shocking instances of excessive force in Irish history, ending any hope of nonviolent resolution, and stoking the IRA.

DAS EXPERIMENT

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Based on the 1971 Stanford University simulation study of the psychology of imprisonment (otherwise know as the Stanford Prison Experiment), DAS EXPERIMENT is an intense psychodrama about a group of ordinary men who volunteer to take place in a paid two-week study on the mental effects of prison life. Following a series of intellectual and physical examinations, the men are separated into two groups--eight guards and twelve prisoners--and locked into a working prison, fully loaded with cameras to capture their every move. One of the prisoners, an undercover reporter named Tarek (Moritz Leibtrau of RUN LOLA RUN), uses every opportunity to provoke the guards and collect quotes for his story, but he consistently pushes the envelope too far. As egos are bruised and machismo is belittled, the guards resort to sadistic torture techniques while the prisoners formulate an escape scheme that is laden with vengeance. The experiment inevitably goes awry (even the moderators have utterly lost control) leading to a powerful climatic battle between good and evil.

SPIRITED AWAY

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Directed by animation legend Hayao Miyazaki, SPIRITED AWAY is the tale of Chihiro (voiced by Daveigh Chase), a young girl who is taken down an unusual road by her parents while moving to a new home in an unfamiliar town. The curiosity of Chihiro's mother (Lauren Holly) and father (Michael Chiklis) leads the reluctant child into what appears to be an abandoned amusement park. Soon her parents are greedily feasting on various delights from an enticing food stand and are literally turned into pigs. The frightened and bewildered girl then encounters a young man named Haku (Jason Marsden), who explains what she must do to navigate this strange and magical realm. Finding employment in a bathhouse for spirits and other odd characters--including kimono-wearing frogs, lumbering tentacled monsters, and a mysterious apparition named No Face--Chihiro attempts to figure out how she can free her parents from the clutches of the resort's owner, a powerful witch named Yubaba (Suzanne Pleshette). In the process, she makes some very eccentric friends--and has to deal with some notoriously stinky customers.

FAR FROM HEAVEN

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The model marriage of Frank (Dennis Quaid) and Cathy Whitaker (Julianne Moore) in 1950s Hartford is depicted in television ads, and a magazine features photographs of Cathy as a model homemaker and citizen. Yet, behind the curtains of their dream home, Cathy and Frank hide scandalous secrets. Frank has been masquerading his homosexuality and is seeing a doctor for a heterosexual conversion. Meanwhile, Cathy finds solace in her gardener, Raymond (Dennis Haysbert), a black man about whom Cathy must conceal her growing feelings, since simply being seen with him is cause for scandal.

WILCO: I AM TRYING TO BREAK YOUR HEART

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In early 2000, the Chicago-based, country-influenced rock band Wilco began preparing for the recording of their fourth record, YANKEE HOTEL FOXTROT. Filmmaker/photographer Sam Jones went along with them to document a band at the height of its creative powers. What started as a simple documentary about the making of a record became a far more dramatic saga when, early in the recording process, drummer Ken Coomer left the band. Then, months later, friction between vocalist/chief songwriter Jeff Tweedy and multi-instrumentalist Jay Bennett resulted in Bennett's departure. Adding to the setbacks, upon the completion of the record, Wilco’s longtime label, Reprise, rejected it and released the band from its roster. I AM TRYING TO BREAK YOUR HEART chronicles the critically acclaimed band's efforts to overcome these difficulties--efforts which eventually helped to make FOXTROT the band's most successful release. Director Jones intimately captures the band on 16mm black and white film as they perform over twenty songs. More importantly, he also captures the pitfalls that develop when strong personalities embark on a collaborative creative endeavor. Fans of the band will have plenty to cheer about, while the uninitiated will come away with further cinematic proof of the difficulty of achieving the rock and roll dream.

8 WOMEN

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From French director Francois Ozon, 8 WOMEN is a character drama and musical set in a country home during Christmastime in the 1950s. Though the atmosphere seems light and festive, when the host, Marcel, is stabbed in the back, one of the eight women in the house must be the culprit. The youngest of the bunch, Catherine (Ludivine Sagnier), is a teenager who loved her Daddy and also loves police novels. Her sister, Suzon (Virginie Ledoyen), is a student in England who has traveled home for the holiday. Their mom is Gaby (Catherine Deneuve), the ungrieving wife of Marcel, who never reveals too much. Grandma, who goes by Mamie (Danielle Darrieux), is an alcoholic who reveals that she's not as innocent as she looks when she walks right out of her wheelchair. Marcel's sister, Pierrette (Fanny Ardant) arrives mysteriously just after the murder. The maids, Louise (Emmanuelle Beart) and Chanel (Firmine Richard), are obviously up to no good as their stories keep changing. And the neurotic and hilarious Augustine (Isabelle Huppert), Gaby's sister, is the aging virgin who is just plain unstable. As each of these women interrogate each other, each singing her own song as a type of encrypted confession, there are some very funny moments. 8 WOMEN unfolds like a demented CLUE, with absurd tidbits of information--Chanel is actually an exotic dancer; Gaby and Louise are lesbian lovers--coming straight from Ozon's quirky sense of humor. A magnificent set, a snowy backdrop, and candy colored costumes complete this wacky tongue-in-cheek affair.

CIRCUIT

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JOHN, a naive cop who after being "outed" in his small conservative hometown journeys to West Hollywood to experience an openly gay life-style. He quickly falls into the fast-paced, beauty-oriented, glamorous and drug-laced world of the Circuit Party scene. Here he strives to stay afloat in a ever deepening pool of hustling, money, sex, and deception. John is introduced into the party world by his cousin TAD, a struggling filmmaker/fitness trainer who is making a documentary film on the Circuit party phenomenon. Tad is our objective story-teller and leads us through this strange new world. Tad introduces John to HECTOR, a stunning Latin hustler, addicted to plastic surgery. Hector devalues everything about himself but his external beauty. He is controlled by the party promoter, GINO, a devious, straight, drug-dealing puppeteer who reaps profit from gays at every turn. Gino spins a fraudulent insurance scam around video star, model, icon, BOBBY.

BOWLING FOR COLUMBINE

122002

Filmmaker and leftist activist Michael Moore asks some serious questions as he probes the depths of America's trigger-happy gun culture in the insightful and amusing documentary, BOWLING FOR COLUMBINE. Guns in America are used to kill an average of more than 11,000 people per year. This death toll is obscenely out of balance with other first world countries, which generally average a total in double digits. Experts and analysts have pointed to America's bloody history as a reason, but how does that explain the lower murder rate in Germany? Violent entertainment has also been fingered, but how does this account for staggeringly low numbers in Japan, home of the most violent entertainment video games on the market.