Starring: Frank Adonis, Bernie Allen, Floyd Anderson (II), Rita Bennett (III), Joseph Bono

Summary: Martin Scorsese's brutal black-and-white biography of self-destructive boxer Jake LaMotta was chosen as the best film of the 1980s in a major critics' poll at the end of the decade, and it's a knockout piece of filmmaking. Robert De Niro plays LaMotta (famously putting on 50 pounds for the later scenes), a man tormented by demons he doesn't understand and prone to uncontrollably violent temper tantrums and fits of irrational jealousy. He marries a striking young blond (Cathy Moriarty), his sexual ideal, and then terrorizes her with never-ending accusations of infidelity. Jake is as frightening as he is pathetic, unable to control or comprehend the baser instincts that periodically, and without warning, turn him into the rampaging beast of the title. But as Roman Catholic Scorsese sees it, he works off his sins in the boxing ring, where his greatest athletic talent is his ability to withstand punishment. The fight scenes are astounding; they're like barbaric ritual dance numbers. Images smash into one another--a flashbulb, a spray of sweat, a fist, a geyser of blood--until you feel dazed from the pummeling. Nominated for a handful of Academy Awards (including best picture and director), Raging Bull won only two, for De Niro and for editor Thelma Schoonmacher. --Jim Emerson

Starring: Tom Cruise, Andrew Dougherty, Dolan Dougherty, John-Michael Dougherty, Marshall Dougherty

Summary: Rain Man is the kind of touching drama that Oscars are made for--and, sure enough, the film took Academy honors for best picture, director, screenplay, and actor (Dustin Hoffman) in 1988. Hoffman plays Raymond, an autistic savant whose late father has left him $3 million in a trust. This gets the attention of his materialistic younger brother, a hot-shot LA car dealer named Charlie (Tom Cruise) who wasn't even aware of Raymond's existence until he read his estranged father's will. Charlie picks up Raymond and takes him on a cross-country journey that becomes a voyage of discovery for Charlie, and, perhaps, for Raymond, too. Rain Man will either captivate you or irritate you (Raymond's sputtering of repetitious phrases is enough to drive anyone crazy), but it is obviously a labor of love for those involved. Hoffman had been attached to the film for many years, as various directors and writers came and went, but his persistence eventually paid off--kind of like Raymond in Las Vegas. Look for director Barry Levinson in a cameo as a psychiatrist near the end of the film. --Jim Emerson

Starring: Tatsuya Nakadai, Akira Terao, Jinpachi Nezu, Daisuke Ryu, Mieko Harada, Yoshiko Miyazaki, Hisashi Igawa, Peter, Masayuki Yui, Kazuo Kato, Norio Matsui, Toshiya Ito, Kenji Kodama, Takashi Watanabe, Mansai Nomura, Takeshi Katô, Jun Tazaki, Hitoshi Ueki, Takao Zushi, Yoshitaka Zushi

Summary: As critic Roger Ebert observed in his original review of Ran, this epic tragedy might have been attempted by a younger director, but only the Japanese master Akira Kurosawa, who made the film at age 75, could bring the requisite experience and maturity to this stunning interpretation of Shakespeare's King Lear. It's a film for the ages--one of the few genuine screen masterpieces--and arguably serves as an artistic summation of the great director's career. In this version of the Shakespeare tragedy, the king is a 16th-century warlord (Tatsuya Nakadai as Lord Hidetora) who decides to retire and divide his kingdom evenly among his three sons. When one son defiantly objects out of loyalty to his father and warns of inevitable sibling rivalry, he is banished and the kingdom is awarded to his compliant siblings. The loyal son's fears are valid: a duplicitous power struggle ensues and the aging warlord witnesses a maelstrom of horrifying death and destruction. Although the film is slow to establish its story, it's clear that Kurosawa, who planned and painstakingly designed the production for 10 years before filming began, was charting a meticulous and tightly formalized dramatic strategy. As familial tensions rise and betrayal sends Lord Hidetora into the throes of escalating madness, Ran (the title is the Japanese character for "chaos" or "rebellion") reaches a fever pitch through epic battles and a fortress assault that is simply one of the most amazing sequences on film. --Jeff Shannon

Starring: Mel Gibson, Rene Russo, Brawley Nolte, Gary Sinise, Delroy Lindo, Lili Taylor, Liev Schreiber, Donnie Wahlberg, Evan Handler, Nancy Ticotin, Michael Gaston, Kevin Neil McCready, Paul Guilfoyle (II), Allen Bernstein, José Zúñiga, Dan Hedaya, Iraida Polanco, John Ortiz, Mike Hodge, Paul Geier

Summary: When it comes to ramping up to vein-bursting levels of tormented anxiety, Mel Gibson has a kind of mainstream intensity that makes him perfect for his heroic-father role in director Ron Howard's child-kidnapping thriller. When you think of Ransom, you automatically think of the scene in which Mel reaches his boiling point and yells, "Give me back my son!" to the kidnapper on the other end of several torturous phone calls. Trapped in the middle of any parent's nightmare, Mel plays a self-made airline mogul whose son (played by Brawley Nolte, son of actor Nick Nolte) is abducted by a close-knit group of uptight kidnappers. But when a king's ransom is demanded for the child's safe return, Mel turns the tables and offers the ransom as reward money for anyone who provides information leading to the kidnappers' arrest. Thus begins a nerve-racking battle of wills and a test of the father's conviction to carry out a plan that could cost his son's life. The boy's mother (played by Rene Russo, reunited with Gibson after Lethal Weapon 3) disapproves of her husband's life-threatening gamble, and a seasoned FBI negotiator (Delroy Lindo) is equally fearful of disaster as the search for the kidnappers intensifies. Through it all, Howard maintains a level of nail-biting tension to match Gibson's desperate ploy, and the plot twists are just clever enough to cancel out the overwrought performances and manipulative screenplay. Ransom may not be as sophisticated as its glossy production design would suggest, but it's a thriller with above-average intelligence and an emotion-driven plot that couldn't be more urgent. Adding to the intensity is a superior supporting cast including Gary Sinise, Lili Taylor, and Liev Schreiber as the kidnappers, who demonstrate that even the tightest scheme can unravel under unexpected stress. Remade from a 1956 film starring Glenn Ford, Ransom is diluted by a few too many subplots, but as a high-stakes game of cat and mouse, it's a slick and satisfying example of Hollywood entertainment. --Jeff Shannon

Starring: Ross Bagdasarian, Benny Bartlett, Sara Berner, Raymond Burr, Frank Cady

Summary: WHEN A BROKEN LEG FORCES PHOTOGRAPHER STEWART TO BECOME WHEELCHAIR-BOUND IN HIS NEW YORK CITY APARTMENT, HE AMUSES HIMSELF BY SPYING ON HIS NEIGHBORS AND SOON BECOMES OBSESSED WHEN HE THINKS HE HAS WITNESSED A MURDER.

Starring: Corey Allen, Jim Backus, Tom Bernard, Virginia Brissac, Marietta Canty, James Dean, Ann Doran, Robert Foulk, Dennis Hopper, William Hopper, Rochelle Hudson, Beverly Long, Frank Mazzola, Sal Mineo, Edward Platt, Steffi Sidney, Jack Simmons, Ian Wolfe, Natalie Wood

Summary: When people think of James Dean, they probably think first of the troubled teen from Rebel Without a Cause: nervous, volatile, soulful, a kid lost in a world that does not understand him. Made between his only other starring roles, in East of Eden and Giant, Rebel sums up the jangly, alienated image of Dean, but also happens to be one of the key films of the 1950s. Director Nicholas Ray takes a strikingly sympathetic look at the teenagers standing outside the white-picket-fence '50s dream of America: juvenile delinquent (that's what they called them then) Jim Stark (Dean), fast girl Judy (Natalie Wood), lost boy Plato (Sal Mineo), slick hot-rodder Buzz (Corey Allen). At the time, it was unusual for a movie to endorse the point of view of teenagers, but Ray and screenwriter Stewart Stern captured the youthful angst that was erupting at the same time in rock & roll. Dean is heartbreaking, following the method acting style of Marlon Brando but staking out a nakedly emotional honesty of his own. Going too fast, in every way, he was killed in a car crash on September 30, 1955, a month before Rebel opened. He was no longer an actor, but an icon, and Rebel is a lasting monument. --Robert Horton

Summary: If you've ever wondered if your favorite filmmakers were geniuses (or mere hacks) back in their youth, Reel Talent: First Films by Legendary Directors will help clue you in. A compilation of 12 short films by directors who would go on to make Star Wars (George Lucas), Forrest Gump (Robert Zemeckis), and Donnie Darko (Richard Kelly), Reel Talent is an eclectic collection of work that shares one thing in common: all nine of the directors attended film school at the University of Southern California. Though Lucas gets the most play with 3 shorts--including the exhilarating A Man and His Car--it's Zemeckis' work that shines. He exhibits subtle nuances and a keen eye for storytelling with The Lift, which hints at both sci-fi and the supernatural with its tale of an old elevator that seems to operate on its own whim. And with Field of Honor--which won the Student Academy Award in 1975--he balances humor with chaos as he tells the bittersweet story of a Vietnam vet who is released from a mental institution. Though parts of the short are played for laughs, the film also invokes a feeling of panic as it makes the viewer realize just how challenging it can be for any former soldier to fit back into civilian life. Another standout production is Richard L. Bare's sparse The Oval Portrait. Shot in black and white, the silent film is based on an Edgar Allen Poe story and tells the sad tale of an artist who is so obsessed with painting a perfect portrait that he allows life to pass him by. It gets off to a slow start, but picks up as the film flashes back to the painter's vibrant younger days. Bare, who would later make his name with The Twilight Zone, shows maturity and patience as he tells his epic story in just under 19 minutes. While legendary is a subjective word that befits a household name such as Lucas, it seems over the top in its use to describe all of the directors included here. Yes, the filmmakers are inarguably talented, if not all legendary. Still, the collection is a must-see for film buffs curious about seeing some of their favorite directors' earliest works. --Jae-Ha Kim

Starring: Burstyn, Leto, Connelly, Wayans

Summary: Employing shock techniques and sound design in a relentless sensory assault, "Requiem for a Dream" is about nothing less than the systematic destruction of hope. Based on the novel by Hubert Selby Jr., and adapted by Selby and director Darren Aronofsky, this is undoubtedly one of the most effective films ever made about the experience of drug addiction (both euphoric and nightmarish), and few would deny that Aronofsky, in following his breakthrough film "Pi", has pushed the medium to a disturbing extreme, thrusting conventional narrative into a panic zone of traumatized psyches and bodies pushed to the furthest boundaries of chemical tolerance. It's too easy to call this a cautionary tale; it's a guided tour through hell, with Aronofsky as our bold and ruthless host.
The film focuses on a quartet of doomed souls, but it's Ellen Burstyn--in a raw and bravely triumphant performance--who most desperately embodies the downward spiral of drug abuse. As lonely widow Sara Goldfarb, she invests all of her dreams in an absurd self-help TV game show, jolting her bloodstream with diet pills and coffee while her son Harry (Jared Leto) shoots heroin with his best friend Tyrone (Marlon Wayans) and slumming girlfriend Marion (Jennifer Connelly). They're careening toward madness at varying speeds, and Aronofsky tracks this gloomy process by endlessly repeating the imagery of their deadly routines. Tormented by her dietary regime, Sara even imagines a carnivorous refrigerator in one of the film's most memorable scenes. And yet... does any of this have a point? Is Aronofsky telling us anything that any sane person doesn't already know? "Requiem for a Dream" is a noteworthy film, but watching it twice would qualify as masochistic behavior. "--Jeff Shannon"

Starring: Kirk Baltz, Lawrence Bender, Randy Brooks, Edward Bunker, Steve Buscemi, Suzanne Celeste, Tony Cosmo, Linda Kaye, Harvey Keitel, Michael Madsen, Chris Penn, Stevo Polyi, Tim Roth, Robert Ruth, Michael Sottile, David Steen, Lawrence Tierney, Rich Turner, Steven Wright

Summary: Quentin Tarantino came out of nowhere (i.e., a video store in Manhattan Beach, California) and turned Hollywood on its ear in 1992 with his explosive first feature, Reservoir Dogs. Like Tarantino's mainstream breakthrough Pulp Fiction, Reservoir Dogs has an unconventional structure, cleverly shuffling back and forth in time to reveal details about the characters, experienced criminals who know next to nothing about each other. Joe (Lawrence Tierney) has assembled them to pull off a simple heist, and has gruffly assigned them color-coded aliases (Mr. Orange, Mr. Pink, Mr. White) to conceal their identities from being known even to each other. But something has gone wrong, and the plan has blown up in their faces. One by one, the surviving robbers find their way back to their prearranged warehouse hideout. There, they try to piece together the chronology of this bloody fiasco--and to identify the traitor among them who tipped off the police. Pressure mounts, blood flows, accusations and bullets fly. In the combustible atmosphere these men are forced to confront life-and-death questions of trust, loyalty, professionalism, deception, and betrayal. As many critics have observed, it is a movie about "honor among thieves" (just as Pulp Fiction is about redemption, and Jackie Brown is about survival). Along with everything else, the movie provides a showcase for a terrific ensemble of actors: Harvey Keitel, Tim Roth, Steve Buscemi, Michael Madsen, Christopher Penn, and Tarantino himself, offering a fervent dissection of Madonna's "Like a Virgin" over breakfast. Reservoir Dogs is violent (though the violence is implied rather than explicit), clever, gabby, harrowing, funny, suspenseful, and even--in the end--unexpectedly moving. (Don't forget that "Super Sounds of the Seventies" soundtrack, either.) Reservoir Dogs deserves just as much acclaim and attention as its follow-up, Pulp Fiction, would receive two years later. --Jim Emerson

Starring: Richard Pryor, Gene Cross, Julie Hampton, Jesse Jackson, Paul Mooney

Summary: Movie DVD

Starring: Tom Cruise, Rebecca De Mornay, Joe Pantoliano, Richard Masur, Bronson Pinchot, Curtis Armstrong, Nicholas Pryor, Janet Carroll, Shera Danese, Raphael Sbarge, Bruce A. Young, Kevin Anderson, Sarah Partridge, Nathan Davis, Scott Harlan, Sheila Keenan, Lucy Harrington, Jerry Tullos, Jerome Landfield, Ron Dean

Summary: About a shy but resourceful teens a worldly call girl and the home enterprise they set up whitel his parents are away. Studio: Warner Home Video Release Date: 12/12/2006 Starring: Tom Cruise Joe Pantoliano Run time: 96 minutes Rating: R Director: Paul Brickman

Starring: Carey Elwes, Richard Lewis, Roger Rees, Amy Yasbeck, Isaac Hayes

Summary: It's not Blazing Saddles, but there are some chuckles to be found in Mel Brooks's 1993 spoof of the Robin Hood legend. Cary Elwes is Robin (with a lighthearted jab at Kevin Costner's bad English accent in Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves), while Richard Lewis plays an angst-ridden King John, and Roger Rees a snotty Sheriff of Nottingham. Comic David Chappelle has some good moments as the only black member of Robins's noble thieves, and Brooks does his own spin on Friar Tuck: Rabbi Tuchman. The song-and-dance sequences featuring a chorus line of the Merry Men ("We're men / men in tights") is vintage Brooks, but otherwise the film can't get any traction. --Tom Keogh

Starring: Sylvester Stallone, Talia Shire, Burt Young, Carl Weathers, Burgess Meredith

Summary: Americans love the underdog. Anytime someone is beating the odds, fighting his or her way to the top, like the Little Engine That Could, it resonates well with U.S. audiences; it's in their nature. Sylvester Stallone knew that in 1976, when "Rocky" was a monstrous hit and established itself in the American cultural lexicon. His low-budget tale of a young boxer who came from the slums of Philadelphia and worked his way to the championship recalls Capra characters such as Mr. Smith or John Doe as he worked his way to fame and self-respect. Like Capra's films from 30 years before, "Rocky" pushed emotional buttons with audiences, but in a somewhat less maudlin, obvious way; it's possible to enjoy "Rocky" without feeling embarrassed about it, even in the cynical, postironic '90s. It ranks respectably among the best boxing pictures, such as "The Set-Up" or "Somebody Up There Likes Me". The story paralleled Stallone's own, from a relative unknown to a star with one breakthrough picture. "Rocky II" (1979) carries on the story line, playing on the rivalry between Rocky Balboa and nemesis Apollo Creed, while Balboa's wife fights for her life. Mainly, though, the sequel seems like a link between the first film and "Rocky III", in which an aging Rocky takes on big, bad Clubber Lang (the near-forgotten Mr. T). While playing on the same emotional capital as the first movie, "Rocky III" is the high-water mark of the sequels; by the next movie, Stallone had turned into a near-self-parody of the original character. "Rocky IV" finds the underdog taking on an oversized, blond Russian boxer (Dolph Lundgren) in a cold war scenario (Rocky literally wraps himself in the American flag). The series mercifully played out by 1990, as embarrassingly punch-drunk as the Rocky character himself by that point. Given the way the American pop-culture continuum seems to work, it's probably due time for the later sequels to be plucked from the compost heap of '80s flotsam and revived as high camp; the Reagan-era hyperpatriotism of "Rocky IV" is as dated as in junk like "Red Dawn" or the dreadful "Invasion U.S.A". Still, the first three films pack a satisfying emotional wallop without giving the viewer the urge to crawl under the couch. The last two... well, use your judgment. They will soon be good for an '80s nostalgia party. "--Jerry Renshaw"

Starring: Sylvester Stallone, Talia Shire, Burt Young, Carl Weathers, Burgess Meredith

Summary: Beginning precisely where "Rocky" left off, the surprisingly effective 1979 sequel takes the saga of Rocky Balboa to its logical next step, as the palooka turned public idol and media darling returns to his "normal" life in Philadelphia with his newlywed bride Adrian (Talia Shire) and some degree of material comfort. He needs to find a job, but boxing champ Apollo Creed (Carl Weathers) is challenging Rocky to a lucrative rematch, and despite his doctor's warning against future boxing, Rocky can't resist. Defying the odds that most sequels can't live up to their originals, "Rocky II" doesn't pack all the punch that "Rocky" did, but it takes us further into the lives of its now-familiar and beloved characters, and Stallone (as director and star) gives us another rousing finale in the ring. Do you really need to know who wins? "--Jeff Shannon"

Starring: Sylvester Stallone, Carl Weathers

Summary: The third installment in the Rocky saga is the last one to matter, and in this case only marginally. The now rich and famous Rocky (Sylvester Stallone) triumphantly pummels a succession of boxing challengers until he encounters Clubber Lang (Mr. T), a human wall of brick who wants a piece of Rocky's action. The Rock's loyal trainer Mickey (Burgess Meredith) has taken ill and dies, so Rocky recruits retired opponent Apollo Creed (Carl Weathers) to whip him into fighting shape after his embarrassing defeat to Clubber. Time for another rematch, mixed in with some family matters involving Rocky's brother-in-law Paulie (Burt Young), who's feeling neglected amid all the hoopla. Not bad as sequels go, boosted by Mr. T.'s taunting presence and yet another rousing finale. For those with a bad case of '80s nostalgia, the hit theme song "Eye of the Tiger" is sure to bring back memories. "--Jeff Shannon"

Starring: Sylvester Stallone, Talia Shire, Burt Young, Carl Weathers, Brigitte Nielsen

Summary: It was time for Sylvester Stallone to say "enough, already" to the boxing hero he plays in the popular Rocky film series, but instead Stallone kept the saga going by pushing Rocky into Rambo territory. The 1985 "Rocky IV" finds the Italian stallion pitted against a seemingly unbeatable Russian monster named Drago (Dolph Lundgren) who lets his wife (Stallone's then-wife, Brigitte Nielsen) do all the talking. With a mighty punch, Drago has sent Rocky's former opponent and trainer Apollo Creed to an early grave, and the boxer responds with the ultimate challenge. Even the Russians are rooting for Rocky, so it's not hard to guess how the film ends. Despite Stallone's claims to the contrary, this installment was followed by "Rocky V" in 1990. "--Jeff Shannon"

Starring: Sylvester Stallone, Talia Shire, Burt Young, Sage Stallone, Burgess Meredith

Starring: Bryan Adams, Leonard Cheshire, Tim Curry, Rick Danko, Thomas Dolby, Rupert Everett, Andy Fairweather-Low, Marianne Faithfull, Albert Finney, James Galway, Jerry Hall, Levon Helm, Garth Hudson, Ute Lemper, Klaus Meine, Joni Mitchell, Van Morrison, Sinéad O'Connor, Roger Waters

Summary: The Wall (Live in Berlin) seemed uninspired and gimmicky in 1990 but looks and sounds terrifically compelling on DVD, thanks to its vivid image quality and greatly improved audio mixes. The freshly mineswept Potsdamer platz--a once-thriving plaza destroyed by Allied bombing in 1943--proved the perfect place to mark the opening of the Berlin Wall with an all-star production of Pink Floyd's magnum opus: a Wall for a wall. An unlikely assemblage of musicians augments Roger Waters's impressive house band (led by guitarist Rick DiFonzo and organ wizard Nick Glennie-Smith), with everyone from the Scorpions to Joni Mitchell to the Military Orchestra of the Soviet Army getting in on the rock-opera action. Cyndi Lauper, Bryan Adams, James Galway, Thomas Dolby, and Albert Finney all turn in tasty cameos, while Sinead O'Connor looks unaccountably aloof in "Mother." The documentary is thorough and juicy, and producer Tony Hollingsworth offers an above-par essay in the booklet. --Michael Mikesell

Starring: Gregory Peck, Audrey Hepburn, Eddie Albert, Hartley Power, Harcourt Williams

Summary: Maybe it doesn't quite live up to its sterling reputation, and maybe the leading man and director were slightly miscast. But who cares? Roman Holiday is the film that brought Audrey Hepburn to prominence, and the world movie audience went weak at the knees. The endlessly charming Hepburn had her first starring role in this sweet romance, playing a European princess on an official tour through Rome. Frustrated by her lack of connection to the real world, she slips away from her protective handlers and goes on a spree, aided by a tough-guy news reporter (Gregory Peck). Director William Wyler, more at home with such heavy-going, Oscar-winning classics as The Best Years of Our Lives and Ben- Hur, doesn't always keep the champagne bubbles afloat, and the Peck role would have fit Cary Grant like a silk glove. But the film is great fun, the location shooting is irresistible, and Hepburn embodies an image of chic style that would rule for the rest of the fifties. No coincidence: she won an Oscar, and so did veteran costume designer Edith Head. --Robert Horton

Starring: Robert DeNiro, Jean Reno, Natascha McElhone, Stellan Skarsgård, Sean Bean

Summary: Robert De Niro stars as an American intelligence operative adrift in irrelevance since the end of the Cold War--much like a masterless samurai, a.k.a. "ronin." With his services for sale, he joins a renegade, international team of fellow covert warriors with nothing but time on their hands. Their mission, as defined by the woman who hires them (Natascha McElhone), is to get hold of a particular suitcase that is equally coveted by the Russian mafia and Irish terrorists. As the scheme gets underway, De Niro's lone wolf strikes up a rare friendship with his French counterpart (Jean Reno), gets into a more-or-less romantic frame of mind with McElhone, and asserts his experience on the planning and execution of the job--going so far as to publicly humiliate one team member (Sean Bean) who is clearly out of his league. The story is largely unremarkable--there's an obligatory twist midway through that changes the nature of the team's business--but legendary filmmaker John Frankenheimer (Seconds, The Manchurian Candidate) leaps at the material, bringing to it an honest tension and seasoned, breathtaking skill with precision-action direction. The centerpiece of the movie is an honest-to-God car chase that is the real thing: not the how-can-we-top-the-last-stunt cartoon nonsense of Richard Donner (Lethal Weapon), but a pulse-quickening, kinetic dance of superb montage and timing. In a sense, Ronin is almost Frankenheimer's self-quoting version of a John Frankenheimer film. There isn't anything here he hasn't done before, but it's sure great to see it all again. --Tom Keogh

Starring: Mia Farrow, Ruth Gordon

Summary: Psychological terrorism and supernatural horror have rarely been dramatized as effectively as in this classic 1968 thriller, masterfully adapted and directed by Roman Polanski from the chilling novel by Ira Levin. Rosemary (Mia Farrow) is a young, trusting housewife in New York whose actor husband (John Cassavetes), unbeknownst to her, has literally made a deal with the devil. In the thrall of a witches' coven headquartered in their apartment building, the young husband arranges to have his wife impregnated by Satan in exchange for success in a Broadway play. To Rosemary, the pregnancy seems like a normal and happy one--that is, until she grows increasingly suspicious of her neighbors' evil influence. Polanski establishes this seemingly benevolent situation and then introduces each fiendish little detail with such unsettling subtlety that the film escalates to a palpable level of dread and paranoia. By the time Rosemary discovers that her infant son "has his father's eyes" ... well, let's just say the urge to scream along with her is unbearably intense! One of the few modern horror films that can claim to be genuinely terrifying, Rosemary's Baby is an unforgettable movie experience, guaranteed to send chills up your spine. --Jeff Shannon

Starring: Aram Aslanian-Persico, Alec Baldwin, Seymour Cassel, James Fitzgerald (II), Danny Glover, Irene Gorovaia, Gene Hackman, Anjelica Huston, Jonah Meyerson, Bill Murray, Kumar Pallana, Gwyneth Paltrow, Larry Pine, Grant Rosenmeyer, Stephen Lea Sheppard, Ben Stiller, Amedeo Turturro, Luke Wilson, Owen Wilson

Summary: In a fitting follow-up to Rushmore, writer-director Wes Anderson and cowriter-actor Owen Wilson have crafted another comedic masterwork that ripples with inventive, richly emotional substance. Because of the all-star cast, hilarious dialogue, and oddball characters existing in their own, wholly original universe, it's easy to miss the depth and complexity of Anderson's brand of comedy. Here, it revolves around Royal Tenenbaum (Gene Hackman), the errant patriarch of a dysfunctional family of geniuses, including precocious playwright Margot (Gwyneth Paltrow), boyish financier and grieving widower Chas (Ben Stiller), and has-been tennis pro Richie (Luke Wilson). All were raised with supportive detachment by mother Etheline (Anjelica Huston), and all ache profoundly for a togetherness they never really had. The Tenenbaums reconcile somehow, but only after Anderson and Wilson (who costars as a loopy literary celebrity) put them through a compassionate series of quirky confrontations and rekindled affections. Not for every taste, but this is brilliant work from any perspective. --Jeff Shannon

Starring: Franka Potente, Moritz Bleibtreu, Herbert Knaup, Nina Petri, Armin Rohde

Summary: It's difficult to create a film that's fast paced, exciting, and aesthetically appealing without diluting its dialogue. Run Lola Run, directed and written by Tom Tykwer, is an enchanting balance of pace and narrative, creating a universal parable that leaps over cultural barriers. This is the story of young Lola (Franka Potente) and her boyfriend Manni (Moritz Bleibtreu). In the space of 20 minutes, they must come up with 100,000 deutsche marks to pay back a seedy gangster, who will be less than forgiving when he finds out that Manni incompetently lost his cash to an opportunistic vagrant. Lola, confronted with one obstacle after another, rides an emotional roller coaster in her high-speed efforts to help the hapless Manni--attempting to extract the cash first from her double-dealing father (appropriately a bank manager), and then by any means necessary. From this point nothing goes right for either protagonist, but just when you think you've figured out the movie, the director introduces a series of brilliant existential twists that boggle the mind. Tykwer uses rapid camera movements and innovative pauses to explore the theme of cause and effect. Accompanied by a pulse-pounding soundtrack, we follow Lola through every turn and every heartbreak as she and Manni rush forward on a collision course with fate. There were a variety of original and intelligent films released in 1999, but perhaps none were as witty and clever as this little gem--one of the best foreign films of the year. --Jeremy Storey