Starring: Humphrey Bogart, John Williams

Summary: Audrey Hepburn is the delightful young Sabrina, the daughter of a chauffeur who is hopelessly in love with David Larrabee (William Holden), the playboy younger son in the rich Long Island household her father works for. In order to help her forget her woes, Sabrina is shipped off to cooking school in Paris. While there, she befriends a baron who provides a bit of culture--and the encouragement to snip off her childlike ponytail. Upon her return to New York, Sabrina is transformed into a sophisticated woman, and David is entranced by her. However, his older brother Linus (Humphrey Bogart) has arranged David's marriage to Elizabeth Tyson in order to seal a business merger and thus must steer David away from Sabrina. To do this, Linus takes on the task of wooing her for himself. Full of great dialogue ("A woman happy in love, she burns the soufflé; a woman unhappy in love, she forgets to turn on the oven") and wonderful performances, this film is a romantic masterpiece. Also enjoyable is the 1995 remake, starring Julia Ormond and Harrison Ford. --Jenny Brown

Starring: Christopher Guest, Robert Smigel

Summary: YOU'LL SEE OPERA MAN, CAJUN MAN, CANTEEN BOY, GAP GIRL AND MANY OTHER ORIGINAL CHARACTERS CREATED BY SUPERSTAR ADAM SANDLER. INCLUDES GUESTS ALEC BALDWIN, COURTNEY COX, DAVID DUCHOVNY AND SHANNON DOHERTY PLUS SNL REGULARS CHRIS FARLEY, DAVID SPADE AND ROB SCHNEIDER.

Starring: Christopher Walken

Summary: The sun is set. The stars shine in the sky. The night air is tinged with anticipation. And it is time to meet...Christopher Walken. One of the most versatile and gifted performers ever to host Saturday Night Live, Christopher Walken proved time and time again to be in a class all his own. So go ahead and grab your glass of fine champagne The Best of Christopher Walken has all the greatest Continentals, all the trivial tales of Ed Glosser and all the prescriptions you'll ever need to cure your cowbell crazed fever. The Best of Christopher Walken also features bonus material, along with scenes that were cut after Dress Rehearsal and never seen again until now.

System Requirements:

Running Time: 75-80 Min.

Format: DVD MOVIE

Starring: Jon Lovitz

Summary: Includes all Jon Lovit's top appearances on the show throughout the years.

Starring: Mel Brandt, Mitchell Kriegman, Laurie Metcalf, Emily Prager, Jack Handey

Summary: No other person has been a guest on Saturday Night Live as many times as the inimitable Steve Martin, which is what makes SNL's Best of Steve Martin compilation the finest of the series. This collection gives us not only clips of some of the show's funniest moments, but also a sense of how the show has evolved from the 1970s. Earlier monologues were rougher, less staged, but absolutely out of control in the best way, as Martin is given free rein to unleash his "happy feet," play the banjo, and generally explore his zaniness. The earliest clip dates from 1976 and the latest from the mid-'90s, showcasing the program's greatest players throughout the seasons--Chevy Chase, Laraine Newman, Dan Aykroyd, Bill Murray, Mike Meyers, Dana Carvey, Nora Dunn, David Spade, Jon Lovitz. The beloved classics are here, from "King Tut," with complete Egyptian regalia, to the arrow through the head to, of course, a "wild and crazy guy." Not enough for you? Well, "excuuuuuuse me." Also included are the Coneheads at home (with Martin playing a hapless IRS agent), "Jeopardy 1999,""Common Knowledge" (one of the wittiest SNL sketches ever), and ads for "Rise" and for "Steve Martin's Penis Cream." This collection will satisfy longtime SNL fans and is a great way to show newer fans what comedy is really about. --Jenny Brown

Starring: Tom Hanks, Tom Sizemore, Edward Burns, Barry Pepper, Adam Goldberg

Summary: Opening with the Allied invasion of Normandy on 6 June 1944, members of the 2nd Ranger Battalion under Cpt. Miller fight ashore to secure a beachhead. Amidst the fighting, two brothers are killed in action. Earlier in New Guinea, a third brother is KIA. Their mother, Mrs. Ryan, is to receive all three of the grave telegrams on the same day. The United States Army Chief of Staff, George C. Marshall, is given an opportunity to alleviate some of her grief when he learns of a fourth brother, Private James Ryan, and decides to send out 8 men (Cpt. Miller and select members from 2nd Rangers) to find him and bring him back home to his mother...

Starring: Al Pacino, Steven Bauer, Michelle Pfeiffer, Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio, Robert Loggia, Miriam Colon, F. Murray Abraham, Paul Shenar, Harris Yulin, Ángel Salazar, Arnaldo Santana, Pepe Serna, Michael P. Moran, Al Israel, Dennis Holahan, Mark Margolis, Michael Alldredge, Ted Beniades, Richard Belzer, Paul Espel

Summary: This sprawling epic of bloodshed and excess, Brian De Palma's update of the classic 1932 crime drama by Howard Hawks, sparked controversy over its outrageous violence when released in 1983. Scarface is a wretched, fascinating car wreck of a movie, starring Al Pacino as a Cuban refugee who rises to the top of Miami's cocaine-driven underworld, only to fall hard into his own deadly trap of addiction and inevitable assassination. Scripted by Oliver Stone and running nearly three hours, it's the kind of film that can simultaneously disgust and amaze you (critic Pauline Kael wrote "this may be the only action picture that turns into an allegory of impotence"), with vivid supporting roles for Steven Bauer, Michelle Pfeiffer, Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio, and Robert Loggia. Universal's special edition digital video disc includes a documentary about the making of the film that features numerous interviews and several deleted scenes. --Jeff Shannon

Starring: Al Pacino, Chris O'Donnell, James Rebhorn, Gabrielle Anwar, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Richard Venture, Bradley Whitford, Rochelle Oliver, Margaret Eginton, Tom Riis Farrell, Nicholas Sadler, Todd Louiso, Matt Smith (II), Gene Canfield, Frances Conroy, June Squibb, Ron Eldard, Sally Murphy, Michael Santoro, Alyson Feldman

Summary: Hoo-hah! After seven Oscar nominations for his outstanding work in films such as The Godfather, Serpico, and Dog Day Afternoon, it's ironic that Al Pacino finally won the Oscar for his grandstanding lead performance in this 1992 crowd pleaser. As the blind, blunt, and ultimately benevolent retired Lieutenant Colonel Frank Slade, Pacino is both hammy and compelling, simultaneously subtle and grandly over-the-top when defending his new assistant and prep school student Charlie (Chris O'Donnell) at a disciplinary hearing. While the subplot involving Charlie's prep-school crisis plays like a sequel to Dead Poets Society, Pacino's adventurous escapades in New York City provide comic relief, rich character development, and a memorable supporting role for Gabrielle Anwar as the young woman who accepts the colonel's invitation to dance the tango. Scent of a Woman is a remake of the 1972 Italian film Profumo di donna. In addition to Pacino's award, the picture garnered Oscar nominations for director Martin Brest and for screenwriter Bo Goldman. --Jeff Shannon

Starring: Jack Black, Adam Pascal, Lucas Papaelias, Chris Stack, Sarah Silverman, Mike White, Lucas Babin, Joan Cusack, Jordan-Claire Green, Veronica Afflerbach, Miranda Cosgrove, Joey Gaydos Jr., Robert Tsai, Angelo Massagli, Kevin Alexander Clark, Maryam Hassan, Caitlin Hale, Cole Hawkins, Brian Falduto, James Hosey

Summary: Turbo-charged comic Jack Black shakes School of Rock to its foundations, wailing with born-again metalhead passion as Dewey Finn, a guitarist who gets kicked out of a band because he grandstands too much--or, to put it another way, enjoys himself. Through an intercepted phone call, Finn gets a job as a substitute teacher for a fifth grade class at a private grade school. Neither students nor teacher quite know what to do with each other until Finn discovers that some of his young charges can play instruments; at once he starts turning them into a blistering rock & roll troupe that can crush his former band at an upcoming competition. School of Rock is silly and formulaic, but director Richard Linklater (Dazed and Confused), writer Mike White (The Good Girl), and especially Black and co-star Joan Cusack invest the formulas with such glee that the movie is irresistibly fun. --Bret Fetzer

Starring: Brad Pitt, Morgan Freeman, Gwyneth Paltrow, Andrew Kevin Walker, R. Lee Ermey, Daniel Zacapa, John Cassini, Bob Mack, Peter Crombie, Reg E. Cathey, George Christy, Endre Hules, Hawthorne James, William Davidson (VI), Bob Collins, Jimmy Dale Hartsell, Richard Roundtree, Charline Su, Dominique Jennings, Allan Kolman

Summary: The most viscerally frightening and disturbing homicidal maniac picture since The Silence of the Lambs, Seven is based on an idea that's both gruesome and ingenious. A serial killer forces each of his victims to die by acting out one of the seven deadly sins. The murder scene is then artfully arranged into a grotesque tableau, a graphic illustration of each mortal vice. From the jittery opening credits to the horrifying (and seemingly inescapable) concluding twist, director David Fancher immerses us in a murky urban twilight where everything seems to be rotting, rusting, or molding; the air is cold and heavy with dread. Morgan Freeman and Brad Pitt are the detectives who skillfully track down the killer--all the while unaware that he has been closing in on them, as well. Gwyneth Paltrow and Kevin Spacey are also featured, but it is director Fancher and the ominous, overwhelmingly oppressive atmosphere of doom that he creates that are the real stars of the film. It's a terrific date movie--for vampires. --Jim Emerson

Starring: Michael Angarano, Mariah Bess, Sam Bottoms, Cameron Bowen, Jeff Bridges, Chris Cooper, Annie Corley, Carl M. Craig, David Doty, Michael Ensign, James Keane, Ed Lauter, Noah Luke, Valerie Mahaffey, David McCullough (II), Paul Vincent O'Connor, Michael O'Neill, Jamie Lee Redmon, Gianni Russo

Summary: A great American story from Academy Award-nominated filmmaker Gary Ross, Seabiscuit stars Tobey Maguire, Jeff Bridges and Chris Cooper. Based on the inspiring true story of three men - a jockey, a trainer and a businessman - and the undersized racehorse who took the entire nation on the ride of a lifetime. This breathtaking film achievement is "a must-see moviegoing experience" (Chicago Sun-Times) and "a flat-out great movie!" (Larry King Live, CNN)

System Requirements:

Starring: Jeff Bridges, Chris Cooper, Tobey Maguire, Elizabeth Banks, William H. Macy, and Gary Stephens.

Directed By: Gary Ross.

Running Time: 141 Min., Color.

This film is presented in "Widescreen" format.

Copyright 2003 Universal.

Format: DVD MOVIE

Starring: Ricardo Darín, Soledad Villamil

Summary: Recently retired criminal court investigator Benjamin (Ricardo Darin), decides to write a novel based on a twenty-five year old unresolved rape and murder case, which still haunts him. Sharing his plans with Irene (Soledad Villamil), the beautiful judge and former colleague he has secretly been in love with for years, Benjamin’s initial involvement with the case is shown through flashbacks, as he sets out to identify the murderer. But Benjamin’s search for the truth will put him at the center of a judicial nightmare, as the mystery of the heinous crime continues to unfold in the present, testing the limits of a man seeking justice and personal fulfillment at last.

Starring: Patrick Bauchau, Ezra Buzzington, Lauren Cohn, Kyle Colerider-Krugh, Jeremy Davies, Steven Fierberg, Sabrina Grdevich, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Mary Joy, Lily Knight, Lacey Kohl, Amy Locane, Michael Mantell, Stephen McHattie, Oz Perkins, Julene Renee, James Spader, Jessica Tuck, Lesley Ann Warren

Summary: This kinky love story features a standout performance by Maggie Gyllenhaal, an offbeat young actress in her first starring role. Gyllenhaal plays Lee, a nervous girl who compulsively cuts herself, who gets a job as a secretary for Edward, an imperious lawyer (James Spader, an old hand at tales of perverse affection). Edward's reprimands for typos and spelling errors begin with mild humiliation, but as Lee responds to his orders--which are driven as much by his own anxieties and fears as any sense of order--the punishments escalate to spankings, shackles, and more. Secretary walks a fine line. It finds sly humor in these sadomasochistic doings without turning them into a gag, and it takes Lee and Edward's mutual desires seriously without getting self-righteous or pompous. Certainly not a movie for everyone, but some people may be unexpectedly stirred up by this smart and steamy tale of repressed passion. --Bret Fetzer

Starring: Timothy Spall, Phyllis Logan, Brenda Blethyn, Claire Rushbrook, Marianne Jean-Baptiste

Summary: If a film fan had never heard of director Mike Leigh, one might explain him as a British Woody Allen. Not that Leigh's films are whimsical or neurotic; they are tough-love examinations of British life--funny, outlandish, and biting. His films share a real immediacy with Allen's work: they feel as if they are happening now. Leigh works with actors--real actors--on ideas and language. There is no script at the start (and sometimes not at the end). Secrets and Lies involves Hortense (Marianne Jean-Baptiste), an elegant black woman wanting to learn her birth mother's identity. She will find it's Cynthia (Brenda Blethyn), who is one of the saddest creatures we've seen in film. She's also one of the most real and, ultimately, one of the most lovable. Timothy Spall is Cynthia's brother, a giant man full of love who is being slowly defeated by his fastidious wife (Phyllis Logan).

There is a great exuberance of life in Secrets & Lies, winner of the Palme D'Or and best actress (Blethyn) at the 1996 Cannes Film Festival--not Zorba-type life but the little battles fought and won every day. Leigh's honest interpretation of daily life is usually found only on the stage. Secrets & Lies is more realistic than a stage production, however, especially when Leigh shows us uninterrupted scenes. Critic David Denby states that Leigh has "made an Ingmar Bergman film without an instant of heaviness or pretension." If that sounds like your cup of tea, see Secrets & Lies. --Doug Thomas

Starring: screenwriting

Summary: ROBERT FLAXMAN is quite simply the Rolls Royce of screenplay analysts, declared Creative Screenwriting in its Analyzing the Script Analysts review (Vol. 6, No. 5). Mr. Flaxman was rated #1. "Best seminar I took all weekend"..."Remarkable!"..."Great presentation"..."Great. Dry sense of humor."..."Super excellent"..."Great tips"Attendees at EXPO 3, "Seducing the Studio Reader", Robert Flaxman Learn the multiple techniques that will keep the reader in your created reality throughout your script. Study the most common mistakes made by professional and advanced screenwriters. Includes: The best exercises to understand the medium. Are you the invisible screenwriter? Think like a reader and you'll write like a professional. ROBERT FLAXMAN is a Producer-Director-Writer-DP-Editor. His independently financed film, A Labor of Love, played in theaters across the country garnering excellent reviews from Roger Ebert, Variety, NBC News, and Gene Siskel. As a screenplay consultant, Robert was rated #1 by Creative Screenwriting in its "Analyzing the Script Analysts" review (Vol. 6, No 5). He was a STAR speaker of Screenwriting Expo 3. His clients have written and/or directed films for: Warner Bros., Screen Gems, Morgan Creek Productions, HBO, Hughes Entertainment, Walt Disney Pictures, ABC Productions and MGM.

Starring: Al Pacino, John Randolph, Jack Kehoe, Biff McGuire, Barbara Eda-Young, Cornelia Sharpe, Tony Roberts, John Medici, Allan Rich, Norman Ornellas, Edward Grover, Albert Henderson, Hank Garrett, Damien Leake, Joseph Bova, Gene Gross, John Stewart, Woodie King Jr., James Tolkan, Ed Crowley

Summary: Tony Manero (John Travolta) in Saturday Night Fever and Dirk Diggler (Mark Wahlberg) in Boogie Nights have one major thing in common: They both have posters of Al Pacino as Serpico on their bedroom walls. As the real-life NYPD detective whose integrity cost him virtually everything (and almost cost him his life), Pacino became one of the icons of gritty, realistic 1970s filmmaking. Released in 1973, between the first two Godfather movies, this is the true story of Frank Serpico, a long-haired, idealistic, iconoclastic cop who reluctantly goes undercover to investigate dirty colleagues who are on the take. This is one of the definitive Pacino performances, along with his role as Michael Corleone in the Godfather saga, and Sonny the bungling bank robber in Dog Day Afternoon (which reunited him with his Serpico director, Sidney Lumet)--and Pacino was nominated for a best actor Oscar for all of them (although he wouldn't actually win until 1992's Scent of a Woman). --Jim Emerson

Starring: screenwriting

Summary: This user-friendly, cutting edge workshop teaches the seven essential elements of successful screenplays: the hero, heros flaw, heros ally, opponent, lifechanging event, enabling circumstances and jeopardy. Rob uses his highly informative and entertaining style to explore and explain terms and concepts not discussed in even the most celebrated screenwriting workshops. It is essential to not just use these essential elements in your screenplays, but to create the correct relationship between them. Just as walls, floors and ceilings must be in correct relationship to each other to form a house, these essential elements must be in correct relationship to each other to create an exciting, structurally sound, and commercially viable story. The difference between a waiter and a writer is a single letter and a million words, Rob often says. But simply writing a million words will do you no good unless you know how to structure your story, how to identify the building blocks and how to use them. Otherwise you might as well be writing a telephone book. Having read more than 5,000 screenplays, Robs encountered more than his share of telephone books and is anxious to help you make your screenplay the best it can be. ROB TOBIN is a former development exec and VP of the countrys largest screenwriting school, script consultant, writing coach, and award-winning who read more than 5,000 screenplays before writing How to Write High-Structure, High-Concept Screenplays. He now shares that experience at film festivals and writing conferences around the country and applies those principles to his own award-winning screenplays and to the work of his clients, helping them write structurally foolproof, fast-moving scripts. He was a STAR Speaker of Screenwriting Expo 2 and Screenwriting Expo 3.

Starring: Takashi Shimura, Toshirô Mifune, Yoshio Inaba, Seiji Miyaguchi, Minoru Chiaki

Summary: Hailed as the greatest film in the history of Japanese cinema, Seven Samurai is director Akira Kurosawa's undisputed masterpiece. Arguably the greatest of all jidai-gecki (or historical swordplay films), Kurosawa's classic 1954 action drama has never been surpassed in terms of sheer power of emotion, kinetic energy, and dynamic character development. The story is set during the civil unrest of 16th-century Japan, as the cowering residents of a small farming village are seeking protection against seasonal attacks by a band of marauding bandits. Offering mere handfuls of rice as payment, they hire seven unemployed "ronin" (masterless samurai), including a boastful swordsman (Toshiro Mifune) who is actually a peasant farmer's son, desperately seeking glory, acceptance, and revenge against those who destroyed his family. Led by the calmly strategic Kambei (Takashi Shimura, star of Kurosawa's previous classic, Ikiru), the samurai form mutual bonds of honor and respect, but remain distant from the villagers, knowing that their assignment may prove to be fatal.

Kurosawa masterfully composed his shots to emphasize these group dynamics, and Seven Samurai is a textbook study of the director's signature techniques, including extensive use of telephoto lenses to compress action, delineate character relationships, and intensify motion. While the climactic battle against raiding thieves remains one of the most breathtaking sequences ever filmed, Seven Samurai is most triumphant as a peerless example of character development, requiring all of its 2-hour, 37-minute running time to illuminate every essential detail of villagers and samurai alike, including an abundance of humor as Kambei's defense plan unfolds. In terms of its overall impact, Seven Samurai spawned dozens of copycat films (notably the American Western remake The Magnificent Seven) and cannot be adequately summarized by even the most comprehensive synopsis; it must be seen to be fully appreciated, and the Criterion Collection's 2006 DVD reissue is an essential addition to any definitive home-video library. --Jeff Shannon

On the DVDs
According to the accompanying booklet, "the picture has been slightly window-boxed (in correct original 1.33:1 aspect ratio) to ensure that the maximum image is visible on all monitors." The two-disc format was necessary "to maintain optimal image quality throughout the compression process," with dual-layered DVD-9's encoded "at the highest possible bit rate for the quantity of material included." The picture and sound quality are simply amazing compared to Criterion's one-disc release from 1998. The all-new, fully restored high-definition digital transfer takes full advantage of HD's clarity and crispness, resulting in picture detail far surpassing the previous DVD. This also applies to the soundtrack, presented in optional Dolby surround in addition to the remastered original mono track. The new transfer "was mastered in 2k resolution from a duplicate negative created with wetgate processing from the original fine-grain master positive" (the film's original negative is no longer available), and "several different digital hardware and software solutions were utilized for flicker, instability, dirt, scratch, and grain management."

The complete 207-minute film is accompanied by two full-length commentary tracks, including a new track combining the critical insights of film scholars David Desser, Joan Mellen, Stephen Price (author of The Warrior's Camera: The Cinema of Akira Kurosawa), Tony Rayns, and the dean of Japanese film experts, Donald Richie (author of The Films of Akira Kurosawa). Each scholar is given approximately 40 minutes of film-time, and their commentaries represent a unique opportunity to appreciate Seven Samurai from distinct yet complementary critical perspectives. The commentary by Japanese film expert Michael Jeck (from Criterion's original 1988 laserdisc release) remains useful as a thorough analysis of Seven Samurai, primarily in terms of visual composition.

The 50-minute "making of" documentary, from Japan's 2002 Toho Masterworks TV series Akira Kurosawa: It Is Wonderful to Create emphasizes Kurosawa's collaboration with co-screenwriters Shinobu Hashimoto and Hideo Oguni, including production footage, crewmember interviews, and a reverent visit to the rural inn where Seven Samurai was written over a six-week period of intense seclusion. The two-hour "My Life in Cinema" interview with Kurosawa was recorded in 1993, with fellow filmmaker Nagisa Oshima serving as a gentle admirer, colleague, and well-informed historian of Kurosawa's career. "Seven Samurai: Origins and Influences" is a richly informative documentary that places Kurosawa's classic in both historical and cinematic context, examining its place in the jidai-gecki (swordplay) genre, its accurate depiction of samurai codes and traditions, and its stature as the prototype for many films that followed. The lavishly illustrated 58-page booklet includes eight brief essays on various aspects of Seven Samurai, each written by noted film scholars or film directors (including Arthur Penn and Sidney Lumet). Also included is a reminiscence by the great actor Toshiro Mifune, excerpted from a conversation recorded in 1993. Taken as a whole, the remastered three-disc Seven Samurai ranks as one of the finest DVD sets ever released. --Jeff Shannon

Starring: James Spader, Andie MacDowell, Peter Gallagher, Laura San Giacomo, Ron Vawter, Steven Brill, Alexandra Root, Earl T. Taylor, David Foil

Summary: Winner of the Palm d'Or and Best Actor awards at the 1989 Cannes Film Festival, sex, lies, and videotape transformed the independent film industry and turned writer-director Steven Soderbergh into the envy of aspiring filmmakers everywhere. Sly, seductive, and coolly intelligent, the movie explores the sexual shenanigans and personal preoccupations of its four central characters, revolving around a selfish lawyer (Peter Gallagher) who responds to his wife by having an affair with her free-spirited sister (Laura San Giacomo). But when the lawyer's college roommate (James Spader) arrives for an unexpectedly extended visit, the neglected wife (Andie MacDowell) is surprisingly responsive to his seductive hobby of videotaping women as they describe their sexual fantasies. It's his way of compensating for impotence, but the curious wife considers this a sexual challenge, and Soderbergh turns sex, lies, and videotape into a fascinating chamber piece that puts a decidedly different spin on the consequences of infidelity. Balanced on a risky and finely tuned performance by Spader, the film delivers frisky passion and emotional intrigue, and yet much of its allure is found in the exchange of secrets and the hidden mysteries of sexual desire. --Jeff Shannon

Starring: Kate Ashfield, Tim Baggaley, Nicola Cunningham, Sonnell Dadral, Lucy Davis (II)

Summary: Get ready for a gut-busting, bone-mashing good time in the hilarious horror comedy, Shaun of the Dead.

There comes a day in every mans life when he has to get off the couch and kill some zombies. When flesh-eating zombies are on the hunt for a bi

Starring: Jack Nicholson, Shelley Duvall, Danny Lloyd, Scatman Crothers, Barry Nelson

Summary: A man, his son and wife become the winter caretakers of an isolated hotel where Danny, the son, sees disturbing visions of the hotel's past using a telepathic gift known as "The Shining". The father, Jack Torrance, is underway in a writing project when he slowly slips into insanity as a result of cabin fever and former guests of the hotel's ghosts. After being convinced by a waiter's ghost to "correct" the family, Jack goes completely insane. The only thing that can save Danny and his mother is "The Shining".

Starring: Jodie Foster, Anthony Hopkins, Scott Glenn, Anthony Heald, Ted Levine, Frankie Faison, Kasi Lemmons, Brooke Smith, Paul Lazar, Dan Butler, Lawrence T. Wrentz, Don Brockett, Frank Seals Jr., Stuart Rudin, Masha Skorobogatov, Jeffrie Lane, Leib Lensky, George 'Red' Schwartz, Jim Roche, James B. Howard

Summary: Based on Thomas Harris's novel, this terrifying film by Jonathan Demme really only contains a couple of genuinely shocking moments (one involving an autopsy, the other a prison break). The rest of the film is a splatter-free visual and psychological descent into the hell of madness, redeemed astonishingly by an unlikely connection between a monster and a haunted young woman. Anthony Hopkins is extraordinary as the cannibalistic psychiatrist Dr. Hannibal Lecter, virtually entombed in a subterranean prison for the criminally insane. At the behest of the FBI, agent-in-training Clarice Starling (Jodie Foster) approaches Lecter, requesting his insights into the identity and methods of a serial killer named Buffalo Bill (Ted Levine). In exchange, Lecter demands the right to penetrate Starling's most painful memories, creating a bizarre but palpable intimacy that liberates them both under separate but equally horrific circumstances. Demme, a filmmaker with a uniquely populist vision (Melvin and Howard, Something Wild), also spent his early years making pulp for Roger Corman (Caged Heat), and he hasn't forgotten the significance of tone, atmosphere, and the unsettling nature of a crudely effective close-up. Much of the film, in fact, consists of actors staring straight into the camera (usually from Clarice's point of view), making every bridge between one set of eyes to another seem terribly dangerous. --Tom Keogh

Starring: Jodie Foster, Anthony Hopkins, Scott Glenn, Anthony Heald, Ted Levine, Frankie Faison, Kasi Lemmons, Brooke Smith, Paul Lazar, Dan Butler, Lawrence T. Wrentz, Don Brockett, Frank Seals Jr., Stuart Rudin, Masha Skorobogatov, Jeffrie Lane, Leib Lensky, George 'Red' Schwartz, Jim Roche, James B. Howard

Summary: Based on Thomas Harris's novel, this terrifying film by Jonathan Demme really only contains a couple of genuinely shocking moments (one involving an autopsy, the other a prison break). The rest of the film is a splatter-free visual and psychological descent into the hell of madness, redeemed astonishingly by an unlikely connection between a monster and a haunted young woman. Anthony Hopkins is extraordinary as the cannibalistic psychiatrist Dr. Hannibal Lecter, virtually entombed in a subterranean prison for the criminally insane. At the behest of the FBI, agent-in-training Clarice Starling (Jodie Foster) approaches Lecter, requesting his insights into the identity and methods of a serial killer named Buffalo Bill (Ted Levine). In exchange, Lecter demands the right to penetrate Starling's most painful memories, creating a bizarre but palpable intimacy that liberates them both under separate but equally horrific circumstances. Demme, a filmmaker with a uniquely populist vision (Melvin and Howard, Something Wild), also spent his early years making pulp for Roger Corman (Caged Heat), and he hasn't forgotten the significance of tone, atmosphere, and the unsettling nature of a crudely effective close-up. Much of the film, in fact, consists of actors staring straight into the camera (usually from Clarice's point of view), making every bridge between one set of eyes to another seem terribly dangerous. --Tom Keogh

Starring: Paulina Gaitan, Marco Antonio Aguirre, Leonardo Alonso, Karla Cecilia Alvarado, Juan Pablo Arias Barrn

Summary: Although the phrase never appears in this documentary-style Spanish-language thriller, "sin nombre" means "nameless." First-time California filmmaker Cary Fukunaga tracks two such individuals, emblematic of many immigrants, whose narratives converge by the suspenseful ending. Willy (Edgar Flores), a Mexican native who belongs to the brutal Salvadoran brotherhood Mara Salvatrucha is just trying to make it through each day alive, while Sayra (Paulina Gaitan) seeks a better life for herself by traveling from the Honduras to join relatives in New Jersey. Their worlds collide on a freight train heading north as Willy and his brethren relieve Sayra and her companions of their few valuables. When the leader of the Mara attempts to have his way with her, Willy steps in, making himself a target, and the couple races for the border before the gang catches up to them (just as Willy gets separated from his best friend, Sayra gets separated from her family). Winner of directing and cinematography awards at Sundance and produced by "Y Tu Mamá También"'s Gael García Bernal and Diego Luna, "Sin Nombre" takes a frustratingly long time to get cooking. The actors, some non-professionals, give persuasive performances, but the Mara are so reprehensible, the first act makes for tough going. Once Willy breaks free from their stranglehold, however, he starts to engender some sympathy. As with the desperate Columbian drug mule in "Maria Full of Grace", it's hard not to root for him and Sayra to beat the odds in order to start fresh in the States. "--Kathleen C. Fennessy"

Starring: Harrison Ford, Anne Heche, David Schwimmer, Jacqueline Obradors, Temuera Morrison, Allison Janney, Douglas Weston, Cliff Curtis, Danny Trejo, Ben Bode, Derek Basco, Amy Sedaris, Long Nguyen, Jake Feagai, John Koyama, Jen Sung Outerbridge, Michael Chapman, E. Kalani Flores, Ping Wu, Greg Gorman

Summary: The African Queen meets Swept Away in this sometimes labored romantic comedy by director Ivan Reitman. Fortunately, he cast an old pro in Harrison Ford, as Quinn Harris, a South Seas charter pilot who must ferry New York fashion editor Robin Monroe (Anne Heche) from one island to another--a hop that falls flat when they fly into a mammoth storm that causes them to crash on a deserted island. The pair resent and resist each other, until they are forced to team up to escape from the island--and some modern pirates who want their heads. If that part of the story is unconvincing, you can always focus on the smoldering comic chemistry between Heche, who displays strong comic instincts, and the ever-reliable Ford. The script is just an excuse for these two flinty characters to strike increasingly romantic sparks off each other, which is always enjoyable to watch. --Marshall Fine

Starring: Molly Ringwald, Justin Henry, Michael Schoeffling, Haviland Morris, Gedde Watanabe, Anthony Michael Hall

Summary: Samantha's life is going downhill fast. The fifteen-year-old has a crush on the most popular boy in school, and the geekiest boy in school has a crush on her. Her sister's getting married, and with all the excitement the rest of her family forgets her birthday! Add all this to a pair of horrendously embarrassing grandparents, a foreign exchange student named Long Duc Dong, and we have the makings of a hilarious journey into young womanhood.

Starring: Kevin Bacon, Billy Crudup, Robert De Niro, Vittorio Gassman, Minnie Driver, Dustin Hoffman, Ron Eldard, Joseph Perrino, Jason Patric, Geoffrey Wigdor, Brad Pitt, Brad Renfro, Terry Kinney, Bruno Kirby, Jonathan Tucker, Frank Medrano, Peter Appel, Joe Attanasio, Gerry Becker, Casandra Brooks

Summary: The judicial system is supposed to protect them. But when a youthful prank in New Yorks Hells Kitchen spins out of control, the punishment does not fit the crime. Sentenced to the Wilkinson School for Boys, four pals are mistreated at will by a cadre of sadistic guards. Now, 15 years later, they have an unexpected opportunity to use that system-for revenge. Friendship. Loyalty. Retribution. From its telltale opening lines to its stunning courtroom climax, Sleepers is spellbinding entertainment. With a vengeance.

System Requirements:

Starring: Kevin Bacon, Robert DeNiro, Dustin Hoffman, Brad Pitt, and Jason Patric Director: Barry Levinson Interactive Menus Production Notes Scene Access Theatrical Trailer Languages: English and French Subtitles: English, French and Spanish Widescreen version presented in a "letterbox" widescreen format preserving the "scope" aspect ratio of its original theatrical exhibition, enhanced for 16:9 widescreen TVs English: Dolby Digital 5.1 French: Dolby Surround 5.1 Two Sided Disc Special Features: Cast/Crew Bios, Film Highlights, Interactive Menus, Production Notes, and Theatrical Trailer Video Format: Widescreen (no A.R. specified) Enhanced for 16x9 TVs Subtitles: English, Spanish, and French Track Info: English: Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround French: Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Closed Captioning: Yes # Discs: 1 # Sides: Single Produced by Barry Levinson, Steve Golin; written by Barry Levinson, Lorenzo Carcat; running time of 148 minutes; Closed Captioned. Copyright: 1996, Warner Bros.

Format: DVD MOVIE

Starring: Tom Hanks, Meg Ryan, Bill Pullman, Ross Malinger, Rosie O'Donnell

Summary: Sam Baldwin (Tom Hanks) is a good father and a successful architect. But he's also a lonely widower. One night his precocious 8-year-old son Jonah calls a late-night radio talk show seeking a cure for his father's despondency. When Sam hesitantly takes the phone and discloses the story of his magic-filled marriage, he proves to be a deeply feeling and gentle man. His plight profoundly moves the program's sympathetic female listeners, and thousands of women write in offering to help him `recover' from his mournful insomnia. Recently betrothed Annie Reed (Meg Ryan) is one of the many listeners touched by Sam's story. To complicate matters, she's afraid her upcoming marriage promises stability and security but no excitement. Although Annie's supposed to be driving to her future in-laws' house for the holidays, she knows that she's already fallen in love with Sam and is on the road to destiny. Academy Award Nominations: Best (Original) Screenplay, Best Song ("A Wink and a Smile").

Starring: Ade, William Beck (II), Andy Beckwith, Ewen Bremner, Jason Buckham

Summary: Usually it might seem a tad unfair to begin a review by referring to the director's missis. But then the missis in question wouldn't usually be Madonna--a woman whose ability to reinvent herself several times before breakfast seems in marked contrast to that of hubby Guy Ritchie. Certainly, this follow-up to the filmmaker's breakthrough film--the high-energy, expletive-strewn cockney-gangster movie Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels--hardly breaks new ground being, well, another high-energy, expletive-strewn cockney-gangster movie. OK, so there are some differences. This time around our low-rent hoodlums are battling over dodgy fights and stolen diamonds rather than dodgy card games and stolen drugs. There has been some minor reshuffling of the cast too, with Sting and Dexter Fletcher making way for the more bankable Benicio Del Toro and Brad Pitt, the latter pretty much stealing the whole shebang as an incomprehensible Irish gypsy. And, sure, people who really, really liked Lock, Stock--or have the memory of a goldfish--will really, really like this. The suspicion lingers, however, that if the director doesn't do something very different next time around then his career may prove to be considerably shorter than that of his missis. --Clark Collis

Starring: Natalya Bondarchuk, Donatas Banionis, Jüri Järvet, Vladislav Dvorzhetsky, Nikolay Grinko

Summary: The Russian answer to 2001, and very nearly as memorable a movie. The legendary Russian director Andrei Tarkovsky made this extremely deliberate science-fiction epic, an adaptation of a novel by Stanislaw Lem. The story follows a cosmonaut (Donatas Banionis) on an eerie trip to a planet where haunting memories can take physical form. Its bare outline makes it sound like a routine space-flight picture, an elongated Twilight Zone episode; but the further into its mysteries we travel, the less familiar anything seems. Even though Tarkovsky's meanings and methods are sometimes mystifying, Solaris has a way of crawling inside your head, especially given the slow pace and general lack of forward momentum. By the time the final images cross the screen, Tarkovsky has gone way beyond SF conventions into a moving, unsettling vision of memory and home. Well worthy of cult status, Solaris is both challenging art-house fare and a whacked-out head trip. --Robert Horton

Starring: Marilyn Monroe, Tony Curtis

Summary: Maybe "nobody's perfect," as one character in this masterpiece suggests. But some movies are perfect, and Some Like It Hot is one of them. In Chicago, during the Prohibition era, two skirt-chasing musicians, Joe and Jerry (Tony Curtis and Jack Lemmon), inadvertently witness the St. Valentine's Day Massacre. In order to escape the wrath of gangland chief Spats Colombo (George Raft), the boys, in drag, join an all-woman band headed for Florida. They vie for the attention of the lead singer, Sugar Kane (Marilyn Monroe), a much-disappointed songbird who warbles "I'm Through with Love" but remains vulnerable to yet another unreliable saxophone player. (When Curtis courts her without his dress, he adopts the voice of Cary Grant--a spot-on impersonation.) The script by director Billy Wilder and I.A.L. Diamond is beautifully measured; everything works, like a flawless clock. Aspiring screenwriters would be well advised to throw away the how-to books and simply study this film. The bulk of the slapstick is handled by an unhinged Lemmon and the razor-sharp Joe E. Brown, who plays a horny retiree smitten by Jerry's feminine charms. For all the gags, the film is also wonderfully romantic, as Wilder indulges in just the right amounts of moonlight and the lilting melody of "Park Avenue Fantasy."Some Like It Hot is so delightfully fizzy, it's hard to believe the shooting of the film was a headache, with an unhappy Monroe on her worst behavior. The results, however, are sublime. --Robert Horton

Starring: Jack Nicholson, Diane Keaton, Keanu Reeves, Frances McDormand, Amanda Peet

Summary: As upscale sitcoms go, Something's Gotta Give has more to offer than most romantic comedies. Obviously working through some semi-autobiographical issues regarding "women of a certain age," writer-director Nancy Meyers brings adequate credibility and above-average intelligence to what is essentially (but not exclusively) a fantasy premise, in which an aging lothario who's always dated younger women (Jack Nicholson, more or less playing himself) falls for a successful middle-aged playwright (Diane Keaton) who's convinced she's past the age of romance, much less sexual re-awakening. As long as old pals Nicholson and Keaton are on screen discussing their dilemma or discovering their mutual desire, Something's Gotta Give is terrific, proving (in case anyone had forgotten) that Hollywood can and should aim for an older demographic. Myers falls short with the sitcom device of a younger lover (Keanu Reeves) who wants Keaton as much as Nicholson does; it's believable but shallow and too easily dismissed. Myers also skimps on supporting roles for Frances McDormand, Amanda Peet, and Jon Favreau, but thankfully this is one romantic comedy that doesn't pander to youth. Mature viewers, rejoice! --Jeff Shannon

Starring: Norma Aleandro, Héctor Alterio, Fabián Arenillas, Giorgio Bellora, Eduardo Blanco, Mónica Cabrera, Ricardo Darín, Claudia Fontán, Rubén Green, Walter Mackenzie, David Masajnik, Gimena Nóbile, Miguel Padilla (II), Salo Pasik, Atilio Pozzobon, Humberto Serrano, Victoria Troncoso, Natalia Verbeke, Mónica Virgilito

Summary: This magnificent Argentinean film centers on Rafael (Ricardo Darín), a restaurateur whose life is becoming a knot of stress and failing relationships. When his father, Nino (Héctor Alterio), decides that after 44 years of marriage he wants to give his wife, Norma (Norma Aleandro), the church wedding she always wanted, Rafael scoffs; Norma has advanced Alzheimer's and doesn't recognize where she is or who's around her. After Rafael has a heart attack, he realizes he has to change his life--but when he makes changes, he discovers how much of his life he'd been taking for granted, and that he may have cast aside the very things he seeks. Son of the Bride is smartly and richly written, directed with generosity and precision, and full of astonishingly full performances. The story's full of clever touches, but it never lets cleverness overwhelm humanity. Simply a superb movie. --Bret Fetzer

Starring: Leslie Bevis, JM J. Bullock, John Candy, Ronny Graham, Sandy Helberg, John Hurt, Jim Jackman, Jeff MacGregor, Rick Moranis, Mike Pniewski, Bill Pullman, Joan Rivers, Stephen Tobolowsky, Dick Van Patten, Sal Viscuso, Michael Winslow, George Wyner, Lorene Yarnell, Daphne Zuniga

Summary: Mel Brooks's 1987 parody of the Star Wars trilogy is a jumble of jokes rather than a comic feature, and, predictably, some of those jokes work better than others. The cast, including Brooks in two roles, more or less mimics the principal characters from George Lucas's famous story line, and the director certainly gets a boost from new allies (SCTV graduates Rick Moranis and John Candy) as well as old ones (Dick Van Patten, Dom DeLuise). Watch this and wait for the sporadic inspiration--but don't be surprised if you find yourself yearning for those years when Brooks was a more complete filmmaker (Young Frankenstein). --Tom Keogh

Starring: William Holden, Don Taylor, Otto Preminger, Robert Strauss, Harvey Lembeck, Richard Erdman, Peter Graves, Neville Brand, Sig Ruman, Michael Moore (III), Peter Baldwin, Robinson Stone, Robert Shawley, William Pierson, Gil Stratton, Jay Lawrence, Erwin Kalser, Edmund Trzcinski, Herbert Street, John Mitchum

Summary: Black comedy and suspenseful action inside a German POW camp during World War II--a setting that was later borrowed for the TV sitcom Hogan's Heroes. The great director Billy Wilder adapted the hit stage play, applying his own wicked sense of humor to the apparently bleak subject matter. William Holden plays an antisocial grouse amid a gang of wisecracking though indomitable American prisoners. Because of his bitter cynicism, Holden is suspected by the others of being an informer to the Germans, an accusation he must deal with in his own crafty way. Holden, who had delivered a brilliant performance for Wilder in Sunset Boulevard, won the 1953 Best Actor Oscar for Stalag 17. Very much his equal, however, is Otto Preminger, an accomplished director himself, who plays the strict, sneering camp commandant. --Robert Horton

Starring: Scott Beach, Marshall Bell, William Bronder, John Cusack, Dick Durock

Summary: A sleeper hit when released in 1986, Stand by Me is based on Stephen King's novella "The Body" (from the book Different Seasons); but it's more about the joys and pains of boyhood friendship than a morbid fascination with corpses. It's about four boys ages 12 and 13 (Wil Wheaton, River Phoenix, Corey Feldman, Jerry O'Connell) who take an overnight hike through the woods near their Oregon town to find the body of a boy who's been missing for days. Their journey includes a variety of scary adventures (including a ferocious junkyard dog, a swamp full of leeches, and a treacherous leap from a train trestle), but it's also a time for personal revelations, quiet interludes, and the raucous comradeship of best friends. Set in the 1950s, the movie indulges an overabundance of anachronistic profanity and a kind of idealistic, golden-toned nostalgia (it's told in flashback as a story written by Wheaton's character as an adult, played by Richard Dreyfuss). But it's delightfully entertaining from start to finish, thanks to the rapport among its young cast members and the timeless, universal themes of friendship, family, and the building of character and self-esteem. Kiefer Sutherland makes a memorable teenage villain, and look closely for John Cusack in a flashback scene as Wheaton's now-deceased and dearly missed brother. A genuine crowd-pleaser, this heartfelt movie led director Rob Reiner to even greater success with his next film, The Princess Bride. --Jeff Shannon

Starring: Tom Cruise

Summary: By lifting the veil that protected Stanley Kubrick from public scrutiny, Stanley Kubrick: A Life in Pictures allows the world to see a genius who bore little resemblance to the eccentric persona perpetuated by the media. Essentially a professional home movie (producer-director Jan Harlan was Kubrick's long-time executive producer and brother-in-law), it is both biased and privileged in its access to Kubrick's personal archives, but Harlan's balanced approach allows room for appropriate criticism. While offering a definitive survey of Kubrick's life and 13 feature films, it's also a valentine to a devoted husband, father, and collaborator who, as critic Richard Schickel observes, crafted a private life that anyone would envy and admire. The films speak for themselves, while such luminaries as Martin Scorsese, Steven Spielberg, and Tom Cruise (who also narrates) offer valuable perspective. But it's the private anecdotes that are most enlightening in their warmth and affection, revealing an artist whose humanity far outshined the mistaken perceptions of the outside world.

Starring: Kurt Russell, James Spader, Viveca Lindfors, Alexis Cruz, Mili Avital, Leon Rippy, John Diehl, Carlos Lauchu, Djimon Hounsou, Erick Avari, French Stewart, Gianin Loffler, Jaye Davidson, Christopher John Fields, Derek Webster, Jack Moore (IV), Steve Giannelli, David Pressman, Scott Alan Smith, Cecil Hoffman

Summary: Before they unleashed the idiotic mayhem of Independence Day and Godzilla, the idea-stealing team of director Roland Emmerich and producer-screenwriter Dean Devlin concocted this hokey hit about the discovery of an ancient portal capable of zipping travelers to "the other side of the known universe." James Spader plays the Egyptologist who successfully translates the Stargate's hieroglyphic code, and then joins a hawkish military unit (led by Kurt Russell) on a reconnaissance mission to see what's on the other side. They arrive on a desert world with cultural (and apparently supernatural) ties to Earth's ancient Egypt, where the sun god Ra (played by Jaye Davidson from The Crying Game) rules a population of slaves with armored minions and startlingly advanced technology. After being warmly welcomed into the slave camp, the earthlings encourage and support a rebellion, and while Russell threatens to blow up the Stargate to prevent its use by enemy forces, the movie collapses into a senseless series of action scenes and grandiose explosions. It's all pretty ridiculous, but Stargate found a large and appreciative audience, spawned a cable-TV series, and continues to attract science fiction fans who are more than willing to forgive its considerable faults. --Jeff Shannon

Starring: Julia Roberts, Susan Sarandon, Ed Harris, Jena Malone, Liam Aiken, Lynn Whitfield, Darrell Larson, Mary Louise Wilson, Andre B. Blake, Russel Harper, Jack Eagle, Lu Celania Sierra, Lauma Zemzare, Holly Schenck, Michelle Stone, Annett Esser, Monique Rodrique, Sal Mistretta, Rex Hays, Alice Liu

Summary: Though Stepmom was dismissed as a contender in the 1998 Oscar race, it's worth giving a second chance to this rather cogent, sharp-tongued look at second chances. Susan Sarandon's performance as a mom about to be replaced by her ex-husband's new girlfriend (played by Julia Roberts) has a lot of bite, and it's a shame the script opted to marginalize and trivialize her plight in its final reel. Initially, the rancor that passes between divorced mom Jackie (Sarandon) and trendy fashion photographer Isabel (Roberts) rings true, aided by the sincerity of Jackie's ex-husband Luke (Ed Harris) and the emotional plight of their children, who have the most to lose in their parents' divorce. As the drama makes clear, the kids are the real victims in the agony that ensues between old and new love.

Director Chris Columbus, who is adept at showing familial chaos (he directed Mrs. Doubtfire and Home Alone) with a sanitized minimum of lingering emotional damage, actually manages to dig a trifle deeper than usual in exploring the jealousy and hurt that occur when the baton is passed between a birth mom and the younger wife who steps into her shoes. Stepmom fortunately manages to touch on that chord--showing how an ambitious woman might feel hampered by the responsibility of children just because she's fallen in love with their dad--as well as the haunting grief that it causes their birth mom. It's an issue that haunts millions of second wives everywhere, and while Roberts conveys the confusion of being taken for granted in the melee that follows, it's Sarandon who walks off with the film. She's relentless in her fury, and everyone else in the film--the generally excellent Harris included--is sideswiped. It's just a shame that Hollywood once again wimps out in the end, solving the problem by giving Sarandon a terminal illness. Instead of allowing Jackie and Isabel's relationship to unfold on something less than a high note, the movie has to quell its best thing with a false payoff because it doesn't know what to do with real life. --Paula Nechak

Starring: Vivien Leigh, Marlon Brando, Kim Hunter, Karl Malden, Rudy Bond, Nick Dennis, Peg Hillias, Wright King, Richard Garrick, Ann Dere, Edna Thomas, Mickey Kuhn, Maxie Thrower, John George, Chester Jones, Marietta Canty, Charles Wagenheim, Dahn Ben Amotz, Lyle Latell, Mel Archer

Summary: Looking for a benchmark in movie acting? Breakthrough performances don't come much more electrifying than Marlon Brando's animalistic turn as Stanley Kowalski in A Streetcar Named Desire. Sweaty, brutish, mumbling, yet with the balanced grace of a prizefighter, Brando storms through the role--a role he had originated in the Broadway production of Tennessee Williams's celebrated play. Stanley and his wife, Stella (as in Brando's oft-mimicked line, "Hey, Stellaaaaaa!"), are the earthy couple in New Orleans's French Quarter whose lives are upended by the arrival of Stella's sister, Blanche DuBois (Vivien Leigh). Blanche, a disturbed, lyrical, faded Southern belle, is immediately drawn into a battle of wills with Stanley, beautifully captured in the differing styles of the two actors. This extraordinarily fine adaptation won acting Oscars for Leigh, Kim Hunter (as Stella), and Karl Malden (as Blanche's clueless suitor), but not for Brando. Although it had already been considerably cleaned up from the daringly adult stage play, director Elia Kazan was forced to trim a few of the franker scenes he had shot. In 1993, Streetcar was rereleased in a "director's cut" that restored these moments, deepening a film that had already secured its place as an essential American work. --Robert Horton

Starring: William Holden, Gloria Swanson, Erich von Stroheim, Nancy Olson, Fred Clark, Lloyd Gough, Jack Webb, Franklyn Farnum, Larry J. Blake, Charles Dayton, Cecil B. DeMille, Hedda Hopper, Buster Keaton, Anna Q. Nilsson, H.B. Warner, Ray Evans, Jay Livingston, Creighton Hale, Roy Thompson, Archie Twitchell

Summary: Billy Wilder's noir-comic classic about death and decay in Hollywood remains as pungent as ever in its power to provoke shock, laughter, and gasps of astonishment. Joe Gillis (William Holden), a broke and cynical young screenwriter, is attempting to ditch a pair of repo men late one afternoon when he pulls off L.A.'s storied Sunset Boulevard and into the driveway of a seedy mansion belonging to Norma Desmond (Gloria Swanson), a forgotten silent movie luminary whose brilliant acting career withered with the coming of talkies. The demented old movie queen lives in the past, assisted by her devoted (but intimidating) butler, Max (played by Erich von Stroheim, the legendary director of Greed and Swanson's own lost epic, Queen Kelly). Norma dreams of making a comeback in a remake of Salome to be directed by her old colleague Cecil B. DeMille (as himself), and Joe becomes her literary and romantic gigolo. Sunset Blvd. is one of those great movies that has become a part of popular culture (the line "All right, Mr. DeMille, I'm ready for my close-up," has entered the language)--but it's no relic. Wow, does it ever hold up. --Jim Emerson

Starring: Jonah Hill, Michael Cera, Seth Rogen, Bill Hader

Summary: Striking a balance between raunch and sweetness is a tall order for any film, but the Judd Apatow-produced Superbad manages to serve up both in equal and satisfying portions without undercutting a consistent stream of laugh-out-loud performances and gags. Michael Cera (the sublime George Michael Bluth from Arrested Development) and unstoppable scene-stealer Jonah Hill (Apatow's Knocked Up) are lifelong pals who attempt to make up for years of obscurity by getting into one blowout party before parting ways for college; an opportunity presents itself in the form of Hill's crush, the lovely Jules (Emma Stone), who wants the boys to bring liquor to her shindig. What follows is a combination road adventure and coming of age story as Cera and Hill tackle crazed partygoers, a pair of overeager cops (played by co-scripter and producer Seth Rogen and Saturday Night Live's Bill Hader), and the hard truth about girls and their own emotional bond. The humor is crass and occasionally gross but never mean-spirited, and Cera and Hill offer believable performances as guys wholly unaware of their own potential, yet ready to risk humiliation in order to find out. They're well supported by a cast of Apatow regulars, including Kevin Corrigan, Martin Starr, David Krumholtz, and Carla Gallo (and Stone and Martha MacIsaac are terrific as their love interests), but the film is completely shoplifted by newcomer Christopher Mintz-Plasse as their uber-nerdy pal Fogell, whose fake ID handle is among the movie's funniest gags. Classic funk fans should also keep an ear out for the score by Lyle Workman, which features such James Brown and P-Funk veterans as Bootsy Collins, Bernie Worrell, and Clyde Stubblefield. --Paul Gaita

Stills from Superbad (click for larger image)