Antonia's Line: A-/A Finally got around to seeing this after three people insisted independently. Story follows the matriarch Antonia and her line of female offspring in a Dutch village over the course of 50 years. Stumbled upon it randomly in the video store, and in spite of my current prejudice against All Things Dutch, saw it, and loved it.
I liked a few things about the way this movie was made: The care given to facial expressions, especially Danielle, Antonia's power of non-judgment, the way gratuitous scenes are deliberately avoided to move the plot forward without dwelling on unnecessary voyeurism.
A quirky and funny, innovative portrait of village life without being sentimental or heavy. This is a nice slice of life movie, and a great "Woman Positive" movie without degenerating into a "chick flick."

Cabaret: Romance between cabaret singer and English teacher amidst the "divine decadence" of Berlin in the 30's. Liza Minelli wearing green nail varnish, well before "Urban Decay" discovered it was hip. This musical does a great job avoiding sentimentality, and integrating the music into the plot line. Great characters, great slice of life.

Chariots of Fire: Jew boy faces prejudice and personal obstacles competing in the 1922? Olympics. There's a reason this movie is a classic. It's filmed and acted elegantly, and has a great plot.

Caro Diario: I thought it was a hoot. Ivan liked it, but thought it was kind of boring. I loved how Nanni rode around and just looked at the different neighborhoods. He is the only one I have heard of that has understood this.
The Harvard Film Archive schedule had this to say:
"Hailed as the enfant terrible of Italian cinema and awarded best director at the 1994 Cannes Film Festival, writer / director Nanni Moretti has created a tender and intensely personal visual diary in three parts. In the breezy "On my Vespa" segment, Moretti rides around a lush summertime Rome observing the decay of Rome, the decline of Italian intellectualism, and the excesses of modern cinema. In "Islands," he humorously examines how the politically committed 60's generation has become apathetic even to the point of letting their children run their lives. "Doctors" chronicles Moretti's year-long bout with a mysterious ailment and the doctors and remedies he endures."

Did I see this movie?

Clueless: Jane Austin's Emma done Valley Girl style. Destined to be a classic for the 90's mall rat culture.

*Cold Comfort Farm: City Slick cleans up her country cousins. Hilarious, with great characters and great acting, ignore the ridiculous ending. Accents are terrific.

Dangerous Liaisons: Love or war? Is there a difference? 18th century battle of wills leads to betrayal, defloration, love, confidence, deceit, and not in that order. Glenn Close is phenomenal, Uma gets naked... but I don't get the John Malkovich thing. Why does everyone always rave about him?

Desperado: OK, all you snotty art fags, yes this is here, and for good reason. It is a kick-ass funny-as-hell action film, and I loved it. Funny and violent. Totally Avant-garde-- a continuation of the Pulp Fiction humor and ultra-violence aesthetic. Soundtrack and cinematography make this a movie for the big screen. Antonio and Selma are way easy on the eyes.

Dr. Strangelove: A plane on course to drop the bomb on Russia, and the behind the scenes politicking. Peter Sellers plays 7 roles. A bit drawn out, but I loved the aerial footage, models or not, and, of course, Peter Sellers. When seeing this film, keep in mind this was an unforgivable anti-government slap in the face.

The Empire Strikes Back Loved it, hated Yoda. Note: you will not find Return of the Jedi in this section.

A Fish Called Wanda: Zany madcap adventures of a bunch of jewel thieves. I laughed so hard, I nearly peed. Kevin Kline steals the film, but the whole gang is terrific. Classic.

*Gregory's Girl -- Scottish teenage geek falls in nub with girl jock who usurps his position on the soccer (football) team. Verrry rough and goofy film, but has that teen thing down, and it is so FUNNY that it remains among my favs. Bill Forsyth- Scottish director, has this kind of quirky humor, unrivaled. It's sort of Makavejev without the perversity, and it's much more home spun and smaller in scale. Those accents are great.

Head: Monkees Psychedelic Movie. Loving it, Even...

*How to Get a Head in Advertising: Advertising man battles his inner demon for control of his soul, and for the souls of consumers everywhere. Richard E. Grant being Richard E. Grant as only Richard E. Grant can be. The monologues are amazing. This film defines the expression Offbeat. One of my all time favs.

Hudsucker Proxy: Tim Robbins as lovable schmo with ambition in 1950's NYC. Visually clever, with an edge. Wonderful vision of art deco New York. Jennifer Jason Leigh gets to do her famous fast-talkin' vintage gal accent. This is a great movie for the whole fam. but don't let that scare you.

*Impromptu: A hilarious story fabricated around the life of the outrageous writer George Sands and her wacky circle of artsy pals, their days in the country and their nights in each other's beds. Perfection in terms of filming and acting. (Ivan IS a character in the movie, see if you can guess which one.) Judy Davis is strong, theatrical and wonderful. Nice glimpses of Emma Thompson, who steals the movie, and an anemic but adorable Hugh Grant. Julian Sands again plays aloof sexy-guy who can't control his passion, let alone his accent.

*Labyrinth of Passion (Rough production quality, some uneven cuts, and some confusion in the narrative, but the story is worth it.) This is the beginning of Almodovar's experimentation with absurd plot twists (his second film). In this movie more than in any other, he recreates the music SCENE in Madrid in the early 80's with it's decadence, over the top garishness and insane characters. The concert is among the best parts. This is one of my all time fave's

Leningrad Cowboys Go America: A Siberian rock band tours America. "Where does he get all that beer?" Image. Style. Quirky. Definitely to be filed in the "cult" section. Though this is by Finnish director, Kourasmaaki, and is in Finnish, it's also in B&W, which means look out for the MANDITORY Jim Jarmush cameo.

Like Water for Chocolate: Sultry romance with plenty of originality, and a touch of over sentimentality. Beautifully filmed. Good date movie. The guy, Marco Leonardi (of Cinema Paridiso fame), is a DISH.

Local Hero: Texas oilman goes to Scottish Fishing Village for business deal. Bill Forsyth totally nailed this one. It has the bizarre humor of his earlier stuff, but he's mastered balancing out his characters and plot lines, and his filming. He always amazes me because his movies are very small, the humor so surreal. True original.

*M�nner: (Men) Jilted husband befriends his wife's lover in order to save the marriage. Doris D�rrie was onto something here-- the hilarious interactions between guys philosophizing about women... Nice to see a woman's take on the subject. This is one of my all-time faves.

Manifesto: Seductress and spy returns to hometown, Central Europe in the 1920's, in order to advance the movement. OK, so it's pretty much an excuse to play voyeur, but Makavejev manages to weave an amusing, if frivolous web of intrigue at the same time. Dusan Makavejev remains my hero-- there's a bit of Pedro Almodovar and Bill Forsyth in him.

The Marriage of Figaro: The Peter Sellers Version, set in Trump Tower, NYC over Christmas in the '80's. I will never look at opera the same way.

*Matador: Psychics, girlfriends, Catholics, cops, gardeners, matadors and lawyers. Bloodlust, seduction and soul mates. A total rush. Culmination of Almodovar's ability to create sensual characters, beautiful stills, absurd interludes, and a dark, perverse morality that somehow makes sense makes this a totally amazing ride.

Metropolis: Fritz Lang's silent classic about workers revolution in a corrupt capitalist society. Amazing images of the futuristic city.

Much Ado About Nothing: Beautifully filmed and acted version of Shakespeare's comedy. Emma and Kenneth are fabu, as is Denzil. Claudio talks like Donald Duck, Michael Keaton is too over the top, and Keanau... is ...well...Keanau.

*My Beautiful Laundrette: Paki and Punk fags getting it on in Brixton. My first queer flick, and I was in love... First time I saw Daniel Day Lewis act. "In MY experience, it's always worf waitin' fo' Omar..." Wow. Compare him in this movie to his role in another movie of 1985: Cicil Vyse in A Room with a View.

The Nasty Girl: Semi-Autobiographical? German film about a young woman who finds out about her town's hidden Nazi past. Surprisingly, this film is rather amusing, and even sometimes quite silly, as well as being captivating.

*A New Kind of Love: Tomboy and Womanizer take turns playing the cat and mouse. I never realized Joanne Woodward was such a dish! I never Knew Paul Newman was a Jock! Great Characters, original plot, and great fun. Never realized movies in the 60's could be so full of innuendo. One of my faves.

Orlando: Documents Orlando's journey through 400 years of being a nobleman and noblewoman. Genderbender. It's a hit or a miss for people. I grooved with the sarcasm.

Persona: Nurse cares for actress recovering from a nervous breakdown. After I saw this movie I understood the term "Psychological Film." Bergman's movie makes him seem less a cinematographer, and more a still photographer. The images are breathtaking, and the close ups of the faces unparalleled. Bibi Anderson, Liv Ulman star, so the dish quotient is high.

Rosalie Goes Shopping: German mother of 8 does some creative home finance. Percy Adelon again totally creates this wacky bizarro world of garish colors, German idiosyncrasies and Arkansas hickdom. Love the twins. Love the nicknames. Love the Home Shopping Scene. Love Marianne S�gebrecht. Good American Landscape movie.

Sammy and Rosie Get Laid: Interracial intellectual couple slums it amidst the race wars in Brixton of the 80's. Love the scene where Rosie walks through the riot torn streets in existential bliss. Love the three-part sex scene. Note, each couple is interracial. Also love the question of how do you love someone who has committed unspeakable evils.

Sense and Sensibility: Sisters love and learn. Flawless filming and acting, with some extra delights in the screen adaptation of Jane Austin's novel. Emma and Kate are hot. Hugh is stammeringly charming, if you like that sort of thing. Funny note: Emma, formerly married to Kenneth Brannagh, is now with Greg Wise, who plays her "sister's" suitor, Willoughby in S&S. Kenneth is now with Helena Bonham Carter, who played Emma's "sister" in Howard's End. Hmmmm....

*Six degrees of Separation: New York Art dealer and society wife meet the captivating son of an actor. A fantastic story-- also based on a true story. Chaos, Control, Chaos, control... Great NY movie.

Sixteen Candles: 80's Classic. Came out when I was 15. I won tickets to see it from WBCN, by answering some call-in trivia question. But I couldn't see it because it was on a school night. I think its better now then it was then due to kitsch value, though I loved it then just as much.

*Some Like it Hot: Broke Musicians get into drag to dodge gangsters. Hilarious madcap adventure classic. Jack Lemmon and Tony Curtis. Great gender bending flick. Put the Mmmm in Maralyn Monroe.

Star Wars The re-release is not worth it unless you are such a geek that you can't live without seeing it. The changes were kind of ho hum. Ever noticed how the shot that destroys the Death Star is a nice little conception analogy, and how Luke has a total orgasm when he fires the shot? Perverts. Classic which still is fun to watch.

Swimming to Cambodia: Actor recounts his experiences in SE Asia and the filming of The Killing Fields. At the time it came out it was revolutionary-- monologue with sound, light that had the power to illustrate as well as any exotic footage. Laurie Anderson did soundtrack. Powerful stories.

*This is Spinal Tap: Rocumentary about an aging heavy metal band. Has spawned a complete sub culture: "These go to eleven..." Genius film, another classic.

To Be or Not To Be: Comedy about a theater troupe in Warsaw helping the resistance against the Nazi's. Mel Brooks' remake of the Billy Wilder? 1940's version (also excellent). Brooks' version updates it and throws in a few raunchy jokes. He's terrific, Anne Bancroft is fabulous and Tim Matheson's eyes are dreamy...

*Victor/Victoria: Down and out in Paris, a Female opera singer becomes cabaret sensation as a female impersonator. My fave gender bending flick. It's also amusing to see a not so tight-assed Julie Andrews. She rocks in this, albeit a bit formally.

Virgina: The fourth daughter of a shepherding family in turn of the century Serbia is raised as a boy to ward off bad luck. Film by Srdjan Karanovic who teaches at BU. The landscape and story of the film are imprinted on my brain.

*Wayne's World: Yes, snobs, it's here. This film is destined to be a classic.

The Wedding Banquet: Taiwanese gay guy gets "married" to save his family's honor. Movie is a little rough around the edges in terms of acting and filming, but well worth it.

When I close my eyes (Ko Zaprem Ochi): Maybe it wasn't so good. Maybe I just liked the guy. The movie is a nice fantasy-- postal clerk falls for mystical stranger who robs the post office. Beautifully filmed Slovenian movie. Naahhhh. I think I really liked this. Not perfection in terms of plot balance, but still so innovative and lyrically quirky.

*The Women: 1930's women gossip, connive, crave and diss men.... ahhhh, L'amour, L'amour.... Note that there are only women in the film. Even the dogs are female. There's been talk about doing a remake with Madonna... ugh.