1950s

Plot Synopsis:
William Gibson’s novel The Cobweb was brought to the screen by MGM with an impressive, hand-picked cast. Richard Widmark plays the head of a posh psychiatric clinic. Widmark’s wife Gloria Grahame jockeys for the honor of selecting new drapes for the hospital’s library. One wouldn’t think that such a trivial decision would spark so much melodrama; but thanks to those drapes, we are allowed to probe the disturbed psyches of martinet business affairs director Lillian Gish, philandering doctor Charles Boyer, lonely activities director Lauren Bacall, and suicidal patient John Kerr. Oscar Levant, who spent most of his life in and out of “little white rooms”, is ideally cast as a neurotic musician, while Fay Wray has a superb cameo as Boyer’s long-suffering wife. Cobweb served as the screen debuts for both John Kerr and Susan Strasberg. by Hal EricksonRead More »

During the 17th Century bands of hatamoto, samurai vassals of the Tokugawa shogunate, were causing havoc in the new capital city of Edo. Opposing them was Banzui-in Chobei, whose sole aim was to save Edo from the hatamoto as their violent behavior threatened to pull apart the very fabric of society.Read More »

Summaries
Alexander, Boris and Vasily are three old friends, who now rarely see each other as they are busy with their professional life. They embark on long-planned voyage on a raft down the Volga river, which turns into a series of comical accidents but also strengthens their friendship.Read More »

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The film presents the wildlife of the Gemenc flood area sanctuary, arranging the episodes of each selected species into little etudes: how the fox steals the chicken from the pen, how the roused deer flees jumping across a huge abyss, how the sturgeon sticks to the bottom of the water, how the adoption of an orphaned fawn takes place. Wildlife is wound into striking novellas by shedding light on the inner life of the forest’s inhabitants.Read More »

A man has been found dead after having been hurled from a train. As security agents, police and a medical examiner piece together his identity, three accounts emerge: one set during World War II, one in the immediate aftermath of the war, and one in contemporary Poland.Read More »

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The film describes the life of the last Macedonian nomadic ethnic group, so called Karakachani. In 18th century, their ancestors, ants of the Traco-Illyrian, leaded by Papucoroshi, as a result of the Turkish oppression withdrew from Gramos, passing through the Macedonian mountains. They settled the surroundings of the mountain Osogovo, particularly the village Vrbica, in Kochani’s district. Nowadays, they can be seen dressed in black, on market days through the towns of Eastern Macedonia. They are also known as Armany, Karavlachs, Cyncary, Crnoguncy and Vlachs, as they call themselves. In spring, before they leave on their nomadic trip with the flocks of sheep, at first they fleece the sheep and make various handmade products for domestic use.Read More »

In a small German village in the middle of large moors, there is an old legend of a young woman having sunk in the wetland after being raped by a Swedish intruder of the Thirty Years’ war. Now young Dorothee, falling in love with the architect Ludwig, is harassed by an obnoxious, rich farmer Eschmann. The brutal man is ready to do anything to get the maiden. The history is repeating itself, as Eschmann follows Dorothee to the moors after his crime.Read More »

Louis Bertain is the owner of a Paris garage which is the front for a robbery gang. He and his accomplices are careful to keep up a civic veneer by day, indulging in criminal activities only when “the red light is on” at night. This status quo is upset when one of the gang members becomes convinced that Louis’ younger brother is a police informer.Read More »

Quote:
This landmark film is a brilliant exploration of truth and human weakness. It opens with a priest, a woodcutter, and a peasant taking refuge from a downpour beneath a ruined gate in 12th-century Japan. The priest and the woodcutter, each looking stricken, discuss the trial of a notorious bandit for rape and murder. As the retelling of the trial unfolds, the participants in the crime — the bandit (Toshiro Mifune), the rape victim (Machiko Kyo), and the murdered man (Masayuki Mori) — tell their plausible though completely incompatible versions of the story.Read More »