A moving tale of Black courage during a slave revolt in Brazil. Intelligent performances are combined with spectacular cinematography and music.

A samurai warlord grooms a double to take his place after his death, all in order to hold the clan empire together for the next three years. (On the bonus disc there is a terrific extra - a 40 minute version of the movie using Kurosawa's exquisite watercolor storyboards combined with voice and sound - a reverse experience from silent film) And don't miss Kurosawa's next samurai masterpiece, "Ran.

A hold your breath documentary about a bus hijacking in Rio De Janeiro. A unique look at the social forces behind criminality and our wilful resistance to fix these problems. A great film

Judeo-Christian filmmakers have been afraid to dramatize the scandalous Bible story of Jacob's daughter (Dinah)....so the first time it has been placed on the screen is from the African perspective. I have found that my favorite African films do involve mythic themes. Another outstanding movie in that genre is "Masai: The Rain Warriors.

A film that touches the holy. This beautiful film concerns a father who learns eventually how to relate emotionally to his blind son. Other striking films exploring the relationship of a boy to a father of Islamic faith are: "The Clay Bird, Captain Abu Raed, A Gift to Stalin, and (a personal favorite) Monsieur Ibrahim.

A Japanese father has one last chance to repair his relationship with his dying son. Discovering that his son is obsessed with Chinese classical opera, the father travels to China to film such a production, but his journey becomes an odyssey of life. This movie has a different visual style from others directed by Zhang Yimou, known for "Raise the Red Lantern" and "House of Flying Daggers.

Freedom for one nation is translated as terrorism for another. The viewer has the impression that he or she is watching true events unfold in French controlled Algeria. Compare this movie to the Russian occupation of Afghanistan in "Prisoner of the Mountains.

I cannot think of a better film which shows the suffocating nature of communism to stifle human imagination. A spy is given the task of eavesdropping on a well known playwright but the assignment forces him to question the values of his society. As he grows in humanity, he runs interference for his subject to save the playwright's life.

Desire...Passion...Murder. Filmed entirely in Andalusia, this opera has been magnificently transferred to the big screen. Julia Migenes invests Carmen with raw sexuality and headstrong wilfulness. As the ultimate 'femme fatale' perhaps only Marlene Dietrech as "The Blue Angel", Louise Brooks in "Pandora's Box" or Teresa Stratas as "Salome" is her equal.

There are historical moments when an artist's work achieves transcendence...in this case a female servant who received 14 years hospitality and lodging from two warmhearted sisters in a poor, rural, God-fearing village of Denmark shows her gratitude by preparing for them and their guests an exquisite French feast. I often compare this film to a Vermeer painting.

A delightful anti-war satire that makes us rethink who is sane...and who is mad. What sticks in my mind is the enchanting community of persons grouped in the asylum. As a result of this film, I had a teenage crush on Genevieve Bujold and I also loved her performance as wife of Henry VIII in the historical period drama "Anne of the Thousand Days.

If sensuousness could be translated into color, this would be that film. Alas, the movie is just about impossible to find...so for fresh, photographically breathtaking love stories, try these other possibilities, all in Asian settings: "Cherry Blossoms", "The Wooden Man's Bride". "Lust Caution", "Rouge", "Gate of Hell", "The Sea is Watching", or "The Lover.

A provocative film from Israel about two young women in a Jewish orthodox seminary who develop a deep friendship for each other when they struggle for a way to help a troubled stranger seek forgiveness for a terrible crime.