Fictional Film
Updated and edited by Mollie Smith (2002), Alexis Howe (2005), Chang Wang (2005), and Randall Ryder (2007), reproduced with permission.
Abuladze,
Tenghiz (Director). Pokayaniye. Georgia: Cannon Group, 1987.
In
Repentance
(Pokayaniye),
the Georgian mayor is a cruel, oppressive ruler. After he dies and his son
tries to pick up the pieces of his life, a local woman refuses to let the
father’s bones stay buried in order to express her own disgust at the man’s
horrible regime. The Soviet Union refused the distribution of the film in
1984, but it won the Special Jury Prize at the Cannes film festival when it was
released in 1987.[1]
Abu-Assad,
Hany (Director). Paradise Now. Palestine/Germany/France: Augustus Film, 2005.
A
unique perspective on Middle East politics. The story places two close friends,
Palestinians Said and Khaled, recruited by an extremist group as suicide
bombers to perpetrate a terrorist attack in Tel-Aviv. However, things go wrong and both friends must separate in
the border. From that point on,
the two friends take divergent paths, resulting in diverging consequences. (based on: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0445620/)
http://wip.warnerbros.com/paradisenow/
Abu-Assad, Hany
(Director). Rana’s Wedding.
Palestine/Netherlands: Augustus Films, 2002.
About
a Palestinian girl of 17 who wants to get married to the man of her own
choosing. Rana wakes up one morning to an ultimatum delivered by her father:
she must either choose a husband from a pre-selected list of men, or she must
leave Palestine for Egypt with her father by 4:00 that afternoon. With ten
hours to find her boyfriend in occupied Jerusalem, she sneaks out of her
father's house at daybreak to find her forbidden love Khalil. (synopsis from: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0305229/plotsummary)
Apted,
Michael (Director). Thunderheart. United States:
Columbia/Tristar Studios, 1992.
Thunderheart focuses on an FBI
investigation of a murder on the Oglala Sioux reservation. Val Kilmer
portrays a half Sioux FBI agent struggling to come to terms with the Native
American heritage he has chosen to ignore. The agent discovers a
conspiracy headed by the FBI to hide the source of toxins in the reservation’s
water supply, a conspiracy that leads to the murder to a young Oglala Sioux
woman. The movie is based on events surrounding an actual standoff
between FBI agents and Indian activists in 1975 on the Pine Ridge Reservation
in South Dakota.
Apted,
Michael. Amazing Grace. UK/USA: Fourboys Films, 2007.
An
idealistic English man, William Wilberforce, attempts to successfully maneuver
his way through Parliament in 19th century England in an attempt to stop the
British transatlantic slave trade.
(based on information from: http://www.amazinggracemovie.com/)
http://www.amazinggracemovie.com/
Attenborough,
Richard (Director). Cry
Freedom.
United States: Universal Pictures, 1987.
Cry
Freedom
is a portrayal of apartheid South Africa. A black activist, Steve Biko
(Denzel Washington), and a liberal white journalist (Kevin Kline) become friends to fight the status
quo. When Biko is murdered, Kline’s character must carry on alone.[2]
Attenborough,
Richard (Director). Gandhi. 1982.
Sir Richard
Attenborough's 1982 multiple-Oscar winner (including Best Picture, Best
Director, and Best Actor for Ben Kingsley) is an engrossing, reverential look
at the life of Mohandas K. Gandhi, who introduced the doctrine of nonviolent
resistance to the colonized people of India and who ultimately gained the
nation its independence. Kingsley is magnificent as Gandhi as he changes over
the course of the three-hour film from an insignificant lawyer to an
international leader and symbol. Strong on history (the historic division
between India and Pakistan, still a huge problem today, can be seen in its
formative stages here) as well as character and ideas, this is a fine film. --Tom Keogh ( Based on film review
published on Amazon.com.)
Avildsen,
John G. (Director). The Power of One. Australia: Warner Brothers
Entertainment, 1992.
The
Power of One
is the story of a South African English boy, P.K., and his determination to do
what is right. P.K. has been taught to respect and admire his African neighbors instead of
regarding them as inferiors, as most of the other English and Afrikaners
do. P.K. learns to hate his country’s system of apartheid and, through friendships and his own
ingenuity, attempts to undermine it.
Avnet,
Jon (Director). Red
Corner.
1997.
Jack Moore
is an American attorney having talks in Beijing about founding the first
satellite TV joint venture. Suddenly he is arrested, accused of murder and has to prove it
was a frame-up together with his court-appointed attorney Shen Yuelin.
(Based
on information provided by Amazon.com.)
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/6304883773/qid=1138024031/sr=1-1/ref=sr_1_1/103-7669510-0088653?s=dvd&v=glance&n=130
Babenco,
Hector. Caradiru. USA: Sony Pictures
Classics, 2004.
This
film portrays the living conditions and injustices that are allowed inside a
Brazilian state penitentiary.
Babanco,
Hector. Kiss
of the Spider Woman.
USA: Island Alive, 1985.
Based on the
novel by Manuel Puig, Kiss
of the Spider Woman portrays
the experience of cellmates in a South American prison – one “guilty” of
being homosexual and
the other a political prisoner.
Bachir,
Yamina (Director). Rachida. Algeria/France: Canal +, 2002.
Algeria saw
its citizens living under the shadow of terrorism for the bulk of the 1990s and
Rachida is a teacher who attempts to make a start in her young life by
imparting wisdom and educating the young. But her steadfast principals land her
in trouble when she encounters a group of terrorists. Refusing to obey their
unreasonable orders, Rachida unwittingly places the whole school in danger of a
terrorist attack. An honest look at the problems that beset Algeria in the
final decade of the 20th century.
(synopsis from: http://movies.yahoo.com/movie/1808643808/details)
http://leb.net/~aljadid/film/Rachida.html
Barroso,
Mariano. In
the Time of the Butterflies. USA: MGM Home Entertainment, 2001.
This movie
is based on the novel by Julia Alvarez, which is based on the true story of the
Mirabal sisters who resisted the Trujillo dictatorship in the Dominican Republic
during the 1960s and who were also killed by this same regime.
Benigni,
Roberto (Director). Life Is Beautiful. Italy:
Miramax Home Entertainment, 1998.
Life
Is Beautiful
is a comic, yet tragic film about an Italian man’s efforts to protect his son
from seeing the horrors of a Nazi concentration camp. Guido (Roberto
Benigni), tells his son that the concentration camp they have been deported to
is all part of an elaborate contest in which the winner gets a tank.
Benigni creates a wonderful comedy while simultaneously showing the tragedy of
the Holocaust. Benigni received Oscars for Best Actor and Best Foreign
Language Film. In Italian with English subtitles.[3]
Based
on film information provided by Amazon.com.
Beresford,
Bruce (Director). Breaker
Morant. Australia: 7 Network, 1980.
During the Boer
War in South Africa, three Australian officers are put on trial by a British
military court for murdering prisoners.
(based on information from the website below.)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Breaker_Morant_(film)
Berg,
Peter (Director). The Kingdom. United States: Universal Pictures,
2007.
A FBI
counterterrorism team (Jamie Foxx, Chris Cooper, Jennifer Garner, Jason
Batemen) is sent to Saudi Arabia to investigate a terrorist bomb explodes
inside a U.S. housing compound.
After some initial difficulties, the team aligns itself with a Saudi
Police Captain and pursue the perpetrators.
http://www.thekingdommovie.com/
Blanke,
Alfred (Director). The
Life of Emile Zola.
1937. Warner Bros.
The Life of
Emile Zola episodically explores the career of the novelist who championed the
cause of France's oppressed. Zola (Paul Muni) is a hugely successful French
author who risks all his success and comfort to come to the defense of the
unjustly jailed Capt. Dreyfus (Oscar winner Joseph Schildkraut). Winner of three Oscars overall-and of immense critical
and popular success-this distinguished film is a must-see portrait of a life
that's "a moment of the conscience of man."
(Based on
information provided by Amazon.com. )
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/B0006HBV3W/qid=1138024257/sr=1-1/ref=sr_1_1/103-7669510-0088653?v=glance&s=dvd
Bouchareb,
Rachid (Direcor). Days of Glory. Algeria/France: Tessalit Productions,
2006.
In World War
II, Muslims from French colonies enlist to fight for their motherland France -
the film follows the story of a group of such men. Along the campaign in Italy, France and Alsace, they realize
that French soldiers are promoted, has better food and have leaves to visit
their families, while the Arab soldiers are shamefully discriminated and
treated like 2nd ranking soldiers.
(synopsis from: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0444182/plotsummary)
http://tadrart.com/tessalit/indigenes/home_gb.html
Bouzid,
Nouri (Director). Man of Ashes. Tunisia: Cinetelefilms, 1986.
As his
wedding date approaches, handsome young Hachemi must confront and resolve his
feelings of guilt and anxiety about a sexual incident from his past. The film thoroughly examines
traditionally masculine roles and identity in Tunisia. (synopsis from: http://www.arabfilm.com/item/94/)
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0091470/
Buñuel,
Luís. Los
Olvidados.
USA: Arthur
Mayer-Edward Kingsley Inc. , 1952.
This
movie portrays the life and struggles of poor slum children in Mexico City,
demonstrating the destructive effects of poverty on children.
Caetano,
Adrian (Director). Bolivia.
Argentina/Netherlands: Fundracion PROA, 2001.
Bolivia tells the story of Freddy, an
illegal immigrant who has left Bolivia, his home and his family to try his luck
in Argentina, where he hopes to build a future in which they can be reunited.
He lands a job as a cook in a restaurant where the owner is happy to flout the
law in order to secure cheap labor and where Freddy meets the characters that
will change the course of his life - a Paraguayan waitress, a traveling
salesman from the province of Córdoba, two Buenos Aires -porteño- taxi drivers
and one of the driver's buddies. The interactions between Freddy, his
co-workers and the regular clientele unfold into a low key but deeply humane drama,
in which prejudice and discrimination are commonplace, and rare glimpses of
warmth all the more precious because of this. With strong performances, a
concise narrative and impeccable camera work, Bolivia explores issues of
xenophobia and social violence in Argentina. (synopsis from: http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/bolivia/about.php)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bolivia_(film)
Canton-Jones,
Michael (Director). Beyond the
Gates. UK/Germany: CrossDay Productions Ltd.,
2005
Based on a true story from the
1994 massacre of Tutsis in Rwanda. An exhausted Catholic priest and a young
idealistic English teacher finds themselves caught in the middle of the
genocide and decide to harbor thousands of Tutsis in an attempt to protect them
from the Hutu militia.
http://beyondthegates-movie.com/
Caro,
Niki. North
Country.
2005
" North Country ," is inspired by
the life of a real person, Lois Jenson, who filed the first class action
lawsuit for sexual harassment in American history. That the suit
was settled as recently as 1991 came as a surprise to me; I would have guessed
the 1970s, but no, that's when the original court decision came down. Like the court's decisions on civil rights, it
didn't change everything overnight.
(Roger
Ebert, regerebert.com)
Cedar,
Joseph (Director). Campfire. Israel: Cinema Post Production, Ltd.,
2004.
The story of
a young widow, mother of two beautiful teenage daughters, who wants to join the
founding group of a new religious settlement in the West Bank, but first must
convince the acceptance committee that she is worthy. Things get complicated
when the younger daughter is accused of seducing some boys from her youth
movement. (synopsis from: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0374036/)
http://hoopla.nu/films/campfire/campfire.html
Chan-wook,
Park (Director). Joint Security
Area. South Korea: CJ Entertainment, 2000.
Set in a
particularly tense area of the demilitarized zone between the Koreas, a
whodunit with a pointedly political theme and an unapologetically humanist
message. Major Jean (Lee Yeong-ae), who grew up in Switzerland, comes to South
Korea, her father's homeland, to investigate an incident that took place inside
the Joint Security Area, administered by Swedish and Swiss peacekeepers.
Collecting depositions from both sides, she encounters two predictably opposed
accounts of the shooting, which left two North Korean soldiers dead. With the
specter of nuclear hostilities hovering, Major Jean's investigation is a lot
more than routine police work.
(synopsis based on: http://movies.nytimes.com/movie/227029/Joint-Security-Area/overview)
http://www.beyondhollywood.com/joint-security-area-2000-movie-review/
Chen,
Joan (Director). Xiu
Xiu: The Sent Down Girl (Tian Yu). China. 1998.
Directed by
Joan Chen from an award-winning novella banned in China because of political
and sexual content, "Xiu Xiu: The Sent Down Girl" is a powerful love story.
Between 1967 and 1976, nearly 8 million Chinese youths were "sent
down" for specialized training to the remotest corners of the country.
Before being sent down, the young and beautiful Xiu Xiu dreams of becoming a
horse trainer in the wide open plains of Tibet, far away from her busy city
home. Her journey begins in a training camp in the isolated plains with a
solitary and mysterious man. Slowly, Xiu Xiu discovers that she is unlikely to
ever see her home again without a
wealthy sponsor. Her world becomes a horrifying cage, where "patrons"
promise her escape in exchange for her sexual compromise. This is one girl's
story and a compassionate deed that inspired one special man and everyone who
hears her tale.
(Based
on information provided by Amazon.com.)
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00001O2GH/qid=1138023796/sr=11-1/ref=sr_11_1/103-7669510- 0088653?n=130
Chen,
Kaige (Director). Farewell
My Concubine.
China.
The panorama
of 20th-century Chinese history swirls past two men, celebrated actors with
their own decidedly specialized view of things. We first observe their lives as
children at the Peking Opera training school, a brutal and demanding arena for
future actors. While still in training, the effeminate Douzi is chosen to play
the transvestite role and the masculine Shitou is chosen to play the royal role
in a ritualized play about a king and a concubine. The actors are so good at
this performance that they become identified with these roles for their entire
careers; through World War II, through the takeover by the Communists, through
the insanity of the Cultural Revolution, they are known for their famous parts.
Leslie Cheung and Zhang Fengyi are powerful as the two men, and Gong Li (the
beautiful leading lady of Raise the Red Lantern) plays the wife of the
latter. The movie may be stronger on good old-fashioned melodrama than on
profound conclusions, but boy, does it fill up the eyes. The director is Chen
Kaige, one of the most talented members of China's "Fifth Generation"
of filmmakers, whose daring subject matter (and sometimes bald international
ambitions) have often irked the Chinese government. Indeed, though Farewell My
Concubine
shared the top prize at the 1993 Cannes Film Festival and snagged two Oscar
nominations, it had difficulty gaining official approval from China. --Robert
Horton
(Based on film review
published on Amazon.com.)
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00002RAPT/qid=1138023822/sr=1-1/ref=sr_1_1/103-7669510-0088653?s=dvd&v=glance&n=130
Chouraqui,
Elie (Director). O Jerusalem. France: Les Films de l’Instant, 2006.
Re-creates
the historic struggle surrounding the creation of the State of Israel in 1948.
At the center of these events are two young, American friends - one Jewish, the
other Arab. The film is told from the alternating viewpoints of various
ethnicities, all of whom collide in their fight for the control of Jerusalem
while bringing to the forefront themes of courage, terrorism, deprivation,
politics and a strong sense of morality. Their involvement takes them from the
streets of New York to The Holy Land, where they risk their lives making
incredible sacrifices along the way to fight for what they believe in, as the
city of their dreams teeters on the brink of destruction. (synopsis from: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0443448/)
http://www.ojerusalemthemovie.com/
Clooney,
George (Director).
Good Night, and Good Luck. 2005.
" Good Night, and
Good Luck" is a movie about a
group of professional newsmen who with surgical precision remove a cancer from
the body politic. They believe in the fundamental American freedoms, and in
Sen. Joseph McCarthy they see a man who would destroy those freedoms in the
name of defending them. Because McCarthy is a liar and a bully, surrounded by
yes-men, recklessly calling his opponents traitors, he commands great power for
a time. He destroys others with lies, and then is himself destroyed by the
truth. helped to bring down one of the most controversial senators in American
history.
(Roger
Ebert, regerebert.com)
Coppola,
Francis-Ford (Director). Apocalypse
Now. United States: United Artists, 1979.
The story of
an Army captain (Martin Sheen) sent to Vietnam to assassinate a Special Forces
Colonel (Marlon Brando) who has supposedly gone insane.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apocalypse_Now
Costa-Gavras,
Constantin (Director). The
Confession.
France: Pomeren-Valoria, 1970.
Costa-Gavras’s
film is about the Stalinist puppet trials in Czechoslovakia in 1952 and the
extracted and false confessions drawn out of dissidents through torture.
An Eastern European Communist official, who had been a loyalist during the
Spanish Civil War, finds that he is being followed. He is soon arrested,
tortured, and put in a show trial without being told why. In French.[4]
Costa-Gavras,
Constantin (Director).
Music Box.
United States: Tri-Star Pictures, 1990.
An
American woman defends her father as the U.S. attempts to deport him. The
father, a Hungarian immigrant, is accused of having committed crimes against
humanity while serving in a Nazi-allied police force in his home country.
The daughter discovers things about her father that she never imagined and her
story becomes an allegory of American ignorance and innocence.[5]
Costa-Gavras,
Constantin (Director). Z. Algeria/France: Office National pour le
Commerce et l'Industrie Cinématographique, 1969.
Costa-Gavras
chronicles the overthrow of the democratic government in Greece. When a liberal
politician is murdered in an attack during a peace demonstration, the right
wing established figures in the military and the police try and hide not only
their parts in it, but try to cover up the murder as well. The prosecutor must
act as a detective in order to go through the cover up. While historically
accurate, it is told as a combination mystery and thriller. (synopsis from: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0065234/plotsummary)
http://www.filmcritic.com/misc/emporium.nsf/reviews/Z
Costner,
Kevin (Director). Dances With
Wolves. United States: Orion Pictures, 1990.
The
story of a US Army soldier (Kevin Costner) who sets out to man an abandoned
Fort on the western frontier. The
soldier soon encounters the local Sioux Indian tribe and soon becomes their
friend, ally, and eventually is incorporated into their tribe, even marrying
one of the members of the tribe.
But soon after, the US Army discovers he is a deserter and begins to
hunt both him and the tribe.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dances_with_Wolves
Dash,
Julie (Director) The Rosa Parks Story. 2002. US
The
story of the civil rights heroine whose refusal to obey racial bus segregation
was just one of her acts in her fight for justice.
Demme,
Jonathan (Director). Beloved. United States: Buena Vista, 1998.
Jonathan
Demme’s Beloved is a close adaptation
of Toni Morrison’s acclaimed novel. The film revolves around Sethe (Oprah
Winfrey), a runaway slave living in Ohio with the remnants of her family.
The family is haunted by Sethe’s dead baby, whom she had killed rather than let
be taken back into slavery. Their lives are thrown further into mystery
and chaos as an enigmatic girl named Beloved appears at their house one day.
DePalma,
Brian (Director). Redacted. United States: Magnolia Pictures, 2007.
Inspired
by true events, the story follows a group of soldiers who are stationed at a
checkpoint in Iraq. Angel Salazar is an aspiring filmmaker who is intent on
capturing his experience on videotape. His fellow soldiers--Reno Flake, Lawyer
McCoy, and Gabe Blix -- seem to be surprisingly well-adjusted at first, but it
isn’t long before their true colors come through. When Reno decides to get
drunk and harass an Iraqi family, the situation devolves into rape and murder,
putting an incredible strain on Lawyer, who wants to expose Reno but doesn’t
want to rat out a fellow soldier.
(synopsis from: http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/10008755-redacted/about.php)
http://rogerebert.suntimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20071115/REVIEWS/711150303/1023
DeSica,
Vittorio (Director). Shoeshine. Italy: Societa Cooperativa Alfa Cinematografica, 1946.
The story of two young boys who work on
the streets of Rome in 1946 shining the shoes of American troops. When the boys
are implicated in a petty crime, they are punished by society, resulting in
tragic consequences. It was
inspired by the real stories of people caught up in the chaos of a world
plagued by poverty and unemployment. (synopsis from: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Shoeshine-Sciuscia-Masters-Franco-Interlenghi/dp/B000HEVTQ8)
http://oldschoolreviews.com/rev_40/shoeshine.htm
DeSica,
Vittorio (Director). Garden of the Finzi-Continis. Italy: Central Cinema Company Film, 1970.
Based on the autobiographical novel by
Giorgio Bassani, the film covers the lives of several Jewish characters from
the onset of Mussolini's anti-Semitic edicts in 1938 to the arrest and
deportation of all of the Italian Jews in 1943. As the story focuses on a love story, Mussolini is slowly
dissolving the rights of all Italian Jews, though the mean characters appear
unable to accept this fact, let alone deal with its consequences. The film is a tragic, cautionary
account of how the most elevated and aristocratic members of a society can
ignore their approaching destruction.
(based on: http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/garden_of_the_finzicontinis/about.php)
http://www.sonypictures.com/classics/garden/
Duigan,
John. Romero. USA: Four Square,
1989.
This film
chronicles the life, death and struggles of the Archbishop Oscar Romero, who
resisted and was murdered by the oppressive regime in El Salvador during the
1980’s.
Edwards,
Robert (Director). Land of the
Blind. UK/USA: Avnet/Kerner Productions, 2006.
A political drama about terrorism and revolution. In an unnamed place and time, an
idealistic soldier named Joe strikes up an illicit friendship with a political
prisoner named Thorne, who eventually recruits him into a bloody coup d'etat.
But in the post-revolutionary world, what Thorne asks of Joe leads the two men
into bitter conflict, spiraling downward into madness until Joe's
co-conspirators conclude that they must erase him from history. (synopsis from: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0433405/plotsummary)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Land_of_the_Blind_(film)
Eisenstein,
Sergei (Director). Battleship
Potemkin.
Soviet Union. 1925.
Sergei
Eisenstein's revolutionary sophomore feature has so long stood as a textbook
example of montage editing that many have forgotten what an invigoratingly
cinematic experience he created. A 20th-anniversary tribute to the 1905
revolution, Eisenstein portrays the revolt in microcosm with a dramatization of
the real-life mutiny aboard the battleship Potemkin. The story tells a
familiar party-line message of the oppressed working class (in this case the
enlisted sailors) banding together to overthrow their oppressors (the ship's
officers), led by proto-revolutionary Vakulinchuk. When he dies in the
shipboard struggle the crew lays his body to rest on the pier, a moody, moving
scene where the citizens of Odessa slowly emerge from the fog to pay their
respects. As the crowd grows Eisenstein turns the tenor from mourning a fallen
comrade to celebrating the collective achievement. The government responds by
sending soldiers and ships to deal with the mutinous crew and the supportive
townspeople, which climaxes in the justly famous (and often imitated and
parodied) Odessa Steps massacre. Eisenstein edits carefully orchestrated
motions within the frame to create broad swaths of movement, shots of varying
length to build the rhythm, close-ups for perspective and shock effect, and
symbolic imagery for commentary, all to create one of the most cinematically
exciting sequences in film history. Eisenstein's film is Marxist propaganda to
be sure, but the power of this masterpiece lies not in its preaching but its
poetry. --Sean
Axmaker (
Based on film review published on Amazon.com.) http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0001EFTXI/qid=1137989254/sr=8-1/ref=pd_bbs_1/103-7669510-0088653?n=507846&s=dvd&v=glance
Falconetti,
Maria (Director). The
Passion of Joan of Arc. 1928.
The
sufferings of a martyr, Jeanne D'Arc (1412-1431). Jeanne appears in court where
Cauchon questions her and d'Estivet spits on her. She predicts her rescue, is
taken to her cell, and judges forge evidence against her. In her cell, priests
interrogate her and judges deny her the Mass. Threatened first in a torture
chamber and then offered communion if she will recant, she refuses. At a
cemetery, in front of a crowd, a priest and supporters urge her to recant; she
does, and Cauchon announces her sentence. In her cell, she explains her change
of mind and receives communion. In the courtyard at Rouen castle, she burns at
the stake; the soldiers turn on the protesting crowd.
(Based on
information provided by Amazon.com.)
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0780022343/qid=1138024288/sr=1-1/ref=sr_1_1/103-7669510-0088653?v=glance&s=dvd
Ferroukhi,
Ismael (Director). Le Grand
Voyage. France: Ognon Pictures, 2004.
Reda,
summoned to accompany his father on a pilgrimage to Mecca, complies reluctantly
- as he preparing for his baccalaureat and, even more important, has a secret
love relationship. The trip across Europe in a broken-down car is also the
departure of his father: upon arrival in Mecca, both Reda and his father are
not the characters they were at the start of the movie. Avoiding the hackneyed
theme of the return to the homeland, the film uses the departure to renew a
connection between two generation.
(synopsis from: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0361670/)
http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/10005063-grand_voyage/
Forman,
Milos (Director). The Fireman’s
Ball. Czechoslovakia: Carlo Ponti Cinematografica, 1967.
On the
surface, the film is a comedic look at a fireman’s ball where nothing goes
right. But under the surface, the
film is an attack on Communist ideals. In particular, the film implicitly
critiques Czechoslovakia’s Stalinist purges of the 1950’s, which resulted in
the deaths or imprisonment of hundreds of thousands of citizens. (excerpt from: http://www.moviemartyr.com/1967/firemansball.htm)
http://www.dvdjournal.com/quickreviews/f/firemensball_cc.q.shtml
Frankenheimer,
John (Director). The
Fixer.
United States: MGM Studios, 1968.
In The Fixer, a Jewish handyman, or
"fixer" attempts escape from an unjust prison sentence in harsh and
anti-Semitic Czarist Russia. The film is based on the novel by Bernard
Malamud.
Frears,
Stephen (Director). Dirty
Pretty Things. United Kingdom: BBC, 2002.
An
illuminating and nuanced film about the exploitation of illegal
immigrants. Okwe, a kind-hearted Nigerian
doctor, and Senay, a Turkish chambermaid, work at the same West London hotel.
The hotel is run by Senor Sneaky and is the sort of place where dirty business
like drug dealing and prostitution takes place. However, when Okwe finds a
human heart in one of the toilets, he uncovers something far more sinister than
just a common crime. (synopsis
based on: http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/dirty_pretty_things/about.php)
http://www.bbc.co.uk/films/2002/11/01/dirty_pretty_things_2002_review.shtml
Freeman,
Morgan (Director). Bopha! United States:
Paramount Pictures, 1993.
Bopha! is the story of a black
police officer in a modern apartheid South Africa; a man who is amiable with
his white superiors and glad to have his job and family. His peaceful
world comes apart, however, when his son begins participating in strikes
against the local white-run school and the authorities crack down violently.[6]
Friedkin,
William (Director). Rules of Engagement. United
States: Paramount Pictures, 2000.
In Rules of
Engagement,
a Marine commander (Samuel L. Jackson) is accused of ordering his men to shoot
innocent civilian protesters while they were removing the U.S. ambassador and
his family from the U.S. Embassy in Yemen. His friend (Tommy Lee Jones),
a retired military attorney, must search for the truth in order to save his
friend from court martial.
Gaghan,
Stephen (Director). Syriana. United States: Warner Bros., 2005.
The story of
corruption and power related to the oil industry that tells four parallel
stories: the CIA agent Bob Barnes (George Clooney) with great experience in
Middle East that falls in disgrace after an unsuccessful mission dealing
missiles in Lebanese Republic; the investigation of the attorney Bennett
Holiday (Jeffrey Wright) related to the merge of two American oil companies,
Connex and Killen; the traumatic association of the energy analyst Bryan
Woodman (Matt Damon) with the son of a powerful emir of Emirate; and the social
drama of the Pakistani immigrant worker Wasim Khan (Mazhar Munir) that is fired
by the oil company. (based on
information from: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0365737/plotsummary)
http://syrianamovie.warnerbros.com/
Gance,
Abel (Director). J'Accuse!
( I Accuse!), 1919/1938.
France.
Abel Gance’s
powerful anti-war film still has the power to move and shock. Through the
intimate microcosm of two soldiers united on the battlefield, Gance shows the
horror and absurdity of war for all its worth.
(Film review
by James Travers. http://frenchfilms.topcities.com/index3.html#http://frenchfilms.topcities.com/nf_J_Accuse_1919_rev.html)
George,
Terry (Director). Hotel
Rwanda.
United States. 2005.
Ten years
ago some of the worst atrocities in the history of mankind took place in the
country of Rwanda--and in an era of high-speed communication and round the
clock news, the events went almost unnoticed by the rest of the world. In only
three months, one million people were brutally murdered. In the face of these
unspeakable actions, inspired by his love for his family, an ordinary man
summons extraordinary courage to save the lives of over a thousand helpless
refugees, by granting them shelter in the hotel he manages.
(Based on
information provided by Amazon.com.)
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0007R4T3U/qid=1138023697/sr=1-1/ref=sr_1_1/103-7669510-0088653?s=dvd&v=glance&n=130
Gilbert,
Brian (Director). Not
Without My Daughter.
United States: MGM Studios, 1990.
In
Not
Without My Daughter,
an American woman and her child accompany her Iranian husband to his homeland,
where he decides the family will stay. To her horror, she realizes that
Iranian women have no rights, and she must flee the country with her daughter.
Gorin,
Serif (Director). Yol. Turkey: Triumph
Releasing, 1982.
Yol
is a
drama about five Turkish convicts let out of prison for one week. Each of
them experience tragedy, however, in their short time of liberty. One
discovers his brother has been killed by police, another that his wife has been
unfaithful. Yol reveals the very
non-Western aspects of Turkish society and tradition as well as different sides
of freedom.[7]
Grede,
Kjell (Director). Good Evening,
Mr. Wallenberg. Sweden: Film Technik, 1990.
Swedish
national Raoul Wallenberg, newcomer to politics and international machinations,
travels to German-occupied Budapest during WWII in order to effectively
intervene in the fate of trapped Hungarian Jews, by providing them with safe
passage to Sweden. (synopsis from:
http://us.imdb.com/title/tt0099673/plotsummary)
http://apolloguide.com/mov_fullrev.asp?CID=4740
Greengrass,
Paul (Director). Bloody Sunday. U.K./Ireland: Bord Scannan na hEireann,
2002.
A docudrama
that highlights the tensions between Ireland and England, telling the infamous
story of January 30, 1972, known as Bloody Sunday in Ireland – when the
British militia opened fire on Irish protesters in Ireland.
http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/bloody_sunday/
Griffith,
D.W. (Director). Intolerance. United States. 1916.
Intolerance
and its terrible effects are examined in four historical eras. In ancient
Babylon, a mountain girl is caught up in the religious rivalry that leads to
the city's downfall. In Judea, the hypocritical Pharisees condemn Jesus Christ.
In 1572 Paris, unaware of the impending St. Bartholomew's Day Massacre, two
young Huguenots prepare for marriage. Finally, in modern America, social
reformers destroy the lives of a young woman and her
beloved.
Based on film information provided by Amazon.com. http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00007CVS8/qid=1137989288/sr=1-2/ref=sr_1_2/103-7669510-0088653?s=dvd&v=glance&n=130
Hackford,
Taylor (Director). Proof
of Life.
United States: Warner Studios, 2000.
In Proof of Life, Peter and Alice Bowman
(David Morse and Med Ryan) live in the fictional country of Tecala in Latin
America, where Peter works for a corporation building a dam. When Peter
is kidnapped by rebels seeking to collect a hefty ransom from the corporation,
Alice turns to a professional kidnap and ransom negotiator (Russell Crowe) for
help.
Haroun,
Mahamet-Saleh (Director). Daratt. Chad: Chinguitty Films, 2006.
Chad, 2006.
After a forty-year civil war, the radio announces the government has just
amnestied the war criminals. Outraged by the news, Gumar Abatcha orders his
grandson Atim, a sixteen-year-old youth, to trace the man who killed his father
and to execute him. Atim obeys him and, armed with his father's own gun, he
goes in search of Nassara, the man who made him an orphan. It does not take
long before he finds him. Nassara, who now goes straight, is married, goes to
the mosque and owns a small bakery. After some hesitation Atim offers him his
services as an apprentice. He is hired then it will be easy for him to gun down
the murderer of his father. At least, that is what he thinks. (synopsis from: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0825241/)
http://www.bbc.co.uk/films/2007/07/23/daratt_2007_review.shtml
Herbiet,
Laurent (Director). Mon Colonel. France: K.G. Productions, 2006.
A
"Reformed Colonel" is found dead in Paris, a couple of decades after
Algeria's struggle for independence was won from France. Lieutenant Galois is
assigned the investigation of this murder. She receives the diary of Lieutenent
Guy Rossi who served under The Colonel in Algeria in 1956, and has been
reported as missing in action since 1957. The revelations found in Rossi's
diary go far beyond The Colonel's actions in Algeria, and give an insight on
how dirty Algeria's War for Independence really was. (synopsis from: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0800135/plotsummary)
http://www.moncolonel-lefilm.com/
Herzog,
Werner. Aguierre:
der Zorn Gottes.
USA: New Yorker Films, 1977.
After the
destruction of the Incan Empire during the Spanish Conquest of the Americas, a
group of Spaniards, led by Lope de Aguirre, leaves the mountains of Peru to
sail down the Amazon River in search of gold ( El Dorado) and eternal fame. The
journey quickly becomes perilous as the group is depleted, morale deteriorates
and fights ensure among the crewmembers.
Herzog,
Werner (Director). Rescue Dawn. United States: MGM, 2006.
The story of
an American pilot (Christian Bale) who crashes during a reconnaissance mission
in Vietnam. Captured, and subject
to torture by his captors, the pilot and one other fellow captive manage to
endure, and eventually escape.
Hirshbiegel,
Oliver. The Experiment. Germany: Fanes Film, 2001.
A makeshift
prison is set up in a research lab, complete with cells, bars and surveillance
cameras. For two weeks 20 male participants are hired to play prisoners and
guards. The 'prisoners' are locked up and have to follow seemingly mild rules,
and the 'guards' are told simply to retain order without using physical
violence. Everybody is free to quit at any time, thereby forfeiting payment. In
the beginning the mood between both groups is insecure and rather emphatic. But
soon quarrels arise and the wardens employ ever more drastic sanctions to
confirm their authority. (synopsis
from: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0250258/plotsummary)
http://www.kinoeye.org/03/06/hantke06.php
Hood,
Gavin (Director). Rendition. United States: New Line Cinema, 2007.
An Egyptian
terrorism suspect is kidnapped while traveling home home to his wife (Reece
Witherspoon) in the United States.
A young CIA agent (Jake Gllyenhall) is charged with interrogating the
suspect is he is held overseas in a secret CIA detention center.
http://www.renditionmovie.com/
Hood,
Gavin (Director). Tsotsi. UK/South Africa: The UK Film & TV
Production Company PLC, 2005.
A drama
tracing six days in the lonely, violent life of Tsotsi (meaning
"thug"), a ruthless, young gang leader. Bolstered by a small crew of
social rejects, Tsotsi refuses to think further ahead than the raids of the
coming night. After an impromptu car jacking results in the accidental
kidnapping of an infant, Tsotsi begins to care for the child and rediscover his
humanity. (based on: http://movies.yahoo.com/movie/1808754789/details)
http://www.tsotsi.com/english/index.php
Hou,
Hsiao-hsien (Director). A City of
Sadness (Bei Qing Cheng Shi). Taiwan.
By
presenting the tragic consequences that resulted from the mainland authorities'
ever-escalating pattern of abuse of power, A City of Sadness compassionately
articulates the suppressed, silent despair of a people repeatedly victimised as
they search for inclusion and cultural identification. Through the film's
pervasively alienated perspective, Hou reflects contemporary Taiwan's vestigial
legacy of demoralisation, abandonment, isolation, and betrayal at the
politically motivated hands of intrusive external forces.
Film
reviewed by Acquarello, http://www.sensesofcinema.com/contents/cteq/03/26/city_of_sadness.html
Ichikawa,
Kon (Director). The Burmese
Harp. Japan: Nikkatsu, 1956.
A Japanese army
private in Burma is so revolted by the carnage of war that he refuses to return
home. Dressed as a Buddhist monk, he remains to bury the dead. The first
Japanese film to stress pacifism, Burmese Harp is renowned for its humanist
fervor. (based on information
provided at the website below.)
http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/burmese_harp/about.php
Jancso,
Miklos (Director). The Red and the White.
Hungary: Mafilm, 1990.
A haunting film
about the absurdity and evils of war. Set in Central Russia during the Civil
War of 1918, the story details the constant shifting of power between the White
guards and the Red soldiers, first at an abandoned monastery, and later, at a
field hospital. Using the wide-screen technique consisting of very long takes
and a ceaselessly tracking camera movement, Jancso has fashioned a brilliant
visual style that gives his film the quality of a surreal nightmare. (based on synopsis at: http://www.multilingualbooks.com/foreignvids-hung.html)
http://www.kinoeye.org/03/03/horton03.php
Jiang,
Wen (Director). Devils on the
Doorstep. China: Asian Union Film &
Entertainment, 2000.
An antiwar film is set in an impoverished
farming village in northern China near the Great Wall during the winter of 1944
and '45. Although the area has been under Japanese occupation since the 1930's,
the villagers have grown to tolerate the occupying "devils," who
demand a percentage of their grain but otherwise mostly leave them to their own
devices. The black-and-white film, belongs to that rarefied breed of antiwar
movie that adopts a lofty satirical distance from its characters' plight. By
turns farcical and horrifying, it scrupulously avoids plucking heartstrings to
portray the soldiers and peasants alike as paranoid fools buffeted by the
shifting winds of war. (based on
synopsis from: http://movies.nytimes.com/movie/201752/Devils-on-the-Doorstep/overview)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Devils_on_the_Doorstep
Joffé,
Roland. The
Mission.
USA: Warner Bros., 1986.
This film
portrays the conflicting ideologies that characterized the Conquest of the
Americas, specifically showing the Jesuits in Brazil who attempted to protect
the indigenous population from the mistreatment of the pro-slavery Portuguese
conquistadors.
Kadar,
Jan (Director); Klos, Elmar (Director).
The Shop on Main Street.
Czechslovakia: Filmové Studio Barrandov, 1965.
An inept
Czech peasant is torn between greed and guilt when the Nazi-backed bosses of
his town appoint him "Aryan controller" of an old Jewish widow's
button shop. Humor and tragedy fuse in this scathing exploration of one
cowardly man's complicity in the horrors of a totalitarian regime. Made near
the height of Soviet oppression in Czechoslovakia, the film won the Academy
Award for Best Foreign Film in 1965.
(synopsis from: http://www.amazon.com/Shop-Main-Street-Criterion-Collection/dp/B00005NFZD)
http://www.kinokultura.com/specials/3/obchod.shtml
Kang,
Je-Kyu (Director). Tae Guk Gi (The Brotherhood of War). South Korea: Kang Je-Kyu Film Co. Ltd.,
2004
The story of
two brothers unwillingly drafted into the South Korean army following the
outbreak of the Korean War in June 1950. The older brother strives to protect
his younger brother on the battlefield, while struggling to find a way to have
him discharged so he can return to their village and care for the family they
left behind. However, as the war progresses, the horror and violence they
witness begin to take its toll on each man and severe their bonds as brothers
and soldiers. (symopsis from: http://movies.yahoo.com/movie/1808583795/details)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taegukgi_(film)
Kaplan,
Jonathon (Director). Brokedown
Palace. United States: 20th Century
Fox, 1999.
Alice
(Claire Danes) and Darlene (Kate Beckinsdale) are best friends who decide to
celebrate their high school graduation with a trip to Thailand. There, they
meet a handsome Australian, who convinces them to travel to Hong Kong, but is
actually using them to smuggle drugs.
Upon being caught at Bangkok Airport with heroin the two girls are
sentenced to decades in prison, and must contact a greedy American lawyer (Bill
Pullman) to try and regain their freedom.
http://www.foxmovies.com/brokedownpalace/
Kaplan,
Betty (Director). Of
Love and Shadows.
Spain: Miramax, 1994.
Of
Love and Shadows
is a film adaptation of the Isabella Allende book featuring magazine reporter
Irene Beltran in Chile in 1973. She lives a sheltered life and is unaware
of the atrocities befalling the public until she becomes involved with a
photographer whose brother is a member of the human rights underground. A
story lead subsequently leads her to a disgruntled soldier who gives her a
notebook detailing the military regime’s terrors perpetuated against the
people. As Beltran and her photographer start revealing the wrongdoing
publicly, they are attacked by the regime and forced to flee to Spain.
The two later return to a democratized Chile to witness the changes.[8]
Kassovitz, Mathieu (Director). Hate. France: MKL/Lazennec Diffusion, 1995.
The
story of three ethnically-diverse boys from a poverty-stricken housing complex
in Paris. After watching one of
their friends fall victim to a senseless beating the boys find a loaded gun and
become entangled with boy the police and a group of skinheads. (based on: http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/hate/about.php)
http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/hate/
Kassovitz,
Peter (Director). Jakob
the Liar.
Unites States: Columbia Tristar, 1999.
Jakob
the Liar
is about a Polish Jew, Jakob (Robin Williams), living in a Nazi-occupied ghetto
during WWII who overhears a radio broadcast that the Allies are advancing
against the Germans. In order to keep the hopes of those around him
alive, Jakob begins telling fictitious stories about the victories the Allies
are achieving against the Germans, claiming he heard them on the radio.
When the Germans learn of the reports, they begin looking for the owner of the
mythical radio.[9]
Kaufman,
Philip (Director). The
Unbearable Lightness of Being. 1988.
Let others
in 1968 Prague fret over liberty and the pursuit of happiness. Prague surgeon
and avowed womanizer Tomas is focused on the happiness of pursuit. He's
determined to live with a lightness of being unfettered by things like
commitment and Communism. A young doctor's quest for sex and his stumbling into
love are part of the rich storyline of this lyrical film from the landmark
Milan Kundera novel, produced by Saul Zaentz (The English Patient, Amadeus) and
directed by Philip Kaufman (The Right Stuff, Henry & June). Daniel
Day-Lewis, Juliette Binoche and Lena Olin indelibly form the romantic triangle
at the center of Tomas' world. It's a shifting world of hope spoiled and
renewed, of lives blighted by oppression and reinvigorated by deep, maturing
love.
Based on
film information provided by Amazon.com.
Kaye,
Tony (Director). *American
History X.
United States: New Line Cinema, 1998.
American
History X
is the story of the experiences of a reformed neo-Nazi and white
supremacist. The movie begins as Derek Vinyard (Edward Norton) is
released from a three year prison term, imposed for the murder of a black gang
member. Derek is idolized by his younger brother, Danny (Edward Furlong),
who has followed his brother into a life of hatred and racism. Through
flashbacks, the audience learns Derek’s whole story, from the murder of his
father which stoked the fire of his hatred to his eventual renunciation of his
views in prison. Now that Derek is out of prison and on the right path,
he attempts to save the mind and soul of his brother. The movie addresses
real issues in American race relations and the long road ahead to gain full
social integration and harmony.
Kazan,
Elia. Viva
Zapata!.
USA: 20 th Century Fox Film Corp, 1952.
This
film depicts the story of Mexican revolutionary Emiliano Zapata who led a
rebellion against the dictatorship of Porfirio Diaz in the early 1900’s.
Khleifi,
Michel (Director). Fertile
Memory.
Palestine/Netherlands/Belgium, 1980
The film
combines documentary and narrative elements to examine the lives of Palestinian
women living in a conflicted culture. Romia works in an Israeli factory and
continually fights Israeli authorities for the rights to her family land. Sahar
works as a novelist, and finds a struggle in her life as a young, divorced
mother. Through the experiences of these women, the film finds the voice of
Palestinian women, caught in a predominantly masculine political conflict. (synopsis from: http://movies.yahoo.com/movie/1808537728/details)
http://www.arabfilm.com/item_print.html?itemID=280
Klimov,
Elem (Director). Come and See. Russia: Kino International, 1992.
Set in occupied
Byelorussia in 1943, the film follows a teenager into the swamps and forests of
the border provinces, where he undergoes a hell of atrocities, becoming a middle-aged
wreck as he tries to survive repeated encounters with ruthless German soldiers.
(based on synopsis provided at http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/1036052-come_and_see/about.php)
http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/1036052-come_and_see/about.php
Koller,
Xavier (Director). Journey
of Hope.
United States: HBO Video, 1990.
Based
on a true story, this movie depicts a Kurdish family leaving their homeland to
find work in Switzerland. After being cheated by an immigrant smuggler from
their own country, the family has to cross the Alps on foot. Academy Award:
Best Foreign Language Film. ***
Kozole,
Damjan. (Director). Spare Parts. Slovakia: E-Motion Film, 2003.
Embittered widower,
Ludvik, spends his nights transporting illegal refugees in his van from
Croatia, across Slovenia, and into Italy. The young and inexperienced Rudi acts
as his helpmate. Together they become a well-trained duo who almost every night
convey "spare parts" to Italy.
The whole idea of this account is that everyone - including ourselves -
is looking for happiness: the "spare parts" because of the misery
they are plunged into without, and our characters because they can't find it
inside. (synopsis from: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0334237/)
http://www.kinoeye.org/03/10/martin10.php
Kramer,
Stanley (Director). Judgment
at Nuremberg.
1961. UA/Roxlom.
Director
Stanley Kramer's socially conscious 1961 film tackles the subject of the war
crime trials arising out of World War II in an earnest and straightforward
fashion, exploring the consciousness of two nations as they struggle to come to
terms with the aftermath of the Holocaust. Spencer Tracy plays the American
judge selected to head the tribunal that will try the suspected war criminals.
As he sets about his task, he must confront the raw emotion felt by the German
people, and his own notions of good and evil, right and wrong. Regarded as a
classic, this stark rendering of one of the most pivotal events in the 20th
century features a stellar cast including Burt Lancaster, Montgomery Clift,
Marlene Dietrich, a young William Shatner, and Maximillian Schell, who won an
Oscar for his role as counsel for the defense for those charged with crimes
against humanity. Judgment
at Nuremberg
is important viewing not only for the history of film, but for the history of
modern times. --
Robert Lane
Based on
film review published on Amazon.com.
Kreuzpaintner,
Marco (Director). Trade. Germany: Centropolis Entertainment,
2007.
Adriana is a
13-year-old girl from Mexico City whose kidnapping by sex traffickers sets in
motion a desperate mission by her 17-year-old brother, Jorge to save her. Adriana's only friend and protector
throughout her ordeal is Veronica, a young Polish woman tricked into the trade
by the same criminal gang. As Jorge dodges immigration officers and incredible
obstacles to track the girls' abductors, he meets Ray, a Texas cop whose own
family loss to sex trafficking leads him to become an ally in the boy's quest.
Fighting with courage and hard-tested faith, the characters of Trade negotiate
their way through the unspeakable terrain of the sex trade "tunnels"
between Mexico and the United States. From the barrios of Mexico City and the
treacherous Rio Grande border, to a secret internet sex slave auction and the
final climactic confrontation at a stash house in suburban New Jersey, Ray and
Jorge forge a close bond as they give desperate chase to Adriana's kidnappers
before she is sold and disappears forever into this brutal global underworld, a
place from which few victims ever return.
(synopsis from: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0399095/plotsummary)
Lee,
Spike (Director). Malcolm
X.
1992. Warner Bros.
Biography of
Malcolm X, the famous African American leader. Born Malcolm Little, his father
(a minister) was killed by the Ku Klux Klan. He became a gangster, and while in
jail discovered the Nation of Islam writings of Elijah Muhammad. He preaches
the teachings when let out of jail, but later on goes on a pilgrimage to the
city of Mecca, there he converts to the original Islamic religion and becomes a
Sunni Muslim. He changes his name to El-Hajj Malik Al-Shabazz and stops his
anti-white teachings, as he realises the error of his mistakes. He is later on
assasinated and dies a Muslim Martyr.
(Based on
information provided by Amazon.com.)
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/B0006J28L4/qid=1138024323/sr=1-1/ref=sr_1_1/103-7669510-0088653?v=glance&s=dvd
Leigh,
Mike (Director). Vera Drake. UK/France: Les Films Alain Sarde, 2004.
The film
takes place in England in the 1950’s, when abortion was illegal. The story surrounds a kindhearted
woman, Vera, devoted to her family who also secretly visits women and helps
them induce miscarriages for unwanted pregnancies. Vera sees herself as simply helping women in need, and
always does so with a smile and kind words of encouragement. When the
authorities finally find her out, Vera's world and family life rapidly
unravel. (based on: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0383694/plotsummary)
Lemmons,
Kasi (Director). Talk to Me. United States: Focus Features, 2007.
Don Cheadle
portrays radio host Ralph Waldo "Petey" Greene Jr. Together with program director’s help
(Chiwetel Ejiofor), Petey provides a voice of truth, reason, and leadership
during the turbulent civil rights period of the 1960’s in Washington D.C.
http://www.focusfeatures.com/talktome/
Loach,
Ken (Director). Carla’s
Song.
United Kingdom: Shadow Distribution, 1996.
Carla’s
Song is
the story of two lovers who return to the woman’s homeland of Nicaragua during
the 1987 struggle between the Sandanistas and the Contras in order to free the
woman from her past. Their love, however, is unable to transcend the
societal terror the two find in Nicaragua.[10] 8
Macdonald,
Kevin (Director). Last King of
Scotland. UK: DNA Films, 2006.
A
Scottish doctor (Forrest Whittaker) on a Ugandan medical mission becomes
irreversibly entangled with one of the worlds most barbaric figures: Idi Amin.
Impressed by Dr. Garrigan€s brazen attitude in a
moment of crisis, the newly self-appointed Ugandan President Amin picks him as
his personal physician and closest confidante. Though Garrigan is at first
flattered and fascinated by his new position, he soon awakens to Amins
savagery--and his own complicity in it. Horror and betrayal ensue as Garrigan
tries to right his wrongs and escape Uganda alive. (synopsis from: http://movies.yahoo.com/movie/1808762866/details)
http://www.foxsearchlight.com/lastkingofscotland/
Malkovich,
John. The
dancer upstairs. USA:
20th Century Fox, 2002.
A
detective in an unnamed Latin American country searches for a revolutionary
guerilla leader that opposes the fascist government.
Mandoki,
Luis. Voces
inocentes.
Mexico: 20 th Century Fox, 2004.
Voces
inocentes portrays
the struggles of a young boy in El Salvador during the Civil War of the 1980’s
who has to choose between enlisting in the army, or joining guerilla forces.
Marshall,
Rob (Director). Memoirs of a Geisha.
United States: Columbia Pictures, 2005.