Diane's Pick: Shall We Dance?

The winner of fourteen awards, including Best Picture, at the 1997 Japanese Academy Awards, Shall We Dance? is the story of a depressed salaryman whose infatuation with a ballroom dancer leads him to discover meaning and joy in life.

Barb's Pick: Good Hair

Chris Rock’s Good Hair is a fantastic documentary focusing on African-American hair. It’s funny, witty and interesting. There are compelling facts about real hair, fake hair and the hair industry as a whole. Chris Rock does a great job of educating and entertaining us at the same time.

John's Pick: Phase IV

Phase IV was the celebrated graphic designer Saul Bass’ lone film as a director, a cerebral and visually assured science fiction exercise depicting an ordinary ant colony unnervingly transformed into a genuinely alien intelligence.

Diane's Pick: Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge

Bollywood cinema’s Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge (commonly DDLJ) recently set a record by completing 750 weeks (over 15 years) of continuous play in Mumbai cinemas. Starring the king of Bollywood, Shahrukh Khan, and multiple best actress winner, Kajol, DDLJ is a joyful, musical love story for everyone.

Barb's Pick: Edward the King

Edward the King is a superbly acted, thirteen-part historical miniseries based on the life of Edward the 7th. "Bertie" waited six decades before becoming king and then reigned for only nine years. Annette Crosbie as Queen Victoria is outstanding, as well as Timothy West as King Edward the 7th.

Cynthia's Pick: Before Sunrise

Accepting a whim invitation, French student Celine reluctantly agrees to explore nocturnal Vienna with Jesse, an American she just met. Before Sunrise, the young travelers spend one night in conversation discovering each other and themselves before parting ways. A decade later, Before Sunset revisits the impact of that night. 

John's Pick: Make Way for Tomorrow

Confirmed cynic Orson Welles reportedly said of Make Way for Tomorrow, “It could make a stone cry”—and this bittersweet, sharply observed, utterly heartbreaking 1937 picture will almost certainly move you as well.

Diane's Pick: Sunset Boulevard

In what film did Gloria Swanson utter this immortal line: “All right Mr. DeMille, I’m ready for my close-up.” Hint:  it was among the first group of twenty-five films deemed “culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant” by the Library of Congress and selected for preservation in the National Film Registry.

Barb's Pick: Michael Jackson's This Is It

Michael Jackson’s This Is It is an homage to what a really superb entertainer Michael was. The music and dancing are fantastic, and the scope of what this concert production was going to be is exciting to see. I recommend you watch it in surround sound if you can!

Diane's Pick: All About Eve

"Fasten your seatbelts. It's going to be a bumpy night." Take a ride with the inimitable Bette Davis as Broadway star Margo Channing in 1950’s Best Picture, All About Eve. This smart, cynical and entertaining film deserves its place on the American Film Institute's 100 Greatest Movies of All Time.