Heavenly Creatures (1994)

Dir. Peter Jackson

From the director of the Lord of the Rings comes a chilling true-life drama about an obsessive friendship that led to murder. In 1950s New Zealand, introvert Pauline (Melanie Lynskey) befriends self-confident Juliet (Kate Winslet, in her film debut); soon, the two are inseparable, retreating to an imaginary world. Their relationship intensifies in the face of opposition from their families ... opposition that ultimately has bloody consequences.

April Stats

April Total = 8
2008 Total = 40

Stats:
Rent - 2
Own - 6
Theater - 0
TV - 0
Other - 0
First Viewing - 6

sex, lies, and videotape (1989)

Dir. Steven Soderbergh

Director Steven Soderbergh's voyeuristic indie film paints an intense, intimate portrait of discord among a frigid housewife (Andie MacDowell), her philandering husband (Peter Gallagher), her adulterous sibling (Laura San Giacomo) and an out-of-towner (James Spader). Spader arrives with a trunk load of videotapes -- interviews with women he's known confessing their sexual secrets -- and his presence gradually turns the quartet's lives inside out.

Cannibal Holocaust (1979)

Dir. Ruggero Deodato

Censored in several countries for its gratuitous violence, this controversial faux documentary from director Ruggero Deodato presents footage from a team of New York University filmmakers mysteriously lost in the Amazon jungle. The film, allegedly recovered by Professor Harold Moore, reveals the deplorable treatment of a tribe of suspected South American cannibals and, ultimately, the fate of the crew that initially set out to film the natives

Little Children (2006)

Dir. Todd Field

In director Todd Field's titillating tale, the lives of several adult suburbanites, who have yet to surpass adolescence, intersect on the streets of their small town in unexpected ways. While on-the-go wife and mother Kathy (Jennifer Connelly) is preoccupied with her career, Sarah (Kate Winslet, in an Oscar-nominated role), a mother who does not know how to mother, is busy having an affair with stay-at-home dad Brad (Patrick Wilson) -- Kathy's husband.

The Grudge 2 (2006)

Dir. Takashi Shimizu

The deadly curse continues to gain strength with each victim it claims in this sequel to the international smash hit. After learning her sister Karen (Sarah Michelle Geller) has been hospitalized, Aubrey Davis (Amber Tamblyn) flies to Tokyo, where she teams with a journalist (Edison Chen) to investigate the sinister supernatural mystery. Meanwhile, the curse spreads around the globe, afflicting a Chicago housewife (Jennifer Beals), among others.

Amarcord (1973)

Dir. Frederico Fellini

Awarded both a Golden Globe and an Oscar for Best Foreign Film, acclaimed Italian director Frederico Fellini's Amarcord is a richly visual film about Rimini, a traditional seaside village during the uncertainty of Mussolini's fascist rule. Fellini drew from personal experience to bring the small town and all its colorful characters to life in this story about the escapades of a boy on the cusp of becoming a man.

Shaun of the Dead (2004)

Dir. Edgar Wright

Thirty-something slacker Shaun (Simon Pegg) has no clue what to do with his life or with his relationship with girlfriend Liz (Kate Ashfield). But when the unthinkable happens and zombies begin to roam the streets of London terrorizing residents, including his beloved and his mother, Shaun realizes he must act quickly to save Liz from danger and keep their relationship from spiraling out of his hands forever. But is it too late for heroics?

The Anarchist Cookbook (2002)

Dir. Jordan Susman

A group of relatively harmless youngsters living in an anarchist commune in Dallas and led by a college dropout named Puck (Devon Gummersall) are joined by a truly dangerous nihilist named Johnny Black. Trouble looms large when Johnny challenges the youths to become more violent.

I Am Legend (2007)

Dir. Francis Lawrence

A terrible virus has spread across the planet and turned the human race into bloodthirsty monsters. Mankind's only hope for survival is scientist Robert Neville (Will Smith), the one person left unaffected by the epidemic. When he's not fighting for his life against the hordes of the infected, Neville searches for a cure to reverse the virus's effects -- all the while battling his own doubt and despair as he spends every day alone.

March Stats

March Total = 12
2008 Total = 32

Stats:
Rent - 3
Own - 6
Theater - 0
TV - 3
Other - 0
First Viewing - 7

Lust, Caution (Se jie) (2007)

Dir. Ang Lee

From Academy Award-winning director Ang Lee (Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, Brokeback Mountain) comes this intriguing espionage thriller set in World War II-era Shanghai. Based on the writings of author Eileen Chang, this Chinese-language tale stars Tony Leung Chiu Wai, Wei Tang, Joan Chen and Lee-Hom Wang. Lee reteams with his longtime producer James Schamus, who has collaborated with the director on nine of his films.

April Fool's Day (1986)

Dir. Fred Walton

A group of college friends gather together at rich heiress Muffy's (Deborah Foreman) island mansion to celebrate their final year of school. They soon discover that each has a hidden secret, but as the secrets are revealed, those people end up dead. Or maybe they're not really dead; they could be part of a very cruel April Fool's joke. The hostess supposedly knows what's going on, but maybe she's not the one orchestrating the deaths. ...

Beerfest (2006)

Dir. Jay Chandrasekhar

Two German-American brothers vow to defend their family's beer-guzzling honor in this outrageous comedy. During a trip to Germany to scatter their grandfather's ashes, Wolfhouse siblings Todd (Erik Stolhanske) and Jan (Paul Soter) discover Beerfest, the secret Olympics of downing stout, and want to enter the contest. When their Old Country cousins sneer at the Yanks' chances, they return to America to prepare for a showdown the following year.

The Cutting Edge 3: Chasing the Dream (2008)

Dir. Stuart Gillard

After his skating partner is injured, handsome ice skater Zack (Matt Lanter) asks hockey player Alejandra "Alex" Delgado (Francia Raisa) to join him on the ice. The new partners set their sights on the internationals, but it won't be easy, especially when love gets in the way. Alex transforms with training, and the pair learns to anticipate each other's moves, but their relationship off the ice threatens to destroy their chances of winning.

Hedwig and the Angry Inch (2001)

Dir. John Cameron Mitchell

After a botched sex-change operation, East German glam rocker Hansel (John Cameron Mitchell) becomes Hedwig and travels across the United States with a stage show, following her ex-boyfriend (and former band mate) and telling her life story. Hedwig's offbeat show slays audiences -- but in diners not clubs. Mitchell also wrote and directed the comedy, which won at the Sundance Film Festival and was nominated for several Independent Spirit Awards.

Gaslight (1944)

Dir. George Cukor

In this atmospheric murder mystery, beautiful, naive socialite Paula (Ingrid Bergman) disintegrates into a raving lunatic in the home in which her aunt was murdered. The suspect? Her devoted husband (Charles Boyer). Remade from the 1940 version, director George Cukor's dramatic mystery garnered two Oscar wins (including Best Actress for Bergman) and seven nominations, remaining a classic.

The Day After Tomorrow (2004)

Dir. Roland Emmerich

After years of unabated global warming, the greenhouse effect is wreaking havoc all over the globe in the form of catastrophic hurricanes, tornadoes, tidal waves, floods and, most ominously, the beginning of the next Ice Age. Paleoclimatologist Adrian Hall (Dennis Quaid) tries to save the world while also shepherding to safety his son Sam (Jake Gyllenhaal), who was in New York when the city was overwhelmed by the beginnings of the new big freeze.

Withnail and I (1987)

Dir. Bruce Robinson

Two unemployed actors -- Withnail (Richard E. Grant) and Marwood (Paul McGann) -- take a trip to the British countryside in 1969. But instead of rejuvenation, they experience a lack of food, an abundance of rain and a plethora of alcohol. Their host, Withnail's gay Uncle Monty (Richard Griffiths), displays a love for life and a lust for Marwood. This classic art-house comedy won an Evening Standard British Film Award.

War (2007)

Dir. Philip G. Atwell

FBI agent Jack Crawford (Jason Statham) is out for revenge when his partner is killed and all clues point to the mysterious assassin Rogue (Jet Li). But when Rogue turns up years later to take care of some unfinished business, he triggers a violent clash of rival gangs. Will the truth come out before it's too late? When the dust settles, who will remain standing? Directed by Philip G. Atwell, this taut action thriller also stars John Lone.

Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981)

Dir. Steven Spielberg

Get ready to globe-trot with one of the big screen's greatest adventurers. When Dr. Indiana Jones (Harrison Ford) -- the tweed-suited professor who just happens to be a celebrated archaeologist -- is hired by the government to locate the legendary Ark of the Covenant (resting place of the original Ten Commandments), he finds himself up against the entire Nazi regime. Steven Spielberg and George Lucas teamed up to create this all-time favorite.

Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004)

Dir. Michel Gondry

This offbeat romantic comedy (which won an Oscar for Best Original Screenplay) stars Jim Carrey as Joel, who opts for a procedure in which memories of his girlfriend, Clementine (Kate Winslet), are erased after he learns she's already had the surgery done. But as his doctor begins to wipe out traces of Clementine, Joel decides he doesn't want to lose what's left of their relationship, so he squirrels away the memories somewhere else in his brain.

Going to Pieces: The Rise and Fall of the Slasher Film (2006)

Dir. Jeff McQueen

Join horror icons John Carpenter, Wes Craven, Rob Zombie, special effects makeup artist Tom Savini and many more in a virtual scream fest celebrating the most terrifying -- and disgusting -- movies ever made. Selections include gore-soaked scenes from cult favorites and cinema classics such as Halloween, Psycho, Friday the 13th, Prom Night, A Nightmare on Elm Street, Scream and When a Stranger Calls.

February Stats

February Total = 15
2008 Total = 20

Stats:
Rent - 3
Own - 6
Theater - 2
TV - 3
Other - 1
First Viewing - 10

The Other Boleyn Girl (2008)

Dir. Justin Chadwicks

Director Justin Chadwick's opulent historical drama stars Natalie Portman as Anne Boleyn and Scarlett Johansson as her sister, Mary -- beautiful, ambitious sisters vying for the heart of powerful but intemperate King Henry VIII (Eric Bana). Though both women are the monarch's mistresses, only one can become his queen consort -- but at what cost? The supporting cast includes Kristin Scott Thomas and Jim Sturgess.

The Opposite of Sex (1998)

Dir. Don Roos

At 16, Dee Dee Truitt (Christina Ricci) is a full-blown force of nature. When she moves in with her brother and his lover, she quickly seduces her way into a gender-bending love triangle. Lisa Kudrow plays against type as the straight-laced single woman with designs on Dee Dee's brother, but Ricci's bodacious performance steals the show, and her spunky narration keeps the film fresh and unpredictable.

The Graduate (1967)

Dir. Mike Nichols

Dustin Hoffman (in his first major film role) turns in a landmark performance as a naïve young man recently graduated from college who is seduced by a middle-aged neighbor (Anne Bancroft). He, in turn, falls in love with her daughter (Katharine Ross). Mike Nichols won a Best Director Oscar, and Simon and Garfunkel achieved immortality with a score that includes "Mrs. Robinson."

Ghostbusters (1984)

Dir. Ivan Reitman

After losing their academic posts, a team of parapsychologists (Dan Aykroyd, Bill Murray and Harold Ramis) goes into business as "ghostbusters" -- exterminators of ghouls, hobgoblins and supernatural pests of all stripes. An ad campaign pays off when a knockout cellist (Sigourney Weaver) hires the squad to purge her digs of demons. Turns out the place has become an entryway for a legion of fiendish spirits bent on terrorizing the Big Apple.…

Night Watch (Nochnoi Dozor) (2004)

Dir. Timur Bekmambetov

This first installment of the trilogy based on the best-selling science fiction novels by Russian writer Sergei Lukyanenko plays upon the tension between light and dark, pitting the superhuman Night Watch patrollers (known as the "Others") against the shadowed forces of the night. But the biggest fear of all stems from the lines of an ancient prophecy, which warns of a renegade Other whose betrayal could bring chaos to the land.

Mallrats (1995)

Dir. Kevin Smith

Suburban auteur Kevin Smith forgoes the convenience-store environs of Clerks for the mall in this hilarious look at love and loss between the escalators. Brodie (Jason Lee) and T.S. (Jeremy London) lose their girlfriends on the same day, so they take to the mall in search of solace. Cameos by Stan Lee and Jay and Silent Bob are the icing on the cake in this offbeat treat.

Juno (2007)

Dir. Jason Reitman

Facing an unplanned pregnancy, worldly teen Juno (Ellen Page) devises a plan to locate the proverbial perfect parents to adopt her baby. But the seemingly ideal couple Juno chooses appears to still have some growing up to do. Now, everyone in Juno's world must do a little soul-searching. Michael Cera co-stars while Jason Bateman and Jennifer Garner play the pair of affluent yuppies anxious for a child in this offbeat coming-of-age comedy, which earned four Oscar nods.

Prom Night (1980)

Dir. Paul Lynch

Prom queen Kim Hammond (Jamie Lee Curtis) is one of four teenagers terrorized by a dark secret from the past in this classic slasher film. Six years prior to the prom, four kids antagonize another child, which results in her death. Flash forward to high school, and the same four begin receiving vengeful phone calls from a witness to the "accident." Come prom night, the four friends will meet their axe-wielding stalker. Leslie Nielsen co-stars.

For One Night (2006)

Dir. Ernest R. Dickerson

Raven-Symoné stars as a high school teen who causes quite a ruckus in her small town after making it her mission to integrate her prom, which had been racially divided for decades. While the entire community is up in arms, a reporter back home for a visit covers the story - and the two attempt to reverse a long-standing racist tradition and make history for at least one night! Based on a true story.

The Awakening (1990) / Aftermath (1994) / Genesis (1998)

Dir. Nacho Cerdà, Ethan Jacobson, Francisco Stohr

Two morgue workers get their kicks by performing unspeakable acts on corpses in the disturbing horror tale Aftermath, one of two spine-tingling films from Spanish director Nacho Cerda starring Pep Tosar. The second feature, Genesis, centers on a sculptor who's unable to deal with the tragic death of his beautiful wife. As the artist sculpts a lifelike statue of his beloved, eerie things begin happening to both the statue and its creator.

Love Song (2000)

Dir. Julie Dash

Camille Livingston (Monica Arnold) is the daughter of wealthy African-American parents in New Orleans. She is perfectly happy with her boyfriend until she unexpectedly meets a poor white gas station attendant (Christian Kane). Camille must choose between the stable future that her current upper-middle class boyfriend offers, or the man with a dead-end career who inspires her.

Vertigo (1958)

Dir. Alfred Hitchcock

Don't look down! One of Alfred Hitchcock's darkest and most compelling films tells the story of police detective Scottie Ferguson (James Stewart), who has a crippling fear of heights. When an old friend asks him to tail his wife (Kim Novak), Scottie is drawn into a vortex of deceit, murder and obsession … and that's just the beginning! Two highlights: a mesmerizing Bernard Herrmann score and a haunting final shot.

Lady Vengeance (Chinjeolhan geumjassi) (2005)

Dir. Chan-wook Park

The final installment of director Chan Wook Park's revenge trilogy (preceded by Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance and Oldboy) chronicles the efforts of Lee Geum-ja (Yeong-ae Lee) -- known to her cellmates as "the kind Ms. Geum-ja" -- to track down the man who betrayed her. Taking the rap for her accomplice and incarcerated for 13 long years, she plots an elaborate retribution with help from her fellow inmates.

The Honeymoon Killers (1970)

Dir. Leonard Kastle, Donald Volkman

In this film based on the real-life Lonely Hearts murders of the late 1940s, handsome lothario Ray Fernandez (Tony LoBianco) cons lonely women out of money by promising marriage. When he meets nurse Martha Beck (Shirley Stoler), the two fall in love. Posing as brother and sister, the duo cross the country swindling needy women -- and, when necessary, killing them. As their passions become more inflamed, their crime spree grows bloodier.

Kamikaze Girls (Shimotsuma monogatari) (2004)

Dir. Tetsuya Nakashima

Based on Novala Takemoto's best-selling Japanese novel Shimotsuma Story, this colorful live-action comedy from writer-director Tetsuya Nakashima tells a tale of unlikely friendship. When she meets rough-and-tumble biker chick Ichigo Shirayuri (Anna Tschiya), the refined Momoko Ryugasaki (Kyoko Fukada) is forever changed. But can a big-city girl who adores 18th century France, frilly dresses and parasols save her new friend from certain doom?

January Stats

January Total = 5
2008 Total = 5

Stats:
Rent - 1
Own - 3
Theater - 1
TV - 0
Other - 0
First Viewing - 3

Vengeance Is Mine (Fukushû suruwa wareniari) (1979)

Dir. Shohei Imamura

Legendary Japanese director Shohei Imamura (The Eel) helms this chilling tale of horror and revenge based on actual events about a seemingly harmless young man who blossomed into a cold-blooded, remorseless murderer. On the run from the police over the course of a 78-day killing spree, Iwao Enokizu (Ken Ogata) reflects on his life via flashback and reveals how he came to have such disdain for human life.

Tideland (2005)

Dir. Terry Gilliam

As seen through the eyes the fiery Jeliza-Rose (Jodelle Ferland), director Terry Gilliam creates a world that evokes Alice in Wonderland. With her junkie father (Jeff Bridges) spending most of his time in a stupor mourning the recent death of his wife (Jennifer Tilly), Jeliza-Rose is free to roam the surrounding prairie, where she meets a mentally challenged boy (Brendan Fletcher) and his oddly macabre sister (Janet McTeer).

Clerks. (1994)

Dir. Kevin Smith

Made on a shoestring budget by director Kevin Smith, this classic indie comedy won awards at both the Sundance and Cannes film festivals. Convenience and video store clerks Dante Hicks (Brian O'Halloran) and Randal Graves (Jeff Anderson) are sharp-witted, potty-mouthed … and bored out of their minds. Between serving nonstop shoppers, the overworked counter jockeys play hockey on the roof, visit a funeral home and deal with their offbeat love lives.

Blue Velvet (1986)

Dir. David Lynch

An innocent (Kyle MacLachlan) gets mixed up in a small-town murder mystery involving a kinky nightclub chanteuse (Isabella Rossellini) and a kidnapper (Dennis Hopper) with a penchant for snorting helium. One of the most bizarre (and critically acclaimed) movies of the 1980s, Blue Velvet inspired a generation of independent filmmakers with its dark look behind the all-American veneer of small-town life.

Lars and the Real Girl (2007)

Dir. Craig Gillespie

Ryan Gosling plays the title character in this oddball comedy about a delusional young man who buys a life-size sex doll over the Internet -- and then falls in love with her. When the besotted young man starts telling people that the doll is his girlfriend, his brother and sister-in-law decide it's time to intervene in this film co-starring Patricia Clarkson, Emily Mortimer, Kelli Garner and Paul Schneider.

2007 Stats

Total Movies - 131

Stats:
Rent - 59
Own - 38
Theater - 15
TV - 15
Other - 2
First Viewing - 101

Favorite First Time Viewings:
Little Miss Sunshine (2006)
Pan's Labyrinth (2006)
Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown (1988)
The Pursuit of Happyness (2006)
Grindhouse (2007)
Bringing Up Baby (1938)
Tenebre (1982)
Cemetery Man (1994)
Waitress (2007)
All About My Mother (1999)
What Have You Done to Solange (1972)
A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum (1966)
Salem's Lot (1979)
The Squid and the Whale (2005)

December Stats

December Total = 7
2007 Total = 131

Stats:
Rent - 1
Own - 2
Theater - 2
TV - 2
Other - 0
First Viewing - 6

Tommy (1975)

Dir. Ken Russell

The Who made history with this campy cult classic -- the first-ever filmed "rock opera" -- which tells the tale of Tommy (Roger Daltry), a boy who loses the ability to hear, speak and see after the tragic death of his father. Despite his losses, Tommy becomes a pinball champion and religious messiah, only to have his followers betray him. Tina Turner, Elton John and Eric Clapton all turn in performances in this outlandish production.

The Darjeeling Limited (2007)

Dir. Wes Anderson

Following the death of their father, three brothers (Adrien Brody, Owen Wilson and Jason Schwartzman) embark on a journey on the cross-India train the Darjeeling Limited and attempt to reconnect after years of physical and emotional distance. The trip also opens up some old wounds and proves that their sibling rivalry can never be completely erased. Natalie Portman and Anjelica Huston co-star in Wes Anderson's lyrical comic drama.

Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street (2007)

Dir. Tim Burton


Johnny Depp reteams with director Tim Burton for this adaptation of the hit Broadway musical about the Demon Barber of Fleet Street. Depp plays Sweeney Todd, a man who becomes a deranged murderer seeking revenge after being falsely imprisoned. To add to the macabre nature of his crimes, he enlists the help of his lover, Mrs. Lovett (Helena Bonham Carter), who disposes of the victims by baking them into meat pies -- sought after by all of London.

The Squid and the Whale (2005)

Dir. Noah Baumbach

Jeff Daniels makes for a haunting Brooklyn professor who's well past his prime, and Laura Linney is his writer wife on the brink of stardom in Noah Baumbach's honest look at the disintegration of a marriage. With their lives headed for distinctly opposite directions, the two can't help but be acrimonious about their impending separation. Unfortunately, their two children are stuck in the middle of the emotional warfare.

Bewitched (2005)

Dir. Nora Ephron

Nora Ephron directs this comedy about a film production of the 1960s sitcom. Hoping to revive his career, washed-up actor Jack Wyatt (Will Ferrell) is convinced that Isabel Bigelow (Nicole Kidman) is the perfect Samantha to his Darrin. Wyatt doesn't know how right he is: Isabel actually is a witch. Isabel's mettlesome father (Michael Caine) tries to derail the production, but gets sidetracked by the actress portraying Endora (Shirley MacLaine).

Singapore Sling (1990)

Dir. Nikos Nikolaidis

In pursuit of a woman he once knew, Detective Singapore Sling is lured into the clutches of a murderous mother-daughter duo that has perverse plans for the unfortunate gumshoe. Directed by Nikos Nikolaidis, this gruesome Greek film noir will shock and disturb even the most impervious viewer as the women sadistically torture the wounded investigator in an orgy of sexual perversion and unrelenting violence.

Notorious (1946)

Dir. Alfred Hitchcock

This top-notch Hitchcock espionage thriller builds to an incredibly suspenseful climax. Government agent T.R. Devlin (Cary Grant) recruits Alicia Huberman (Ingrid Bergman) to spy on her father's influential Nazi friends. As part of her cover, she marries ringleader Claude Rains, but finds she's falling in love with Grant. The 360-degree camera pan around a smitten Grant and Bergman ranks as one of the screen's hottest love scenes.

November Stats

November Total = 3
2007 Total = 124

Stats:
Rent - 1
Own - 1
Theater - 1
TV - 0
Other - 0
First Viewing - 3

30 Days of Night (2007)

Dir. David Slade

When a monthlong darkness sets in on the tiny Alaskan town of Barrow, the locals are visited by a flock of bloodthirsty vampires eager to take advantage of the no-sun zone. The town sheriff Eben Olemaun (Josh Hartnett) and his deputy and wife, Stella (Melissa George), must act fast to save the dark day. Based on a popular horror comic by Steve Niles, the film also stars Ben Foster and Danny Huston.

Ratatouille (2007)

Dir. Brad Bird

Brad Bird (The Incredibles) co-directs this colorful Pixar offering, following the antics of a passionate rat named Remy (voiced by Patton Oswalt) who yearns for a sip of the good life. Growing up beneath a five-star Parisian restaurant owned by a famous chef (Brad Garrett), Remy inherits a taste for fine food. But his culinary ambitions only anger his practical father, who wishes his son could just eat garbage like everyone else.

Salem's Lot (1979)

Dir. Tobe Hooper

Author Ben Mears (David Soul) returns to his New England hometown of Jerusalem's Lot to write his new book and becomes disturbed by the behavior of the townspeople, particularly new resident and antiques dealer Mr. Straker (James Mason). When Straker's silent partner, the vampire Mr. Barlow, arrives in Salem's Lot, he soon begins to convert the townsfolk into an army of the undead. Tobe Hooper directed this story based on Stephen King's novel.

October Stats

October Total = 16
2007 Total = 121

Stats:
Rent - 4
Own - 10
Theater - 0
TV - 2
Other - 0
First Viewing - 9