AFI Silver Theatre and Cultural Center

Part of this semester's Montgomery College lineup comes courtesy of Janus Films, who, in partnership with the Criterion Collection, will be launching the new DVD brand, Essential Art House. For the devoted cinephile, these are the must-see fundamentals; for the novice film-lover, this is precisely where to begin.

(Film notes courtesy of the Criterion Collection. *Showtimes marked with an asterisk are part of the Montgomery College educational screenings.)

The murder of a man and the rape of his wife in a forest grove--seen from four different perspectives. Akira Kurosawa's meditation on the nature of "truth" transformed narrative cinema as we know it.

DIR/SCR Akira Kurosawa; SCR Ryunosuke Akutagawa, Shinobu Hashimoto; PROD Minoru Jingo. Japan, 1950, b&w, 88 min. In Japanese with English subtitles. NOT RATED

Friday, September 12, 7:30; Saturday, September 13, 7:00; Sunday, September 14, 3:00; Monday, September 15, 9:30; Tuesday, September 16, 7:00; Wednesday, September 24, 6:30*

The story of Alejandro, a twelve-year-old Latino street orphan in Willet's Point, aka the "Iron Triangle," a vibrant, sprawling, industrial neighborhood teeming with auto-body repair shops, scrap yards and garbage dumps on the outskirts of Queens, NY. Although conditions are harsh, the boy's life is sprinkled with moments of happiness as he carves out a life for himself in the shadow of a glittering Shea Stadium.

DIR/SCR Ramin Bahrani; SCR Bahareh Azimi; PROD Jeb Brody, Lisa Muskat, Marc Turtletaub. US, 2007, color, 84 min. NOT RATED

A husband, a wife, a stranger, a knife: Roman Polanski sets them all adrift on a weekend filled with simmering resentments and gut-churning suspense in his seminal psychological thriller, still one of the greatest feature debuts in film history.

DIR/SCR Roman Polanski; SCR Jakub Goldberg, Jerzy Skolimowski; PROD Stanislaw Zylewicz. Poland, 1962, b&w, 94 min. In Polish with English subtitles. NOT RATED

This "semi-documentary" noir, with a taut script by Ben Hecht and a nicely understated performance by Victor Mature, is raised to legendary status by Richard Widmark in his Oscar-nominated screen debut,which still makes audiences squirm in their seats. (note courtesy Noir City)

DIR Henry Hathaway; SCR Ben Hecht, Charles Lederer, Eleazar Lipsky; PROD Fred Kohlmar. US, 1947, b&w, 98 min. NOT RATED

Jean Cocteau reinvented the fairy tale for the cinema with BEAUTY AND THE BEAST, an exquisitely realized vision of Jeanne-Marie Leprince de Beaumont's fantasy romance. With all manner of unparalleled visual effects, Cocteau makes the spellbinding tale of transformative love both ethereal and tangible, and his indelible images still haunt the cinema. "One of the most magical of all films." -- Roger Ebert.

DIR/SCR Jean Cocteau; SCR Jean-Marie Leprince de Beaumont. France/Luxembourg, 1946, b&w, 93 min. In French with English subtitles. NOT RATED

Under the direction of Peter Brook, William Golding's fable about a swarm of young boys who, without adult supervision, devolve into chaos after crash-landing on a remote island during wartime becomes an unforgettable vision of cinematic horror. Shot with almost vérité camera work, the film takes a radical approach to Golding's allegory, grounding it in a terrifying reality. "First rate . . . horrendously exciting!" -- Film Quarterly.

DIR/SCR Peter Brook, based on the novel by William Golding; PROD Lewis M. Allen. UK, 1963, b&w, 90 min. NOT RATED. Digital Presentation.

Featuring DVD Raffle!
One lucky ticketholder at the Dec. 3 LORD OF THE FLIES show will win the Janus Films Presents: Essential Art House Vol I DVD Box Set.

Janus Films Presents: Essential Art House Vol I Indispensable cinema classics from Janus Films and the Criterion Collection.
For the devoted cinephile, these are the must-own fundamentals; for the novice film-lover, this is precisely where to begin. A $99 value!