Once There Was a War

City of God

August 2002 •Portuguese

In the poverty-stricken favelas of Rio de Janeiro in the 1970s, two young men choose different paths. Rocket is a budding photographer who documents the increasing drug-related violence of his neighborhood, while José “Zé” Pequeno is an ambitious drug dealer diving into a dangerous life of crime.

Downfall

September 2004 •German

In April of 1945, Germany stands at the brink of defeat with the Russian Army closing in from the east and the Allied Expeditionary Force attacking from the west. In Berlin, capital of the Third Reich, Adolf Hitler proclaims that Germany will still achieve victory and orders his generals and advisers to fight to the last man. When the end finally does come, and Hitler lies dead by his own hand, what is left of his military must find a way to end the killing that is the Battle of Berlin, and lay down their arms in surrender.

Wild Strawberries

August 1957 •Swedish

Crotchety retired doctor Isak Borg travels from Stockholm to Lund, Sweden, with his pregnant and unhappy daughter-in-law, Marianne, in order to receive an honorary degree from his alma mater. Along the way, they encounter a series of hitchhikers, each of whom causes the elderly doctor to muse upon the pleasures and failures of his own life. These include the vivacious young Sara, a dead ringer for the doctor's own first love.

Letters from Iwo Jima

December 2006 •English

The story of the battle of Iwo Jima between the United States and Imperial Japan during World War II, as told from the perspective of the Japanese who fought it.

Sex and Lucía

August 2001 •Spanish

Various lives converge on an isolated island, all connected by an author whose novel has become inextricably entwined with his own life.

Long Live the Republic

November 1965 •Czech

Oldrich is the runt of his village, beaten by his father, bullied by the other boys. But he has imagination on his side, and a wiry toughness they can’t defeat. The village is in turmoil, because the Nazi occupiers have just retreated and the Red Army is advancing. Oldrich dodges amid the mayhem and panic, taking his share of blows but always managing to stay one step ahead. Beautifully shot and darkly ironic, Karel Kachyna’s forgotten masterpiece jumbles reality, memory and fantasy to capture the intensity and confusion of childhood in a war zone.

Nowhere in Africa

December 2001 •German

A Jewish woman named Jettel Redlich flees Nazi Germany with her daughter Regina, to join her husband, Walter, on a farm in Kenya. At first, Jettel refuses to adjust to her new circumstances, bringing with her a set of china dishes and an evening gown. While Regina adapts readily to this new world, forming a strong bond with her father's cook, an African named Owuor.

The Dirty Dozen

June 1967 •English

12 American military prisoners in World War II are ordered to infiltrate a well-guarded enemy château and kill the Nazi officers vacationing there. The soldiers, most of whom are facing death sentences for a variety of violent crimes, agree to the mission and the possible commuting of their sentences.

Slnko vychádza nad Prašivou

August 1977 •Slovak

Smrť chodí po horách

January 1979 •Slovak

Attack and Capture: The Story of U-Boat 505

January 2002 •English

On June 4, 1944 Captain Daniel Gallery and his men of the U.S. Naval Task Force 22.3 did the nearly impossible - they captured a German U-boat. It was the first enemy vessel-of-war captured in battle on the high seas by the U.S. Navy since 1815. Climb aboard the historic U-505 and relive its journey from a powerhouse of the German fleet to a display at the Museum of Science and Industry in Chicago. Witness archival footage and rare interviews with both German and American crew members involved in the capture of the U-505. And view even rarer footage of Captains Daniel Gallery and Harold Lange, captain of the 505 at the time of its capture..

Y Tu Mamá También

June 2001 •Spanish

In Mexico, two teenage boys and an attractive older woman embark on a road trip and learn a thing or two about life, friendship, sex, and each other.

Nostalgia

June 1983 •Russian

A Russian poet, Andrei and his interpreter, Eugenia travel to Italy to research the life of an 18th-century composer.

Mirror

March 1975 •Russian

A dying man in his forties recalls his childhood, his mother, the war and personal moments that tell of and juxtapose pivotal moments in Soviet history with daily life.

25th Hour

December 2002 •English

In New York City in the days following the events of 9/11, Monty Brogan is a convicted drug dealer about to start a seven-year prison sentence, and his final hours of freedom are devoted to hanging out with his closest buddies and trying to prepare his girlfriend for his extended absence.

The Virgin Suicides

April 2000 •English

A group of male friends become obsessed with five mysterious sisters who are sheltered by their strict, religious parents.

ANA

August 2017 •Spanish

Battle of the Bulge: Winter War

November 2020 •English

Lt. Robert Cappa and his platoon of 2nd Infantry Division soldiers must defend a vital supply depot from being captured by attacking German soldiers.

Praxis

January 2008 •English

Praxis peels away the layers of narrative even as Brian, the film's axis, struggles to create his true self. Brian, a writer on the verge of a breakdown, is aided by Joe and an Elusive Woman as he sifts through the fragments of his persona to discover his true core. Fighting against fear and the indifference of society - aptly symbolized by the medical establishment - his quest reflects the classical mythos of Proteus and the human search for meaning in the universe.

The Fighter Pilot

December 2013 •Japanese

A brother and sister learn their biological grandfather was a kamikaze pilot who died during World War II. During their research into his life, they get conflicting accounts from his former comrades about his character and how he joined his squadron.