Directed by Tom Tykwer. This audacious, ground-breaking film wowed audiences around the globe and changed filmmaking forever with its break-speed editing and non-linear narrative. The flame-haired Lola (Franka Potente) and her dim-witted, techno-loving boyfriend, Manni (Moritz Bleibtreu) are young lovers who have only 20 minutes to come up with the 100,000 Deutschmarks that Manni has lost…or the mob will kill him. Lola’s pursuit of the loot is presented three times, each time posing various “what if?” scenarios. If you are one of the unfortunate few who haven’t yet had a chance to see Lola on the big screen, here is your chance to enjoy this acclaimed crowd-pleaser with a crowd. (Germany 1998 81 min.)

Directed by Kevin MacDonald. In 1985 British mountain climbers, Joe Simpson and Simon Yates, succeeded in reaching the austere west face of Siula Grande in the Peruvian Andes, but on the way down, disaster struck. Touching the Void weaves together personal testimony of the two climbers and breathtaking reenactments to tell the unfortunate series of events that led to Simpson being left for dead, forced to negotiate the treacherous terrain injured and alone. It’s easy to see why this film is the most popular documentary ever made in the UK. (UK 2003 106 min.)

Directed by Rudolph Maté. Imagine a film in which a small town accountant (Edmond O’Brien) staggers into a police office in order to report a murder… his own. This is the startling set-up of one of the most exciting film noirs of the golden age. Told in flashback, we see that the doomed man has been given a lethal toxin for which there is no known antidote. He has only a few days to figure out who poisoned him and take that person down before he meets his maker. He’s not about to let a beautiful dame or a woozy headache stand in his way. This darkly humorous, existential thriller has held up beautifully and is far superior to its remake.. (USA 1950 93 min)

Directed by Agnes Varda. Who would believe that this film about a woman waiting for the results of a biopsy could be anything but depressing? This French New Wave favorite depicts two life-changing hours in the life of a beautiful, spoiled, narcissistic pop singer (Corinne Marchand) who rises from her sick bed, walks the streets of Paris, and slowly begins to realize the shallowness of her invented life. Gorgeously photographed and filled with cameos by French celebrities (Jean-Luc Godard, composer Michel Legrand, Anna Karina, Jacques Demy), Cleo demonstrates that the richness of life is heightened during moments that force us to confront our own mortality. (France 1962 90 min)

Directed by Louise Osmond and Jerry Rothwell. In 1968, eight of the world's best yachtsmen set out to win the prize for the first solo, non-stop, round-the-globe circumnavigation. The ninth was an inexperienced Englishman and weekend sailor called Donald Crowhurst, who found himself increasingly in debt and in over his head. Nonetheless he risked everything, said goodbye to his family, and pulled up anchor, believing there was no turning back. When reports begin to indicate that Crowhurst has taken the lead, many are incredulous, as well they should be. To divulge more would ruin the surprise. This documentary is the ultimate tale of hubris gone overboard. (UK 2006 92 min)

Rififi was made by Jules Dassin, a blacklisted, exiled director who was laying low in Paris, fearing that his career was over. With a miniscule budget of $200K, he miraculously eked out exquisite black and white cinematography, a brooding score (by Georges Auric), and nuanced performances from himself and a trio of underutilized French actors, Rififi has at its heart a thirty-three minute-long heist scene that makes film geeks tremble with excitement. So realistic in its depiction of the planning and execution of a robbery that the film was banned in several countries because authorities believed that it would serve as an instruction manual to aspiring crooks. (France 1955 112 min)

Directed by James Marsh. Constructed of actual news footage and well-crafted re-enactments, Man on Wire is as tightly structured and scary as the best thriller. The film relates the unbelievable feat of Philippe Petite who somehow managed to walk across the sky on a wisp of a wire suspended between the tops of the two World Trade Center towers. Petite is an expert aerialist who had done lesser stunts before. The film does a magnificent job of illustrating the choreography required to pull off this type of act. With the aid of his loyal assistants, detailed diagrams, and crafty subterfuge, Petite shows us all what a wondrous spectacle mankind is capable of creating. The world was a far more innocent place in 1974, when the story unfolds, then it is today. (UK/USA 2008 93 min)

Directed by Hal Ashby. Petty Officers Billy "Bad Ass" Buddusky (Jack Nicholson, in his prime) and Mule Mulhall (Otis Young, The Outcasts) are two jaded navy men assigned to escort an oafish teenage sailor (Randy Quaid, in his first role) from Portsmouth, NH to a military prison in Washington, DC. The lad’s crime--stealing a charity box. His sentence--eight years in the brig. Realizing that the shy sailor has never experienced all of the adult pleasures that will soon be walled off from him, his keepers take it upon themselves to draw out their journey and give the poor doomed seaman his first taste of wine, women and song. The casting of this film is spot-on, and the script by Robert Towne (Bonnie and Clyde, Chinatown) is alternately hilarious and deeply moving. (USA 1973 103 min)

Directed by S.R. Bindler This quirky documentary follows 24 desperate inhabitants of Longview, Texas as they compete in an annual contest to win a shiny new “hard body” pickup truck. Their goal is to remain standing in the parking lot of a Nissan dealership with one hand on the truck. The car is awarded to the last man (or woman) standing. It’s difficult to explain why this film has become a cult phenomenon. Robert Altman was in the process of adapting it into a feature film when he passed away. It is currently being made into a Broadway musical. Needless to say, the participants are a microcosm of all of the down-and-out members of our society trying to grab hold of the elusive brass ring. (USA 1997 95 min)

Directed by José Padiha On a beautiful spring day in 2000 in Rio De Janeiro, a homeless man jumped aboard a city bus and attempted to hijack it. The subsequent horrifying 4-hour standoff was broadcast live throughout Brazil and soon became media fodder for all of us around the world. Many disturbing questions are brought to light through this documentary that exposes the ineffectiveness of Rio’s corrupt police who scramble to deal with the situation while the 21-year-old gunman grows increasing deranged. Sandro do Nascimento was one of thousands of disenfranchised street kids, driven to a life of crime, in a city where a lucky few live in luxury while most exist in unimaginable squalor. Bus 174 is a cautionary tale that is becoming increasingly relevant as we Americans find our middle class slipping away. (Brazil 2002 120 min.)

Directed by Danis Tanovic. This Oscar-winner for Best Foreign Film stood out for its provocative depiction of the absurdity of the Bosnian War. Its dark humor, biting social satire and suspenseful set-up led to the film garnering numerous screenwriting awards. Two soldiers—one Serbian, the other Bosnian—find themselves in the same trench where they discover another Serbian soldier who was left for dead and placed across a booby-trapped land mine. If he moves, numerous lives (on both sides) will be lost. Things go from bad to worse once the press and UN become involved. Tanovic started out as a war photographer, and his unflinching eye and acerbic world-weary wit turn this specific tale of the demise of Yugoslavia in 1993 into a metaphor for all pointless wars in our modern age. (Bosnia/Herzogovina 2001 98 min)

Directed by Edmund Goulding. Bette Davis stars as Judith Traherne, a flighty socialite who visits the doctor with a headache and finds out that she has a brain tumor. Poor Judy’s friends are informed that surgery will temporarily cure her of her symptoms, but one day… soon… she will lose her vision, and then her life will be over. This schmaltzy tear-jerker is fabulously entertaining. We cheer for Judy to ignore the advances of a boring playboy (Ronald Reagan), fall in love with her handsome doctor (George Brent), spend valuable girl time with her best friend (Geraldine Fitzgerald), and find support from her stable boy (Humphrey Bogart, in a very early role). Like many screen actresses of her day, Bette grows wiser and more beautiful as her brain becomes destroyed and she reaches her tragic demise. (1939 104 min.)

Directed by Christopher Guest. After the success of This is Spinal Tap, Guest and his cronies collaborated on another faux documentary, this time Guest stars as Corky St. Clair, a closeted queen theatre director who has been asked by the locals of his tiny Midwest town to write and produce a musical extravaganza to complement the town’s upcoming sesquicentennial. In the midst of rehearsals, Corky and his sad sack actors learn that the esteemed critic, Mr. Guffman, is coming to town and will review their production and perhaps recommend that it move to Broadway. As the time for Guffman’s appearance approaches, the production becomes increasingly (and insanely) elaborate as the cast and crew become unglued. Parker Posey, Eugene Levy, Bob Balaban, and Catherine O’Hara were never funnier than in this lampoon of community theatre. (USA 1996 84 min.)