The Vatican’s Top 45 Films
On the occasion of the 100th anniversary of cinema in 1995, the Vatican compiled this list of “great films.” The 45 movies are
divided into three categories: “Religion,” “Values” and “Art.” The USCC classification for each film follows its description.
Religion
Andrei Rublev (1969) Russian production about a 15th-century monk (Anatoli Solonitzine) who perseveres in painting icons
and other religious art despite the civil disruptions and cruel turmoil of his times. Director Andrei Tarkovsky visualizes brilliantly
the story of a devout man seeking through his art to find the transcendent in the savagery of the Tartar invasions and the
unfeeling brutality of Russian nobles. Subtitles. Stylized historical violence. The U.S. Catholic Conference classification is A-II - adults and adolescents. Not rated by the Motion Picture Association of America. (Fox Lorber, $79.95)
Babette’s Feast (1988) Screen version of a story by Isak Dinesen, set in a rugged fishing village in 1871 Denmark, shows the
impact of a French housekeeper (Stephane Audran) on two pious sisters who carry on their late father’s work as pastor of a
dwindling religious flock. Danish director Gabriel Axel’s understated but finely detailed work centers on the preparation and
consumption of an exquisite Gallic meal, a sensuous labor of love which has a healing effect on the austere sect and the
Frenchwoman who prepared it. Subtitles. Cerebral treatment. The U.S. Catholic Conference classification is A-II -- adults and
adolescents. The Motion Picture Association of America rating is G -- general audiences. (Orion, $19.98)
Ben-Hur (1959) Director William Wyler’s classic Hollywood epic follows the Jewish prince of the title (Charlton Heston) after
he’s betrayed by his boyhood Roman friend (Stephen Boyd) and subjected to much misery until finally achieving retribution for
all his suffering. The narrative’s conventional melodrama is transformed by the grand scale of its spectacle, especially the chariot
race, and by the stirring performances of its principals who manage to overcome the story’s cliches and stereotypes. The U.S.
Catholic Conference classification is A-I -- general patronage. The Motion Picture Association of America rating is G -- general
audiences. (MGM/UA, $29.98)
The Flowers of St. Francis (1950) Remarkable Italian production about the beginnings of the Franciscan Order as its founder
sets the example of humility, simplicity and obedience for his first followers at Portiuncula, a little chapel near Assisi, from
which they depart into the world to preach peace. Directed by Roberto Rossellini from a script co-written with Federico Fellini,
the movie’s form is as simple and sincere as the subject of the narrative which relates a series of little incidents realistically, yet
with an infectious sense of joy marvelously conveyed by an anonymous cast of monks from a Roman monastery. Subtitles. The
U.S. Catholic Conference classification is A-I -- general patronage. Not rated by the Motion Picture Association of America.
(Facets Multimedia, $34.95)
Francesco (1989) Overwrought Italian production portrays St. Francis of Assisi (Mickey Rourke) as a spiritual agitator
challenging the accepted values of his 13th-century contemporaries by embracing a life of utter poverty and simplicity. Director
Liliana Cavani builds an elaborate picture of the period’s social injustices but fails to evoke any convincing sense of religious
conviction from Rourke’s embarrassingly vacuous performance. English-language version. Occasional scenes of violence,
desperate poverty and brief nudity. The U.S. Catholic Conference classification is A-III -- adults. The Motion Picture Association
of America rating is PG-13 -- parents are strongly cautioned that some material may be inappropriate for children under 13.
(Hemdale, $89.95)
The Gospel According to St. Matthew (1966) Straight-forward Italian dramatization of the evangelist’s account of the life of
Jesus and His message of salvation succeeds exceptionally well in placing the viewer within the Gospel events, avoiding the
artificiality of most biblical movie epics. Director Pier Paolo Pasolini is completely faithful to the text while employing the visual
imagination necessary for his realistic interpretation. Subtitles. The U.S. Catholic Conference classification is A-I -- general
patronage. Not rated by the Motion Picture Association of America. (Water Bearer, $24.95)
La Passion de Notre Seigneur Jesus-Christ (1905) Though better known for one-reel crime melodramas, movie pioneer
Ferdinand Zecca (1863-1947) also produced this two-reel (c. 30 minutes) dramatization of Christ’s Passion. Distributed by Pathe,
France’s leading motion picture company, it was reportedly quite popular in its time and was notable, according to film historian
Georges Sadoul, for its “rudimentary” camera movements. (Not available on video)
A Man for All Seasons (1966) Engrossing drama of the last seven years in the life of Thomas More, Henry VIII’s chancellor,
who met a martyr’s death rather than compromise his conscience during a period of religious turmoil. Robert Bolt’s script is
masterfully directed by Fred Zinnemann, with a standout performance by Paul Scofield in the title role, among other notable
performances from a uniformly fine cast. The historical dramatization achieves an authentic human dimension that makes its
16th-century events more accessible and its issues more universal. Profoundly entertaining but heavy-going for children. The
U.S. Catholic Conference classification is A-I -- general patronage. The Motion Picture Association of America rating is G -general audiences. (Columbia TriStar, $19.95)
The Mission (1986) In the 1750s, the large and prosperous Jesuit Indian missions were divided between Spain and Portugal. In
dramatizing these events, Robert Bolt’s screenplay focuses not on the religous but on the sociopolitical dimension of the colonial
era and its injustices. The epic production is visually splendid but Roland Joffe’s direction is erratic and bogs down in contrasting
a nonviolent priest (Jeremy Irons) and one (Robert De Niro) who leads the Indians against a colonial army. Although
dramatically flawed, the work recalls a past that provides a context for current Latin American struggles. Some violence and
ethnographic nudity. The U.S. Catholic Conference classification is A-III -- adults. The Motion Picture Association of America
rating is PG -- parental guidance suggested. (Warner, $19.98)
Monsieur Vincent (1947) Lucid, moving account of St. Vincent de Paul’s work among the poor and the oppressed in 17thcentury France, from his first labors in a plague-ravaged village and his appeals to the conscience of the aristocracy to the
founding of an order devoted to charitable works and his death in 1660. Director Maurice Cloche portrays the poverty of the
times and the cruelty of the regime in starkly convincing fashion, providing a solid historical framework within which Pierre
Fresnay’s performance in the title role shines with a warm compassion and spiritual intensity which most viewers will find
irresistably compelling. Subtitles. High on the list of great religious movies. The U.S. Catholic Conference classification is A-I -general patronage. Not rated by the Motion Picture Association of America. (Nostalgia, $29.95)
Nazarin (1958) Mexican story set in 1905 when a young priest comes into disfavor with his inflexible religious superiors, the
civil authorities and even the poor among whom he tries to live a life of simplicity, poverty and charity. Though director Luis
Bunuel’s work is not very optimistic about the possibility of idealism winning over the world, it’s not critical of religion, only
pious hypocrisy. Subtitles. Perplexing themes. The U.S. Catholic Conference classification is A-III -- adults. Not rated by the
Motion Picture Association of America. (Connoisseur, $69.95)
Ordet (1954) Challenging Danish production about different kinds of faith and various sorts of miracles, one of which restores a
dead woman to life. Directed by Carl Dreyer, the austere narrative centers on a farming family troubled by the madness of a son
(Preben Lerdorff Rye) who believes he is Jesus Christ until, regaining his balance, his faith in God achieves the miracle which
brings the story to a positive though less than convincing conclusion some may find disappointingly ambiguous. Mature themes.
The U.S. Catholic Conference classification is A-III -- adults. Not rated by the Motion Picture Association of America.
(Nostalgia, $24.95)
The Passion of Joan of Arc (1928) Silent screen masterpiece portraying the heresy trial, confession, recantation and execution
of the Maid of Orleans (Maria Falconetti) in a performance of such emotional power that it still stands as the most convincing
portrayal of spirituality on celluloid. Directed by Carl Dreyer, the work is essentially the interior epic of a soul, consisting largely
of close-ups of Joan’s face and those of her interrogators accomplished in a fashion which is never static as the camera explores
the inner struggle between human frailities and spiritual strength. Some duplicitous churchmen, medicinal bloodletting and a
restrained torture scene. The U.S. Catholic Conference classification is A-II -- adults and adolescents. Not rated by the Motion
Picture Association of America. (Nostalgia, $29.95)
The Sacrifice (1986) Swedish production in which a group of adults and a child pass through a night of confusion and fear,
including portents of a nuclear-devastated landscape. Director Andrei Tarkovsky’s murky religious allegory about an aging
writer’s bargaining with God to save others relies upon long silences, ritualized dialogue and beautiful but static photography.
Subtitles. A very personal film about love and compassion, the effect is strangely cold and distant. The U.S. Catholic Conference
classification is A-III -- adults. The Motion Picture Association of America rating is PG -- parental guidance suggested. (Pacific
Arts, $29.95)
Therese (1986) French dramatization of the life of St. Therese de Lisieux from age 15 when she joined a cloistered convent of
Carmelite nuns to her death there 9 years later of tuberculosis. Director Alain Cavalier’s impressionistic account of the young
woman (luminously portrayed by Catherine Mouchet) who found personal joy, spiritual liberation and the sanctity of selfless
simplicity within the restrictive traditions of an austere religious community will challenge contemporary viewers and confound
some. The young may find its picture of 19th-century religious life more confusing than inspiring. Dubbed in English. The U.S.
Catholic Conference classification is A-III -- adults. Not rated by the Motion Picture Association of America. (Palisades Home
Video, 1-800-989-8576, $39.95)
Values
Au Revoir les Enfants (1988) When the Gestapo discover that a priest has hidden three Jewish youths in a Catholic boys’
school, he and the boys are arrested and deported to concentration camps. French writer-producer-director Louis Malle re-creates
a painful memory from his own youth in a restrained, humbling, well-acted dramatization of a boy’s firsthand experience of the
Holocaust. Subtitles. Some rough language. The U.S. Catholic Conference classification is A-II -- adults and adolescents. The
Motion Picture Association of America rating is PG -- parental guidance suggested. (Orion, $19.98)
The Bicycle Thief (1949) Simple yet compelling study in desperation as a worker (Lamberto Maggiorani) must find his stolen
bicycle or lose his new job. Ignored by the police and others, the man and his young son (Enzo Staiola) search the streets for it
until, in despair, he himself tries to steal a bicycle. Scripted by Cesare Zavattini and directed by Vittorio De Sica, the result is an
engrossing picture of the human realities of life on the edge of poverty, shot on the streets of Rome with a cast of nonprofessionals that brought a new realism to the postwar screen and a new emotional honesty to the stories it told. Subtitles. Some
earthy references. The U.S. Catholic Conference classification is A-II -- adults and adolescents. Not rated by the Motion Picture
Association of America. (Nostalgia Family, $69.95)
The Burmese Harp (1956) Badly wounded in Burma at the end of World War II, a Japanese soldier (Shoji Yasui) is nursed back
to health by a Buddhist monk, then devotes himself to searching the jungle battlefields for the abandoned remains of dead
soldiers to give them a decent burial. Directed by Kon Ichikawa, the Japanese production takes a strong anti-war stance through a
series of flashbacks to the horrors of battle, but uses hauntingly poetic imagery to convey the main theme of life’s value and the
need to atone for its loss. Subtitles. Wartime violence. The U.S. Catholic Conference classification is A-II -- adults and
adolescents. Not rated by the Motion Picture Association of America. (Connoisseur, $29.95)
Chariots of Fire (1981) Two young Englishmen (Ben Cross and Ian Charleson) overcome quite different obstacles to win gold
medals at the Paris Olympics of 1924. One is a Jew determined to beat the anti-Semitic establishment at its own game and the
other is a devout Scot who runs for the glory of God. Directed by Hugh Hudson, it is a richly entertaining and highly inspiring
movie for the whole family. Several coarse words. The U.S. Catholic Conference classification is A-I -- general patronage. The
Motion Picture Association of America rating is PG -- parental guidance suggested. (Warner, $19.98)
Decalogue (1988) Produced for Polish television, this series of ten hour-long programs explores the contemporary meaning of
the Ten Commandments as seen in the lives of various residents of a drab Warsaw apartment complex. Directed by Krzysztof
Kieslowski, none of the stories is religious though all grapple with moral conflicts arising from ordinary situations and
relationships which most viewers will not see as being at all foreign to them. Subtitles. Mature themes. The U.S. Catholic
Conference classification is A-III -- adults. Not rated by the Motion Picture Association of America. (Available on video)
Dersu Uzala (1978) Russian production about the friendship that grows between a turn-of-the-century explorer in Siberia and his
guide, an aging Tungus hunter whose name gives the film its title. Japanese director Akira Kurosawa concentrates on evoking the
vast remoteness of the Siberian wilderness, a world the Russian finds forbidding but one in which the hunter is perfectly at home.
Subtitles. Finely acted, beautifully photographed, it is an admiring portrait of a man living in harmony with nature and with his
fellow hunters. The U.S. Catholic Conference classification is A-I -- general patronage. The Motion Picture Association of
America rating is G -- general audiences. (Sultan, $29.98)
Gandhi (1982) Superb portrait of India’s great political and spiritual leader comes to life in Ben Kingsley’s authoritative yet
sensitive performance. Director Richard Attenborough’s epic-scale production re-creates Gandhi’s life and times, especially his
use of non-violence and hunger strikes to bring together the diverse peoples of India and unify them as a nation. Though its
scenes of violence are not for children, the movie’s vision of justice and peace is for everyone else, especially young people. The
U.S. Catholic Conference classification is A-II -- adults and adolescents. The Motion Picture Association of America rating is PG
-- parental guidance suggested. (Columbia TriStar, $29.95)
Intolerance (1916) D.W. Griffith’s epic masterpiece intercuts four stories of injustice -- the fall of Babylon, the Crucifixion, the
St. Bartholomew’s Day massacre and a contemporary American story of an innocent man sentenced to death. The movie
develops parallel action in each of the stories, though centered principally on the tale of an impoverished couple whose wife tries
to save her husband from being unjustly hung and the Assyrian conquest of Babylon which is presented on an epic scale. Though
complex in narrative structure, each story is connected to the others by the simple image of a woman rocking a cradle, a device
dropped as the tempo increases in the conclusion of the stories. The movie’s brilliance in concept, execution and editing is still
impressive, dated only by its florid titles and melodramatic characterizations. Stylized violence, sexual references and a few
flashes of nudity. The U.S. Catholic Conference classification is A-III -- adults. Not rated by the Motion Picture Association of
America. (Kino, $29.95)
It’s a Wonderful Life (1946) Seasonal favorite about the joys and trials of a good man (James Stewart) who, facing financial
ruin on the eve of Christmas, contemplates suicide until his guardian angel (Henry Travers) shows him how meaningful his life
has been to those around him. Director Frank Capra’s unabashedly sentimental picture of mainstream American life is bolstered
by a superb cast (including Lionel Barrymore as a conniving banker) and a wealth of good feelings about such commonplace
virtues as hard work and helping one’s neighbor. Young children may find the story’s dark moments unsettling. The U.S.
Catholic Conference classification is A-II -- adults and adolescents. Not rated by the Motion Picture Association of America.
(Republic, 45th Anniversary Edition, $19.98)
On the Waterfront (1954) Classic labor film about a punched-out boxer (Marlon Brando) who, despite the machinations of his
shifty brother (Rod Steiger) and with some encouragement from the woman (Eva Marie Saint) he loves as well as a waterfront
priest (Karl Malden), decides to stand up to the criminal boss (Lee J. Cobb) of a corrupt union of dock workers. Budd
Schulberg’s fact-based script is directed by Elia Kazan with stand-out performances and a gritty realism grounded in a workingclass milieu, abetted by Leonard Bernstein’s rousing score and Boris Kauffman’s atmospheric photography. Much menace and
some violence. The U.S. Catholic Conference classification is A-II -- adults and adolescents. Not rated by the Motion Picture
Association of America. (Columbia TriStar, $19.95)
Open City (1945) Composite picture of the resistance movement in German-occupied Rome focusing on an underground leader
(Marcello Pagliero) hidden by a widow (Anna Magnani) until he’s betrayed to the Gestapo, then tortured and executed along with
a partisan priest (Aldo Fabrizi). Director Roberto Rossellini began filming while German troops were still in the city and the
result has a documentary quality giving a sense of immediacy to the period portrayal of events by a cast whose naturalistic acting
captures the fervor and determination of diverse social types united in their opposition to fascism. Subtitles. Wartime violence
and some intense torture scenes. The U.S. Catholic Conference classification is A-III -- adults. Not rated by the Motion Picture
Association of America. (Kino, $24.95)
Schindler’s List (1993) Sobering account of an opportunistic German businesssman (Liam Neeson) out to make his fortune by
exploiting Jewish labor in occupied Poland but the increasing barbarism of Nazi racial policies and the sadistic perversions of the
local commandant (Ralph Fiennes) cause him to risk his life trying to save the Jews in his employ. Director Steven Spielberg
restages this Holocaust story on an epic scale that gives horrifying dimension to one man’s attempt to save some innocent lives,
though providing little insight in the German’s moral transformation or the individual lives of his Jewish workers. Realistically
graphic treatment of an infamous historical period and its crimes against humanity, a few discreet sexual scenes and occasional
rough language. The U.S. Catholic Conference classification is A-III -- adults. The Motion Picture Association of America rating
is R -- restricted. (MCA/Universal, $29.98)
The Seventh Seal (1956) Intense medieval morality tale about a disillusioned knight (Max Von Sydow) returning from the
Crusades to a plague-ravaged land where he forestalls Death (Bengt Ekerot) by wagering his life on a game of chess during the
course of which he saves a traveling player named Joseph (Nils Poppe), his wife Mary (Bibi Andersson) and their infant son.
Swedish director Ingmar Bergman convincingly re-creates the religious context of the Middle Ages but the knight’s quest to find
meaning in a world of physical suffering and spiritual emptiness is more directly related to the contemporary search for life’s
meaning in our own age of doubt and uncertainty. Subtitles. Recurring images of death, some stylized violence and instances of
religious fanaticism. The U.S. Catholic Conference classification is A-III -- adults. Not rated by the Motion Picture Association
of America. (Video Dimensions, $19.95)
The Tree of Wooden Clogs (1978) Quiet, richly textured Italian drama about the lives of four peasant families who work as
tenant farmers on a Lombardy estate at the end of the last century. Beginning with the fall harvest and ending with the spring
planting, the movie depicts the everyday life of rural people who endure with human dignity in spite of the oppressive system
which exploits their labor. Written, photographed and directed by Ermanno Olmi, this is a loving portrait of ordinary life in an
age of social injustice. Some tense scenes. The U.S. Catholic Conference classification is A-II -- adults and adolescents. Not rated
by the Motion Picture Association of America. (Fox/Lorber, $79.95)
Wild Strawberries (1958) During the day on which he is to be awarded an honorary degree from a nearby university, a 78-yearold retired scholar (Victor Sjostrom in a masterful performance) is visited with dreams and reveries about his past life, especially
his failures and disappointments in personal relationships. Swedish director Ingmar Bergman brilliantly develops the man’s
interior journey from pangs of regret and anxiety to a refreshing sense of peace and reconciliation summed up in blissful images
of his happy youth. One of the great films about aging that touches universal chords in mature viewers. English subtitles. The
U.S. Catholic Conference classification is A-III -- adults. Not rated by the Motion Picture Association of America. (Connoisseur,
$29.95)
Art
Citizen Kane (1941) When a Hearst-like newspaper tycoon (Orson Welles) dies, a reporter (William Alland) interviews the
man’s former associates (Joseph Cotton and Everett Sloane among them) and wives (Ruth Warrick and Dorothy Comingore) in
an effort to pin down the essence of the contradictory, larger-than-life millionaire by discovering the meaning of his dying word,
“Rosebud.” Also co-written (with Herman J. Mankiewicz), produced and directed by Welles, the movie is a landmark in
American cinema, notable both for its superb use of film technique and its intriguing story of a man who came from nothing,
acquired fame and fortune but died without the love he sought. Marital infidelity. The U.S. Catholic Conference classification is
A-II -- adults and adolescents. Not rated by the Motion Picture Association of America. (Turner, 50th Anniversary Edition
includes a 30-minute documentary on the movie, $19.98)
8 1/2 (1963) With both career and marriage in chaos, an Italian movie director (Marcello Mastroianni) protects his overgrown
ego by retreating into surreal memories of the past and wild fantasies about the present. Director Federico Fellini has some selfindulgent fun with his profession, semibiographical events from his youth and themes from his movies while taking viewers on a
journey through the rich, at times bizarre, imagination of an artist whose attempts to cope with the demands of the real world are
resolved in a final flood of optimism as the director joins with all his characters in a human carousel of life. Subtitles. Ambiguous
treatment of mature themes. The U.S. Catholic Conference classification is A-IV -- adults, with reservations. Not rated by the
Motion Picture Association of America. (Vestron, $69.95)
Fantasia (1940) Walt Disney’s only excursion into the world of the fine arts presents eight selections of classical music,
including Dukas’ “Sorcerer’s Apprentice” with Mickey Mouse and a bucket brigade of brooms, Stravinsky’s “Rite of Spring”
with its massive, earthbound images and the macabre vision of Musorgsky’s “Night on Bald Mountain.” Using different
approaches and animation styles for each piece of music as performed by the Philadelphia Orchestra under conductor Leopold
Stokowski, the imaginative work was not only Disney’s most ambitious undertaking but it remains an enjoyably creative
introduction to fine music, especially for youngsters. The U.S. Catholic Conference classification is A-I -- general patronage. The
Motion Picture Association of America rating is G -- general audiences. (Disney, $24.99)
Grand Illusion (1937) Shot down during World War I, a French aristocrat (Pierre Fresnay) is treated as a brother officer by the
German aristocrat (Erich von Stroheim) commanding the prisoner-of-war camp, then makes use of his special status to distract
attention while two fellow prisoners (Jean Gabin and Dalio) make good their escape to Switzerland. Directed by Jean Renoir, the
picture of life in the camp is rich in narrative incident and human detail, neatly supporting a theme dealing with the end of the
aristocratic ideal of chivalry and its replacement by mass armies of commoners with no desire for war. Subtitles. Some ribald
humor and tense situations. The U.S. Catholic Conference classification is A-II -- adults and adolescents. Not rated by the Motion
Picture Association of America. (Home Vision, $29.95)
La Strada (1956) Two-bit circus strongman (Anthony Quinn) adds a simple-minded peasant (Giulietta Masina) to his act,
treating her badly until a tragic encounter with a bantering acrobat (Richard Basehart) who tries to help her. Italian director
Federico Fellini’s somber picture of lost souls on the backroads of life has its emotional center in Masina’s Chaplinesque
performance as the poor waif struggling to keep her spirit from being crushed by the brute she serves. Subtitles. Some stylized
violence and brutalizing conditions of life. The U.S. Catholic Conference classification is A-III -- adults. Not rated by the Motion
Picture Association of America. (Sultan, $29.98)
The Lavender Hill Mob (1951) British comedy classic in which a timid bank employee (Alec Guinness) concocts a scheme to
hijack a shipment of gold bullion with the aid of professional crooks (Sidney James and Alfie Bass), then melt it down in the
foundry of an accomodating sculptor (Stanley Holloway) and recast it as Eifel Tower souvenirs for export to Paris. Scripted by
T.E.B. Clarke and directed by Charles Crichton, the tongue-in-cheek depiction of a perfect crime has one hilarious flaw after
another, culminating in a wild police chase through London and a neat twist ending in South America. Comic crime caper and
mild menace. The U.S. Catholic Conference classification is A-II -- adults and adolescents. Not rated by the Motion Picture
Association of America. (HBO, $19.98)
The Leopard (1963) Historical drama set against the background of Garibaldi’s 1860 invasion of Sicily where the prince (Burt
Lancaster) of an old aristocratic family refuses to adapt to revolutionary times despite the marriage of his more egalitarian
nephew (Alain Delon) to the daughter of a wealthy ex-peasant. Directed by Luchino Visconti from the novel by Giuseppe Di
Lampedusa, the result captures a fascinating period of social, political and economic change in a family saga filled with nostalgia
for a past, more elegant age. Subtitles. Mature themes. The U.S. Catholic Conference classification is A-III -- adults. Not rated by
the Motion Picture Association of America. (Not available on video)
Little Women (1933) Lovingly sentimental but firmly crafted adaptation of Louisa May Alcott’s story of four New England girls
cared for by their mother while their father is soldiering in the Civil War. Director George Cukor depicts the joys and woes of the
loving March family household with warmth and sincerity, but most memorable is the ensemble performance of a remarkable
cast headed by Katharine Hepburn as serious-minded Jo, Joan Bennett as vain Amy, Frances Dee as prosaic Meg, Jean Parker as
waifish Beth and Spring Byington as the girls’ beloved Marmee. Prime family fare. The U.S. Catholic Conference classification
is A-I -- general patronage. Not rated by the Motion Picture Association of America. (MGM/UA, $14.98)
Metropolis (1926) Silent classic of a future society ruled by an aristocracy living in luxury above ground while the workers
suffer miserably underground, comforted only by the religious faith of a young woman (Brigitte Helm) in whose likeness a
sinister scientist (Rudolf Klein-Rogge) fashions a robot inciting the workers to rebel but all ends in reconciliation. Directed by
Fritz Lang, the story’s melodramatic turns and woolly finale may be dated but not its vivid pictorial sense, grandly
expressionistic decor and theme of social justice. Bleak picture of exploited workers, stylized violence and some sexual
innuendo. The U.S. Catholic Conference classification is A-II -- adults and adolescents. Not rated by the Motion Picture
Association of America. (Nostalgia, $16.95)
Modern Times (1936) Charlie Chaplin’s insightful fable of man versus machine centers in the artificiality of industrialized
society and the anxieties caused by the Depression as Charlie dances his way through the hazards of an assembly line job. A
model of silent comedic technique and refined slapstick humor, the movie marks the last appearance of the Little Tramp character
as Charlie takes his final walk down the long empty road, this time in the company of Paulette Goddard who adds an element of
freshness to the plot’s old-fashioned romance. The U.S. Catholic Conference classification is A-I -- general patronage. The
Motion Picture Association of America rating is G -- general audiences. (CBS/Fox, $19.98).
Napoleon (1927) Epic silent chronicle of Napoleon Bonaparte (Albert Dieudonne) from his student days at a military academy
through his rise as an officer during the Revolution and Reign of Terror until ending in 1796 when the Directory puts him in
command of the army invading Italy. Directed by Abel Gance, the episodic narrative is heavily melodramatic, yet the sheer
exhuberance of the actors and the monumental staging of the action carry viewers along in richly visual experience made
memorable by Gance’s innovative use of portable cameras and triple screens. This reconstructed print runs 235 minutes, with
music composed by Carmine Coppola. Stylized violence and brief sexual innuendo. The U.S. Catholic Conference classification
is A-II -- adults and adolescents. Not rated by the Motion Picture Association of America. (MCA/Universal, $29.95)
Nosferatu (1922) Silent horror classic loosely based on Bram Stoker’s novel, “Dracula,” centers on the vampire count (Max
Schreck) who leaves his sinister castle in the Carpathian mountains to sail on a doomed ship bringing him to 1838 Bremen where
his dark deeds are undone by a brave young woman and the first light of dawn. Directed by F.W. Murnau, the German production
is most notable for its eerie portrayal of the vampire in images which seem to personify evil and dread in a movie even more
remarkable for having been filmed mostly on location rather than in the controlled confines of a studio. Stylized violence and
menace. The U.S. Catholic Conference classification is A-II -- adults and adolescents. Not rated by the Motion Picture
Association of America. (Nostalgia, $19.95)
Stagecoach (1939) In this Western classic, a cowboy (John Wayne) wanted by the law on trumped-up charges joins an odd
assortment of passengers (Claire Trevor, Thomas Mitchell, Donald Meek, John Carradine and others) on the stage to Lordsburg
in the midst of an Apache uprising. Directed by John Ford, the characters are a microcosm of frontier types, each of whom has a
different reason for the journey whose dangers are played out against the majestic vistas of Monument Valley, with a brilliantly
staged Indian attack and a final showdown on the streets of Lordsburg that brings the story to a rousing finish. Stylized violence.
The U.S. Catholic Conference classification is A-II -- adults and adolescents. Not rated by the Motion Picture Association of
America. (Warner, $19.98)
2001: A Space Odyssey (1968) Director Stanley Kubrick’s epic work, co-written with Arthur C. Clarke, is both science fiction
and metaphysical poetry using an unconventional mixture of visuals and music to bridge humanity’s reconstructed past,
identifiable present and projected future, all tied together by the recurring image of a monolith as symbol of a superhuman
existence. The central narrative follows the struggle of two astronauts (Keir Dullea and Gary Lockwood) to wrest control of their
spacecraft from HAL, a talking computer (voice of Douglas Rain), on a half-billion-mile trip to Jupiter and the unknown. For
young people and imaginative adults but too long, deep and intense for children. The U.S. Catholic Conference classification is
A-II -- adults and adolescents. The Motion Picture Association of America rating is G -- general audiences. (MGM/UA, $19.98)
The Wizard of Oz (1939) Dorothy rides her cyclone to the magic land over the rainbow in director Victor Fleming’s classic that
skyrocketed Judy Garland’s career and has given generations of families prime entertainment again and again. The 50th
anniversary edition has 17 minutes of material not included in the original release. The U.S. Catholic Conference classification is
A-II -- adults and adolescents. The Motion Picture Association of America rating is G -- general audiences. (MGM/UA, $24.98)