Director Danny Boyle wields a wildly inventive visual style, spinning an atmosphere of playful magical realism punctuated by moments of pure cinematic exuberance. It is the tale of two Liverpudian lads who have just moved into a new house with their dad to begin a new life without their departed mother. Damien is a dreamer, representing all that is naive and unspoiled in the world. So when a duffle bag full of cash literally falls from the sky to Damien's feet, he thinks it's a gift from God and begins searching for poor people to give the money to...

Director Danny Boyle wields a wildly inventive visual style, spinning an atmosphere of playful magical realism punctuated by moments of pure cinematic exuberance. It is the tale of two Liverpudian lads who have just moved into a new house with their dad to begin a new life without their departed mother. Damien is a dreamer, representing all that is naive and unspoiled in the world. So when a duffle bag full of cash literally falls from the sky to Damien's feet, he thinks it's a gift from God and begins searching for poor people to give the money to. Older brother Anthony is more business minded and tries to educate his brother on the practical uses of money. But there's a catch: the boys only have one week to spend the cash before Britain converts to the euro and their money is rendered worthless. Millions is a smart, funny, sensitive and immensely enjoyable film about the difficulty of performing an act of generosity in a cynical world.

What Others Say...

"A family film of limitless imagination and surprising joy" - Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times

"Leaves you feeling rich -- and richly satisfied" - Steven Rea, Philadelphia Inquirer

"Visually arresting, seriously whimsical, and suffused with a dreamy yet sad awareness of where life falls short and imagination has to pick up the slack" - Ty Burr, Boston Globe

"Witty, sweet and charming but never sappy" - Desson Thomson, Washington Post

Released: 2005

From Iranian director Majid Majidi (Children of Heaven) comes a powerful drama about life in modern Tehran for Mohammad, a blind eight-year-old boy. Kind-hearted and full of spirit, Mohammad is loved by everyone who meets him--except his father, who is ashamed of the boy and worried...

From Iranian director Majid Majidi (Children of Heaven) comes a powerful drama about life in modern Tehran for Mohammad, a blind eight-year-old boy. Kind-hearted and full of spirit, Mohammad is loved by everyone who meets him--except his father, who is ashamed of the boy and worried that his son's handicap will ruin his chance to remarry. In an effort to get rid of him, he sends Mohammad to apprentice with a carpenter far away, who gladly takes him in and treats him like a son. But Mohammad begins to wonder if there is anything that will bring his father around.

Like Children of Heaven, Majidi shows his great skill working with young actors, drawing believable performances and creating a sympathetic character without overly dwelling on his handicap. Beautiful cinematography and sound design (bringing out the subtleties of Mohammad's advanced hearing) make this an engaging example of Iran's growing place in world cinema.

What Others Say...

"Stunningly beautiful and nothing less than extraordinary... yet another gem to spring from one of the world's most vital national cinemas!" - A.O. Scott, New York Times

"Made with delicacy and beauty... Because they do not condescend to young audiences, Majidi's films of course are absorbing for adults as well, and there is a lesson here: Any family film not good enough for grownups is certainly not good enough for children" - Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times

Released: 1999

This Oscar-nominated drama from Iran illustrates the resilience and resourcefulness of young children in a sweet, heart-wrenching story that is part fairy tale, part family drama. When Ali loses his sister Zahra's only pair of shoes, they know their family is too poor...

This Oscar-nominated drama from Iran illustrates the resilience and resourcefulness of young children in a sweet, heart-wrenching story that is part fairy tale, part family drama. When Ali loses his sister Zahra's only pair of shoes, they know their family is too poor to afford another pair, and they don't want to let them know about the loss. So instead, they take turns with Ali's pair of shoes, trading back and forth as they rush to school and play around the city. But when Ali learns about the school foot race, where the prize is a new pair of shoes, he knows it is a contest he simply has to win...

Although it sounds overly sentimental, this simple set up is an ideal frame on which to hang great child performances, beautiful cinematography and delicate family scenes that eschew melodrama and sentimentality for sweetly-tinged realism.

What Others Say...

"Very nearly a perfect movie for children, and of course that means adults will like it, too" - Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times

"Majidi captures the immediacy and essence of kids: proud, emotional, spirited, and disarmingly sincere" - Sean Axmaker, Seattle Weekly

Released: 1999

Occupying a landmark as the first film shot in Iraq after the fall of Saddam Hussein, Turtles Can Fly focuses on the realities of day-to-day existence for kids in the Kurdistan region of the war-torn country...

Occupying a landmark as the first film shot in Iraq after the fall of Saddam Hussein, Turtles Can Fly focuses on the realities of day-to-day existence for kids in the Kurdistan region of the war-torn country. Thirteen-year-old Soran rallies his fellow orphans in his village to help clear the surrounding minefields and install antennas so they can listen to more news about the war. After hearing that Saddam Hussein has been removed from power, Soran and his friends prepare for the arrival of U.S. troops, but are instead greeted by the beautiful young girl Agri and her brother Henkov, who is armless because of landmines and claims he can predict the future. Soran falls for Agri but is wary of her brother, and how can romance blossom under such dire circumstances?

More than topical, the film mixes emotionally devastating circumstances with humor and courage to depict a particularly childlike view towards an uncertain future. Looking back on the film after several years of continued conflict, it's a prescient but not preachy reminder of the true victims of war.

Released: 2004

In this stunning drama about the clash between ancient customs and changing attitudes towards gender, 12-year-old Pai would be the future leader of her village--if she wasn't a girl. Despite the disapproval of her family, Pai is determined to prove...

In this stunning drama about the clash between ancient customs and changing attitudes towards gender, 12-year-old Pai would be the future leader of her village--if she wasn't a girl. Her brother's death in childbirth leaves her the sole offspring of her father, the current chief of New Zealand's Maori tribe, and challenges the tribe's tradition of passing down leadership to the first-born male in the line. Despite the disapproval of her family, Pai is determined to prove that she can become a strong leader of the people and a rightful heir in this amazing story that accurately captures family tensions in the midst of great change.

Beautiful cinematography and a largely tribal-influenced soundtrack capture the majesty of the New Zealand landscape (better known as the location of the epic Middle Earth battlegrounds in The Lord of the Rings) and the changing lives of the Maori tribe who have lived there for centuries. Niki Caro's feel-good movie became a surprise hit, winning approval from audiences and critics alike as well as an Oscar nomination.

Released: 2003

Hard-hitting economic realities collide with the happily escapist illusions created by the movie industry in Salaam Bombay!, a festival favorite that launched the career of director Mira Nair (Monsoon Wedding, The Namesake). Eleven-year-old Krishna has lived on the streets since...

Hard-hitting economic realities collide with the happily escapist illusions created by the movie industry in Salaam Bombay!, a festival favorite that launched the career of director Mira Nair (Monsoon Wedding, The Namesake). Eleven-year-old Krishna has lived on the streets most of her life, mingling with the homeless, drug addicts, thieves and prostitutes, but he keeps his hopes up, inspired by the Bollywood movie posters and music all around him. He's been trying to earn enough money to return home, but when his best friend steals his savings, Krishna is pushed into a life of petty crime.

Like the Italian neorealists, Salaam Bombay has an almost entirely non-professional cast, using real street kids to act out their lives, and shooting on location. These techniques paid off in an incredibly moving look at life on the streets and won Nair the prestigious Camera d'Or prize at the Cannes Film Festival.

Released: 1988

The Red Balloon is a classic of children's cinema, as the image of the film’s titular balloon, glowing an impossibly dazzling shade of Technicolor red, has seared itself into so many childhood memories. The film’s story is deceptively simple...

The Red Balloon is a classic of children's cinema, as the image of the film’s titular balloon, glowing an impossibly dazzling shade of Technicolor red, has seared itself into so many childhood memories. The film’s story is deceptively simple: a young boy discovers a balloon, which seems to express free will through its movements, and together they go on an adventure through Paris. The movie moves at a languid pace, self-assured of its jokes in the first half and the dramatic chase scene that anchors the second, but it never drags (nor does it really have time to, with a running time of just over half an hour). In something of a scandal, Red Balloon also won the 1956 Oscar for Original Screenplay, despite the film only having a few lines of dialogue. What the Oscar instead symbolizes to me is the film’s great reliance on cinematic technique to tell the story, giving the non-verbal balloon human properties of playfulness and friendship, and setting up jokes as if the balloon were to join Chaplin and Keaton among the masters of silent comedy. The lack of dialogue also means that The Red Balloon’s sense of humor and magical drama can appeal to kids of all ages, even if they can’t yet read the subtitles for the French drama.

What Others Say...

"An utterly charming little story" - Bosley Crowther, New York Times

"A beautiful little meditation on childhood, on imagination literally taking flight" - Steven Rea, Philadelphia Inquirer

Released: 1956

From the director of The Red Balloon comes another award-winning classic short film. This story focuses on White Mane, the rebellious and proud leader of a pack of wild horses, who dodges the herdsmen’s repeated attempts to capture him. After one dangerous escape, he meets the adolescent fisherman Folco...

Another prize-winning short film from Albert Lamorisse, completed several years before his Red Balloon, this film feels darker and more mature, dwelling on the gritty realities of nature, but there’s also the same wonderful exploration of friendship that made his later film so famous. This story focuses on White Mane, the rebellious and proud leader of a pack of wild horses, who dodges the herdsmen’s repeated attempts to capture him. After one dangerous escape, he meets the adolescent fisherman Folco, and although the horse is initially reluctant to trust a human they eventually develop a powerful bond. A possible spoiler: the ending can be depressing depending on how much disbelief you are willing to suspend, although I suspect that unlike other stories that actively pander to such escapist notions, the magical realism of White Mane suggests it really might not be the most unlikely scenario. Although the film is in French, the DVD also includes an optional narration by actor Peter Strauss, which basically involves him reading the subtitles aloud.

What Others Say...

"Beauty in Albert Lamorisse's brand of cinematic poetry stems from a childlike view of the world that sees bliss and sorrow as inseparably bound and equally enchanted" - Fernando Croce, Slant Magazine

Released: 1952

After their lead singer abruptly quits the band, three girls must recruit a new singer and learn some new songs before the big talent contest at their high school. The plot is classic rock n' roll drama, as the girls endure...

After their lead singer abruptly quits the band, three girls must recruit a new singer and learn some new songs before the big talent contest at their high school. The plot is classic rock n' roll drama, as the girls endure the petty, comic cruelties of high school and t. Featuring a searing performance/cover of the Blue Hearts' "Linda Linda," a soundtrack by the Smashing Pumpkins' James Iha, and a cameo by the Ramones, this is a modern Japanese musical sure to resonate with teenage music mavens.

What Others Say...

"If The Beatles were teen girls starring in a John Hughes picture made with a distinctly Japanese attention to the comedy of everyday life, the movie showcasing it all would go something like this" - Ty Burr, Boston Globe

"An extremely well-written, emotionally complex coming-of-age tale that has a John Hughesian respect for teenage angst" - G. Allen Johnson, San Francisco Chronicle

"Funny, droll, sweetly directed and note-perfect" - Wally Hammond, Time Out New York

Released: 2005

The funniest film in the Pink Panther series, in which Sellers created his most famous role, the thoroughly inept French detective Inspector Jacques Clouseau...

The funniest film in the Pink Panther series, in which Sellers created his most famous role, the thoroughly inept French detective Inspector Jacques Clouseau. A murder has been committed at the Parisian residence of wealthy Benjamin Ballon and despite all evidence pointing to wide-eyed maid Maria Gambrinelli (Elke Sommer) as the killer, Clouseau is determined to prove her innocence. Sellers' impeccable timing and flair for physical and verbal comedy meshes perfectly with director Blake Edwards' gifts for sight gags and intricate slapstick. Originally shelved by the studio, the film was released a mere three months after The Pink Panther due to the original's unexpected success.

Released: 1964

The Marx Bros.' best film is this madcap farce in which Groucho plays Rufus T. Firefly, leader of the imaginary country of Freedonia, who must woo the nation's wealthy benefactor...

The Marx Bros.' best film is this madcap farce in which Groucho plays Rufus T. Firefly, leader of the imaginary country of Freedonia, who must woo the nation's wealthy benefactor Mrs. Teasdale while answering to international provocations that eventually lead to war as only the Marx Bros. could envision it!

Although they are undisputed comedy legends, many of the Marx Bros.' actual films are uneven. Duck Soup hits every comedic note just right, with a wonderful mix of intricate sight gags, rapid-fire verbal exchanges and elaborate song-and-dance parodies. It's the funniest way to introduce your family to these slapstick and vaudeville icons.

Released: 1933

The 2008 Festival opened with the US Premiere of Razzle Dazzle, an Australian mockumentary that skewers the absurdities of the intense competition between kids on the youth dance troupe circuit—and the hyper-involved parents who live through them. A hilarious cross...

The 2008 Festival opened with the US Premiere of Razzle Dazzle, an Australian mockumentary that skewers the absurdities of the intense competition between kids on the youth dance troupe circuit—and the hyper-involved parents who live through them. A hilarious cross between Best in Show and All That Jazz, Razzle Dazzle mixes colorful characters, outrageous costumes, and show-stopping dance numbers (by John "Cha Cha" O'Connell who also choreographed Enchanted, Moulin Rouge and Strictly Ballroom), to deliver an immensely enjoyable film that captures our hearts with equal parts comedy and pathos.

The film centers on Mr. Jonathon, an unconventional dance instructor who teaches his young "Jazzketeers" routines that try to illustrate world issues like animal cruelty, capitalist exploitation and global warming. Even with the help of star student Tenille, these experimental, unintentionally comical performances never manage to top rival Ms. Elizabeth's classical academy, whose dancers train to perfection under their instructor's snide remarks and ritual weigh-ins. But when a freak accident forces another team to forfeit, Mr. Jonathon's team gets the chance to head to the national finals—if they can get past the psychopathic stage moms, suffocation-inducing costumes an an occasional kidnapping...

Released: 2007