J'accuse, Jim Jarmusch's Coffee and Cigarettes, Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger's One of Our Aircraft is Missing, and Christopher Hampton's Carrington.



J'accuse



J'accuse a.k.a. I Accuse, director Abel Gance's (Napoleon) indictment of war, is a tale ofromance and idealism in the tradition of Tolstoy's War and Peace and Jean Renoir's La Grande Illusion.



Set against the backdrop of World War I, the idealistic poet Jean Diaz (Victor Francen, A Farewell to Arms), in pursuit of a higher calling, having witnessed the horrors of war, seeks to create a technology that will put an end to future bloodshed.



Jean's hopes for a peaceful resolution are soon dashed when investor Henri Chimax (Jean-Max, Satan's Paradise) appropriates Jean's plans knowing that another world war, looming on the horizon, will profit him financially.



J'accuse features supporting performances by Line Noro (Pépéle Moko),Paul Amiot (Le Cercle Rouge), AndréNox (Savage Brigade) and Marie Lou(The Woman Thief).



Directed by Abel Gance, J'accuse (which used his epic 1919 silent screen version as a template) is both a stirring indictment of man's inhumanity toman and man's capacity for love and compassion.



With optional English subtitles.



STREET DATE: NOVEMBER 15.



Coffee and Cigarettes



Comprised of eleven vignettes whose topics range from the theories of Nikola Tesla and caffeine popsicles to the possibility that Elvis had an evil twin, Coffee and Cigarettes is a cinematic celebration of life and its addictions featuring an eclectic cast of performers including Bill Murray (Broken Flowers), Cate Blanchett (Blue Jasmine), Roberto Benigni (Life is Beautiful),Iggy Pop (Cry-Baby), Tom Waits (Ironweed), Joie Lee (Do The Right Thing),Steve Buscemi (Fargo), Alfred Molina (Prick up Your Ears) and Steve Coogan (Philomena).



Coffee and Cigarettes, written and directed by Jim Jarmusch (Down by Law) co-stars Steven Wright (Natural Born Killers), Isaach DeBankolé (Casino Royale), Jack White (Cold Mountain), Taylor Mead (Midnight Cowboy) and features atmospheric black & white photography courtesy of Robby Müller (Down by Law), Tom DiCillo (Stranger Than Paradise), Frederick Elmes (Blue Velvet) and Ellen Kuras (Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind).



With optional English subtitles.



STREET DATE: NOVEMBER 15.



Pimpernel Smith



nspired by Baroness Emmuska Orczy's The Scarlet Pimpernel, Pimpernel Smith stays true to the source material while allowing director and star Leslie Howard to present a thought-provoking and entertaining dramatic work.



Horatio Smith (Leslie Howard, Gone with the Wind), a Cambridge Professor of Archaeology, persuades several of his students to accompany him to pre-war Germany on a dig. Smith easily wins the support of the Nazis who believe the excavation will unearth the Aryan history of Germany. However, Smith's true objective is to free those held in nearby concentration camps.



The façade of a meek and mild-mannered professor by day will give way to the daring and heroic "Pimpernel"by night as Smith and his students, deducing who their teacher really is, set forth on their mission. Beautifully photographed in black & white by Mutz Greenbaum (Night and the City) and featuring a musical score by John Greenwood (Elephant Boy),Pimpernel Smith co-stars Francis L. Sullivan (Night and the City), Allan Jeayes (The Four Feathers), Peter Gawthorne (The Amazing Adventure),Arthur Hambling (Odd Man Out) and Mary Morris (The Thief of Bagdad).



With optional English SDH subtitles.



STREET DATE: NOVEMBER 15.



One of Our Aircraft Is Missing



One of Our Aircraft is Missing, from the writing/producing/directing team ofMichael Powell and Emeric Pressburger (The Red Shoes, Black Narcissus, 49th Parallel) is the very epitome of the propaganda films coming out ofBritain during World War II. This, their first film for the production entity known as The Archers, weaves together a stirring tale of courage, sacrifice and patriotism.



Having abandoned their aircraft over Holland following an aerial attack byGerman fighters, the RAF bomber crew lead by John Haggard (Hugh Burden, Funeral in Berlin) and Tom Earnshaw (Eric Portman, 49th Parallel) must escape their potential capture by Nazi forces with the aid of local villagers.



Following on the heels of their previous war-themed effort, 49th Parallel, One of Our Aircraft is Missing features a sterling acting ensemble which includes Bernard Miles (Great Expectations), Pamela Brown (The Tales of Hoffmann) and Googie Withers (The Lady Vanishes),and behind-the-scenes talent offuture film directors David Lean (Lawrence of Arabia) as the film's editor and Ronald Neame (The Poseidon Adventure) as its cinematographer.



With optional English SDH subtitles.



STREET DATE: NOVEMBER 15.



Carrington



The story of the English painter Dora Carrington is vividly brought to life byAcademy Award-winning actress Emma Thompson (Best Actress,Howards End 1993) in the Christopher Hampton (The Secret Agent) directed Carrington.



Carrington explores the friendship between the talented painter and the British author Lytton Stracey (Jonathan Pryce, Brazil) from 1915 until 1932. An initial adversarial exchange (she refuses his advances during a countryside hike) soon gives way to a loving, caring and long-lasting relationship.



Based on the biographical text "Carrington" by Michael Holroyd, and scripted by playwright Hampton (best known for works such as Dangerous Liaisons, Savages, The Philanthropist), Carrington features supporting performances by Steven Waddington (Sleepy Hollow), Rufus Sewell (The Holiday), Samuel West (Howards End), Penelope Wilton (MatchPoint) and is photographed by Denis Lenoir (Still Alice, The Secret Agent) and scored by Michael Nyman (ThePiano; The Cook, The Thief, His Wife & Her Lover).



With optional English SDH subtitles.



STREET DATE: NOVEMBER 15.



Lulu Belle



Lulu Belle recounts the rags-to-riches story of a Broadway singing sensation from the perspective of her ex-husband, George Davis (George Montgomery, Battle of theBulge), after Lulu Belle (Dorothy Lamour, Road To Morocco) and Harry Randolph (Otto Kruger, High Noon), her rich companion, are discovered shot in her dressing room.



From her humble beginnings singing in a low rent café, to her rise as the toast of Broadway, Lulu Belle has left a trail of brokenhearted suitors in her wake. Could one of these men be responsible for the ghastly deed?



Leslie Fenton (Streets of Laredo) directs Lulu Belle from a screenplay by Everett Freeman (The Secret Life of Walter Mitty) with additional dialogue byKarl Kamb (Whispering Smith), based on the play by Charles MacArthur and Edward Sheldon, providing a showcase for Dorothy Lamour's proven dramatic acting and singing talents. Supporting roles include Glenda Farrell (Little Caesar), Albert Dekker (East of Eden), Greg McClure (Bury Me Dead),Addison Richards (The Pride of The Yankees) and Charlotte Wynters (Pride of The Navy).



With optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature.



STREET DATE: NOVEMBER 15.



Houdini



Hollywood's silver screen couple, Tony Curtis and Janet Leigh, teamed for this 1953 Technicolor entertainment about the life of famed illusionist Harry Houdini.



Directed by George Marshall (Destry Rides Again),Houdini traces the fascinating life of the world's foremost illusionist and escapologist (portrayed by Tony Curtis, Some Like it Hot), from his early years working the Coney Island sideshows, where he'll meet his future bride Bess (Janet Leigh, Psycho), to career heights performing for dignitaries and royalty across the globe.



Houdini's fame would not lessen his quest for answers to life after death. His search for the answer would eventually lead to his most complex and dangerous performance.



Houdini, beautifully shot in Technicolor by Ernest Laszlo (Academy Award winner for Ship of Fools, 1965) with costumes by the great Edith Head (winner of eight Academy Awards for Best Costume design), also stars Torin Thatcher (Witness for the Prosecution), Angela Clarke (The Seven Little Foys) and Sig Ruman (Stalag 17).



With optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature.



STREET DATE: NOVEMBER 15.



