The Movie

Spirited Away, written and directed by Hayao Miyazaki, produced by Studio Ghibli.

The Short Version

This weekend, fall into the strange and wonderful world of Hayao Miyazaki. 

The Plot in a Nutshell

Ten-year-old Chihiro’s parents are making her move to a new neighborhood, and she doesn’t want to. When her parents are magically transformed into pigs, she is plunged into a world of bizarre creatures and magical happenings.

The Movie

Hackers, starring Jonny Lee Miller and Angelina Jolie, directed by Iain Softly. 

The Short Version 

Remember, back in the 90’s, when roller-blading was cool? Whatever. I’m pretty sure it’s still cool.

The Plot in a Nutshell

A group of high school computer wizards/hackers must band together to unravel a corporate conspiracy and avoid an environmental disaster (oh man this film ticks all the 90’s boxes. Hackers. Corporate Conspiracies. Environmental disasters.)

The Movie 

Ella Enchanted (staring Anne Hathaway and Hugh Dancy; directed by Tommy O’Haver). Currently available on Netflix. 

The Short Version

Its charm and wit will win you over before you even realize that it’s dropping hot social and cultural commentary along the way. 

The Plot in a Nutshell

After Ella’s fairy god mother gifts her with obedience, Ella is forced to follow any command given by anybody at any time. It’s a rough life indeed, especially when her evil-stepsister (Cinderella style) discovers her secret. Ella must go on a journey to track down her fairy god mother, learning about herself and finding her inner strength in the process. She’s joined by a merry cast of characters that offer laughs, romance, and fun. 

The Movie 

Hero (2002, Chinese, starring Jet Li, directed by Zhang Yimou)

The Short Version

The most drama you’ll ever see in a calligraphy school.

The Plot in a Nutshell

Hero is a wuxia movie (meaning that it belongs to a genre of Chinese fiction that involves the adventures of essentially superhuman martial artists) centering around a 227 BC assassination attempt on the King of Qin.  

The Show

Outlander, which is currently available for free from the Starz website. After that, episodes will air Saturday at 9:00 EST. 

The Short Version 

Breathtaking Scottish vistas—both flora and fauna, if you catch my meaning—abound in Ronald D. Moore’s adaptation of the bestselling Outlander series.

The Plot in a Nutshell

A WW2 nurse is sucked back through time and finds herself in 18th century Scotland. 

Jodorowsky’s Dune.

If you love science fiction, movies, or whomping good stories, you’ll love this documentary. 

In the mid-1970’s, a Chilean director with his roots in the Surrealist movement began to develop a film version of Frank Herbert’s Dune; assembling along the way a team of dazzling eccentricity and talent (a sample joke: Dali, Orson Welles, and H.R. Giger walk into a bar…). That film was never made, and Jodorwosky’s Dune tells its story.

 X-Men: First Class; starring James McAvoy, Jennifer Lawrence, and Michael Fassbender; directed by Mathew Vaughn.

One of the greatest superhero movies of all time.

It’s the X-Men…before they were the X-Men. Charles Xavier, a fresh-faced recent graduate, becomes involved with American government and the charming future Magneto, Erik Lahnsherr.  Together, the two train a motley crew of mutants and eventually defeat the bad guys.

Mostly Martha (2001); German language; starring Martina Gedeck, Maxime Foerste, and Sergio Castellitto; written and directed by Sandra Nettlebeck.

Like food? You’ll love Mostly Martha.

Martha, a chef whose extreme dedication to her cooking has landed her in therapy, inherits her eight-year-old niece. They have to figure out how to live together—a journey slightly eased by a handsome Italian sous-chef.