Back to The Beginning

Robert Zemeckis is arguably a close second behind Steven Spielberg as the contemporary American director who has most consistently gained critical acclaim while generating massive box office and popular appeal with a slew of iconic films. Even Zemeckis' purported failures—and there indubitably are some—are often lionized for their breathtaking vision and utilization of modern special effects techniques like motion capture. But just a cursory review of the man's contributions to film over the past 40 years reveals a staggering array of acclaimed and often insanely popular titles: Romancing the Stone, Who Framed Roger Rabbit, Forrest Gump, Contact, Cast Away….

Four young boys visit a dinosaur exhibit at the New York city Museum of Natural History. They then row out onto Central Park Lake where they find a secret cave and paddle into a wondrous prehistoric world filled with the very dinosaurs they had just seen.

Manoel is aging film director who travels with the film crew through Portugal in search of the origins of Afonso, a famous French actor whose father emigrated from Portugal to France and in process remembers his own youth.

"One of the most beautiful films ever made about aging. Voyage To The Beginning Of The World brings together 89-year-old Portuguese filmmaker Manoel de Oliveira and Italian icon Marcello Mastroianni, in what would be his last film. Playing a filmmaker clearly based on Oliveira, Mastoianni takes three actor friends on a driving tour of a mountain village, where one of the actors (Jean-Yves Gautier) is united with the elderly aunt he has never met." –Dave Kehr, NY Daily News

Back to the Moon for Good reviews the overall timeline of moon exploration beginning in 1959 and carrying us through to present day. Tim Allen narrates this informative short documentary, comprised primarily of illustrative motion graphics that aid the viewer in imagining the moonscapes and missions being described.

Embark on a thrilling journey through time and five continents to the heart of creativity. Fusing social history, politics, science, nature, archaeology and religion, this international landmark series unravels a universal mystery - why the world around us looks like it does. Modern-day mysteries are answered by journeying back to the beginning of civilisation via some of the most amazing man-made creations in the world.

This first feature by the legendary Hideo Gosha is among the most beloved chanbara (sword-fighting) films. An origin-story offshoot of a Japanese television phenomenon of the same name, Three Outlaw Samurai is a classic in its own right. A wandering, seen-it-all ronin (Tetsuro Tamba) becomes entangled in the dangerous business of two other samurai (Isamu Nagato and Mikijiro Hira), hired to execute a band of peasants who have kidnapped the daughter of a corrupt magistrate. With remarkable storytelling economy and thrilling action scenes, this is an expertly mounted tale of revenge and loyalty.