movies

Looking for summer movie options? Here are some from the past year that challenged our assumptions and made us think about things in new ways.

What movies of the past year challenged our assumptions and made us think about things in new ways?  

What movies of the past year challenged our assumptions and made us think about things in new ways?

Nowadays, all young lovebirds need to get the romance flowing is a Netflix account and a bag of Microwave popcorn. Back in the 1950's and 60's, date night happened at the drive-in. Imagine rows of cars with couples inside, and steam on the windows—think of the movie Grease.

Marco Salsiccia is a huge movie buff. He owns hundreds of DVDs. They fill his small apartment in the Sunset District. Some are piled on his dining room table, others are organized in spinning shelves in his living room.

“I have 400 movies in my collection, more than the library!” he says.

He has action films, horror films, comedy flicks, and lots of animation. Those are his favorite because animation is a big part of Salsiccia’s life.

With Netflix and other ways to watch movies online growing ever more popular, it’s become rare to see an old-fashioned video rental store. The Video Room, on Piedmont Avenue in Oakland, though, has been going strong for 30 years. KALW’s Dora Finkelstein dropped in to see what’s showing.

On May 3 1913 D G Phalke stunned Indians with Raja Harishchandra, a melodramatic mythological film he called a performance with 57,000 photographs. He hardly imagined he was giving birth to the biggest film industry in the world.

On today's Your Call, a few days before “that other award show” we will announce your nominations for the film that most powerfully changed the way you understand the world.  Documentaries, features, shorts, or even animation.