Titanic

Titanic (1997) starring Leonardo DiCaprio, Kate Winslet, Billy Zane, Frances Fisher, Kathy Bates. Directed by James Cameron. Jack and Rose (DiCaprio and Winslet), though they come from different strata of society, fall in love as they travel across the Atlantic on the doomed passenger ship Titanic. Rose's mother (Fisher) and fiance (Zane) do not approve, to put it mildly. We see the story in flashback as Rose, who still lives at the time the movie is made, hears about explorers who have found the sunken ship and contacts them. The film is a romantic, epic disaster movie with fine acting and great special effects. It won 11 Academy Awards, including Best Picture and Best Director. Although, at over three hours, it's a little long for my tastes, I enjoyed it immensely. (The DVD features English subtitles as well as closed captions.) Grade: A

Spartacus

Spartacus (1960) starring Kirk Douglas, Laurence Olivier, Charles Laughton, Jean Simmons, Tony Curtis, Peter Ustinov. Directed by Stanley Kubrick. Douglas stars as a slave named Spartacus in ancient Rome, who escapes from gladiator school and goes on to lead an army of escaped gladiators and freed slaves against the Romans. Olivier plays the arch-villain Crassus, and Simmons is the slave woman Spartacus falls in love with. It all leads up to a big battle scene, in which the slave army is defeated by three Roman armies acting in concert. It's an epic saga, but the movie is overlong at more than three hours. The subtitles included on the disc are adequate. Grade: B

Seven Samurai

Seven Samurai (1954) starring Takashi Shimura, Toshiro Mifune. Directed by Akira Kurosawa. During the time of civil wars in Japan, frightened farmers try to hire samurai warriors to defend their village from bandits. They find one who is willing (Shimura), and he helps them find six others. Soon the planning begins for the battle ahead. The fight scenes, which make up most of the second half of the movie, are well staged and exciting. Although the film's length, at three and a half hours, works against it, it is well worth seeing the full-length version. Great Japanese movie was remade in 1960 in America as The Magnificent Seven, about Western gunslingers hired to guard a Mexican town from banditos. Seven Samurai is in Japanese, with English subtitles. Grade: A

Doctor Zhivago (DVD)

Doctor Zhivago (1965) starring Omar Sharif, Julie Christie, Geraldine Chaplin, Tom Courtenay, Alec Guinness. Directed by David Lean. Dr. Zhivago (Sharif), his wife, Tonya (Chaplin) and his lover Lara (Christie) are all caught up in the turmoil of the Russian Revolution in the early 20th century. Based on Boris Pasternak's acclaimed novel of the same title, the movie spans decades, with many large gaps as years pass between scenes of action. At three and a half hours, the film is much too long for my taste -- I had to watch it over the course of two days. The cinematography is marvelous, and won an Oscar. The subtitles are adequate. Closed captions are not offered. Grade: B+

Braveheart (DVD)

Braveheart (1995) starring Mel Gibson, Sophie Marceau, Patrick McGoohan, Catherine McCormack. Directed by Mel Gibson. When Murron (McCormack), his new bride and the love of his life, is murdered by the English, William Wallace (Gibson) reacts by leading his village in an uprising against the local English garrison. From that point on, the Scots under Wallace are in full rebellion against the heinous English rule. But the Scottish noblemen cannot be counted on, and in that may lie Wallace's downfall. The battle scenes are thrilling, but the movie's extreme length (two hours, 57 min.) works against it. "Braveheart" won five Oscars, including Best Picture. The subtitles are very good. Grade: A-

Mountains of the Moon (DVD)

Mountains of the Moon (1990) starring Patrick Bergin, Iain Glen. Two English explorers search for the source of the Nile River in the late 1800s. Their first attempt ends in disaster when their exploration party is attacked by hostile, fierce natives. The action then returns to Victorian England, where various maneuvering takes place as they aim to mount a second, larger and better-armed, expedition. I can't judge very well the quality of this movie, however, because the actors speak with English accents, and the disc lacks subtitles for the hearing-impaired. There was very little of it that I could understand. Plus, the disc proved to be unplayable. Grade: F

Gandhi (DVD)

Gandhi (1982) starring Ben Kingsley, Candice Bergen, Edward Fox, John Gielgud, Trevor Howard, John Mills, Martin Sheen. Sweeping epic of Mahatma Gandhi, who rose from obscure beginnings to free his nation of India from British rule. A moving and inspiring lesson in the power of non-violence and civil disobedience. Winner of eight Oscars, including Best Picture, Actor, Director, Screenplay. Kingsley is remarkable in the title role. Biggest flaw is extreme length, a bladder-buster at over three hours. Fortunately, the DVD can be stopped for bathroom and kitchen breaks. The second half drags a bit. Superb subtitles. Grade: A-