Midnight Movies: From the Margin to the Mainstream(2006)

Main Street(es)

A small town in Spain, October 1955. Isabel, a 35-year-old dreamer who feels like a failure because she is not married yet, becomes the new target of a group of soulless pranksters.

Maine Pyaar Kyun Kiya?(hi)

Dr Samir is an absolute charmer when it comes to women, but he poses as a married man to keep them at bay. Love becomes a three-ring-circus for him after he ends up tangled in his web of lies with his girlfriend Sonia and pretend wife Naina.

Maine Gandhi Ko Nahin Mara(hi)

Once known for his intellectual prowess, a retired professor (Anupam Kher) begins experiencing memory gaps and periods of forgetfulness. But while he tries to laugh it off, it soon becomes clear that the symptoms are a sign of a more serious illness, prompting his grown daughter (Urmila Matondkar) to move in as his caretaker. Meanwhile, as his mind regresses, he recalls a traumatic childhood memory involving the death of Mahatma Gandhi.

Maine Pyar Kiya(hi)

After Suman's father leaves her in the care of another family while he travels abroad, she falls in love with Prem. However, in order to for them to marry, Prem has to prove to Suman's father that he is not the same as his own dad.

Main Aurr Mrs Khanna(hi)

Three people, each having different aspirations from life, are caught in a tangle of emotions and don’t know the way out. There’s a husband and wife with love eroding from their life. And there’s a single, happy-go-lucky dude who falls in love with the wife.

Travelling Hawkers in Frankfurt am Main(de)

A documentary about unemployed people who bought fruit and vegetables at moderate prices at the wholesale market and sold these in the streets of Frankfurt. Since they had no permits they were constantly with their bulky carts on the run from the police. One part of the film was shot at the fairgrounds in front of the wholesale market. Newspaper and lottery ticket vendors, propagandists offering their ware for a few pfennigs, all convey the mood of a time when need made people inventive.

Main Theme(ja)

A kindergarten teacher meets a novice magician and together they travel to another city to find love.

Sweekar Kiya Maine(hi)

Gopika Sharma lives a middle-classed lifestyle along with her widowed mother in Bangalore. She expresses a desire to sing and is encouraged by her maternal uncle, Dubey, who takes her with him to Bombay along with her maid, Lajjo. Once there, they are molested and Dubey goes missing. They then attempt to find a decent place to live, and after many frustrations make an agreement with a single male, Kishankumar Shukla, who poses as Gopika's husband, and move into an apartment owned by Lala Dhaniram.

Striking The Palace(fr)

Eva, 20, joins Safietou, Djaoua, Violette and Simone, a team of chambermaids at one of Paris’s finest Palace Hotels. She discovers the poor working conditions of these invisible women, who work tirelessly to keep the high standards of these luxurious hotels, where one night can cost their annual salary. Many are not even employed by the hotels directly but by sub-contractors, and are therefore particularly vulnerable. While on strike to fight against subcontracting and to obtain better working conditions, they come up with a colorful idea : having their own “Fashion Week” in front of the hotel!

This Film Is Not Yet Rated(en)

Kirby Dick's provocative documentary investigates the secretive and inconsistent process by which the Motion Picture Association of America rates films, revealing the organization's underhanded efforts to control culture. Dick questions whether certain studios get preferential treatment and exposes the discrepancies in how the MPAA views sex and violence.

Main Zaroor Aaunga(hi)

A successful businessman, Yash Malhotra falls in love and marries a beautiful model named Lisa. Their marital bliss is disrupted by the entry of a fashion photographer named Peter who connects with Lisa and this betrayal leads to a series of dangerous consequences.

The Severed Heads(fr)

A short mime adaptation of a Thomas Mann story about a Parisian urchin who makes her living selling human heads.

Chain Kulii Ki Main Kulii(hi)

An orphan boy with dreams of finding a family and fame as a cricketer, finds a bat with magical powers and lands a spot in the Indian cricket team.

Où es-tu maintenant ?(fr)

Mathieu disappeared ten years ago. Every year, he calls on Mother's Day. But his mother cannot stand it anymore. Believing she sees her son in the street, she has a heart attack. Mathieu's sister, Caroline, decides to look for her brother.

How Arnold Won the West(en)

How Arnold went from Terminator to Governator.

Spine Tingler! The William Castle Story(en)

Chronicles the last great American showman, filmmaker William Castle, a master of ballyhoo who became a brand name in movie horror with his outrageous audience participation gimmicks.

Brent Weinbach: Appealing to the Mainstream(en)

Brent Weinbach is weird. In this show, Brent attempts to adjust his quirky personality so that he can fit in with the world around him, which would be valuable to his career as a comedian and entertainer. Through an absurd and abstract discourse, Brent explores the ways in which he can appeal to a broader, mainstream audience, so that ultimately, he can become successful in show business.

East of Main Street: Asians Aloud(en)

In celebration of Asian Heritage Month, HBO presents a collection of perspectives from a diverse group of Asian Americans.

Ek Main Aur Ekk Tu(hi)

Rahul and Riana meet each other for the first time, get drunk, and awake the next morning to find that they have gotten legally married to each other.

Maine-Ocean Express(fr)

"Maine-Ocean" is the name of a train that rides from Paris to Saint-Nazaire (near the ocean). In that train, Dejanira, a Brazilian, has a brush with the two ticket inspectors. Mimi, another traveler and also a lawyer, helps her. The four of them will meet together later and live a few shifted adventures with a strange-speaking sailor (Mimi's client).

Inside the Fear Factory(en)

An overview of the history of Great Britain's Amicus Films, which was a rival of Hammer Studios in the horror field. Included are interviews with company co-founder Max Rosenberg, cameraman Freddie Francis and director Roy Ward Baker, and clips from various Amicus productions.

Directing the Beast(en)

An interview with director Paul Annett, focusing on his cult film The Beast Must Die.

The Hamster Factor and Other Tales of 'Twelve Monkeys'(en)

A documentary following Terry Gilliam through the creation of "Twelve Monkeys."

Orson Welles in Spain(en)

Orson Welles presents a proposed film project to prospective investors in Spain. Speaking to an audience of wealthy arts patrons, Welles outlines his vision for an improvised, documentary-style fiction set in the world of bullfighting, centered on a solitary, existential matador who stands apart from his peers. As he expounds on cinema, performance, and the ritualized spectacle of death, the film captures a project that would ultimately remain unrealized.

It Came from Hollywood(en)

Dan Aykroyd, John Candy, Gilda Radner and Cheech and Chong present this compilation of classic bad films from the 50's, 60's and 70's. Special features on gorilla pictures, anti-marijuana films and a special tribute to the worst film maker of all-time, Ed Wood.

The Devils(en)

Father Urbain Grandier’s unorthodox views of sex and religion make him a polarizing figure in 17th-century France. His outspokenness has amassed a passionate following of nuns and a respected reputation for protecting the city of Loudon from corruption. Grandier’s influence is then undermined following a sexually repressed nun’s accusation of witchcraft.

Alexeï Guerman, cinéaste bien interdit(fr)

This film was broadcast on La Sept in October 1990 as a part of Hélène Mochiri's Cinéma de poche program devoted to Soviet cinema. The documentary was produced in-house at La Sept and based on an exclusive interview with Alexei Guerman in May of that year. It has not been seen since.

Our Cinema(ru)

Into the Clouds We Gaze(cs)

A gentle love story from the harsh environment of northern Bohemia.

Chaplin et "Les temps modernes", La voie du silence(fr)

In 1936, the sound film had already been around for a decade. Nevertheless, Charlie Chaplin (1889-1977) made another silent film, "Modern Times", which only used sound effects as a dramaturgical device. Speaking is reserved for the apparatus alone. The film became a monument in the history of cinema for this very reason.

Smoke and Mirrors: The Story of Tom Savini(en)

Tom Savini is one of the greatest special effects legends in the history of cinema, but little is known about his personal life until now. For the first time ever a feature length film has covered not only Tom's amazing career spanning over four decades, but his personal life as well.

Searching for Cannibal Holocaust(en)

Italian horror fan and academic Calum Waddell speaks with some of the original makers of the controversial horror classic "Cannibal Holocaust" before venturing into the Amazon jungle and surrounding city port, Leticia, to uncover some of the local stories behind the making of the motion picture. What is uncovered, however, leads to a wider and unexpected "true crime" story.

20 years after Caméra Café(fr)

To celebrate the release of a new movie for their 20th anniversary, this documentary offers some behind-the-scenes footages.

3 Still Standing(en)

Three stand-up comedians seek fame and fortune in the hottest comedy scene in the world: San Francisco in the 1980s.

The Backlot Murders(en)

A rock band, on the brink of success, arrives at a movie studio to produce their first music video. Somebody doesn't have much respect for their talent, and starts bumping off members of the band, their groupie girlfriends, and the crew.

When You Can't See the Film(en)

Largely due to censorship, many films, especially documentaries and independent films, can't be released in China. But underground cinema clubs are making independent films accessible to Chinese audience despite the all the risks.

Jill Bilcock: Dancing the Invisible(en)

With credits including Strictly Ballroom, Muriel’s Wedding, The Dish, Moulin Rouge!, Romeo + Juliet and Road to Perdition Jill Bilcock is regarded as one the world’s great film editors. Axel Grigor’s hugely entertaining documentary traces Bilcock’s journey from Melbourne film student in the 1960s to working as an extra in Bollywood movies and learning her craft when Australia had virtually no feature film industry. Bilcock’s cheeky charm and illuminating appearances by key collaborators make this a must-see for film lovers.

I Love Life Anyway(de)

In 2011, the director and screenwriter Wolf Gremm receives the diagnosis - prostate cancer. According to the doctors, he has not much longer to live, maybe eight months. Wolf Gremm is torn by these devastating news in the midst of an active, fulfilling life, but he decides to deal with the disease offensively and to fight. From now on smartphone and mini camera are his constant companions.

Horror Movie: A Low Budget Nightmare(en)

A filmmaker's lifelong dream quickly becomes his worst nightmare when he attempts to make a low budget horror film about an aborted fetus that seeks revenge on its family.

Workers Leaving the Lumière Factory(fr)

Working men and women leave through the main gate of the Lumière factory in Lyon, France. Filmed on 22 March 1895, it is often referred to as the first real motion picture ever made, although Louis Le Prince's 1888 Roundhay Garden Scene pre-dated it by seven years. Three separate versions of this film exist, which differ from one another in numerous ways. The first version features a carriage drawn by one horse, while in the second version the carriage is drawn by two horses, and there is no carriage at all in the third version. The clothing style is also different between the three versions, demonstrating the different seasons in which each was filmed. This film was made in the 35 mm format with an aspect ratio of 1.33:1, and at a speed of 16 frames per second. At that rate, the 17 meters of film length provided a duration of 46 seconds, holding a total of 800 frames.