Films begin at 7:30 p.m. in Matthews Hall Auditorium on the campus of Missouri Southern State University in Joplin, MO. For information about the Film Festival call (417) 625-9614.

Stills from some films are available by clicking on the film title.

• Sept. 16, 1997 YOU ONLY LIVE ONCE (U.S.A. 1937) is Fritz Lang's account of a petty crook falsely accused of murder. It is also a scathing indictment of unemployment and police brutality. Starring Henry Fonda and Sylvia Sidney.
• Sept. 30, 1997 MAN OF MARBLE (Poland, 1977). Andrzej Wajda traces the efforts of an aggressive young woman filmmaker to explore the life and times of a bricklayer who was both honored and exploited by the Polish state during the 1950s. This landmark film signaled a new displeasure with the government at that time.
• Oct. 14, 1997 JUDEX (France, 1963) is Georges Franju's tribute to Louis Feuillade's 1916 serial prototype for Superman and Batman. It has the same poetic mixture of black humor, fantasy and excitement as the original.
• Oct. 28, 1997 THE MURDERERS ARE AMONG US (Germany, 1946) is Wolfgang Staudte's shattering portrait of post-war Berlin which poses the question of war guilt. Made under very difficult conditions, it remains a thoughtful and outstanding accomplishment.
• Nov. 11, 1997 EARTH (Ukraine, 1930) is Alexander Dovzhenko's simple and poetic tale of life in a Ukrainian farming village, and what happens when its inhabitants decide to collectively purchase a tractor. A panel of critics included it twice among the "Twelve Best Films of All Time."
• Feb. 1, 1998 IL GRIDO (Italy, 1957) is Michelangelo Antonioni's story of a mechanic who must deal with the abrupt demise of his long-time relationship with a married woman. It marks Antonioni's transition from neorealism to a more personal, deliberate style of filmmaking.
• March 3, 1998 PAGE OF MADNESS (Japan, 1926) is Teinosuke Kinugasa's silent masterwork thought lost for more than half a century until its rediscovery in the 1970s. Set in a madhouse, its distorting devices reflect the visions of the inmates as in THE CABINET OF DR. CALIGARI made seven years earlier.
• March 17, 1998 THE PROMOTER (Great Britain, 1952) is based on Arnold Bennett's novel THE CARD about a social climber. Alec Guinness is an innocent looking but monstrously clever young man who meets his match when he encounters a most deceptive young lady.
• March 31, 1998 THE FORTY-FIRST (Russia, 1956). Grigori Chukrai used this romantic story to portray the hopelessness that war brings. The sincerity, superb color photography and subtle character study of the two protagonists brought this film enormous international success.
• April 14, 1998 TORMENT (Sweden, 1944). Alf Sjoberg directed and Ingmar Bergman wrote the screenplay for this compelling film about a malevolent teacher who seeks revenge when a student becomes attracted to a frightened girl. It was awarded the Grand Prize at the Cannes Festival.