Films with: Diller, Phyllis

Bug's life

Cute and clever, "A Bug's Life" is a relatively straight retelling of Kurosawa's "The Seven Samurai," except of course that the characters are bugs! Idealistic young ant Flik is a sweet-natured dreamer and inventor. But his innovative thinking makes him an outcast when one of his inventions goes awry and destroys the food sacrifice that the colony makes annually to a gang of grasshopper hooligans led by the sinister Hopper. Disgraced, Flik is sent to look for "warrior bugs," mercenaries to fight them. What he finds--and hires--are a motley crew of circus bugs including a preening master-thespian mantis, a glamorous gypsy moth, a cranky ladybug, a dimwitted beetle, and sundry other dimwitted, craven troupers. The ant colony is inspired by the troupe and mobilizes, but when they discover that the "warriors" are just circus clowns they lose faith. In the end, of course, Flik and crew save the day and free the colony from the oppressive grasshoppers.

DVD 8906

Joan Rivers a piece of work : a year in the life of a semi legend /

The cameras follow trailblazing comic, Joan Rivers, for a year and cover her entire career from her break on the Carson show, to her heartbreak over the suicide of her husband, and her role on Celebrity Apprentice. Rivers reveals her relentless desire to keep working with humor and empathy. Wickedly funny and surprisingly moving, Rivers is once again returned to the spotlight she so richly deserves and cements her reputation as one of stand-up's towering figures.

DVD 2206

Splendor in the grass

Deanie is a beautiful and sensitive teenager who would do whatever her mother and her 1928 Kansas hometown find proper. Her boyfriend, Bud, has intense desires for Deanie and the two are very much in love. But, sexual pressures in society creates a rift in their relationship. She restrains herself while Bud acts on them, but with another girl. Bud's actions drive Deanie to madness. She is committed into an institution while Bud reluctantly obeys his father and enrolls in Yale. The stock market crash of '29 hits and changes the lives of both their families. Together they learn the harsh lesson of love and life.

DVD 10004