Synopsis: Is life on Earth the result of an accidental combination of carbon-fixing mechanisms, and do those mechanisms—organic matter—grow, survive, and evolve for some greater purpose than mere existence? When a large black monolith is found beneath the surface of the moon, the scientific community assumes that it has been intentionally buried, left as a guiding marker by a superior alien intelligence. An interplanetary expedition comprised of the brightest minds is mounted on a state-of-the-art spacecraft, the S.S. Discovery, to determine the point of origin of the mysterious artefact. It is assumed that the quest will bring the crew in contact with higher knowledge, perhaps to the next stage of evolution, but little do they know that on their very ship the self-adaptive Artificial Intelligence HAL 9000, a human-made supercomputer in charge of life support and navigation systems, is developing its own form of rudimentary self-awareness. For the synthetic entity HAL and captains Dave Bowman and Frank Poole, survival and evolution may not need advanced alien intervention, as they learn that for all of its techno-scientific hubris, the human species is still very much in its infancy.

Synopsis: On 27 Down, the Bombay-Varanasi Express line, an older Sanjay is on a pilgrimage journey. He recalls episodes from his life as familiar landscapes emerge along the way. As a young boy, his father, Anna, had been severely crippled by a work-related accident at the railway. Having grown old enough to work, Sanjay gives up his dream of becoming an artist in order to support his family and, with Anna’s help, takes up a job as a ticket checker. He meets a Life Insurance Corporation employee, Shalini, on the suburban train, and after a few encounters they fall in love. Sanjay begins to see life in new ways, but when his traditionalist father finds out about the relationship, he quickly arranges a marriage with a girl from the village. Sanjay accepts the match, reluctantly, but is unable to get Shalini out of his mind and heart.

Synopsis: Kowalski works for a car delivery service. His job getting a 1970 Dodge Challenger from Colorado to San Francisco turns into a bet that he can make the trip in less than fifteen hours. After a few run-ins with motorcycle cops, the highway patrol launches an operation to bring the speeding law-breaker into custody. Along the way, Kowalski’s car radio remains tuned to the KOW station from where Super Soul, a blind show host equipped with a police radio scanner, uses the airwaves to communicate with our rebel without a cause. Following countless chase scenes, gay hitchhikers, a naked woman riding a motorbike, lots of Benzene and Benzedrine, the last American hero’s ride finally catches up to the opening of the film in a glorious fireball of muscle and motor parts.

Synopsis: Brian Sweeney “Fitzcarraldo” Fitzgerald is an Irishman living in Iquitos, a small town east of the Andes. This eccentric entrepreneur has an indomitable spirit, but he is a terrible businessman. He dreams of building an opera house in Iquitos, and the booming rubber industry should readily supply the necessary capital. The parcel he leases from the Peruvian government for exploitation is nearly inaccessible, but with money borrowed from his paramour Molly, the brothel owner, Fitzcarraldo devises an ingenious plan to transport a steamship over dry land. Defying skeptical competitors, his unfaithful crew, and Nature herself, and aided by the indigenous people of the jungle, Fitzcarraldo successfully drags the ship over the mountain via a complex system of pulleys and sweat. However, when the crew falls asleep after a drunken celebration, the native Chief severs the rope securing the ship, releasing it in sacrifice to the river gods, who would otherwise be angered that the humans have defied them by taking a short-cut. Although the venture ends in failure, Fitzcarraldo goes through with his plan to bring opera to Iquitos.

Synopsis: Temujin, who later becomes Genghis Khan, is a handsome, ferocious, cunning, but likable fellow, leading by virtue of his charisma as much as through physical prowess. While competing at the Man of Men contest, he falls in love with an enemy commander’s daughter, Li Hu. His great leadership trial, however, comes when he must restore order and exact justice for the sacking of his hometown, and he soon demonstrates his potential as a great conqueror.