Volume CXXXIII, Number 16 February 15, 2002 f

Film society gets lovey-dovey
JIM FLANAGAN
COLUMNIST

Valentine's Day has come and gone, but the Film Society is still feeling romantic, so we have a trio of romantic films to showcase this weekend. Feel free to bring a date to any of these movies, or if you don't have the courage to ask that special someone, go it alone and strike up a conversation with a fellow film fan. You never know where it could lead. As usual, the films will be in Smith Auditorium in Sills Hall and are free and open to everyone.

Chocolat - Friday at 7:00 p.m.
This is the newest of our three films this weekend. Chocolat was all the rage when it was first released, and if you missed it then, he's your chance to catch it. The story involves a woman and her daughter who move into a small French village. It is the first day of lent, and they open a chocolate shop across the street from the church. This causes the mayor to get angry; but his anger is only increased when the woman takes in a shady drifter who could be a threat to the peace of the town. Slowly, the woman and her candies grow on the village, to the delight of audiences everywhere.

Like Water for Chocolate
Friday at 9:00 p.m.
This is a great dramatic title that comes from Mexico. A young couple, Pedro and Tita, are in love. Tita's mother is afraid of being left alone, and refuses to let Tita get married; she must stay at home while her older sister can start a family. Pedro, fearing he will never be with Tita, actually marries her sister in order to be near her. This is a great tale of love finding a way to succeed, even when against great odds. Plus, we thought that it would make a great second feature for this double bill, if only for the similarity of the titles.

An Affair to Remember
Saturday at 7:00 p.m.
I would think that anyone knowledgeable in classic Hollywood would rank this as one of the top three most romantic movies of all time. It is a classic story that has been remade and referenced in dozens of films (most notably Sleepless in Seattle). It is the story of two people, engaged to others, who meet and fall in love. Not sure as to whether they should run off together, they decide to meet again, in six months, atop the Empire State Building. This is a great film, one not to be missed.