State of the Union

A pretty, young girl from a coal-mining town comes to Moscow with dreams of becoming a supermodel in this satirical look at the fashion industry.

-Three couples meet at one of them for a slide show evening. But nobody takes pleasure in this evening, where triumphs the banality of the exchanges: it is a socialization forced by the bonds of the neighborhood, devoid of empathy or sincerity. A heart attack disturbs the boredom of the meeting.

This is a comedy; a double satire of Brazilian soap operas and at the same time, about "savage capitalism" in 1990's Brazil where the Amazon jungle is exploited, while killing Indians and appropriating the land of its few surviving owners. The plot is headed mostly by Hugo Assis (Jose Mayer), apparently at first a major industrialist, and Elisa Medeiros (Fernanda Torres), a reporter investigating the suspect activities of Mr. Assis' company. Through Elisa, the powerful industrialist discovers his true origins. During a passionate love affair with her, Mr. Assis starts to become another person. As his company begins a massive gold extraction operation on indigenous lands, Elisa becomes engaged in an environmental struggle against this project and the exploitation of Indian homelands.

Anthology of four short films: Griffin Dunne's Duke of Groove (1995), Illeana Douglas' Boy Crazy, Girl Crazier (1995), Adrienne Shelly's Urban Legend (1994) and Fisher Stevens' Phinehas (1996).

A man becomes a thief out of desperation. If his identity becomes known, his neighbors might lynch him. The only friendly face in town is the local priest.

Young man fights off attempts to marry him off to a series of available girls. Intersting glimpses of London in 1930.