Untangling the web of cultural and historical ties underlying Japan s deep fascination with insects.

This is the story of two queens - Elizabeth I the consummate politician and Mary Queen of Scots the Catholic mother. It is also the story of the birth of a nation.

Kevin Kline ( A Fish Called Wanda ) and the luminous Sandrine Bonnaire ( Vagabond ) square off in this stylish and sophisticated drama of newly discovered passions and midlife triumphs, set on the idyllic isle of Corsica. Alluring, repressed and quietly intelligent, French Riviera chambermaid Hйlиne (Bonnaire) discovers she has an uncanny talent for chess. This obsession - much to the resentment of her husband and teenaged daughter - draws her to seek the clandestine tutelage of a gruff and reclusive American doctor, played by Kline in a meticulously observed performance and in his first entirely French-speaking role. The unlikely liaison radically transforms both of their colorless lives. In her directorial debut, Caroline Bottaro presents an emotionally sublime film, adapted from Bertina Henrichs novel The Chess Player, reminding us that it is not how we start out but rather how we finish the game that is most important.

When the teenager Mary Elizabeth Steppe, a.k.a. Lola, moves with her mother and two younger twin sisters from New York to the suburb of Dellwood, New Jersey, she has the feeling that her cultural and entertaining world ended. While in school, the displaced Lola becomes close friend of the unpopular Ella, who is also a great fan of the her favorite rock band Sidarthur. However, the most popular girl in the school, Carla Santini, disputes the lead role in an adaptation of Pygmalion with Lola and also the leadership of their mates. When the last concert of Sidarthur is sold out, Lola plans with Ella to travel to New York and buy the tickets from scalpers. However, the girls get into trouble while helping the lead singer and Lolas idol Stu Wolf, changing their lives forever.

Raquela, a transsexual from the Philippines, dreams of escaping the streets of Cebu City for a fairy tale life in Paris.