IDS 101: Decisions, Decisions: Films

Arrested during the Monmouth Rebellion and falsely convicted of treason, Dr. Peter Blood is banished to the West Indies and sold into slavery... Life is hard for the men and for Blood as well. By chance he treats the Governor's gout and is soon part of the medical service...

Chronicles the life of Gandhi beginning with his political activities in South Africa during the late 1890's and ending with his assassination at the hands of a Hindu extremist in 1948. Shows the development of his philosophy of non-violence as he leads the people of India to independence from the British.

In this trilogy, different women face different social and political climates in choosing what to do about an unplanned pregnancy.

A wagon train of three families has hired mountain man Stephen Meek to guide them over the Cascade Mountains. Claiming to know a shortcut, Meek leads the group on an unmarked path across the high plain desert, only to become lost in the dry rock and sage. Over the coming days, the emigrants face the scourges of hunger, thirst, and their own lack of faith in each other's instincts for survival. When they encounter a Native American, they must choose between following their guide or an 'enemy.'

Two swing-music loving friends in Nazi Germany must choose between their individual freedom or loyalty to the murderous Third Reich.

An owner of a Victorian-era boot shop finds himself in a battle of wills with his headstrong eldest daughter, who wants to make her own professional and personal decisions in her life.

Axel is an open-minded heterosexual whose girlfriend Doro has just thrown him out for cheating on her. The only place he can find to sleep is at the apartment of a gay acquaintance who would like nothing better than to seduce Axel. Doro announces that she is pregnant, then finds Axel and his roommate Norbert in a compromising position and decides her lover is gay. In the comedy of errors that follows, everything Axel does to win Doro back goes hilariously wrong.

"Betty Bronson stars as Peter Pan, the boy who never grew up, who charms Wendy and her brothers to fly with him to Never Never Land. On this island of dreams and magic, they struggle to rescue the Lost Boys from Captain Hook and his band of pirates, encountering along the way the delightful fairy Tinkerbell, a man-eating crocodile, and a band of valiant Indians.

A rat named Remy dreams of becoming a great chef despite his family's wishes and the obvious problem of being a rat in a decidedly rodent-phobic profession. When fate places Remy in Paris, he finds himself ideally situated beneath a restaurant made famous by his culinary hero.

The summer after Ana's high school graduation is a turning point in her life. She has to decide whether to go to college and experience life, or stay home, get married and work at her sister's struggling garment factory.

Musical extravaganza which celebrates the loves and heartbreaks of a Mississippi riverboat troupe, starting with a young girl whose heart is stolen by a dashing gambler.

An insurance man and a suburban wife conspire to trick her husband into signing a policy that pays double for accidental death-- then push him from a train. It's an almost perfect crime.

Montag, a regimented fireman in charge of burning the forbidden volumes, meets a revolutionary school teacher who dares to read. Suddenly he finds himself a hunted fugitive, forced to choose not only between two women, but between personal safety and intellectual freedom.

"In the heartland of Iowa, five grad school liberals share a house, a left-wing outlook, and Sunday suppers filled with conversation and social criticism. But when a redneck trucker threatens one of their own, he inadvertently puts them on the radical road to serial murder."

A group of English boys are stranded on an uninhabited island when the plane that is evacuating them from a war-threatened England crash lands. Without adult supervision, the boys regress to savagery.

The classic horror story of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde gets a chilling new twist when seen through the eyes of Dr. Jekyll's devoted maid.

Sam Daniels, a take-charge army virologist is trying to stave off global biological meltdown. A rare killer virus from the jungles of Zaire has taken hold in a California community. Its mortality rate is 100%. And some say the only way to stop its spread is to firebomb the town and everyone in it.

Set in contemporary Moscow where 12 men must decide the fate of a young man accused of murdering his step-father. (In Russian with English subtitles)

The newly deceased find themselves in a way station somewhere between Heaven and Earth. With the help of dedicated caseworkers, each soul is given three days to choose one cherished memory for their life that they will relive for eternity. (In Japanese with English subtitles)

A fictionalized interpretation of an experiment by Stanford University in 1971 which asked for 24 male students to volunteer for a simulated prison experience as prisoners or guards to determine behavioral and psychological consequences. (In German with English subtitles)

In 1920's Mexico City, a military leader must choose his successor. The choice comes down to two men: the leader's preference, and Aguirre, the people's favorite. Faced with his loyalty to the regime versus the opportunity to accede to power, Aguirre must make a difficult decision. (In Spanish with English subtitles)

In a small village in Burkina Faso, four young girls have fled the ritual of "purification" (female circumcision) and seek protection -- moolaadé -- with a circucised woman who helped her own daughter escape excision seven years earlier. In defiance of the traditionalists, the girls are granted sanctuary and the stage is set for a tense confrontation between opposing sets of values. (In Bambara with English subtitles)

In 1970s Iran, Marjane "Marji" Satrapi watches events through her young eyes and her idealistic family... Even when she returns home, Marji finds that both she and her homeland have changed too much and the young woman and her loving family must decide where she truly belongs. (In French with English subtitles)

"Alex is a 15-year-old teenager with a dark secret. Soon after her birth, her parents decide to leave Buenos Aires to settle in an isolated wooden house tucked away in the dunes of the Uruguayan shoreline. As Alex begins to explore her sexuality, her mother invites friends from Buenos Aires to come for a visit with their 16-year-old son Álvaro..." (In Spanish with English subtitles)

Vols. 1-3 tell the story of America's civil rights years from 1954 to 1965; vols. 4-7 examine the new America from 1966 to 1985, from community power to the human alienation of urban poverty.

"What happens when women decide to love their bodies no matter what size? This documentary short by fat acceptance activist Margitte Kristjansson features two of her fellow fat acceptance activists, Keena and Jessica, who share their experiences of being judged by society for their decision to not bow to how women are expected to look--including being harassed and discriminated against because of their size."

Martin Luther nailed his treatise to the doors of the Wittenberg Cathedral and forever changed the Christian world. This previously obscure German monk unleashed forces that would plunge Europe into war and chaos. He offered the Christian world a new vision of man's relationship with God and, in turn, redefined man's relationship with authority in general, bringing the collapse of the medieval world and the birth of the modern age.

Introduction -- Teaching the Constitution -- Why have a constitution? -- Helping to solve problems -- The power of precedent -- Moral values/Decision-making -- Separation of powers -- Relevance today -- Federalism -- Individual liberty vs. security -- Most influential cases -- Court decision making -- Conclusion.