\n<\/p>\n
Two documentaries selected concern battles for representation. The Oscar-winning \u201cHelen Keller in Her Story\u201d (1954), by Nancy Hamilton, follows its subject, who was deaf and blind, from her childhood frustration to global success as an author, lecturer and activist for the rights of women and disabled people. \u201cWe\u2019re Alive\u201d (1974), by three U.C.L.A. graduate students, Michie Gleason, Christine Lesiak and Kathy Levitt, chronicles six months of roundtables at the California Institution for Women that drew attention to inhumane prison conditions. <\/span><\/p>\n The experiences of Asian Americans are also centered in several new selections: \u201cCruisin\u2019 J-Town\u201d (1975), Duane Kubo\u2019s documentary about jazz musicians in Los Angeles\u2019s Little Tokyo; the Bohulano Family home movies about a Filipino American community in Stockton, Calif. from the 1950s through the 1970s; and \u201cMaya Lin: A Strong, Clear Vision\u201d (1994), Freida Lee Mock\u2019s Oscar-winning documentary about the designer of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial on the National Mall.<\/p>\n Three films that experimented with new forms and techniques were also selected: \u201cThe Lighted Field\u201d (1987), Andrew Noren\u2019s silent avant-garde masterwork that traffics in sensual shadow-play; \u201cQueen of Diamonds\u201d (1991), a drama by Nina Menkes, filmed in Las Vegas, that contrasts the noise and neon of the city with the quiet, lonely lives of its residents; and \u201cThe Lady and the Tramp\u201d (1955), the Disney animated romance between a spoiled cocker spaniel and a mutt, which was praised for its fuller character development and distinguished by its use of a wide-screen CinemaScope format.<\/p>\n The lineup also recognizes the debut features of several award-winning filmmakers: Martin Ritt\u2019s noir drama \u201cEdge of the City\u201d (1957), which stars Sidney Poitier as a dockworker whose friendship with a white co-worker (John Cassavetes) aggravates a racist union leader; Gina Prince-Bythewood\u2019s \u201cLove & Basketball\u201d (2000), a romantic sports drama that follows a boy and girl as they pursue basketball careers from childhood; and \u201c\u00a1Alambrista!\u201d (1977), a small-budget film by Robert Young \u2014 often shot with a shaky, hand-held camera \u2014 that follows a farmer who enters the United States from Mexico undocumented, seeking work to support his family, which incorporates elements of guerrilla and activist filmmaking.<\/p>\n Finally, New Yorkers \u2014 or those who love New York \u2014 will find a lot to like on the list this year: Choices for a Manhattan-set adventure include \u201cFame\u201d (1980), Alan Parker\u2019s teen musical drama about the High School of Performing Arts; \u201cDesperately Seeking Susan\u201d (1985), Susan Seidelman\u2019s wackball of a film that follows an unhappy New Jersey housewife (Rosanna Arquette) down a rabbit hole of personal ads and mistaken identity; and \u201cThe Wedding Banquet\u201d (1993), Ang Lee\u2019s comedy about a gay Taiwanese man in New York who marries a Chinese woman to appease his parents back home (high jinks ensue when they decide to pay the \u201ccouple\u201d a visit).<\/p>\n<\/div>\n