March DVD Display: New Hollywood

This month's library DVD display will focus on "New Hollywood," a period from the mid-1960s through the end of the 1970s when the classical Hollywood studio system was upended by a new generation of filmmakers and actors whose style and methods would bring American cinema to new artistic and commercial heights.  This was the era when influential directors like Martin Scorsese, Steven Spielberg, Francis Ford Coppola, Robert Altman, and Brian De Palma launched their careers, and when actors and actresses like Al Pacino, Robert De Niro, Meryl Streep, Diane Keaton, and Jack Nicholson became the new class of Hollywood stars.  From generation-defining touchstones like The Graduate and Bonnie and Clyde to beloved classics like The Exorcist and One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, we've got a wide selection of films from this hugely important era in American cinema.

Other featured titles include:

Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore (1974)

Ellen Burstyn shines in her Oscar-winning performance as the titular Alice, a single mother who begins to reassess her relationships as she pursues her dream of becoming a singer.

Apocalypse Now (1979)
Francis Ford Coppola's Vietnam War opus, about an Army officer sent deep into the jungle to terminate a rogue colonel, remains the ultimate cinematic statement about the madness of war.

The Godfather (1972)
Far more than just a simple gangster film, Francis Ford Coppola's great mafia epic is both a sweeping family saga and an incisive examination of the corrupting influence of power.

McCabe & Mrs. Miller (1971)
This offbeat, melancholy western follows a charismatic gambler and businessman who partners with a professional madam to establish a brothel in a burgeoning Pacific Northwest town, only to run afoul of a greedy mining corporation.

The King of Marvin Gardens (1972)

Jack Nicholson gives a superbly understated performance as a radio personality who gets sucked into his lowlife brother's get-rich-quick scheme in Atlantic City.

Point Blank (1967)

In this stylish, underseen late-60s classic, Lee Marvin plays a career criminal out for revenge (and his share of the loot) after being gunned down and left for dead following an underworld heist.

The Taking of Pelham One Two Three (1974)

In this brash, gritty masterpiece, Walter Matthau plays a wisecracking New York City transit cop who works to stop a gang of armed men who have hijacked a subway train.  Featuring a super-groovy, all-timer of a musical score by David Shire.

Stop by the library and check one out today!