janus.jpgJanus Films is a name held in near reverence by cinephiles in the United States. Began in 1956, the distribution company has been instrumental in introducing American audiences to the masters of world cinema; one of its first directors was an obscure Italian named Federico Fellini. Since then, it has been at the forefront of the American art-house movement, with acquisitions by seminal artists such as Kurosawa, Bergman, Ozu, Renoir, Cocteau and the like.

Closely associated with Janus–and held in equal esteem by film-lovers–is The Criterion Collection, which distributes Janus’ films on DVD. There are at least two forums associated with this company, which trade upon rumors and facts and discussions largely about the 400 plus titles in the collection.

Now there’s a cable TV network that apparently has a deal with Janus; called Ovation TV, it has a series called Destination ArtHouse on Saturday nights which feature films like Seven Samurai, Jules et Jim, Picnic at Hanging Rock and The Battle of Algiers. You can go to their site here and see clips from some of them, like this one from Seven Samurai, featuring the incomparable Takashi Shimura.

Hold onto your hats, film-lovers, Oliver Stone is going to make another movie. The man who gave us Platoon, Born on the Fourth of July, JFK and other paranoid masterpieces is shopping around a project on the life and times of George W. Bush, with Josh Brolin attached to play the prez. Is it going to be fair and balanced? Michael Fleming writes in Variety:

“One need only Google the words ‘Stone’ and ‘Bush’ to find plenty of the director’s critical comments about the Bush administration’s invasion of Iraq. Despite that, the director said he’s not looking to make an anti-Bush polemic. His goal is to use seminal events in Bush’s life to explain how he came to power, using a structure comparable to ‘The Queen.’“

Somehow, I’m skeptical.