#1. Allegro non Troppo (1976)

Storyline: Italy's response to the Disney classical music/animation hybrid "Fantasia," this film features a series of cartoon shorts set to the likes of Claude Debussy, Joseph-Maurice Ravel and Antonio Vivaldi. The animated segments feature both the humorous and fantastical: an aged satyr attempts to regain its lost youth, a bee is interrupted mid-meal by two lovers, the myth of Adam and Eve is retold and more. In between cartoons, a filmmaker (Maurizio Nichetti) struggles to complete the film.

Plot Keywords: animator, filmmaker, orchestra conductor, cleaning lady, cat, satyr, amusing ...

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#2. The Mahabharata (1989)

Storyline: This adaptation of the Indian epic poem and subsequent stage play tells the story of two warring clans. The Pandava brothers come into conflict with the Kauravas, as both tribes, descended from deities, feel they can lay claim to power. Yudhishthira (Andrzej Seweryn), the eldest of the Pandavas, is told by the god Krishna that his destiny is to be king. And his brother Arjuna (Vittorio Mezzogiorno) has a talent for battle. But is war inevitable? Krishna's actions are fraught with ambiguity.

Plot Keywords: king, brother, cousin, warrior, krishna, dense, thrilling ...

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#4. The Sword of Doom (1966)

Storyline: Ryunosuke is a sociopathic samurai without compassion or scruples. When he is scheduled for an exhibition match at his fencing school, the wife of his opponent begs Ryunosuke to throw the match, offering her own virtue in trade. Ryunosuke accepts her offer, but kills her husband in the match. Over time, Ryunosuke is pursued by the brother of the man he killed. The brother trains with the master fencer Shimada. In the meantime, however, Ryunosuke earns the enmity of the band of assassins he runs with, and it becomes a question of who shall face him in final conflict.—Jim Beaver <jumblejim@prodigy.net>

Plot Keywords: samurai, competitor, brother, mistress, assassin, intense, chilling ...

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#5. Ashes of Time Redux (2008)

Storyline: When his friend Huang (Tony Leung Ka Fai) visits mercenary Ou-yang (Leslie Cheung), they trade stories including that of princess Mu-rong (Brigitte Lin), who is alternately male and female. Peach Blossom (Carina Lau) quarrels with her blind husband (Tony Leung Chiu Wai), a swordsman who wants to avenge the bereavement of a peasant girl (Maggie Cheung). The girl also attracts the favors of the swordsman Hung Chi (Jacky Cheung), who is forever trailed by his doting wife (Li Bai).

Plot Keywords: mercenary, swordsman, princess, blind person, wife, peasant, spectacular ...

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#6. Electra (1962)

Storyline: A powerful rendering of the tragedy of Elektra by Euripides, second in a trilogy. The film begins with a summary treatment without dialogue of the action of the preceding play, The Agamemnon, in which the wicked Queen Clytemnestra and her lover Aesgisthes murder her husband Agamemnon upon his return from the Trojan War.—Paul Brians <brians@wsu.edu>

Plot Keywords: daughter, husband, brother, mother, lover, king, brooding ...

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#7. Troy (2004)

Storyline: It is the year 1250 B.C. during the late Bronze age. Two emerging nations begin to clash after Paris, the Trojan prince, convinces Helen, Queen of Sparta, to leave her husband, Menelaus, and sail with him back to Troy. After Menelaus finds out that his wife was taken by the Trojans, he asks his brother Agamemnon to help him get her back. Agamemnon sees this as an opportunity for power. So they set off with 1,000 ships holding 50,000 Greeks to Troy. With the help of Achilles, the Greeks are able to fight the never before defeated Trojans. But they come to a stop by Hector, Prince of Troy. The whole movie shows their battle struggles and the foreshadowing of fate in this remake by Wolfgang Petersen of Homer's "The Iliad."

Plot Keywords: warrior, king, prince, helen of troy, spectacular, passionate, ancient greece ...

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#8. Brave (2012)

Storyline: Set in Scotland in a rugged and mythical time, this movie features Princess Merida (Kelly Macdonald), an aspiring archer and impetuous daughter of Queen Elinor (Dame Emma Thompson). Merida makes a reckless choice that unleashes unintended peril and forces her to spring into action to set things right.

Plot Keywords: princess, king, queen, lord, witch, incredible, intense ...

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#9. Time Bandits (1981)

Storyline: A young boy's wardrobe contains a time hole. Through this hole an assortment of short people (i.e. dwarfs) come while escaping from their master, the supreme being. They take Kevin with them on their adventures through time from Napoleonic times to the Middle Ages to the early 1900s, to the time of Legends and the Fortress of Ultimate Darkness where they confront Evil.

Plot Keywords: dwarf, young boy, supernatural being, napoleon bonaparte, thief, robin hood, cheeky ...

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#10. Clash of the Titans (1981)

Storyline: Perseus (Harry Hamlin) is the favored son of the god Zeus (Sir Laurence Olivier), but he has unwittingly ticked off the sea goddess Thetis (Dame Maggie Smith). Just to make things worse, Perseus falls in love with the lovely Princess Andromeda (Judi Bowker), who used to be engaged to Thetis' son, Calibos (Neil McCarthy). Soon Perseus is off on one quest after another, with Zeus helping, Thetis hindering, and lots of innocent bystanders getting stabbed, drowned, and squished.

Plot Keywords: hero, greek god, satyr, princess, zeus, spectacular, rousing ...

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#11. Ice Age: The Meltdown (2006)

Storyline: Manny the woolly mammoth, Sid the sloth, Diego the saber-toothed tiger, and the hapless prehistoric squirrel/rat known as Scrat are still together and enjoying the perks of their now melting world. Manny may be ready to start a family, but nobody has seen another mammoth for a long time; Manny thinks he may be the last one. That is, until he miraculously finds Ellie, the only female mammoth left in the world. Their only problems: They can't stand each other--and Ellie somehow thinks she's a possum! Ellie comes with some excess baggage in the form of her two possum "brothers"-- Crash and Eddie, a couple of daredevil pranksters and cocky, loud-mouthed troublemakers. Manny, Sid and Diego quickly learn that the warming climate has one major drawback: A huge glacial dam holding off oceans of water is about to break, threatening the entire valley. The only chance of survival lies at the other end of the valley. So our three heroes, along with Ellie, Crash and Eddie, form the most unlikely ...

Plot Keywords: squirrel, woolly mammoth, con artist, sloth, saber-toothed tiger, lighthearted, suspenseful ...

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#12. Sinbad: Legend of the Seven Seas (2003)

Storyline: A Persian sailor named Sinbad is on a quest to find the magical legendary Book of Peace, a mysterious artifact that Eris, the Greek wicked goddess of chaos, has ultimately framed him for stealing! If he fails on this quest, his childhood friend Prince Proteus of Syracuse will take Sindbad's death penalty, while Eris gains a desired foothold of power in the world of mortals.

Plot Keywords: sinbad, lord, sailor, hilarious, mission, legend, stowaway ...

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#13. The Story of Ruth (1960)

Storyline: Inspired by the tale from Hebrew scriptures and the Christian Bible, the Moabitess child Ruth is sold to the temple of Chemosh. Years pass and she serves as a priestess to the idol. While arranging a temple ritual, she encounters a Judean family of artisans: Elimelech, his wife Naomi, their sons Chilion and Mahlon, and daughter-in-law Orpah. Ruth is curious about their God, and begins to meet secretly with Mahlon. After tragedy strikes, Ruth follows Naomi and begins a new life in Bethlehem...—L. Hamre

Plot Keywords: young woman, slave, jew, farmer, pagan, uplifting, tense ...

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#15. Kingdom (2019)

Storyline: Forced into slavery in ancient China two boys become like brothers. Aspiring to be free one day they train to hone their skills. The training almost pays off, but one of them is whisked away by one of the emperor's men before its completion. The dream of reuniting with his brother are dashed when the older boy returns mortally wounded only to extract a promise from his younger friend to visit a location. There has been a coup in the palace and the Emperor is bereft of his throne and supporters.—aghaemi

Plot Keywords: young boy, emperor, gripping, striking, intense, ancient china, betrayal ...

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