Thom Andersen, 2003, 163 minutes

An essay on how the movies have depicted Los Angeles, Andersen’s film is a critical history — and counter-history — of Los Angeles via clips from an eclectic list of movies. Many of them are well known (Chinatown, Blade Runner, L.A. Confidential); others are rarer finds (The Exiles, Bush Mama, Killer of Sheep). The film tracks the various roles that specific landmarks and districts — the Bradbury Building, Frank Lloyd Wright’s Ennis house, Bunker Hill — have played through the years, with insights on movies, architecture, transportation, racism, class and public space.