Titles available on DVD as of January 2017.
This is a selective list of video holdings in the American University Library. Filmographies are created by doing multiple keyword searches in the library catalog to capture as many titles on a topic as possible. For complete up-to-date holdings (including VHS tapes) please refer to the library catalog (www.catalog.wrlc.org)
1776. 2002. 1 videodisc (166 min.). 1776 is a delightful musical celebration of the founding of The United States of America. The story centers around the familiar historical characters as they organize a movement for independence from Mother England. All events lead up to that most significant date, July 4, 1776, when the Declaration of Independence was signed. This is the DVD "restored" version which runs ca. 166 minutes -- longer than the theatrical release cut, yet shorter than the laserdisc "restored" version. HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 4969
42nd street. 2006. 1 videodisc (89 min.). The movie musical that introduced the choreography of Busby Berkeley, 42nd Street also contains the classic plot involving a tyrannical director, egotistical leading lady and wide-eyed ingenue, all set to a standout musical score. HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 2068
8 femmes 8 women. 2002, 1 videodisc (111 min.). A wealthy industrialist is found murdered in his home while his family gathers for the holiday season. The house is isolated and the phone lines have been found to be cut. Eight women are his potential murderers. Each is a suspect and each has a motive. Only one is guilty. HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 3755
A Chorus Line. 2003. 1 videodisc (118 min.). In preparation for a Broadway musical, a group of aspiring stage performers is put through their paces by a veteran stage director using some singular techniques. HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 6893
Across the Universe. 2008. 2 videodiscs (133 min.). Jude is a dock worker from Liverpool who travels to the United States in the 1960s to find his estranged father. There, he falls in love with sheltered American teenager Lucy. When her brother, Max, is drafted to fight in the Vietnam War, they become involved in peace activism. HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 3985
All That Jazz. 2003. 1 videodisc (120 min.). The story of an obsessed, pill-popping chain-smoking choreographer/ director dancing simultaneously with love and death. But even while dying, he creates some great dancing. Based on the life of Bob Fosse. HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 668
Amar, Akbar, Anthony. 2002?, 1 videodisc (168 min.). Eternal classics. Lavish action-filled account of the separation, separate lives, and eventual reunion of three brothers: one raised by a Hindu policeman, one raised by a Muslim tailor, and one raised by a Catholic priest. HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 3696
The American Ruling Class a Dramatic-Documentary-Musical. 2007. 1 videodisc (100 min.). Is there an American ruling class, and if so, how do you join? Two hapless Yale grads embark on a star-studded journey of meetings with America's establishment to unearth some uncomfortable answers and find out the truth about what the future really holds for them. A dramatic, musical, documentary satire on class in America that attempts to answer the question "Who rules America?". DVD 4759
Anastasia. 2005. 2 videodiscs (94 min.). Anastasia: A princess of Russia's Romanov family grows up in an orphanage after the assassination of her parents and separation from her grandmother, with only vague memories of her childhood, but she discovers her rightful heritage when she is recruited to pose as the lost princess by con men who want to claim a reward for her recovery.Bartok: When Price Ivan is kidnapped, it is up to Bartok to discover the real hero inside himself and rescue the young Romanoff even if it means confronting the evil witch Baba Yaga. HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 4463
Anchors aweigh. 2000, 1 videodisc (140 min.). Two lovesick sailors on shore leave in Hollywood fall hard for the same beautiful singer. The race for Susie's heart leads them both into a series of comical and musical adventures. HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 4905
Aria. 1999. 1 videodisc (88 min.). Ten of the world's best-known film makers were given a free hand to make a short-film version of an operatic aria without necessarily following the aria's story line (for example, Rigoletto interpreted as a sex farce). The result is a succession of segments representing a variety of film-making styles. MUSIC LIBRARY DVD 94
Babes in arms. 2007. 1 videodisc (93 min.). Learning that his parents are in financial straits, the son of a famous vaudeville team rounds up all the stage kids and puts on a lavish show to raise money. The future looks rosy until a hurricane washes the whole enterprise away on opening night. HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 7871
Babes on Broadway. 2007. 1 videodisc (118 min.). One of the famous old musicals that combines captivating music and lavish production numbers by the master, Busby Berkeley. The story is the standard tale of two struggling Broadway hopefuls, and is filled with 16 song and dance numbers. HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 7873
The Band Wagon. 2005. 1 videodisc (112 min.). A musical comedy satirizing theatrical production problems. Hollywood song-and-dance man Tony Hunter (Astaire) is persuaded by his friends Lester and Lily (Levant and Fabray) to star in a Broadway musical. He joins the show in New York where he is confronted by a prima ballerina (Charisse), a jealous and hostile choreographer (Mitchell) and a pig-headed producer-director (Buchanan). When the show flops at its New Haven opening, Tony must raise money and take over the production which becomes a Broadway smash. HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 1271
The band wagon. 2009, 1 videodisc (112 min.). Turner classic movies: Turner classic movies. Fading movie musical star Tony Hunter, down and out in Hollywood, decides to try his luck on the Broadway stage. HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 1271, MUSIC LIBRARY DVD 267
Bollywood Hollywood. 2005. 1 videodisc (105 min.). Rahul is dating Kimberly, a beautiful Caucasian pop star that his parents and grandmother are not fond of. When Kimberly dies in a freak accident, Rahul's mother takes advantage of the situation and demands that he become engaged to an Indian girl. HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 7506
Bride & prejudice. 2005. 1 videodisc (111 min.). Based on Jane Austen's classic novel, Pride and Prejudice, with a Bollywood twist. In Ammritsar, the determined Mrs. Bakshi sets out to find matches for her four daughters. Second sister, Lalita, meets American Will Darcy - is it love? HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 1784
Brigadoon. 2005. 1 videodisc (108 min.). Two Americans stumble upon a Scottish village which comes to life for only one day a century. One of the men falls in love with a townswoman, and has to decide where his heart lies. HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 1951
The broadway melody. Org. 1929. 1 videodisc (100 min.). This is the first musical to win a Best Picture Oscar. Anita Page and Bessie Love star as two sisters in love with the same man. HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 1995
Broadway melody of 1936. 2008, 2 videodiscs (101, 110 min.). Classic musicals double feature: Classic musicals double feature . An Albany girl-next-door poses as France's and Broadway's exotic La Belle Arlette. The '38 tale has her portraying a horse trainer who's just as much at ease in taps and tuxedo as she is in riding boots and jodhpurs. MUSIC LIBRARY DVD 325
Broadway melody of 1940. 2003, 1 videodisc (102 min.). Classic musicals collection: Classic musicals collection. A backstage yarn about two hoofers, Johnny Brett and King Shaw, who are an ambitious dance team working in a dance hall for little or nothing. A mistake in names shoots King instead of Johnny into the lead of a Broadway musical. On opening night King is unable to perform due to intoxication, and Johnny is forced to perform to save his partner's reputation. The show's producers realize their mistake in identity and all is resolved. MUSIC LIBRARY DVD 313
The Busby Berkeley bonus disc. 2006. 1 videodisc (163 min.). This collection features 21 song-and-dance spectaculars staged and directed by Busby Berkeley, from movie musicals released in the 1930's. Included are excerpts from "42nd Street" (1933), "Gold diggers of 1933" (1933), "Fashions of 1934" (1934), "In Caliente" (1933), "Footlight parade" (1933), "Wonder Bar" (1934), "Dames" (1934), "Gold diggers of 1935" (1935), and "Gold diggers of 1937" (1937). HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 2073
The Busby Berkeley collection. 2006. 6 videodiscs (650 min.). Five remastered classics include: 42nd Street (1933), Gold Diggers of 1933, Footlight Parade (1933), Dames (1935), Gold Diggers of 1935, plus a bonus disc with more than 20 complete musical numbers from Busby Berkeley. DVD 2068 - 2073 See individual records for further details.
Bye bye Birdie. 1999. 1 videodisc (112 min.). When rock star Conrad Birdie gets drafted, his manager organizes a nationwide contest in which one lucky girl wins a farewell kiss on The Ed Sullivan show. HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 1531
Cabaret. 1998. 1 videodisc (124 min.). An egocentric American girl dreams of becoming a star while working in a third-rate Berlin cabaret. HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 41
Camp. 2004. 1 videodisc (110 min.). Guitarist Vlad attends Camp Ovation, the summer theater camp for budding actors, dancers, and musicians. Finding himself to be one of the only straight boys around, he soon befriends Ellen. Meanwhile, openly gay Michael develops a crush on him. This sparks dramatic confrontations among fellow campers Jenna, Jill, and Fritzi. The whole camp is run by Bert Hanley, a washed-up Broadway songwriter who decides to enlist the help of his young campers to put together a new musical production. DVD 12354
Cannibal the musical. 1996. 1 videodisc (96 min.). A gory musical farce loosely related to the story of the Alferd Packer expedition of miners into Colorado and resulting trial of Packer for cannibalism. Contains considerable violence. MUSIC LIBRARY DVD 13
Can't stop the music. 2002. 1 videodisc (123 min.). "New York City DJ/songwriter Jack Morell needs just one big break to get his music heard and land a record deal. But with the help of his retired supermodel roommate and an uptight tax attorney, they bring together six singing macho men from the Greenwich Village scene for an outrageously 80s adventure of fun, fantasy and disco fever." -- from container. DVD 671
Chicago. 2003, 1 videodisc (113 min.). At a time when crimes of passion result in celebrity headlines, nightclub sensation Velma Kelly and spotlight-seeking Roxie Hart both find themselves on Chicago's famed Murderess Row. They also share Billy Flynn, the town's slickest lawyer with a talent for turning notorious defendants into local legends. HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 626, MUSIC LIBRARY DVD 258
Chitty Chitty Bang Bang. 1998. 1 videodisc (145 min.). Eccentric inventor Caractacus Potts creates an extraordinary car called Chitty chitty bang bang. It not only drives--but also flies and floats--as it leads him, his two children and his beautiful lady friend, Truly Scrumptious into a magical world of pirates, castles and adventure. There, the group encounter a host of unforgettable characters, including Baron Bomburst of Vulgaria, his persnickety wife, a lovable village toymaker and an evil child catcher. HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 2915
Colma the Musical. 2006. 1 videodisc (100 min.). An enchanting musical film that captures the comedy and drama of 'coming of age' in the shadow of a great city. HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 4500
Cover girl. 2003, 1 videodisc (107 min.). A dancer in a Brooklyn night club catches the eye of a magazine publisher, who sees in her potential as a future cover girl. HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 1709
Daddy long legs. 2005, 1 videodisc (126 min.). Marquee musicals: Marquee musicals. Millionaire playboy Jervis Pendleton III becomes enamored with a young woman living in a French orphanage, and decides to anonymously sponsor her college education in America. When they finally meet face-to-face two years later, romance blossoms but is complicated by Jervis's hesitance towards their age differences. MUSIC LIBRARY DVD 290
Dames. 2006. 1 videodisc (90 min.) : sd., b&w. ; 4 3/4 in. Three relatives stand to inherit a multi-millionaire's money if they turn against his pet hate, the theater. HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 2071
Damn Yankees. 2004. 1 videodisc (110 min.). Starring the original Broadway cast, this is the musical adaptation of the novel 'The Year The Yankees Won The Pennant'. A Washington Senators fan sells his soul to the devil to become a great baseball player and to help his favorite team win the pennant. HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 2706
Dancer in the dark. 2000, 1 videodisc (141 min.). New Line platinum series. Selma, a factory worker in rural America and single mother, is losing her eyesight from a hereditary disease. Determined to protect her 10-year-old son from the same fate, Selma is saving her money to get him an operation. In the evenings, Selma escapes by rehearsing for a production of The sound of music with her best friend. When a neighbor betrays her trust, Selma's life spirals out of control and the lines between reality and fantasy blur. HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 285
Deep in my heart. 2008, 1 videodisc (132 min.). Classic musicals from the dream factory: Classic musicals from the dream factory. While Broadway swings to the jazzy beat of ragtime, Sigmund Romberg continues to play the beautiful waltzes of his native Austria at the Cafe Vienna. Persuaded by the cafe owner to compose in the new style, he creates a hit song, which leads to great musical success, but the woman he loves is reluctant to return his feelings. MUSIC LIBRARY DVD 322
De-Lovely. 2004. 1 videodisc (125 min.). A musical portrait of American composer Cole Porter. The film imagines Porter looking back on his life as a stage show, with past memories taking shape as numbers in an elaborate and elegant musical accompanied by his songs. His personal history is illustrated by these performances, especially the complicated relationship with his wife, wealthy socialite Linda Lee Porter, who is shown as being the main inspiration for his work despite his extramarital affairs. HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 12337
Dhoom. 2004, 1 videodisc (292 min., 52 sec.). Top 10 best Bollywood films 2001-2009. Dhoom: A police officer enlists the help of a motorcycle mechanic to catch a gang of chopper-riding uber-criminals. Bunty aur Babli: Two ambitious dreamers, Rakesh and Vimmi, set out from different small towns to find fame. Instead, they find each other and form the duo, Bunty and Babli. They commit criminal capers, with an ambitious police inspector, DCP Dashrath Singh, hot on their trail. HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 10270
Dhoom:2 Back in action. 2006, 1 videodisc (151 min., 52 sec.). Top 10 best Bollywood films 2001-2009. Mr. A, a master thief that baffles the police at every turn, finds himself in a high-stakes game of cat and mouse when his rival, the clever thief Sunehri, threatens to beat him to his latest target in Mumbai, India. HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 10271
Die 3groschenoper, The 3 Penny Opera. 2007. 2 videodiscs (110 min.). "Set in the impoverished back alleys of Victorian London, The threepenny opera follows underworld antihero Mackie Messer (a.k.a. Mack the Knife) as he tries to woo Polly Peachum and elude the authorities. With a palpable evocation of corruption and dread, set to Weill's irresistible score, The threepenny opera remains a benchmark of early sound cinema." -- container. HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 3125
Dreamgirls. 2007. 2 videodiscs (130 min.). Three young women Deena Jones, Effie White, and Lorrell Robinson desire to become pop stars. They get their wish when they are picked to be backup singers for the legendary James "Thunder" Early. When they are set free for leads, Curtis Taylor and Effie's brother C.C. decide that Deena should be the lead singer, which upsets Effie. The girls discover exactly what it takes to be in the music business and what they must give up to realize their dream. HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 10027
Easter parade. 2009, 1 videodisc (103 min.). Turner classic movies: Turner classic movies. MUSIC LIBRARY DVD 264
Elaine Stritch at Liberty from the Old Vic Theatre, London. 2003. 1 videodisc (146 min.). A career spanning more than 50 years, Elaine Stritch is one of Broadway's Grand Dames. Now, at age 77, she is as dynamic as ever, giving an astonishing one-woman performance. In a series of vignettes, punctuated by songs from the shows in which she starred, she tells stories of her career, ranging from the hilarious to the deeply moving. HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 2815
Enchanted. 2008, 1 videodisc (107 min.). Disney DVD: Disney DVD. The beautiful princess Giselle is banished by an evil queen from her magical, musical, animated land and finds herself in reality--the gritty streets of modern-day Manhattan. Giselle, adrift in our chaotic world, is shocked by this strange new environment that doesn't operate on a "happily ever after" basis. This place is badly in need of enchantment! But when she begins to fall in love with the charmingly flawed divorce lawyer who has come to her aid - even though she is already promised to a perfect fairy tale prince back home - she has to wonder: Can a storybook view of romance survive in the real world? HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 9277
Everyone Says I Love You. 1999. 1 videodisc (101 min.). It's the fun-filled story of one wealthy, eccentric and romantically challenged extended family from New York's Upper West Side. HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 142
Evita. 1998. 1 videodisc (135 min.). Musical production of the true-life story of Eva Peron, who rose above childhood poverty and a scandalous past to achieve fortune and fame. HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 2164
Fiddler on the Roof. 2001. 1 videodisc (179 min.). Tevye is a poor Jewish milkman with five unmarried daughters to support in a village in Czarist Russia. With a sharp tongued wife at home and growing anti-Semitism in the village, Tevye talks to God about his troubles. His people's traditions keep him strong when his existence is as precariously balanced as a fiddler on the roof. HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 2015
Flying Down to Rio. 2006. 1 videodisc (89 min.). This film, containing the first of many Fred Astaire - Ginger Rogers partnerships, concerns a band in Rio. Songs include "The Carioca," "Orchids in the Moonlight," and the title song. Pilot and band leader Gene Raymond woos Dolores Del Rio, and then learns that she is engaged to a friend of his, after he flys her home to Rio. Fred & Ginger provide the musical moments. Notable for a brilliantly photographed finale with chorus girls on the wings of flying airplanes, the movie was the musical that broke with the rather contrived Busby Berkeley production and moved toward a closer integration of musical and narrative elements. Astaire's dance numbers come not as interruptions but as extensions of the plot. HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 7428
Follow the fleet. 2011, 1 videodisc (110 min.). Astaire and Rogers: Turner Classic Movies greatest classic films collection: Astaire & Rogers collection: Greatest classic films collection. All hands on deck! In the fifth of 10 Astaire/Rogers pairings, Fred trades his top hat for a sailor's cap, Randolph Scott gets the girl, Ginger gets a tap solo, and viewers get the unending delight of seven sparkling Irving Berlin numbers. Ginger is a dancer whose former partner Fred has joined the Navy. He looks her up when he gets leave, bringing along his buddy, who catches the eye of Ginger's plain-jane sister. MUSIC LIBRARY DVD 287
Footlight parade. 2006. 1 videodisc (104 min.). Cagney stars as Chester Kent, a diligent musical comedy director who is continually warding off snoopers hired by his competitors to steal his ideas. When his latest show is cancelled in favor of a talking picture, he turns to staging musical prologues to play before the features in moviehouses. HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 2072
Footloose. 2004. 1 videodisc (107 min.). City-boy Ren McCormick finds he has been moved into an uptight Midwestern town where the local officials have banned dancing and rock 'n roll music. Ren revolts with his best friend Willard and the minister's daughter. A timeless struggle between innocent teenage pleasures and adults' need for rigid morality. HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 7044
For me and my gal. 2006, 1 videodisc (104 min.). Musical comedy about a vaudeville song-and-dance team who buck tough times and World War I on their way to success in show business. HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 10918
Forbidden zone. 2 videodiscs (76 min.). Sexy Frenchy falls into an insane underworld ruled by a horny little king and his jealous queen. Chicken-boy comes to the rescue, only to have his head cut off by the soul-singing Devil himself, and the Mystic Knights of the Oingo Boingo. Frog butlers, topless princesses and rioting school kids sing and dance in unforgettable musical numbers you will never forget! HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 12970
The gay divorcee. 2010, 1 videodisc (105 min.). Turner classic movies. In one of their best loved, most charming song and dance comedies, Fred and Ginger demonstrate just how they became known as America's greatest dance team. Includes the Academy Award-winning hit The Continental. MUSIC LIBRARY DVD 259
Gigi. 2008. 2 videodiscs (115 min.). A wealthy Gaston finds out he prefers a young Parisian girl to be his wife rather than his mistress. HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 7255
Girl Crazy: Mickey Rooney and Judy Garland collection. 2007. 1 videodisc (99 min.). Danny is a rich kid with a taste for wine, women and song, but not for higher education. His father ships him to an all-male college out West, where he meets the dean's granddaughter who is trying to help her grandfather keep his college from folding. HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 7874
Gold Diggers of 1933. 2006. 1 videodisc (98 min.). Dick Powell and Ruby Keeler play two young hopefuls struggling to make it on Broadway. Even falling in love has its hardships, as Powell's high-brow Eastern family is determined to break them (and the show) up. More complications set in when his brother falls for Keeler's wise-cracking roommate. HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 2069
Gold Diggers of 1935. 2006. 1 videodisc (95 min.). A medical student working as a clerk in a ritzy New England hotel falls in love with a rich woman's daughter. HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 2070
Gold Diggers of 1937. 2008. 1 videodisc (101 min.). A musical comedy about a group of insurance salesmen who back a show. HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 4741
Grease. 2006. 1 videodisc (110 min.). It's love when a greaser falls for a good girl in this classic musical depicting young life in the fifties. HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 7086
The Great Ziegfeld. 2004. 1 videodisc (185 min.). Ziegfeld is a theatrical impresario, whose show business empire begins when he stage-manages a tour for a strongman. With almost no money in the bank, he charms European stage star Anna Held to headline his "Follies". From 1907, Ziegfeld stages annual editions of Broadway's most fabulous revue. Eventually, Ziegfeld abandons Anna in favor of other beauties. Ziegfeld comes to realize that his new romance with Follies-girl Audrey Dane, is all wrong, settling instead for good-natured actress Billie Burke. Bankrupted by the Depression, Ziegfeld dies as he plans a spectacular comeback. HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 1979
Guys and dolls. 2000. 1 videodisc (149 min.). A gentleman-gambler falls in love with a missionary, while a floating crap-game operator avoids marriage to his long-time fiancee. HOME USE COLLECTION DVD 6834