This unique annual film series invites notable Houstonians from different walks of life to present a favorite film. An initiative of the MFAH film committee, Movies Houstonians Love has two primary goals: to provide speakers with the opportunity to show another side of themselves, and to introduce new audiences to the year-round film programming offered in the museum’s state-of-the-art Brown Auditorium Theater.
Over the years, presenters have included Houston mayors Annise Parker and Bill White, former Houston Ballet star Lauren Anderson, rapper Bun B, former First Lady Barbara Bush, chef Bryan Caswell, pioneering heart surgeon Denton Cooley, former Houston Comets superstar Cynthia Cooper, fashion designer Chloe Dao, former Houston Astros pitcher and manager Larry Dierker, NPR's John H. Lienhard, and filmmaker Richard Linklater.
The 5th season of Movies Houstonians Love adopted the theme of "Meals on Reels" and invited local chefs and restaurateurs to introduce their favorite food film. Restaurants represented in that series were the breakfast klub, t'afia, Irma's, Voice, and Indika. The themed series was very successful and generated suggestions of many more specific subjects for a local spin.
2011
Rice University professor/author Justin Cronin with The Lives of Others (directed by Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck, Germany, 2006, 137 min., subtitled). An East German "Stasi" agent becomes emotionally involved in the life of a playwright he is investigating.
KUHT's Ernie Manouse with Mildred Pierce (directed by Michael Curtiz, USA, 1945, 111 min.). Joan Crawford is an independent woman with a wicked daughter.
Project Row Houses' Rick Lowe with Nothing But a Man (directed by Michael Roemer, USA, 1964, 95 min.). A black construction worker falls in love with a preacher's daughter in a small Alabama town.
The Honorable Ellen Cohen with Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (directed by Frank Capra, USA, 1939, 129 min.). Jimmy Stewart portrays an idealistic junior senator who ends up leading a filibuster in Washington, DC.
MFAH Trustee and gallery owner Meredith Long with Kind Hearts and Coronets (directed by Robert Hamer, UK, 1949, 106 min.). Alec Guinness plays eight roles in this black comedy of a man attempting to make it through many heirs to win a fortune.
Fashion designer Alexandra Knight with Bill Cunningham New York (directed by Richard Press, USA, 2010, 84 min.). A documentary on the legendary "street fashion" photographer who rides a bicycle in New York City.
Southwest Alternate Media Project's Mary Lampe with Wings of Desire (directed by Wim Wenders, West Germany, 1987, 128 min., subtitled). An angel gives up his wings when he falls in love with a human woman.
2010
Indika's Anita Jaisinghani with Mostly Martha (directed by Sandra Nettelbeck, Italy/Germany/Austria/Switzerland, 2001, 109 min., subtitled). A chef suddenly becomes the temporary guardian of her eight-year-old niece when tragedy strikes.
Textile's Scott Tycer with La grande bouffe (directed by Marco Ferreri, France/Italy, 1973, 130 min., subtitled). Four middle-aged men gather for one last fling and resolve to eat themselves to death.
RDG's Robert Del Grande with Who Is Killing the Great Chefs of Europe? (directed by Ted Kotcheff, USA/Italy/France/West Germany, 1978, 112 min.) A comic mystery ensues when the best chefs of Europe are being murdered one by one.
Armando's Armando Palacios with Super Size Me (directed by Morgan Spurlock, USA, 2004, 100 min.). A documentarian examines obesity in America by eating three meals of fast food a day for a month.
Ibiza's Charles Clark with Babette's Feast (directed by Gabriel Axel, Denmark, 1987, 102 min., subtitled). A French housekeeper teaches a Danish village about love and forgiveness with a meticulously prepared banquet.
t'afia's Monica Pope with Food, Inc. (directed by Robert Kenner, USA, 2008, 94 min.). An unflattering look at America's corporate controlled food industry.
Mayor Annise Parker with The Wizard of Oz (directed by Victor Fleming, USA, 1939, 101 min.). Dorothy and Toto are carried to a magical land by a Kansas tornado.
Chef Bryan Caswell with The Big Lebowski (directed by Joel Coen, USA, 1998, 117 min.). Jeff Lebowski is mistaken for a millionaire and enlists his bowling buddies to seek revenge.
2009
University of Houston President Dr. Renu Khator with Mr. and Mrs. Iyer (directed by Aparna Sen, India, 2002, 120 min.). A Western photographer and a Tamil Brahmin wife with a young child are thrown together on a bumpy cross-country bus ride to Calcutta.
Anadarko Petroleum's CEO Jim Hackett with Kingdom of Heaven (directed by Ridley Scott, UK/Spain/USA/Germany, 2005, 145 min.). A blacksmith in the late 12th century reunites with a father he never knew.
Houston Grand Opera's Anthony Freud with A Man for All Seasons (directed by Fred Zinnemann, UK, 1966, 120 min.). The Oscar-winning biopic of the life and martyrdom of Sir Thomas More in 16th-century England.
The Amazing Race winners Joyce and Uchenna Agu with The Sound of Music (directed by Robert Wise, USA, 1965, 174 min.). Julie Andrews is the effervescent governess to the von Trapp children.
Former Mayor Bob Lanier with For Whom the Bell Tolls (directed by Sam Wood, USA, 1943, 130 min.). An American schoolteacher (Gary Cooper) joins the Spanish Civil War to fight the fascists in this adaptation of the Ernest Hemingway novel.
the breakfast klub's Marcus Davis with Guess Who's Coming to Dinner? (directed by Stanley Kramer, USA, 1967, 108 min.). Parents' opinions are tested when their daughter introduces them to her black fiancé.
Irma's owner Irma Galvan with Tortilla Soup (directed by María Ripoll, USA, 2001, 102 min.). A Hispanic-American chef loses his taste for food, but not his lust for life.
Voice's Michael Kramer with Big Night (directed by Campbell Scot and Stanley Tucci, USA, 1996, 107 min.). Brothers gamble it all on one special night to try to save their restaurant .
2008
Project Runway winner Chloe Dao with Dead Poets Society (directed by Peter Weir, USA, 1989, 128 min.). The inspirational drama about a boys’ prep school poetry class.
Houston Chronicle columnist and author Leon Hale with Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (directed by George Roy Hill, USA, 1969, 110 min.). The legendary outlaws as portrayed by Paul Newman and Robert Redford.
Charlie Wilson’s War’sJoanne King Herring with Tea with Mussolini (directed by Franco Zeffirelli, Italy/UK, 1999, 117 min.). A young boy is raised by a group of English woman in pre-WWII fascist Italy.
Sissy Farenthold with Reds (directed by Warren Beatty, USA, 1981, 194 min.). Beatty's epic about American John Reed's involvement in Russia's Communist revolution.
Art gallery owner Fredericka Hunter with Andrei Roublev (directed by Andrei Tarkovsy, USSR, 1969, 205 min.). A docu-drama about the 15th-century Russian monk and icon painter.
2006–2007
Former Houston Astros manager Larry Dierker with Casablanca (directed by Micahel Curtiz, USA, 1942, 102 min.). The classic WWII romance starring Ingrid Bergman and Humphrey Bogart.
Former First Lady Barbara Bush with Life is Beautiful (directed by Roberto Benigni, Italy, 1997, 116 min., subtitled). The Oscar-winning tale of an Italian family in a concentration camp.
Rapper Bun B with Style Wars (directed by Tony Silver, USA, 1983, 69 min.). A documentary on the 1980s New York City art scene.
Filmmaker Richard Linklater with Some Came Running (directed by Vincente Minnelli, USA, 1958, 137 min.). Veteran Frank Sinatra returns to his hometown with an unpublished manuscript.
Educator Mike Feinberg with Gattaca (directed by Andrew Niccol, USA, 1997, 101 min.). Ethan Hawke competes with genetically-engineered humans for a job in space travel.
Houston Ballet’s Lauren Anderson with Singin’ in the Rain (directed by Stanley Donin and Gene Kelly, USA, 1952, 103 min.). The classic musical set during the era when silent film transitioned into sound.
Engines of Our Ingenuity’s Dr. John Lienhard with No Highway in the Sky (directed by Henry Koster, UK, 1951, 98 min.). Jimmy Stewart plays an engineer who knows the plane he’s on is unsafe to fly.
2005–2006
Basketball Star Cynthia Cooper with The Shawshank Redemption (directed by Frank Darabont, USA, 1994, 142 min.). A beloved prison drama based on Stephen King short story.
Mayor Bill White with The Last Picture Show (directed by Peter Bogdanovich, USA, 1971, 118 min.). Slice of life tale set in a 1950s backwater Texas town.
Heart surgeon Denton Cooley with Catch-22 (directed by Mike Nichols, USA, 1970, 122 min.). A WWII bombardier tries desperately to be certified insane.
Actress Annalee Jefferies with Barbarella (directed by Roger Vadim, France/Italy, 1968, 98 min.). Jane Fonda is a sexy adventuress in space who must stop the evil Duran-Duran.