Kickoff of the 42nd New York Film Festival

This weekend begins the 42nd New York Film Festival presented by the Film Society at Lincoln Center and it's 17 days of international films, new pictures from old favorites and introductions to unsung artists.

There's too many things playing over the next couple of weeks to mention in only one posting, even the first weekend alone is a packed schedule. The opening film this Friday will be French actress-director Agnès Jaoui's Look At Me, an ensemble comedy that was a big hit at this year's Cannes Film Festival. (Oct. 1, 8:15 pm & 9 pm.)

On Saturday, catch a retrospective screening of Sam Fuller's 1980 ironic war classic, The Big Red One. Based on his recollections fighting in World War II, this will be Fuller's complete version, with close to an hour of extra footage cut from the original release. (Oct. 2, 11 am.)

There's also a few people Gothamist knows who are excited to see a Jean-Luc Godard picture on the bill on Sunday with his newest, Notre Musique a meditation on war framed in three panels inspired by Dante. (Oct. 3, 4:15 pm and Oct. 4, 9 pm.)

Saturday also begins a Shaw Brothers series as part of the festival, "Elegance, Passion, and Cold Hard Steel: A Tribute to Shaw Brothers Studios". If you'd like to think of yourself as a kung fu aficionado, go back to view these sources from the '50s by this major producing studio based in Hong Kong.

Even Quentin Tarantino loves the Shaw Brothers' work as Kill Bill Vol. 2 featured a tribute title to the studio's Shaw Scope at the opening of his film this year.

Tickets will be on sale at the Alice Tully Hall Box Office on Broadway at 65th Street and there are limited tickets on sale online at lincolncenter.org. Depending on availability, there will be $10 Student Rush tickets available on the day of the performance to those with valid student id.