The June lineup is officially up on the site. Check it out here.

Every month is great in terms of the variety of films coming in, but I'm especially excited about this month's lineup. I've been waiting since Sundance last year to get a chance to see "Son of Rambow," Garth Jennings' ode to childhood obsession with films - in this particular case, two young boys' quest to make their own movie version of "First Blood." If that sounds gruesome, don't let it scare you off…the buzz among critics and audiences is that this is a charming, funny, sweet film that'll entertain parents and kids equally alike.

Also up this month: Colin Firth and Helen Hunt make the concept of an intelligent drama for grown-ups credible in "Then She Found Me"…and Pierre Salvadori's breezy "Priceless" earns comparisons to "Breakfast at Tiffany's," an allusion that will definitely get me in a theater seat. As much as I'm looking forward to the first-runs, though, it's the "United Artists 90th Anniversary" Sunday Brunch Series that's really got my inner film geek tweaked.

For the unfamiliar, United Artists was created as a joint venture in 1919 by four Hollywood giants: Mary Pickford, Charlie Chaplin, D.W. Griffith and Douglas Fairbanks. Tired of having no creative control over their work (the studio system controlled absolutely every aspect of filmmaking during this time), they headed into uncharted territory to start their own distribution company. The echo of this defiant act can still be seen in artists today who buck safe money and conventional distribution channels in favor of preserving the integrity of their art - from Ani DiFranco and Radiohead to every independent filmmaker with nothing to rely on but a credit card, a camera and a compelling idea rattling around in their skull. And like any of those risk-takers, UA went through its rough spots - particularly in the 40s, where it almost ceased production entirely - but in its various incarnations it has, nonetheless, created some of the very best films of the last 90 years.

In doing a company retrospective like this, there is a wide catalog of titles to choose from, but I think we've hit on five right at the top of the list: "Modern Times," "The General," "Sweet Smell of Success," "Paths of Glory" and "The Pink Panther." I have watched "Modern Times" countless times on television, but the thought of seeing it on the State's gigantic screen has me positively giddy. In the fight between Chaplin and Keaton, I've always been more of a Chaplin girl, but I am anticipating "The General" nearly as much as "Modern Times" - it was, after all, Keaton's favorite film of his, and debuted in 2007 at #18 on AFI's Greatest Movies of All Time list.

Finally: After years of seeing younger siblings watch some truly horrendous kids movies because Hollywood doesn't have a clue how smart children actually are, I nearly wept with joy when I heard kids laughing uncontrollably during January's "Three Stooges" marathon, and asking thoughtful questions of their parents in the lobby after seeing "The Secret of Roan Inish." Parents, if you don't want your kids to grow up thinking acting is the domain of Lindsay Lohan and Hilary Duff, bring them down to Saturday Morning Matinees at the State. Tickets are only 25 cents, and you're guaranteed at least 90 minutes of quality distraction. (If you're going this month, by all means don't miss the great "My Neighbor Totoro," one of the best children's films ever made that got completely overlooked in America).

In considering a lineup like this - one that has everything from foreign films to Sundance hits to documentaries to great classics from the 20s and 30s - I have to stop and say a little prayer of gratitude to the film gods for how incredibly lucky we are to have this theater in Traverse City. It may sound schmaltzy, but let's be real: This time last year, our choices at the cineplex were between Hostel II and Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer. To have a lineup as sophisticated and varied and intelligent and challenging as what we've got here is nothing to sneeze at.

OK, enough gushing about the lineup. Check out the June schedule for yourself by clicking the link above, and "buckle up", as Bette would say, for one terrific month.