Bored with big-screen summer blockbusters? Take a break from Hollywood, and get a cup of world culture at a number of S.B.-area screenings this week featuring unique, critically acclaimed films from around the world.
• Mamma Roma: A 1962 Italian film about a mother and son’s struggle for survival in post-WWII Italy. Fri., Aug. 12, 5:30pm. S.B. Museum of Art, 1130 State St. Call 963-4364.
• My Perestroika: Documentary about five Russians who watched the collapse of the Soviet Union as children and adolescents. Sun., Aug. 14, 4:30pm. Ojai Playhouse, 145 E. Ojai Ave., Ojai. $10. Call 646-8946.
• Gandhi: Biographical film about the life of Mahatma Gandhi, leader of the nonviolent independence movement against British Colonial rule in the first half of the 20th century. Tue., Aug. 16, 7pm. MultiCultural Ctr., Channel Islands Rd., UCSB. Free. Ages 18+. Call 893-3763.