TODAY AT AFI FESTIVAL

Following are The Times’ recommendations for today’s schedule of the American Film Institute International Film Festival, with commentary by the film reviewing staff. All screenings at Laemmle’s Sunset 5, at 8000 Sunset. Information: (213) 466-1767. Highly Recommended:

“THE BLACK PIRATE”(U.S., 1926; Albert Parker; 4:15 & 9:15 p.m.). This near-quintessential pirate movie shows star-writer Douglas Fairbanks in his prime: a bounding nobleman disguised as a black-clad, raffish, bare-chested buccaneer, charming whole galleons with his smile, subduing shiploads with his sword, plank-walking with dash and abandon. Two better movies took this one as their main model: Minnelli’s “The Pirate” and Siodmak’s “The Crimson Pirate.” But, if Parker’s direction is a little leisurely, Fairbanks’ ebullient iconography remains peerless. Belle Billie Dove and heavy Donald Crisp co-star; the film, shot in three-strip Technicolor, will be shown in a tinted print, with musical accompaniment. Part of the Ray Bradbury tribute. (M. W.).

Recommended:

“WALTZ ON THE PECHORA”(Georgia; Director Lana Gogoberidze; 4 & 9 p.m.). Two strands, both taken from writer-director Gogoberidze’s life, are woven together here. In monochrome, women in a Siberian prison camp try a futile trek through the snowy wastes. In color, a little girl orphanage escapee, daughter of one of the prisoners, strikes up a strange, sympathetic relationship with the old KGB officer who’s taken over her house. The whole film has the eerie grace that comes from the past recaptured, from meditation and reverie. And the central relationship, a unique one for films, carries conviction, theatrical power and resonance. Beautifully acted, beautifully realized. (Michael Wilmington).

Others: “Life According to AGFA” (Israel; Assi Dayan; 1:30 & 6:45 p.m.). Contrived, cliche-ridden melodrama: The denizens of a Tel Aviv bar become a microcosm of Israeli society in the chaotic near-future. Potboiler tactics undercut Dayan’s outspoken criticism of an increasingly violent society. (Kevin Thomas). “Where Beans Grow” (U.S.; Michelle Wagner; 1:40, 4:05, 6:50 & 9:05 p.m.). Sappy, trite account of a young girl’s coming of age in the ‘50s in rural Oklahoma, where she is saddled with an eccentric father. Playing with it is Shawn Hardin’s sentimental 29-minute ‘50s fantasy “120-Volt Miracles.” (K. T.). “It Was a Wonderful Life” (U.S.; Michele Chayon; 1:50 & 7 p.m.). Jodie Foster narrates a portrait of Los Angeles women who have fallen from affluence or comfort to homelessness. It’s easy to sympathize with the women; less so with the film. (M. W.)