MOVIE BUFFS: Rodarte sisters Kate and Laura Mulleavy make no secret of the fact that they find some of their inspiration in films. Those wondering which movies they most like can find out on The Criterion Collection's Web site, which asked the two to pick their 10 favorite films. Counting down from 10, they are "La Collectionneuse" by Eric Rohmer; "Amarcord" by Federico Fellini; "Metropolitan" by Whit Stillman; "The Silence of the Lambs" by Jonathan Demme; "Jules et Jim" by François Truffaut; "Picnic at Hanging Rock" by Peter Weir; "Fanny and Alexander" by Ingmar Bergman; "Hiroshima Mon Amour" by Alain Resnais; "In the Mood for Love" by Kar Wai Wong, and, at the top, "Beauty and the Beast" by Jean Cocteau.

Laura Mulleavy said movies play an important role at Rodarte. "I cannot think of a time where I have tried to describe a feeling or moment without referencing a film," she said.

Case in point: the fall 2008 collection, which came out of the duo's obsession with Japanese horror themes seen through Kabuki Theater and modern Japanese horror flicks.

"You can see the correlation between Kabuki and modern Japanese horror films in that they both discuss what is beyond the natural world, in a very minimal manner," Kate Mulleavy said. "We were inspired by Criterion Collection films such as 'Onibaba,' 'Kwaidan' and 'Ugetsu.'"

The duo has been working with the Criterion Collection since its first show, when it gave away a "Fanny and Alexander" DVD box set (one of the show's dresses was inspired by a scene in the movie).

"It is probably our favorite film of all time and the Criterion edition is brilliant," Kate Mulleavy said, adding that the list is subject to change with time.

That said, the two might be less-willing couch potatoes these days. After Vogue magazine approached the Mulleavys, they completely changed their diets and started to exercise. Kate Mulleavy lost more than 30 pounds, while her sister dropped more than 20 pounds. — Marc Karimzadeh