A landmark in the history of the cinema; it was ranked Number 1 in the American Film Institute's 100 greatest films of all time in two polls (1998 and 2007) of more than 1,500 film industry movers and shakers and again by UK directors in a BFI poll. "Citizen Kane" narrates the rise and fall of a newspaper tycoon driven by a childhood obssession and is loosely based round the life of William Randolph Hurst, who tried to have it banned, but incorporates elements from the lives of other fat cats il find out more...

A landmark in the history of the cinema. The rise and fall of a newspaper tycoon driven by a childhood obssession - Randolph Hurst tried to have it banned! Unique in technique and narrative structure, if you only ever watch one 1940's movie this should be it. This edition is from a restored, remastered and generally souped-up print, with a heap of extras including a documentary on the wunderkind Welles and an analysis by, ahem, Barry Norman. find out more...

Paul Newman revels in his role as the sassy and irreverent Luke Jackson, a rebellious prisoner, (sentenced for cutting the heads off parking meters one drunken night!), in one of Florida's notorious prison chain gangs. His refusal to conform wins him the respect of his fellow inmates, but, following the death of his mother, he decides to escape. Newman's role won critical acclaim and an Oscar nomination. A witty and well-observed film, with some very funny scenes, (see the boiled egg race!) find out more...

Phyllis Dietrichson is trapped in a loveless marriage to a man who inspires in her nothing but contempt, but rather than leave him Phyllis decides to kill him and collect on the insurance policy she's had set up with the help of her lover, and naive partner in crime, insurance salesman Walter Neff. The only flaws in their plan are the company's reluctance to pay out so much, the diligence of Neff's increasingly suspicious colleague, (and his 'little man'), and the exemplary ruthlessness of Ph find out more...

A psychotic American commander worried about the subversive effects of water fluoridisation on his "vital bodily fluids" starts off an attack on the Soviet Union. No-one can stop the fighters and no-one, as yet, knows about the failsafe Doomsday Machine. Brilliant black comedy. find out more...

The greatest surf movie ever made. "On any day of the year it is summer somewhere in the world..." Go with Robert August and Mike Hynson as they follow the summer season to Senegal, Ghana, Nigeria, South Africa, Australia, New Zealand, Tahiti, Hawaii and California in search of the perfect wave. Still the ultimate surf film of all time!

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Acclaimed and imitated, this is Clouzot's classic tale of the sadistic head-teacher who brutalises his unfortunate wife. With the help of her husband's mal-treated mistress, a willing accomplice, the two women set out to exact revenge. But when his body goes astray this macabre story truly unfolds... find out more...

Hollywood's 'ultimate rebel' in this posthumously released teenage angst movie which made him the semi-articulate voice of a generation. This style of '50s social realism can be very entertaining, lines like: "Johnny, have you any idea why you shot those puppies?", are legendary themselves . find out more...

An early vision of a nightmare future world. It's 2022 and the whole world's gone pear-shaped, with the authorities encouraging euthanasia and nothing to eat except 'soylent', a synthetic green food. But homicide cop Thorn's enquiries lead him to the deadly truth about the sinister green stuff. find out more...

Nominated for eight Academy awards and hailed as "the most important work by a young director since Citizen Kane". A bittersweet human drama, accurate in its depiction of period and place, exploring the social and sexual turmoils of a group of young people in small town Texas. Featuring a cast that went on to be all-star. find out more...