This classic piece of early silent cinema is noted not merely for its dramatic camerawork and cast of thousands but also for its contribution as a cinematic template, particularly in the genre of horror. Set in 16th Century Prague, a monstrous creature of Jewish myth is unleashed by a Rabbi to save his people from anti-Semitic legislation; unfortunately for all concerned The Golem's taste for destruction is not sated by the demands of his master, and so begins an unstoppable rampage. find out more...

The movie that confirmed Kurosawa's greatest strength, his innovative handling of genre. It's set amid the civil wars of 16th Century Japan, and concerns samurai Mifune escorting a princess and two oafish peasants through enemy territory. Kurosawa's treatment is part traditional (the plotting, the concept, the use of Noh theatre music), part eclectic (there are reminiscences of John Ford Westerns), and part truly idiosyncratic (the Shakespearean contracts between clowns and heroes). find out more...

Rural France, 1542; after several years of unhappiness in his village, a young man suddenly disappears, leaving his wife and farm. Nine years later he returns from a war a changed man, his story is convincing, his wife accepts him wholeheartedly, and his farm prospers, but doubts about his true identity are sown. The story is a legend in France, a fascinating tale of deception leading to a love that deserves to last, but is spoilt by the ugliness of human nature. A great re-creation of the medie find out more...