It's the late 19th century and in the West the railways are coming. Ruthless outlaw Ben Wade and his equally immoral gang feed off the wealth the lines bring, but after he's captured Wade is forced to confront his worst enemy, his conscience. As they travel across the deserts of Arizona towards the train that will deliver him to ultimate justice, a grudging respect develops between Wade and escort Dan, a dirt poor farmer who knows the values of right and wrong, but with Ben's men in hot pursuit find out more...

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...

Abandoned by her father and brought up in an orphanage Gabrielle Chanel's early years were not easy ones, but her willful determination, intelligence and obvious gift would see her ultimately rise to iconic status within the world of 20th Century fashion. 'Coco Before Chanel' never glamorises her life, neither the way she looks nor the lovers she takes; a thoughtful understated observation of Chanel's life before fortune finally beckoned. Not a visually sumptuous film, as you might expect, but a find out more...

Leone's superb all-encompassing epic portraying the death of the mythical 'Wild West'. A superb cast, the collaborations of Bertolucci and Argento, and Morricone's brilliantly atmospheric score all add to the incredible style and weight of Leone's creation. A true cinematic masterpiece! A candidate for greatest movie ever made, if you haven't... then you must. find out more...

An ambitious but competently-handled Civil War epic from versatile director Ang Lee . A fairly heavyweight historical drama, it focuses on the Bushwackers, a rebel southern militia group headed by Maguire, Ulrich and Rhys-Meyers, who're conducting a guerilla war, and black scout Jeffrey Wright, who's forced to fight for the pro-slavery cause. Worthy and well-crafted, but light entertainment it ain't. find out more...

The last months of the infamous bushwacker Jesse James, before being shot by the socially inadequate, unstable, envious, admiring young wannabe Robert Ford. Beautifully shot, and masterfully directed, this is a rambling sepia-toned epic. Produced, but not directed by Ridley Scott, "The Assassination of Jesse James" is still very reminiscent of his style of film making and though there are flaws, the studied novelistic narrative grated, this is a contemplative western about a human psyche, or two find out more...

A man deformed by a rare illness is taken up and patronised by fashionable London society - another freak show for the elephant man to be exhibited in. David Lynch's highly individual style here perfectly complements the film's material. A dark and brooding, yet sympathetic and sentimental film. find out more...

(Fictitious) ambitious Austro-Hungarian Crown Prince Leopold is politically advantageously engaged to beautiful Hungarian aristocrat Sophie, but her heart is set on an old teenage flame, the illusionist Eisenheim. The story is seen through the eyes of Leopold's protegee police inspector Uhl, whose surveillance duties include 'protecting' Sophie. Telling you too much of the intriguing plot would spoil the story but trust me - it's very good. Clues are discreetly there, the characters developed, t find out more...

A fine traditional adventure yarn based on a Rudyard Kipling tale and set on the wild North West Frontier of the British Raj. Two penniless adventurers, mistaken for Gods, decide to carve themselves out a kingdom in a remote region of the Himalayas, but when one decides to rule, rather than thieve the jewels, the trouble starts. A meditation on power?

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Josey Wales is a peaceful Missouri farmer in the days near the end of the Civil War. After his home is burned and his family murdered, he hardens into a human bullet, dedicated to destroying the renegades who took his "life." He joins a band of unreconstructed rebel guerilla fighters, who continue to fight the Union even after the official surrender of the Confederacy, an action which makes them, legally, outlaws. Josey is driven by vengeance, but, after a while, that's not enough. Back before h find out more...