The re-birth of country music in the 70s is certainly a worthy subject for a documentary. The relationship between the music, the whiskey and the guns meld together seemlessly in this eloquent and elegant film about the small town lives that breathed new life into a dying art - the country and western song. The flashiness of David Allan Coe (who's prison shows make you cringe) contrasts with the simple charm of Townes Van Zandt (who struggles beautifully to juggle a Coke can, a bottle of booze a find out more...

A simple minded village postman sees a film on the efficiency of the American postal system and as a result tries to smarten up his act. The first, and some reckon the best, of Tati's comedies. Great slapstick humour and an earthy evocation of rural France. Jour de Fete was originally filmed in Thomson-color, a process that became extinct before prints of the film could be shown. Consequently early versions of the film were in black and white, a version that was filmed simultaneously as a precau find out more...

The best film in the history of comic British cinema. A black tale of sex, adultery, murder and social class told with low key irony. Alec Guinness plays all the leading roles, and the delightfully witty and sardonic script is ideal for him. A landmark of British film. find out more...

In the 23rd century life is perfect for everyone, that is until the age of 30, when "senior citizens" face an abrupt extermination, and Logan is 29, worried, and ready to run. A disturbing vision of the future with Oscar-winning special effects. find out more...

Undoubtedly one of Hitch's best. An innocent businessman is mistaken for a spy by enemy agents and learns the true meaning of persecution, while a deceptively beautiful blonde in the pay of his tormentors steals his heart. A tense and compulsively gripping nice-guy's nightmare. Obligatory viewing. find out more...

It's the off-season at the lonely Beauregard Hotel in Bournemoth, and only the long-term tenants are still in residence. Life is stirred up, however, when the beautiful Ann Shankland arrives to see her alcoholic ex-husband, John Malcolm, who is secretly engaged to Pat Cooper, the woman who runs the hotel. Meanwhile, snobbish Mrs Railton-Bell discovers that the kindly if rather doddering Major Pollock, played by David Niven, who won an Oscar for his performance, a retired officer who likes to find out more...

This masterpiece by Preston Sturges is perhaps the finest movie-about-a-movie ever made. Hollywood director John Sullivan, tired of churning out lightweight comedies, decides to make "O, Brother, Where Art Thou?" - a serious, socially responsible film about human suffering. After his producers point out that he knows nothing of hardship, Joel hits the road as a hobo. While on his travels the director finds the lovely Veronica Lake, and more trouble than he ever imagined. Some truly inspired set find out more...

All time classic wonderfully filmed by Wilder, featuring great performances from Holden, as a bankrupt screenwriter seeking refuge, and Swanson, a faded star in a crumbling mansion, who pins her hopeless hopes of a comeback on the writer. Deliriously dark and nightmarish masterpiece. find out more...

A brooding epic, exposing the darker side of Hollywood and the winner of 5 Oscars. The stories of a star, a writer and a director, all "made" by a ruthless producer (Douglas), and all disowning him now that they've reached their pinnacles of success, are told in retrospect. Ice-queen Lana Turner is superb as the sex kitten who, once she reaches the top, turns into a cat.

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Classic 50s sci-fi and the film that spawned a generation of alien-invasion flicks. When friendly alien visitor Klaatu is wounded by trigger-happy state troopers his robot mate seeks revenge, but Klaatu has a message for mankind and takes to the streets to teach the world the true meaning of peace. Brilliant. find out more...