During a hot and sultry 1935 summer an embryonic relationship between rich Cambridge graduate Celia (Knightly) and the housekeeper's son Robbie (McEvoy) is left in tatters when Celia's precocious sister falsely accuses James of molesting another young girl. The accusation, based on the misperceptions and childish hurts of a fevered imagination, leads to James's arrest and imprisonment. As the movie progresses, from an English manor house to the war-ravaged wastes of northern France and to bli find out more...

'City of Life and Death', like the earlier 'City of War; the John Rabe Story', is an account of the Rape of Nanjing; the terrible crimes committed by the Japanese army during the sacking of the Chinese city and the desperate efforts to protect those, mainly Chinese, sheltering in the protected German zone. This version concentrates less on the atrocities and heroic whites and more on the growing sensitivity and terrible guilt of a Japanese sergeant.
An important and artfully made film. find out more...

'City of War' tells the story of Nazi Party member John Rabe now considered a German war hero for organising the protection zone that almost certainly saved the lives of over 200,000 Chinese whilst the Japanese killed a further 300,000 outside in the infamous Nanjing Massacre of 1937.
This workmanlike film is based on Rabe's diaries, but is somewhat loose with the truth and, it's interesting to note, was produced with the co-operation of the Chinese authorities, won lots of awards in Ger find out more...

A compelling study of the seductive powers of fascism and violence, directed by Pierre Boutron. The film looks at the deeply disturbing world of the Spanish Civil War and follows a young military cadet who is ordered to join Franco's infamous firing squad. find out more...

Robert Jordan is an idealist and with his skills as a demolition expert he finds himself with the opportunity to marry both by helping the anti-fascists during the Spanish Civil War. Amongst the band of freedom fighters Robert joins is Maria, an innocent but impassioned and beautiful young woman. As the group draw towards their ultimate mission so Robert and Maria's friendship develops into something far deeper, intensified by their uncertain fate. For The Whom the Bell Tolls was showered with O find out more...

Set during the beautiful summer of 1939, just before the outbreak of the Second World War, budding young actress Anne stumbles across secret recordings of a sinister plot to appease the Nazis. As close friends die in suspicious circumstances, she finds herself swept into a web of dark secrets and in increasing danger from a powerful and menacing enemy that nobody, not even her adoring (and politically influential) family believes exists in anything other than her increasingly fragile mind. A sty find out more...

The series (11 episodes) tells the story of the village of Schabbach, on the Hunsrueck in Germany through the years 1919-1982. The central character is Maria, at the beginning a teenage girl, by the end an elderly matriarch, and her family who, like the rest of the German people, live through the crises of 1920s, Nazism and eventual rebirth following WWII. Heimat is a superb cinematic chronicle of social and political change, beautifully shot and breathtaking in its depth and scope. The honesty find out more...

The series (11 episodes) tells the story of the village of Schabbach, on the Hunsrueck in Germany through the years 1919-1982. The central character is Maria, at the beginning a teenage girl, by the end an elderly matriarch, and her family who, like the rest of the German people, live through the crises of 1920s, Nazism and eventual rebirth following WWII. Heimat is a superb cinematic chronicle of social and political change, beautifully shot and breathtaking in its depth and scope. The honesty find out more...

A major retrospective of the British documentary film movement during its period of greatest influence; before, during and after the Second World War. These diverse and compelling films are fascinating historical documents, bearing witness to the social and industrial transformations of the rapidly changing world. Striking in their different approach to the form, using poetry, dramatic reconstruction and explicit propaganda, the film-makers found fresh, new ways to get their message across. find out more...

China in the turmoil of Japanese occupation is the evocative setting for this unusual and visually stunning tale. Recruited before she is truly aware of her purpose, a young woman is groomed to become an irresistible siren, an icon of contemporary eroticism to ensnare a collaborator who has wreaked havoc amongst her people. Ang Lee's stunning follow up to "Broke Back Mountain" is in essence a thriller but as with all his films it is the richness and depth of the characters that really drive the find out more...