The Italian adventurer and libertine Giovanni Jacopo Casanova lived from 1725 to 1798, but in this six-part series Dennis Potter attempted to find a contemporary relevance through his central themes of sex and religion. He commented that Casanova "was concerned with religious and sexual freedom, and these are the things we have to address ourselves to now." Casanova was imprisoned in Venice in 1755, and Potter used that event as a central device, constantly inter-cutting to contrast Casanova's a find out more...

Set against the backdrop of 19th century France, Les Misérables tells the story of broken dreams and unrequited love, passion, sacrifice and redemption; a timeless testament to the survival of the human spirit....but with over wrought songs. Ex-prisoner Jean Valjean, has been hunted for decades by the ruthless policeman Javert after he broke parole. When Valjean agrees to care for factory worker Fantine’s young daughter, Cosette, the lives of all involved change forever. Another find out more...

An umpteenth adaptation of Victor Hugo's novel, with Liam Neeson taking the lead as hard-done by hero Valjean, unjustly imprisoned for 20 years before making his escape, and living a virtuous life under an assumed identity, before it becomes apparent that his past will forever come back to haunt him. Uma Thurman plays the beautiful, impoverished Fantine, whom Valjean decides to save from a life of vice. A competent but somewhat sanitised reworking of the classic tale. find out more...

A pretty good dramatization of Nelson Mandela's extraordinary journey from childhood in a rural village through to his election as President of South Africa. It explores the Mandela unknown to most of the world; the lover of fancy cars, a lady's man, the boxing enthusiast and playboy, the skilful lawyer and a freedom fighter. An intriguing portrait of the making of a modern icon.

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Alcatraz, 1938; after 3 years in solitary, a hellish hole in the ground with no heat, light or human contact, petty crook Henri Young emerges as a madman. When he kills another inmate there is only one man - attorney James Stamphill - willing to challenge the barbarity of Alcatraz. Moving and riveting with great performances from all three leads. find out more...

One of two classic Lean adaptations of Charles Dickens. From the opening shot of Oliver's mother struggling through the snow to reach the workhouse. The film brilliantly recreates the feeling of poverty-stricken Victorian England. Look out in particular for Alec Guinness' superb performance as Fagin. find out more...

Dickens' classic tale of the young orphan boy, picking a pocket or two and struggling to survive in the seedy underbelly of 19th Century London is gloriously brought to life by Polanski. Oliver is a visual feast without doubt; the only question is quite why a director like Polanski has remained so rigidly within the original framework of the book, particularly when David Lean did such an exemplary adaptation over half a century earlier. find out more...

The tale of two men banged up for years in the notorious French penal colony Devil's Island. Two escape bids by one of them results in years of solitary confinement but make him simply more determined to flee, even as old age approachs. The ultimate prison escape movie loosely based on a true story. find out more...

The tale of Albert Pierrepoint, Britain's last official executioner, a man who personally dispatched 608 men and women, including various Nazi war criminals, Timothy Evans and Ruth Ellis. Timothy Spall superbly pulls off how this rather ordinary, but distinctly odd, bloke coped emotionally and professionally with his job. An awesome period piece and a superb look into a very strange occupation. A must for anyone who liked Vera Drake. find out more...

The Marquis de Sade has been locked away in a mental asylum, but he refuses to lie down and accept his fate. With the help of a laundry maid the Marquis continues to find an outlet for his writing and it is only with the arrival of the malevolent Dr Royer-Collard that the grim stink of desperation becomes apparent. The film cultivates an air of sardonic detachment beneath a lascivious leer, it pokes at sexual taboos - it's pretty subversive, considering - but sexuality and creativity are inde find out more...