Perhaps the most influential period in cinema history was the Italian neo-realism period of the late 40s and director Vittorio De Sica was one of the prime reasons for this important period of film-making. "The Bicycle Thieves" is a film about a poor man whose only means for a job is his bicycle, which gets stolen. The film follows him and his young boy throughout war-ravaged Rome in search of the stolen bike. The trip involves some of the most brilliant vignettes in film history; the church, th find out more...

Phyllis Dietrichson is trapped in a loveless marriage to a man who inspires in her nothing but contempt, but rather than leave him Phyllis decides to kill him and collect on the insurance policy she's had set up with the help of her lover, and naive partner in crime, insurance salesman Walter Neff. The only flaws in their plan are the company's reluctance to pay out so much, the diligence of Neff's increasingly suspicious colleague, (and his 'little man'), and the exemplary ruthlessness of Ph find out more...

Adapted from Zola's novel, this powerful tale concerns a triangle of love and murder in which a train driver becomes passionately involved with a femme fatale. With its images of trains and railways as symbols of human destiny this is a visually arresting film; Gallic and tragic. find out more...

First installment of "The Apu Trilogy". Apu, the young son of an impoverished family, begins life in a small Bengali village. Here he tastes his first experiences of the world some happy, some sad, but always portrayed with compassion and a realism that's almost painful. Poetic and stunning. find out more...

Rossellini's masterpiece of neo-realist cinema. Based on the life of a priest who serves in the Resistance movement, it's triumph is to show the Resistance against a backdrop of everyday wartime life in Rome. The realism is enhanced by the camerawork and locations. A truly remarkable film. find out more...