David Parkinson

Well-served by a laudably authentic ensemble, the director explores both character and ethnicity with a canny wit.

Lemmon and Maclaine fail to reproduce the chemistry from The Apartment but this slight film is not as ignorable as reputation suggests.

Farhadi’s gifted storytelling and direction is on show again in a damning look at Iranian society.

Curious allegorical epic which was supposed to speak to Allied spirits during the second world war but was a trifle obscure in its symbolism even then.

Interesting portrait of the shallow nature of fame but overall this fails to engage on an emotional level.

Edwards and Andrews insisted on using the picture to drive another nail into her detested Mary Poppins image.

A completely merited cult favourite of the avant-garde genre. This is surprisingly compelling in places.

One of Hitchcock's earlier efforts that was hacked around a bit to take out some of the more ambiguous psychological elements by the editor but still retains the old Hitch charm.

A subtle and sensual character study.

Shot with grace and precision but paced with all the urgency of a Sunday afternoon stroll, Joanna Hogg's Haneke-lite study of an English middle class family is a well-crafted affair elevated by terrific moments.

Unflinching in its depiction of rural reality, this may be a dour drama, but it has been made with sincerity and an exceptional sense of place.

You'll be left as much in the dark as the director about the personality traits that inspired the loyalty of three strong, intelligent women towards this self-centred, physically-resistible enigma.

One of the finest documentaries ever made about the performing arts, this magisterial history of the companies that danced under the name Ballet Russe will enchant dance aficionados and novices alike.

Klayman exploits the opportunity to follow a man at the eye of a cultural and political storm, although more detail on his creative process and private life would have welcome.

The second outing for Fred and Ginger which cemented their partnership can be irritating in it's romantic machinations but the Astaire flair is always winning.

Insightful as ever but a little dated in the set-up and treatment of the shooting.

A fly-on-the-wall look at the band that will thrill fans but may not convert too many non-believers.

Ultimately, Irma Vep doesn't quite have the courage of its convictions, but still provides plenty of scathing satire on the state of French cinema.

Despite the striking photography, this fascinating denunciation of 150 years of persecution and oppression lacks Guzmán's customary trenchancy and restraint.

A few plot holes hold back what is otherwise a well cast and compelling picture.

Unsurprisingly, considering the circumstances, this is less a meticulous study of photojournalist's art than an privileged and emotional look at the life of a friend and colleague.

While strong on establishment prejudice, the coverage of clashing egos and agendas isn’t always incisive.

This looks and sounds superb. Isabelle Huppert and Pascal Gregory are splendid. But the over-archingly smug sophistication of the enterprise robs it of some much-needed human interest.

It’s instilled with the bite and bark of Bilko’s capitalist fervour, and has a fun line in cool, snappy dialogue, although never intending to be quite so broadly a comedy.

An intriguing and compelling documentary that provides insight into Kiefer's artwork.

Ünel and the debuting Kekilli are as impressive as Akin’s atmospheric snapshots of Hamburg and Istanbul.

Clara Bow is mesmerising in this ahead-of-its-tie air force drama.

This spends more time on the tensions between the dominant trio than their landmark campaigning.

As Cunningham goes about his work chronicling changes in fashion and the city he loves, a portrait emerges of a man deserving of ever bit of the respect and esteem in which he's held. There's few sharp edges or dirt digging, but it's no less engaging for that.

Now practically an exile from his homeland, Kiarostami follows Certified Copy with another film-literate relationship drama with the enigmatic overtones of Hitchcock.

A fun and frothy mock-doc with a message buried in its axle.

Superb star turn from Maria Alexandra Lungi but this doesn’t grip as it might.

Simmering study of a petty hood-cum-wannabe pianist succumbing to his innate violent side - but there might be a touch too much ivory tinkling for some.

Tender and beautifully acted, it's a unflinchingly bleak glimpse of life on Australia's margins.

Combining widescreen lyricism and neo-realist intimacy, this is a poignant reflection on the stark situation awaiting so many migrants who risk everything to reach a false paradise. The methodology occasionally feels calculating, but the intentions couldn't be more sincere, as the struggles are destined to continue once the cameras leave.

A simple, elemental tale that makes breaking the heart seem like the easiest and most natural thing a filmmaker can do to his audience. Which, of course, it isn't.

A strange story that's no less disturbing for its unbalanced telling.

Complemented by its black-and-white photography and a moody DJ Shadow score, this is a gritty yet often tender look at society's margins.

An intriguing look at a lost voice.

Despite Hitchcock's own reservations this is definitely worth a look. Interesting to his aficionados and darkly funny and depressing in turns.

A fascinating topic is attenuated by conservative storytelling and sketchy characterisation. Nevertheless, the sense of place is as assured as the vigilant performances, while the defusing sequences are genuinely suspenseful.

Packed with amusing graphics, animated sequences and damning testimonies, this is a landmark denunciation of Hollywood infantilisation and protectionism.

A touch twee at times, but the use of classic and original animation is admirable, while Owen emerges as the king of sidekicks.

Exasperatingly trite, but also rather sweet.

Although packed with compelling archive footage, this never quite gets into Joplin's head, heart or soul.

A laudably even-handed examination of a highly charged subject.

A challenging and intelligent Swedish drama that still raises laughs.

This tale of Mexican poverty refuses to lapse into sensation or melodrama.

A positive and personal look at the Israel/ Palestine divide through the quest of one woman to maintain her own property.

A bit theatrical in places, which is not surprising when you consider its provenence but it suffers for it.

Occasionally lacking in context but never less than intriguing, Jarreth Merz's polished film is a handy document to a rarely visited democracy.

Not Garbo's greatest but it has a curious charm.

A gripping if occasionally overwrought drama radiated by a standout turn from Seydoux.

A desperately sad look at two men whose determination to rebel against their heritage and succeed in their artform has rendered them unable to communicate. Compelling stuff, though.

The first Fred and Ginger feature is a little clunky and short on plot and character but a beautiful and atmospheric treat for all that.

A timely documentary that seeks to amuse and inform as much as alarm.

Although replete with creepy shocks, this lacks the narrative finesse to match the committed performances and slick visuals.

Bahman Ghobadi can’t be faulted for showcasing so many bands, and the mix is wonderfully eclectic, but the linking episodes aren’t always riveting.

Forte and Peake excel in a notable debut from Green that marks her out as a director to watch.

More compelling when focusing on long-serving staff and their skills and opinions

Assayas' attempt to present a multi-perspective Polaroid view of Adrien and his circle fall back on the tired technique of abruptly punctuating grainy, handheld sequence with jump cuts. A disappointingly sterotypical French film.

Baalsrud never claimed to be a hero and the emphasis of this gripping reconstruction rightly falls on the resourcefulness, courage and self-sacrifice of those who epitomised the spirit of resistance.

While it may prompt some to think again next time they're in Starbucks, this astute insight into the coffee business is better at lauding the good guys than taking the multinationals to task for the iniquities of the global economy.

Powerhouse performance from Richard Burton but a little too old to play the angry young man stuff that is essential to this tale.

Drags in places and deosn't even try for a true-to-life portrait of the great theatre entrepeneur but it's shiny and big spectacle with impressive choreography.

A sometimes over-simplified but often affecting look at forbidden love.

Charming but uneven, director Améris's film doesn't know whether to make us laugh or cry, and ends up doing neither. Still, a smart script offers plenty to keep incurable romantics happy.

Lushly photographed by Andrei Zhegalov and impeccably played, it’s a long-overdue corrective to the kind of wildly patriotic war film produced in the Soviet era.

Once the political correctness is side-stepped, this contains classic chemistry from its two leads.

The father and son chemistry give this blackly-comic slice of social realism a dose of Ealing-lite wit.

Forman and screenwriter Michael Weller brought a sense of coherence to the original freewheeling structure and Twyla Tharp's choreography imparted an infectious dynamism. But, the profanity, nudity and disregard for the fourth wall that had made the stage show such a sensation were lost in the translation.

Rinko Kikuchi's superb core performance and some striking photography stand out in the latest feature from the Zellner Brothers.

Ironically, it lacks journalistic rigour but it's a fond, nostalgic look at the gilded history of the Grey Lady.

Tautly scripted by director Per Fly and bullishly played, this is soap for the ciné-sophisticate.

A smart and incisive look at race, identity and dysfunction in modern French society.

For all its self-conscious pizzazz, this is irresistibly entertaining.

Although there are fine homages to Chaplin, Buster Keaton, Eisenstein and Harold Lloyd here, this is a scattershot offering full of apolitical mockery.

Bold and beautiful, this is a mystery worth puzzling over.

The life and crimes of Virgil Starkwell, a petty hoodlum who finds love with a laundress, Louise, in between botched blags and stints on a chain gang.

Despite visceral moments, it often feels like an excuse to use footage that didn’t make the 2010 film.

Poetic but bleekly pessimistic version of the Danish tragedy.

Over-the-top but blackly funny along the way.

With its bestial themes, conceptual humour and cartoonish thespians, this consciously arch farce will intrigue some and infuriate others.

Played with committed ferocity by the excellent Oh and Heche, this riotous state-of-the-nation satire may lack subtlety, but it has the courage of its socko convictions and certainly packs a punch.

If Cassavetes' hipster cine-language has lost a little of its age and the innovative improv style won't be for everyone, the themes he tackles, riffed by a masterful group of actors, remain enthralling.

A gently moving film that's always thought-provoking if at times a little slow going.

A gruelling watch and a searing indictment of America's disregard for its indigenous peoples.

1954 musical that is woefully miscast in places and extremely dubious in its portrayal of African-Americans but does boast an on-form Dorothy Dandridge.

Judy Garland is magnificent in this charming musical with a number of star turns from the impressive cast.

This director's cut might smack of self-indulgence, but it also says much about love and loss and the language of an artform that flirts with realism while remaining an illusion.

Love Jones is fun, at least for the first hour, after which the melodrama takes over and the characters stop being witty and become schmaltzy instead.

Even if Rupert Murray's film does turn out to be a hoax, there's no denying the ingenuity involved in its making.

Sokurov's use of space, religious symbolism and raw emotion compensate for any sense of exclusion.

This has a lot of good ingredients but just doesn't quite manage to pull it off. It's looks dated and Shirley Maclaine doesn't quite capture the sympathies of all audiences.

Not one of Hitchcock's best, but with a few creative sequences and some sharp writing from Dorothy Parker.

Too many generic tropes for this downbeat, detached melodrama to convince as a work of social realism but a strong central performance and convincing depiction of the compartmentalisation of Argentina's women.

If it weren’'t for Lost Horizon, this would have gone down in history as the Worst Musical of 1973.

Some acute performances do justice to the novel in a quirky adaptation of the novel. Balasko steals the show as the prickly concierge with the warmer side.