David Parkinson

Bette Davis is captivating in this epic study of Southern chivalry.

Having taken such pains to establish Tom’s Finnish background and its attendant dangers, Karukoski hurtles through the sketchy American section without exploring any of its crucial issues in sufficient depth.

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.

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

This is intelligent, admirably unsentimental and utterly involving for its full three-hour running time.

Both funny and touching, this showcases Chaplin at his best.

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.

Ideal Sunday afternoon fare.

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

Dated even at the time of release this nevertheless has a comic performance from Walter Matthau worth catching.

A typical older male mentore story...told with sensitivity and perceptiveness.

One of the Nouvelle Vague's boldest achievements.

Making exceptional use of stillness and silence, this is a rather sad study of the passing of traditional concepts of American masculinity along with the landscape that forged them.

Costa-Gravas at his hypocrisy and oppression-fighting best.

Enjoyable Hitchcock spoof with much chemistry between the leads and some cracking one-liners.

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

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

A magnificent comic performance and a film of genial hilarity.

A little clunky at times for contemporary audiences but still manages to truly perturb at times...

A lengthy, visually impressive period piece with little in the way of new material or fresh spins on history to distinguish it.

Far from an easy watch, either in terms of its hard-hitting content, seemingly haphazard structuring or its dense symbolism. But this makes sense of the political intricacies by balancing the rhetoric and statistics with everyday occurrences that give the iniquities and inadequacies a human face.

What makes this such an affecting picture is the contrast between the wonderfully aloof camels and the interdependence of the extended family, whose smiling resilience only hints at the harshness of an existence that has changed little in centuries.

Recalling the work of Jacques Tati, this is a grim but amusing and ultimately successful effort.

Dated and a little clunky but with a few moving performances from the leads.

A riveting slice of Romanian new wave drama, haunted by shadows of the Ceausescu era and never less than thought-provoking.

Unpredictable and compelling, this draws parallels between Japanese and German cultures in interesting and moving ways.

An interesting piece from Hungary with much to enjoy, only slightly dampened by the occasional clunky device.

Impeccably mounted and played, this is gastro-cinema at its most sensual and intoxicating.

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.

Some may find this sprawling film hard to adjust to, but for those who can, it is a real find. With an imaginative plot and an amusing direction, this charming film is a fitting way to end Cocteau's career.

Funny in places but not Allen's best writing...and its difficult to get beyond the conceit.

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.

Masterfully manipulative and bloody scary.

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