A war movie with enough honour and heroism to make a grown man weep.

Sexual tension hangs in the air as the wind blows and native drums beat, but it's on a visual level that the film excels.

To steal from Ali, this one floats like a butterfly and stings like a bee.

Before John Woo went all Hollywood on our ass with the likes of Face/Off and Mission: Impossible II, he made several films in his native Hong Kong, this being arguably the pick of the bunch. Although not as slick as his later films, it's more inventive and stylised and with great early performances from Fat and Leung.

Perhaps without the shock and suspense of subsequent work, this is nevertheless another undoubted masterpiece from the atmospheric film maker, and just as essential.

One of the strongest, most effective horror films of recent years — with awards-quality lead work from Essie Davis, and a brilliantly designed new monster who could well become the break-out spook archetype of the decade.

Following up Love Is Strange with another slice of urban bohemia, Sachs’ latest is another gem that's full of heart and warmth.

A witty, warm exploration of family life that's conventional and unconventional in equal measure.

The final act of The Great Escape is a masterfully sustained piece of action and tension as the various escapees struggle for freedom via train, bicycle, motorbike, row boat and hitchhiking. The Great Escape should always be seen. It reminds us of a history that is all too quickly forgotten.

A typically quixotic documentary in which great unknown artists from 35,000 years ago collaborate with one in 2011. Profound, mysterious and utterly absorbing.

Bogart as Marlowe is compelling in this classic thriller that is complex but triumph of atmospheric cool.

The reason Carrie is still held in such high regard as a horror classic is very simple: it's all in the sheer directorial bravado. De Palma at the top of his game.

Appealing, emotional and with a strong enough performance by Rice-Edwards as the boy in his own little war-free world.

A moving treatment of a deeply personal subject (France's own partner died of an AIDS-related illness in 1992), and an enthralling depiction of a seriously fired-up popular movement.

Come for the near-endless rows that convincingly carry the venom of a collapsed, resentful marriage; stay for the extended critique of Russia’s contemporary spiritual vacancy.

Tense and slick, this early thriller remains a true masterpiece.

The offstage elements may slightly underwhelm, but Luhrmann’s kaleidoscopic exploration of Elvis’ Vegas residency is one of the most thrilling musical experiences you can have at a cinema.

Tough and tender, it's the best Iron Curtain drama since "The Lives Of Others."

One Cut Of The Dead is a true original, a fresh take on the zombie apocalypse drama and much more besides.

Mesmerising, magical portrait of smalltown America, dominated by a performance from Paul Newman so outstanding it must surely make him front-runner to hoist the Best Actor statuette come Oscar night.

Bleak, brutal and quite possibly brilliant, this is a triumphant return to form for Lumet and further proof that Hoffman is on an incredible winning streak.

Jim Jarmusch tried to create the essential road movie and although he didn't manage that, he has still created a classic that captures perfectly the life of a drifter in New York.

For better or worse, American cinema changed forever the day Bonnie And Clyde was released. Almost every aspect of it was revolutionary.

This really is the musical for people who don’t like musicals.

Visceral and intensely moving, this film feels like something you’d stumble across on TV in the small hours and never forget. It might herald a new era for queer cinema.

Surface-level funny but with a well of deeper meaning brewing, May December is not just a skilful satire of suburban propriety; it’s a unique and uncanny affair about the nature of performance itself.

Courageous and indelible account and an invaluable perspective of the protests.

Avoiding the 80s staple of angsty adolescence, Crowe has constructed an intelligent, witty yet undeniably cute tale, showing the potential that would be realised in Singles and Jerry Maguire, and giving Cusack's warm-hearted Lloyd the perfect foil in Skye's prissy model of student perfection.