• 
• 1988
• Japan
• 124 min
• 12

• Directed by: Otomo Katsuhiro
• Cast: Animated by Nakamura Takashi, with the voices of Iwata Mitsue, Sasaki Nozomu, Koyama Mami, Ishida Taro.

Based on the multi-volume graphic novel by Otomo, Akira is a mythical, futuristic tale of post-holocaust Tokyo, where pill-popping biker kids begin to unearth a government project designed to exploit the psychic and telekinetic powers of a group of laboratory-bound children. Superbly animated, with a fantastic visual and narrative imagination, but you'd be well advised to know something of the plot before you see it.

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• 1977
• US
• 93 min
• 15

• Directed by: Woody Allen
• Written by: Woody Allen, Marshall Brickman
• Cast: Woody Allen, Diane Keaton, Tony Roberts, Carol Kane, Paul Simon, Shelley Duvall, Christopher Walken, Colleen Dewhurst

Two decades before Sex And The City had its first orgasm, Annie Hall was laying bare the mores of modern, urban romance to devastating effect while also zoning in on the specific psyche of Allen Konigsberg: anti-Semitic paranoia, metaphysical angst, the search for true love. There's a highly charged on-screen electricity between Allen and Keaton, glorious vistas of the old New York and hilarious set pieces – Alvy fighting with lobsters, the scene of his childhood home below the rollercoaster – and a stream of one-liners to end them all: 'Don't knock masturbation; it's sex with someone I love.' They really don't make 'em like Annie Hall anymore.

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• 1971
• US
• 81 min
• 15

• Directed by: Woody Allen
• Written by: Woody Allen
• Cast: Woody Allen, Louise Lasser, Carlos Montalban

The lad's second feature centres on a neurotic, wimpy, Jewish New Yorker (guess who plays this part?) who gets caught up in a South American revolution. The plot is a somewhat flimsy vehicle for Woody's wonderful one-liners, but there's a degree of cynical commentary on political power struggles.

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• 2010
• US
• 94 min

• Directed by: Celine Danhier

Documentary depicting the crime and drug-addled mess that was 1970s Manhattan. This hotbed of the disenfranchised masses became the home of one of the most radical, libertine and raw DIY cinema movements ever produced with pioneers including Debbie Harry, Jim Jarmusch and Amos Poe.

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• 
• 1942
• US
• 102 min
• PG

• Directed by: Michael Curtiz
• Cast: Humphrey Bogart, Ingrid Bergman, Paul Henreid

You must remember this … Bogart being impossibly noble, Bergman torn between two lovers, Claude Rains playing both ends against the middle, devious Nazis, a fogbound airport, a piano-player tinkling that tune. A wonderful hill of beans.

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• 
• 2007
• US
• 104 min
• 15

• Directed by: Wes Anderson
• Written by: Wes Anderson, Roman Coppola, Jason Schwartzman
• Cast: Owen Wilson, Adrien Brody, Jason Schwartzman, Anjelica Huston, Waris Ahluwalia, Amara Karan, Natalie Portman, Bill Murray, Camilla Rutherford, Irrfan Khan

Three eccentric brothers (Wilson, Brody and Schwartzman) cross India by train in an attempt to deal with the recent death of their father. On this evidence writer/director Anderson is fast becoming the John Cheever of US cinema. This film is preceded by a short by Anderson called 'Hotel Chevalier'; it is imperative you see this film in order to understand what follows. A delight.

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• 
• 2012
• US
• 113 min
• 12A

• Directed by: Tim Burton
• Written by: John August, Seth Grahame-Smith
• Cast: Johnny Depp, Michelle Pfeiffer, Helena Bonham Carter, Eva Green, Jackie Earle Haley, Jonny Lee Miller, Chloë Grace Moretz, Bella Heathcote

18th century vampire Barnabas Collins (Depp) escapes from his coffin to find himself in Maine in 1972. It's fun, thanks to a smart script and plenty of surreal humour; Burton regulars Depp and Bonham-Carter are a hoot, but Moretz and Green could have used more restraint.

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• 
• 2009
• USA
• 88 min
• PG

• Directed by: Wes Anderson
• Cast: George Clooney, Meryl Streep

Anderson's inspired choice of stop-motion animation pays off in this beautiful and idiosyncratic adaptation of the well-loved children's tale. While kids may enjoy it, Anderson's typically arch humour is aimed more at their parents, who will also be impressed by the star-studded voice cast – Bill Murray as a badger lawyer anyone?

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• 
• 1980
• USA/UK
• 106 min
• PG

• Directed by: Mike Hodges
• Written by: Lorenzo Semple Jr/Michael Allin
• Cast: Sam J Jones, Melody Anderson, Topol, Timothy Dalton, Max von Sydow, Ornella Muti, Brian Blessed

A colourful, camp adventure starring Flash! (aaah, saviour of the universe, as the memorable Queen soundtrack has it).

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• 2012
• UK
• 95 min

• Directed by: Bart Layton
• Cast: Frédéric Bourdin, Carey Gibson, Beverly Dollarhide, Charlie Parker, Nancy Fisher

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• 
• 2012
• Finland, Germany, Australia
• 93 min
• 15

• Directed by: Timo Vuorensola
• Written by: Michael Kalesniko (screenplay), Timo Vuorensola (screenplay), Johanna Sinisalo (story), Jarmo Puskala (concept)
• Cast: Julia Dietze, Christopher Kirby, Götz Otto, Peta Sergeant, Stephanie Paul, Udo Kier

Nazis on the moon! In Finland’s first blockbuster, a US lunar expedition discovers a hidden moonbase where Nazis have been hiding since the end of WW II. Shame that Vuorensola’s flat satire and B-movie plotting don’t live up to the inspired premise. For once, a Hollywood remake might be in order.

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• 2011
• Poland, US
• 77 min

• Directed by: Anka Sasnal, Wilhelm Sasnal
• Cast: Marcin Czarnik, Agnieszka Podsiadlik, Piotr Nowak, Elżbieta Okupska, Jerzy Łapiński, Hanka Chojnacka, Michał Pietrzak, Oskar Karaś, Beata Zygarlicka, Waldemar Czyszak, Dawid Wolski

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• 2012
• US
• 83 min

• Directed by: David Zellner
• Cast: Sydney Aguirre, Susan Tyrrell

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• 
• 2005
• US
• 118 min
• 15

• Directed by: Wes Anderson
• Written by: Wes Anderson, Noah Baumbach
• Cast: Bill Murray, Owen Wilson, Cate Blanchett, Anjelica Huston, Willem Dafoe, Seu Jorge, Jeff Goldblum, Michael Gambon, Bud Cort

Anderson's fourth film is part high seas adventure, part film industry satire, part existential meditation on the meaning of relationships. It is consistently clever and hilarious, shifting from the light-hearted to the surreal, to scenes of real depth with the kind of ease we've come to expect from the Texan director. Bill Murray heads an eccentric, often brilliant cast, as ageing oceanographer and filmmaker Steve Zissou. No one likes his films any more and his life is falling apart around him. So he rallies a crew around him that includes his estranged wife (Huston), a journalist (Blanchett), and a man who may or may not be his son (Wilson) and takes one last fated revenge expedition in search for the mythical Jaguar Shark.

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• 2012
• UK
• 102 min

• Directed by: Alex Barrett
• Cast: Paul Nicholls, Jayne Wisener, Will De Meo, Jack Gordon, Nathaniel Martello-White, Fiona Ryan

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• 2011
• Hong Kong
• 107 min

• Directed by: Johnnie To
• Cast: Denise Ho, Lau Ching Wan, Richie Jen, Myolie Wu, Lo Hoi Pang, So Hang Shuen, YoYo Chan, Tam Ping Man, Cheung Siu Fai, Wong Chi Yin, JJ Jia, Stephanie Che, Philip Keung, Anson Leung, Terence Yin, Felix Wong

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• 
• 1976
• UK
• 138 min
• 18

• Directed by: Nicolas Roeg
• Cast: David Bowie, Rip Torn, Candy Clark

An alien searching for the water needed to save his own planet has his powers destroyed by the sinister machinations of a multinational business enterprise. A well cast Bowie gives perhaps his best performance in this dazzling, occasionally obtuse, piece of Roegian sci-fi.

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• 
• 1979
• US
• 96 min
• 15

• Directed by: Woody Allen
• Written by: Woody Allen, Marshall Brickman
• Cast: Woody Allen, Diane Keaton, Michael Murphy, Mariel Hemingway, Meryl Streep, Anne Byrne

Woody wanders through the female jungle of New York in search of a perfect soulmate after the demise of his marriage. Sublime comic delight with a soulful Gershwin score.

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• 
• 2012
• US/UK
• 144 min
• 15

• Directed by: Kevin Macdonald

Kevin Macdonald's documentary chronicles the rise of Bob Marley, the first musical superstar from the developing countries to gain a global audience. With many archival treasures, the result is a comprehensive portrait but it's overly reverential and the interviews could have delved a little deeper.

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• 
• 2011
• Canada
• 94 min

• Directed by: Philippe Falardeau
• Written by: Philippe Falardeau
• Cast: Mohamed Fellag, Sophie Nelisse, Emilien Neron

When a popular teacher in a Montreal school commits suicide, Algerian immigrant Bachir Lazhar (Fellag) replaces her, but the grieving pupils don't suspect his own struggles with family tragedy and imminent deportation. Director Falardeau's sensitive approach, and beguiling performances from Fellag and the children, have earned an Oscar nomination. An unexpected charmer.

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• 
• 2012
• US
• 94 min
• 12A

• Directed by: Wes Anderson
• Written by: Wes Anderson, Roman Coppola
• Cast: Edward Norton, Bruce Willis, Bill Murray, Tilda Swinton, Frances McDormand, Harvey Keitel, Jason Schwartzman, Kara Hayward, Jared Gilman

When 12-year-old orphan Sam (Gilman) convinces Suzy (Hayward) to run away with him, her parents (Murray, McDormand), the local scoutmaster (Norton), sheriff (Willis) and Social Services (Swinton) are soon in pursuit. Anderson's new movie will delight his fans; others may consider it overlong, whimsical and emotionally lightweight.

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• 2012
• Australia
• 152 min

• Directed by: Roger Hodgman

Opera Australia's finest singers perform the story of forbidden romance between a British Army soldier stationed in India during the Raj and a beautiful Hindi princess.

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• 2011
• Argentina, US
• 74 min

• Directed by: Gastón Solnicki
• Cast: Pola Winicki, Victor Solnicki, Mirta Najdorf, Yanina Solnicki, Alan Solnicki

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• 1949
• UK
• 84 min
• U

• Directed by: Henry Cornelius
• Cast: Stanley Holloway, Betty Warren, Barbara Murray

A London borough discovers an ancient charter and declares its independence and exemption from rationing. Wonderful wit and fun as the Ealing Studios satirise British red tape and bureaucracy.

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• 1966
• UK
• 86 min
• 12

• Directed by: John Gilling
• Written by: Peter Bryan, Anthony Hinds (writing as John Elder)
• Cast: Andre Morell, Diane Clare, Brook Williams

Long before Night of the Living Dead, Hammer horror made a bold move into zombie territory with this 1965 shocker. Inexplicable deaths in a Cornish village prompt a local doctor to call on his medical mentor for assistance. Professor Forbes arrives with his daughter and soon the churchyard gives up its secrets as the dead walk again at the bidding of a master with the power of voodoo at his command.

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• 2012
• US
• 15

• Directed by: Ridley Scott
• Written by: Jon Spaihts, Damon Lindelof
• Cast: Noomi Rapace, Michael Fassbender, Guy Pearce, Idris Elba, Logan Marshall-Green, Charlize Theron

Sci-fi adventure in which a team of scientists investigating alien life forms becomes stranded and has to fight a battle in which the safety of mankind is at stake.

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• 
• 2011
• Indonesia/USA
• 100 min
• 18

• Directed by: Gareth Evans
• Cast: Iko Uwais, Doni Alamsyah, Yayan Ruhain

An Indonesian SWAT team storms a Jakarta tower block intending to take down crime lord Tama (Sahetapy), but finds itself trapped. About as good a film as you can make about men repeatedly punching each other in the face; Evans' low-budget, high-impact approach has enormous gusto and ingenuity.

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• 2011
• Poland
• 94 min

• Directed by: Wojciech Smarzowski
• Cast: Marcin Dorocinski, Agata Kulesza, Kinga Preis, Jacek Braciak, Malwina Buss, Marian Dziedziel, Edward Linde-Lubaszenko, Eryk Lubos, Szymon Bobrowski, Lech Dyblik

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• 2011
• UK
• 125 min

• Directed by: Antonio Pappano
• Cast: Angela Gheorghiu, Jonas Kaufmann and Bryn Terfel

This production of Puccini's classic, set in Rome at the turn of the 19th century, was conducted by Antonio Pappano.

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• 
• 1973
• US
• 88 min
• 15

• Directed by: Woody Allen
• Written by: Woody Allen, Marshall Brickman
• Cast: Woody Allen, Diane Keaton, John Beck, Marya Small, Susan Miller

Vintage early Allen, as our paranoiac hero finds himself 200 years in the future, challenging the evil machinations of a totalitarian regime in his accustomed manner.

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• 
• 2011
• Belguim/Italy/France
• 124 min
• 15

• Directed by: Radu Mihaileanu
• Written by: Alain-Michel Blanc, Radu Mihaileanu
• Cast: Leila Bekhti, Hafisa Herzi, Biyouna

In a drought-ridden village somewhere between Africa and the Middle East, the men do little while the women are expected to fetch the water in sweltering heat; eventually, Leila (Bekhti) organises a revolt. What could have been a one-dimensional tale deepens into something more considered, told with engaging warmth.

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• 2011
• Brazil, Germany, Spain
• 90 min

• Directed by: Clarissa Campolina, Helvécio Marins Jr
• Cast: Bastú, Maria do Boi, Preta, Branca, Batatinha, Miltinho, Izadora Fernandes

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• 2012
• US
• 93 min

• Directed by: Eric Wareheim, Tim Heidecker
• Cast: Tim Heidecker, Eric Wareheim, Jeff Goldblum, Robert Loggia

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• 2012
• France, US
• 94 min

• Directed by: Quentin Dupieux
• Cast: Jack Plotnick, Eric Judor, Alexis Dziena, Steve Little, William Fitchner, Regan Burns

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