An all time classic 60s movie glamourising the real life story of the Barrow gang who terrorised the American South in the early 30s. 'Reclaiming the American gangster movie, after it had been stolen by the Nouvelle Vague, Penn's film was so successful (and so imitated) that it inevitably met with some grudging devaluation. But it's still great, half comic fairytale, half brutal fact, it reflects the essential ambiguity of its heroes by treading a no man's land suspended between reality and fant find out more...

Outrageously camp gangster yarn about an assassin who can only achieve sexual excitement by sniffing boiled rice! Ranked No 3 in the Top 10 of underworld hitmen, he polishes off No 2 during a string of spectacular killings, but soon has No 1 hot on his tail. Occasionally mystifying, but always witty, inventive and dazzling. find out more...

A penniless pianist learns that contract-killing target Alfredo Garcia is already dead and sets out to recover his head and claim the bounty. Perhaps Peckinpah's most complex and critically controversial film, an eclectic mix of existensial quest, gothic tale, political critique of American involvement in Latin America and a love story of two losers challenging destiny. Set in Mexico. find out more...

Pam Grier displays the charms that made her a 70s icon of the blaxploitation movie. When Foxy Brown's undercover drug squad boyfriend is murdered after her bad-ass brother reveals his identity, she poses as a hooker to take revenge on The Man. Cue bucketloads of gratuitous sex and violence. Brilliant (say some)! find out more...

Perhaps Caine's defining role as the ruthless London villain in Newcastle to sort out some gang bovver. When he finds out his niece has become embroiled with some very seedy characters, his involvement becomes far deeper. A violent and slick thriller with an excellent feel for both time and location and a comment on the despair of Britain in the 1970s. find out more...

Irish Sicilian Henry Hill always wanted to be a gangster and from running errands as a small boy, he graduates to becoming a trusted member of the "family". A stunning, violent and essential portrait of the Mafia's intimate details. An award winning film, superbly crafted by Scorsese. find out more...