John Wayne grabs centre stage as the ruthless Colonel Marlowe in this powerful Civil War Western based on the Grierson Raid, when Union troops cut a swathe deep into the heart of the Confederacy to choke off vital supply lines. A thoughtful and compelling film on the futility of war from the master of the genre, John Ford. find out more...

In the mid-C19th William Walker operated out of Latin America as a soldier of fortune, but he was not merely a mercenary for hire, he was also a doctor, a lawyer and, most dangerous of all, an idealist. When Walker invaded Nicaragua, at the behest of robber baron Wanderbilt, he decided against handing the country over, instead declaring himself President, and sighting that America was obligated to "protect our neighbours from oppression". A glorious and bloody re-interpretation of history, ‘Walk find out more...

Visually stunning biopic of Napoleon tracing his rise to power after exile in Elba and culminating in defeat by Wellington at Waterloo, and taking in along the way the consequences of the ravages of war on the common people. Aesthetically and technically impressive, though historically debatable. find out more...

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Star-studded epic, with the best of British luvvies playing the best of Britain's boys in this slightly self-conscious colonial caper, recounting the biggest ever defeat of British forces by natives at Isandhlwana in 1879. Burt Lancaster heads the hard-as-nails, but unfailingly polite heroes, who find themselves up against a posse of well-oiled warriors. Looking decidedly dated. find out more...