20th Century Flicks, Bristol

Adapted from the classic, absurdist, anti-war novel by Joseph Heller. "Catch-22" is the story of Yossarian, a pilot who trys to opt out of flying bombing missions by being declared insane, the catch being that anyone trying to avoid bombing missions by being insane must be sane. This dark classic catches much of the flavour of the book, the insanity, the corruption and the absurdity of war. Think MASH, but non-linear - flawed but awesome. find out more...

CLOSER (2004)

Certification15 Our Rating

One couple seesawing between love and indifference, togetherness and separation, the callow actions of one bring another in to the equation and soon there are four. The one who controlled the situation gradually becomes cuckold to the guest he unwittingly invited and as the tables turn so the transient and compromised nature of love makes its tenuous nature clearer. Closer is Mike Nichols adaptation of Patrick Marber's acclaimed play and a sophisticatedly brutal thing it is too; nicely acted but find out more...

CLOUDS OF SILS MARIA (2014)

Certification15 Our Rating

At the peak of her international career, Maria Enders is asked to perform in a revival of the play that made her famous twenty years ago. But back then she played the role of Sigrid, an alluring young girl who disarms and eventually drives her boss Helena to suicide. Now she is being asked to step into the other role, that of the older Helena. She departs with her assistant to rehearse in Sils Maria; a remote region of the Alps. A young Hollywood starlet with a penchant for scandal is to take find out more...

COFFEE AND CIGARETTES (2003)

Certification15 Our Rating

More famous faces than you can shake a stick at get together over a fag and a mug of coffee, to discuss the many joys of, well� a fine cupper and a good drag. Jim Jarmusch started filming these short comic vignettes over ten years ago and has created a deliciously off kilter observation of life's little pleasures. Worth watching for Iggy Pop and Tom Waits chat alone, and I say this regardless of my own hopeless weakness for the rolled leaf and the dark bean. find out more...

DEAD MEN DON'T WEAR PLAID (1982)

CertificationPG Our Rating

Intersplicing clips of all those old heroes, like Bogart, Ladd, Stanwyck, Milland, Lancaster, Laughton, Cagney, with comic clips of Steve Martin as a keen, but clumsy detective who gets all the good lines, creates both an extremely funny comedy and a whodunnit in the best possible taste. find out more...

DELICATESSEN (1991)

Certification15 Our Rating

A dazzlingly visual and atmospheric piece of cinema. The location is futuristic France with Doomsday looming. The setting is a butcher's shop run by a crazed cannibal. Add some peculiar tenants, the barbarous landlord's love-struck daughter, and some vegetarian freedom fighters, and you have a devilishly original, stylish black comedy. find out more...

DO THE RIGHT THING (1989)

Certification18 Our Rating

Italians, Koreans and African Americans are struggling to keep a lid on the tensions within their Brooklyn community, but Sal's pizza parlour provides the perfect social hub for the neighbourhood. However, as a sweltering hot day drags slowly on, racial tensions evolve from petty bickering to full scale violence and ... WHY WON'T THAT GUY TURN OFF HIS FREAKIN' RADIO!!!! Excuse me. A controversial but mature film from Spike Lee. Incendiary, compelling and highly recommended.

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DON'T LOOK NOW (1973)

Certification15 Our Rating

A father is haunted by the death of his young child. Omens point to disaster and hallucinations predict the future as this wonderful atmospheric film moves to its disturbing climax. Shot in the beautiful city of Venice and based on the book by Daphne du Maurier.

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EVERYTHING IS ILLUMINATED (2005)

Certification12 Our Rating

Everything is Illuminated tells the story of a young man's quest to find the woman who saved his grandfather in a small Ukrainian town that was wiped off the map by the Nazi invasion. What starts out as a quest to piece together one family's story under absurd circumstances turns into a meaningful journey with a powerful series of revelations - the importance of remembrance, the perilous nature of secrets, the legacy of the Holocaust, and the meaning of friendship. A flawed but refreshingly quir find out more...

GOOD BYE, LENIN! (2004)

Certification15 Our Rating

Alex is devoted to his mother, a firm believer in the Marxist reality that is East Germany. Awakening from an eight month coma brought on by a heart attack, a lot has changed since Alex's mum last viewed the world; the Berlin wall has fallen and Germany is once again one. Warned by the doctors that any great shocks could be fatal, Alex becomes determined that his mother, even if it's within the confines of her own four walls, will continue to observe a communist society unchanged. All these s find out more...