Perhaps the most influential period in cinema history was the Italian neo-realism period of the late 40s and director Vittorio De Sica was one of the prime reasons for this important period of film-making. "The Bicycle Thieves" is a film about a poor man whose only means for a job is his bicycle, which gets stolen. The film follows him and his young boy throughout war-ravaged Rome in search of the stolen bike. The trip involves some of the most brilliant vignettes in film history; the church, th find out more...

In 1998 Marco Pantani, the most flamboyant and popular cyclist of his era, won both the Tour de France and Giro d'Italia, a titanic feat of physical and mental endurance that no rider has repeated since. He was a hero to millions, the saviour of professional cycling following the doping scandals which threatened to destroy the sport. However, less than six years later, aged just 34, he died alone, in a cheap Italian hotel room.

This film is not just about cycling but an emotional expl find out more...

An intimate epic from Blue Valentine director Derek Cianfrance, weaving together a story of two fathers (Ryan Gosling and Bradley Cooper) and, 15 years later, their sons who find their lives tangled together. An unabashedly grand slice of blue collar Americana in which the intersection of characters' fates nods towards Greek tragedy, it skilfully dodges the mawkishness of comparable pictures (*cough* Crash) if never quite delivering the weightiness its thematic ambition ai find out more...