During the German Occupation a young trainee railway guard at a remote country station desperately tries to lose his virginity. He finally succeeds with the station master's wife. Satiric, anti-heroic, humorous and balanced tragi-comedy. Generally considered the finest Czech new wave film. find out more...

Phyllis Dietrichson is trapped in a loveless marriage to a man who inspires in her nothing but contempt, but rather than leave him Phyllis decides to kill him and collect on the insurance policy she's had set up with the help of her lover, and naive partner in crime, insurance salesman Walter Neff. The only flaws in their plan are the company's reluctance to pay out so much, the diligence of Neff's increasingly suspicious colleague, (and his 'little man'), and the exemplary ruthlessness of Ph 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...

'High Noon' works on many levels; the second-to-none screenplay, the subtle direction, the clock, Gary Cooper's Oscar-winning performance... It's about a small town sheriff who must basically stand alone to defend the people from a wild gang of outlaws, who have just been let out of jail and will arrive on the noon train. Although he does not have to, and the town does not deserve saving, Cooper decides that he will do the job that he was hired to do. A classic amongst Westerns, it strips the ge find out more...

Adapted from Zola's novel, this powerful tale concerns a triangle of love and murder in which a train driver becomes passionately involved with a femme fatale. With its images of trains and railways as symbols of human destiny this is a visually arresting film; Gallic and tragic. find out more...

A young tennis star meets a looney on a train who proposes that they swap murders. The looney, to the star's dismay, starts to carry out his side of the bargain. A film that shows Hitchcock's technique at its suspenseful best. find out more...

Arguably Keaton's finest film, and rated as one of the funniest comedies ever made. Keaton is the Confederate train driver who refuses to hold up the white flag when his engine is hijacked by Union soldiers during the Civil War. The visual gags come thick and fast as Buster fearlessly risks life and limb in a desperate race to claim back his train, and his girl! A classic. find out more...

A German general attempts to leave France with a load of Impressionistic paintings just days before the liberation. Based on a true story, Scofield gives a magnificent performance as the general battling vs Lancaster's delaying railway inspector who attempts to let the allies catch up.

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