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City of God
This is the film that made director, Fernando Meirelles (more recent work includes “The Constant Gardener”) internationally famous. “City of God” was filmed with actors plucked out of Rio de Janeiro’s favellas. Based on the novel of the same title by Paulo Lins, the film tells the story of two boys who take different paths:…
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Yojimbo
Sanjuro (Mifune), a wandering samurai (rōnin), arrives in a small town where competing crime lords vie for supremacy. After proving his skill as a master swordsman by swiftly dispatching three thugs, the two bosses each seek to hire the newcomer as a bodyguard, with a view to eradicating their opponent and securing control of the…
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In Bruges
Hiding out in the Belgian city of Bruges after a hit-job in London results in the accidental death of a child, gunman Ray (Farrell) and his mentor Ken (Gleeson) try to pass the time as they await judgement by their gang boss Harry (Fiennes). In a witty script, the pair discuss life and the nature…
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Souzhou River
Suzhou River mixes love story and crime genres in a modern film noir. Set in the urban decay of post-industrial Shanghai the film is peopled with gangsters, street hustlers and nightclub denizens. In a plot that twists and turns the narrator keeps us guessing whether the central story is about his love for Meimei (Xun…
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Gomorra
Gomorra caused quite a buzz on release in the US and across Europe. The gritty realism used in telling the story of Naples much bigger and wealthier version of the Mafia, the Camorra, explodes the myth of Hollywood’s treatment of mob drama, which often suffuses the violence with a romantic glow of period nostalgia or…
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Sus
It is election night 1979 and Margaret Thatcher is about to come into power. A young black man is held on suspicion of murdering his pregnant wife. Officers Karn and Wilby, racist to the core and high on the prospect of a Conservative Party victory, try to lure the suspect into a quick confession. But…
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Les Diaboliques
Michel Delasalle (Meurisse) is the headmaster of a boys boarding school near Paris. He is verbally and physically abusive of both his wife Christina (Vera Clouzot) and his mistress, Nicole Horner (Signoret). The two women join forces to murder him, drowning him in his bath and subsequently attempting to make it look like suicide. When…
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Nightcrawler
A pulse-pounding thriller set in the nocturnal underbelly of contemporary Los Angeles. Lou Bloom is a driven young man desperate for work who discovers the high-speed world of L.A. crime journalism. Joining a group of freelance camera crews who specialize in filming crashes, fires, murder and other mayhem, known as nightcrawlers, Lou muscles into the…
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The Mafia Kills Only in Summer
Putting an irreverent rom-com spin on the organized crime genre, this deceptively sunny rites-of-passage drama marks the big-screen debut of Pierfrancesco “Pif” Diliberto (b. 1972), best known in Italy as a television host and current-affairs satirist. Taking its title from one of the myths that the film’s young hero is taught to believe, The Mafia…
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The Glass Key
Renowned crime novelist Dashiell Hammett’s tale of big-city political corruption The Glass Key was originally filmed in 1935, starring George Raft. This version was devised as a follow-up vehicle for its charismatic lead Alan Ladd, who had recently impressed in This Gun for Hire; and with Hammett’s stock in Hollywood high in the wake of…
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Genre: Crime
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